The GFUL have recently sent a team of coaches to the Hervey Bay / Bundaberg area of Queensland in response to a request for coaching and training assistance.     GFUL Director of Umpiring, Steve Keating, Senior Field Umpire Mark Bushfield, Boundary Umpire Coach, Brian Hunter-Evans and Senior Goal Umpire, Mark Osborne, along with VCFL Umpiring Development Manager, Rod Threlfall, made up the team which visited the Wide Bay Umpiring Association in Hervey Bay.  

This initiative of the GFUL has the moral support of the VCFL and AFL and if proved to be successful, may lead to some funding support next year, as apart from a small contribution from the VCFL, the visit was totally funded by the umpires themselves.   The GFUL initiative will hopefully open the door for more coaching visits by the GFUL to developing states less fortunate than we are here in Geelong.   It is also hoped that the GFUL initiative will rub off on to some of the other larger VCFL umpiring groups with coaching expertise to follow suit and provide opportunities to assist other less fortunate umpiring groups in the regional areas of the developing football states.  Already, interest has been shown by some Southern NSW and ACT umpiring groups to have the GFUL visit them next year.