Tuggeranong tots bounce back from MiniRoos shutdown

Four-year-old Andoni Proestos pulled on his football boots and refused to take them off all morning in anticipation for his first MiniRoos match.

He'd spent months nagging his parents about football's return and had been practicing with dad in the backyard.

And the practice paid off when Andoni joined his Tuggeranong teammates for the first time at Wannaissa Playing Fields on Saturday.

He was among some of the first kids to play in an organised competition as Canberra sports bounce back from the coronavirus-forced shutdown.

And Laura Proestos was just beaming to finally watch her son play.

"It's really great to get back to normal and see the kids running around," she said.

"This is his first time playing soccer, he was so excited. He has been wearing his boots all morning, it's so cute because he wouldn't take them off.

"It was a real letdown [when the season was suspended]. He'd been asking about it because he knew he was going to play all year. When we registered him earlier this week, he went straight into class to tell his friends he was playing soccer."

Tuggeranong United was the first club to launch their MiniRoos season on Saturday, with more Capital Football clubs to follow in the coming weeks.

A Saturday spent at the soccer field seemed almost normal in a post-coronavirus world.

The carpark was overflowing. Passionate parents yelled and cheered from the sidelines. And of course, the scent of the sausage sizzle still gradually wafted over the field.

But the mere sight of a few hand sanitiser stations was a stark reminder that the health crisis isn't over yet.

Tuggeranong United had their Return To Play plan in place, with exclusion zones set up around each field and a COVID-19 compliance officer was present to ensure social distancing was maintained.

Six matches were played across three fields to adhere to restrictions and the club split the age groups into three time slots for a greater impact.

Despite all the complexities, Tuggeranong United president Stan Mitchell says it was worth it to see the kids smile.

"That hard work is nothing compared to seeing these kids happy," Mitchell said.

"This is for the community, the kids, and the parents who have been locked up and doing homeschooling. It's a typical winter day but it's perfect.

"Being first to play football this weekend is terrific. I know there's other clubs starting next week but at the end of the day it's all about the kids. It's the start of a new journey now which is great."

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Tuggeranong United provided its under five's players a starter kit as part of registration for their first football season.

Four-year-old Leo Sanderson woke up on Saturday morning to find it wrapped up and waiting for him as a surprise gift.

The club hand-delievered the kit to the Sanderson household on Friday night because mum Belle gave birth to their third child recently.

She took all three kids to Wannaissa Playing Fields for Leo's first game and was grateful to be among the football community again.

"The start kit was a lovely surprise for him. He woke up and was already excited about soccer, but then was extra excited to have a little bundle of goodies to go along with it," Belle said.

"It's so good to see the kids out there. It's nice to be back to real life again, going to soccer in the Canberra cold but it's awesome.

"There's that sense of community again which is awesome. Everyone seems very excited, particularly the new ones who are going to have a learning curve for the first couple of weeks. They're just bumping into each other but as a parent it's fun to watch."

Tuggeranong United will now shift their focus to the return of the National Premier League and remaining competitions on July 18.

All teams have returned to training and can now start contact sessions, following the ACT government's latest ease on restrictions.

"They're all underway, the teams are all but finalised, we're just chasing a few under 13's and 14's for our juniors," Mitchell said.

"Our junior girls program is bigger than it was last year, so we're growing the sport in the valley. It's terrific considering the environment we're in."