The On The Ball program has kicked off for 2006 with students from St Bernard’s College and Eaglehawk Secondary College attending phase one of the program at Windy Hill.

A program run by the Bill Hutchison Foundation in conjunction with Netball Victoria and the Essendon Football Club, On The Ball aims to improve the health of adolescents by encouraging them to get involved in sport and to stay involved.

The Windy Hill visit involves a football and netball clinic, a tour of the Hall of Fame and player facilities and an auditorium discussion. The auditorium session focuses on the benefits of being involved in organised activities such as sport and explores issues such as risk taking and decision making.

The sessions are facilitated by Essendon players including Mark McVeigh, Scott Lucas and Nathan Lovett-Murray, and former Australian netballers Shelley O’Donnell and Eloise Southby-Halbish.

Approximately 1000 students from six schools throughout Melbourne’s north-west and Bendigo will participate in the program in 2006. Subsequent phases of the program involve follow-up visits to schools and a series of community forums for parents, teachers, coaches and administrators.