South West Soccer Association men’s premier league forced into reshuffle by Busselton City’s late withdrawal

Busselton City have withdrawn their team from the South West Soccer Association men’s premier league on the eve of the season, forcing the competition into a late reshuffle. Despite winning the league only two seasons ago, the club has opted not to field a team after being unable to secure a place in one of the competition’s lower divisions. The premier league started over the weekend, with the club fixtured to go up against Hay Park United. A statement from the club’s committee said the decision had not been made lightly. “As a committee we take responsibility and apologise to those members who will not have the opportunity to play in the South West competition this year,” it said. “This is extremely disappointing for our club and our community as we have always been a large, proud and competitive club with the goal of offering football to be played by anyone in the community regardless of their skills or experience. “We put a call out to all of those who support us: We need you now, more than ever. We need your support and assistance as we face this challenge. Reach out, we would love to hear from you.” The club said they would now focus their efforts on a return to the competition next year. The first men’s premier league contests of the season saw defending champions Football Margaret River defeat Bunbury United 6-0, Bunbury Dynamos edge out Dalyellup Park Rangers 1-0 and Dunsborough Town and Australind draw at 1-1. For the remaining women’s games, the live scoring app Squadi had not been updated before the Herald went to print.