Can I thank Mick for the Welcome to Country and I also acknowledge the traditional owners and land and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging.
To all the distinguished guests who are here today as well.
In February 2024, we were just out there, there was a pile of earth, breaking ground on this new facility.
I said to the Premier of Victoria, whoever's in charge here of getting this infrastructure done, we need to get them in charge of a few of our programs around the country, because this is an extraordinary achievement on time and on budget.
And like my friend, the Victoria Premier, we're both infrastructure nerds who got to go on the Metro here yesterday, which will be a game changer but other infrastructure projects as well.
This is a growing part of Melbourne, and this is about the Hawthorn Football Club, but it's about more than that. It's about this community in the south eastern suburbs of Melbourne, and about the growth and giving them and giving them access.
And that's why I'm very pleased that Clare O'Neil and Mark Dreyfus from my team are here today, as well as local members, and in Clare's case, a fellow Hawthorn tragic.
This is so exciting to see a big vision turn into a reality.
Seeing the difference in a world class facility like this can make to people and to communities.
John Kennedy, of course, his statute, I'm very pleased to see has made the trip from Waverley Park, famously said, it is never enough to hope or think, you have to do, you have to do something, as he famously said.
Our Government is proud to have supported the work with the Hawthorn Football Club, the Victorian Government, and the Kingston City Council.
So to all of you who have worked so hard to believe deliver this project, you have indeed done something and you've done something extraordinary.
As Hawks supporter, of course, I hope that this is a launching pad for a 2026 Premiership.
But as an Australian, I'm so pleased that this is a place that belongs to the community, because that's what sport in Australia is all about.
This morning, I was on Nova radio and I had Jason's son, 13 year old, had recorded some questions for me about the social media ban coming on December 10.
And one of the things that that's about is getting kids off their devices and onto the sporting fields.
In order to do that, we need to give them access. We need to, in particular, support young girls coming on.
The idea, when I was the age of the footballers today, that young girls and women will be playing top level AFLW and NRLW was something that wouldn't have been seen.
We are in a revolution and that is a great thing.
But we need to do everything we can to give young people the opportunity to be the best in life.
Because playing team sport teaches you how to win, teaches you how to lose, it teaches you resilience. Importantly, it teaches you, you can have the best player in the league, unless you've got the best team, it doesn't count for much.
And that sense of belonging is so important.
Hawks have always taken pride in being the community club. These facilities show that you are the community club.
We want people to spend more time on ovals, more time on netball courts, on tennis courts, in swimming pools. More time learning an instrument, more time engaging, actually talking to each other.
And you can be so proud of what you have done here. Thanks very much.