“It’s really good to be back”
A connection to the community in Ballarat has been one of the many highlights for young Dog, James O’Donnell during the Club’s community camp.
The Dogs have spent two days between Ballarat, Ararat, Stawell and Horsham visiting schools, hosting clinics and engaging with supporters from around the region.
Entering his third season at the Kennel, O’Donnell spoke fondly about the ability to return to the area and spend time with the passionate Dogs’ fans.
“We love coming down here and supporting the community,” O’Donnell said
“They love it down here in Ballarat.
“They love the Bulldogs and we look forward to coming down here each year. It’s really good to be back.
“We’ve had a long-standing partnership with Ballarat and the community always gets around us when we do.”
The trip will be one of several for the year for the O’Donnell and the Dogs, who will play at Mars Stadium twice in 2025.
Their ‘home away from home’ has proven to be a place of great success for the Dogs, who have only lost four games at the venue over the time playing there.
While the group enjoy all aspects of the games at Mars Stadium, O’Donnell also believes it is turning into a competitive advantage for the team.
“I love it. It’s that country-feel of a game and it feels like you’re playing local footy again,” he said
“We enjoy coming down here and always taking on teams that probably don’t like to come down.
“We make it into a bit of a fortress and a home deck for us. We definitely love coming down here.”
The trip to Ballarat comes as the Club today announced an extension to their partnership with Visit Victoria and the City of Ballarat for a further three years.
Beginning in 2017, the renewal will now see the partnership extend beyond a decade with the Dogs to continue to play games at Mars Stadium across both the AFL and AFLW competitions.
