The Championships: Event Update and Community Support

Dear Championships Participants,

Touch Football Australia (TFA) would like to provide you with a further update on the status of The Championships and the conditions of the stadium precinct, as well as more information on travel and our intentions for further community support in the Mid-North Coast region.

1. Community Support
2. Coffs Harbour Field & Venue Status Update
3. Travel Information

 

1. Community Support

TFA extends its heartfelt concern and empathy to all those impacted by the recent flooding in the Mid-North Coast region. We recognise the immense challenges and impact from these events and our thoughts are firmly with everyone affected during this difficult time.

As a community-focused organisation, TFA is exploring ways to support those in the impacted regions ahead of The Championships in Coffs Harbour this week – including volunteering efforts, a donation matching scheme through GIVIT which will be shared onsite and via our social channels, and we’re working with our commercial partners on ways they can get involved in relief efforts. Our goal is to help the community recover in any way we can, and we are open to ideas and feedback on how to help.

 

2. Coffs Harbour and Venue Status Update

TFA continues to liaise with City of Coffs Harbour to ascertain the status of the region and the venue. Thankfully the weather over the weekend was favourable and the forecast in the lead-up to the event is positive. We would like to advise the following information:

• C.ex Coffs International Stadium is still on track to have 11 fields available for this week’s event – this includes two synthetic turf fields.
• All roads are open within Coffs Harbour.
• All supermarkets and shopping centres are operating as normal with any supply shortages expected to be resolved early this week.
• All accommodation providers are operating as normal and look forward to welcoming participants ahead of this week.
  • Please note that some local hotels are used for emergency accommodation (for various reasons, including the floods) but we have been advised that these are not generally the hotels that participants are staying in.
• Local business Hoey Moey has advised that they will be extending their Bistro hours to 9:30pm Friday and Saturday due to the revised draw and late finish times.
• DoorDash will also be supplying all participating teams with a $200 voucher to use as a Team Meal.
• TFA will provide a further update and revised draw by Wednesday evening.

 

3. Travel Route Information to Coffs Harbour

TFA strongly advises all participants to consult the Live Traffic NSW website for real-time updates on road conditions and closures caused by the recent weather which could impact their travel plans. Additionally, the City of Coffs Harbour Disaster Dashboard provides comprehensive information on local emergencies, including flood incidents and road statuses.

For example, as of today Monday 26^th May, several key routes between Newcastle and Coffs Harbour remain affected including:

• Pacific Highway: Open in both directions, including the previously impacted section between Coopernook and Purfleet near Taree. However, travellers should remain alert to changing conditions and possible delays.
• Oxley Highway: Closed between Thrumster and Wauchope, as well as at Rosewood, Long Flat, and Mount Seaview due to flood damage and debris.
• Giinagay Way: Closed between North Macksville and Nambucca Heads due to flooding.
• Waterfall Way: Closed in multiple sections, including between Bellingen and Raleigh, and between Dorrigo Mountain and Thora.
• Failford Road: Closed between the Pacific Highway (Maitland Road) and the Newcastle Inner City Bypass.

However, it’s important to note that road conditions can change at any time with ongoing weather events, and we advise travellers to stay up to date with Live Traffic NSW.

Thank you for your continued patience and understanding. We understand there are significant challenges across our whole community leading into this event, but we hope that the power of sport can bring us all together to lift the community with a positive focus. We wish our participants safe travels ahead of The Championships on Friday.

Warm regards,

Touch Football Australia