A Hillside man is on a mission to get children away from the Xbox and out onto the basketball court.
Ben Cassar has been attaching nets to basketball rings across Brimbank and Melton and said the idea spawned from a trip overseas.
“I went to the USA with my wife over Christmas and it struck me how every hoop over there has a net,” he said.
“So I’ve started putting them up across our courts. I try to do one a weekend,” he said.
Each net costs Mr Cassar $15, but the money doesn’t bother him.
“I’ve made it my business to drive past where I’ve put the nets up and the amount of people playing on those courts has definitely increased.
“It not only adds to the aesthetics, but it also helps with the ball. If there’s no net the ball doesn’t catch and rolls well away.”
Mr Cassar created an online presence, The Net Project, and quickly amassed hundreds of followers, who were invited to vote on where the next net would be placed.
However he’s recently run into trouble.
“The Brimbank council has started taking down my nets, apparently it’s against their policy and poses a safety concern.
“They told me someone could get their fingers caught in it or even their braces stuck.”
Mr Cassar said he was disappointed with the resistance and has vowed to follow protocol to get the nets back up.
“I went along to the council meeting last week and they spent a lot of time speaking about sport and how they want to get people in Brimbank more active by providing them with better facilities and equipment.
“That’s exactly what I’m doing.”
More information: www.facebook.com/thenetproject
