The North West Travel League, an initiative from Sunshine, Northern District and Keilor Park Softball Associations, have won the inaugural Sports Accounting Australia Sport Initiative of the Year Award.

The League was recognised last night by VicSport during their Victorian Sport Awards where they were nominated alongside projects from Rowing Victoria, Orienteering Victoria and Triathalon Victoria.

At the time of the North West Travel League forming, there was still uncertainty on whether the softball season would be able to commence in 2020 due to COVID-19.

Realising the impact that COVID-19 had with many players and officials from their respective associations deciding not to return to the sport post COVID-19, including the financial impact, three Associations (Northern District, Sunshine and Keilor Park) formed a partnership and developed the North West Travel League to ensure once restrictions eased and sport could resume and a competition was available for their members and the wider community.

Chaminda Fernando from Northern District Softball Association joined the VicSport coverage to accept the award.

"We weren't really sure how the season was going to go to be honest," Fernando said.

"So we worked really closely with Softball Victoria and Whittlesea City Council to get things underway, we all worked really hard with parents, players and officials to come up with a plan just to see how we'd go.

The feedback from the players was overwhelmingly positive, they were pretty happy with the season, we had a couple of hiccups due to restrictions like not using the clubrooms and facilities so it was difficult but I'm glad at the end it all worked out.

"I'm so glad we got to complete a whole season, I'm sure all of us at Keilor Park, Sunshine and Northern District are thrilled to have this award."

The North West League was forced into a number of unique requirements as the state emerged from COVID restrictions including:

• Adopting modified non-contact Fully Loaded Softball Rules to meet non-contact requirements
• Allowing for associations and clubs to share grounds, players, officials, equipment, resources and volunteers
• With support from Softball Victoria, implementing COVID Safe measures and adhered to COVID Safe protocols and return to sport guidelines

In total, the league saw 300 players, 30 Officials and an additional 30+ volunteers to pull off the season uninterrupted. As a result, the Associations saw a 9% increase in membership from the beginning of the opening round, a reduction in membership decline, but most importantly, they provided an opportunity for hundreds of participants of all ages, gender and abilities to get active and play competitive sport again post COVID-19.