Breaking Barriers Project

Question: What is this Project all about?

Answer: Berwick City Soccer Club was approached midway through 2025 by a media and marketing agency called Bruce with an opportunity to partner with them on an exciting project they were embarking upon. Bruce has a high level of experience and expertise in football and high-end videography and social media production. The concept was fairly simple - partner together on Australia’s version of Welcome To Wrexham, with the ultimate ambition of rising all the way to the A-League one day. Right now that is not possible given there is no promotion and relegation, but the pitch was that this project, if done right, could bring about that change in Australian football that a lot of people are clamouring for. Bruce went through a process to identify the most appropriate club to partner with on this journey, and had identified Berwick City as its preferred choice. After careful consideration by the Club, it decided to give the project a go.

Q: What is Berwick City Soccer Club paying to have this documentary done about them?

A: Nothing. We are not paying the production company, Bruce, a single sent for production of the documentary. We have agreed to split any proceeds from the documentary 50-50. We have also agreed, in recognition of their work for us, to give Bruce a minority commission on sponsorship, merchandise and membership/ticketing into the future, recognising that these revenue streams are likely to increase with the added exposure the Club will receive from this project.

Q: Will my registration fees go up to cover increased costs at the Club?

A: No. Currently, Berwick City does not use one cent of junior registration fees to pay for its senior men’s and women’s programs. It was a non-negotiable of ours - and, to be fair, also a non-negotiable of Bruce’s - that no junior registration money would be used to pay for the senior program. Any increase in costs around the club will be funded solely from sponsorship, fundraising activities and other investment. It will not impact the junior operation of the Club in the slightest.

Q: Why are we worrying about playing in the A-League? We are a community club, we should focus on our community.

A: We are a proud community club and we take incredible pride in servicing and being a pillar of our community. In fact, one of the exciting aspects of this project will be our ability to enhance what we do in the community in local schools, with local community groups, etc. The reality is, we want our senior teams to go out on the park and win each week. That starts with State League 2. Hopefully it continues with State League 1, then the Victorian Premier League and hopefully one day the National Premier League. Our aspiration for our seniors each week will never change, regardless of the league we are in - we want to win. We make no apology about that. We want to do it the right way of course, and we won’t trade in any of our core beliefs or values. But one of the great things about football the world over is the ability to climb as high as you can in your football pyramid. As football fans in Australia, we want to see that for our game here too. Will we get to the professional level one day? Who knows! Maybe, maybe not. If we do, we want to do it in a way that demonstrates that you can still be a great community-anchored club that also is able to nurture a professional senior program. If we don’t make it, we will be in a no worse-off situation, having invested into our people, into our infrastructure and into our community along the way.

Q: Is this documentary just about the senior men’s team?

A: No. This documentary, as it has been outlined to us by the production team, will be about the whole club - men’s, women’s and juniors, as well as the broader Berwick, Narre Warren and Beaconsfield communities. While in the initial phase of the Project the senior men’s team will be the primary vehicle for the Club’s climb up the Victorian football pyramid, Berwick City Soccer Club and Bruce are committed to providing the best possible environment for each of our senior men’s, senior women’s and junior teams to thrive.

Q: Who is Bruce?

A: Bruce is a media and marketing agency located in South Yarra. It specialises in videography, social media, marketing, graphic design, PR and events. Bruce works across many industries - corporate, not for profit and sport. However, its main area of expertise and passion is football. Several of its staff members have worked for the A-League, A-League clubs and Football Australia. The company is owned by former Herald Sun, Fox Sports and Optus Football journalist David Davutovic, who is currently the Socceroos Media Manager. Its COO is Matt Windley, who has become Berwick City’s vice president. Bruce, led by its Digital Media Manager James Barr, will take over the running of the Club’s social media channels. It will also help us with the sourcing of sponsorships and with the running of events. Bruce staff, be they videographers or not, will become part of the fabric of our club. Please make them welcome.

Q: Who is Matt? And how do we know he has the Club’s best interests at heart?

A: Matt has been a friend of Berwick City Soccer Club for almost a decade. Matt spearheaded the Team 11 A-League bid in 2017-18, which was South East Melbourne’s push to have a new A-League franchise based in Dandenong and Casey. Matt and his team worked very closely with the Berwick City Soccer Club committee at the time, including then president and now senior assistant coach Joe Di Iorio. Berwick City was one of Team 11‘s strongest supporters. Matt then played an instrumental role in helping Melbourne City FC relocate to Casey Fields in Cranbourne East. He is a Berwick local and has been for 15 years. Regardless of this project, we hazard a guess he would have found his way onto the Berwick City committee at some point in time. You will also see Matt with his coaching hat on in 2026, looking after the Under 8 Eagles team (Joeys) where his son is playing.

Q: How was Berwick City chosen for this project?

A: We urge you to watch the first two episodes of the Breaking Barriers documentary as this outlines the process Bruce went to through to determine which was the best club to partner with on this journey. You will see Bruce ran a legitimate process to come up with the best club for this Project. As we understand it, clubs in Mornington, Gippsland and Geelong also came under serious consideration. We were lucky enough to be identified and, after doing our own due diligence, we agreed that this exciting opportunity was too good to pass up.

Q: Where can I watch the Breaking Barriers documentary?

A: You can watch the documentary on Football 360 and on YouTube (Episode 1 here: https://youtu.be/mtpTu3RBlgU?si=1o84itsH2T1igfkj, Episode 2 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1UMjFkgWuc and Episode 3 here: https://youtu.be/a6YN-dPtdJ4?si=RgD0X8737R6GKVZq). From Episode 4 onwards the club will start to share links to episodes each week.

Q: Can I share this with my family and friends?

A: Yes. In fact, we encourage you to do so! Tell all of your family and friends!

Q: I do not want my child to be filmed as part of the documentary. Does he or she have to be involved?

A: No. Anybody who does not want to be filmed as part of this documentary will never appear in the documentary. That goes for senior players and for junior players and families. From now on you will notice cameras around the club from time to time. The primary focus of documentary filming, and interviews will be on our senior teams. However, any interviews with junior players will only ever be done with the permission of the child’s parents with the parents to be present when the interview is taking place. There will be cameras around the club at various games and training sessions. You might appear in footage in passing from time to time. If you are concerned that you may be appearing on camera, even in passing, and do not wish for this to be the case, please let Matt Windley know, and we will make sure that that footage does not make it to air. This is meant to be a fun process. It is not intended to make anyone feel uncomfortable.

Q: What if this doesn’t work? Will the Club’s future be put at risk?

A: The Club only stands to benefit from this Project. To repeat, we are not paying for this documentary. We will only be bringing in the highest quality people to be a part of our great club who can add value on and off the pitch and in our community. Ultimately this Project will only go as far as our senior teams can take us on the field. Where that journey takes us to only time will tell. However, nothing will be done or put in place that will jeopardise the long-term viability of BCSC.

Q: But what if we do actually make the A-League? The Club is not set up for that.

A: Right now this Club is not financially or constitutionally set-up to handle a professional team. However, this Project is about growing slowly and sustainably to a point where one day we may be able to bear that professional element. If that does become the case, there will be mechanisms put in place to ringfence the club’s community / junior arm to ensure that it is protected from any financial risk or liability that may come from taking on a professional establishment. The Club is in the midst of developing a comprehensive 10 Year Plan and it will be shared with members for feedback in due course.

Q: How can I support?

A: There are four things you can do right now in the short-term.

1. Come to games. We want to make Berwick City Soccer Club home matches an experience that you, your family and your friends can all enjoy together. We want nights out at Berwick City to be entertaining and wholesome, and an experience in and of itself that brings you together with friends, family and community on a regular basis.
2. Support the documentary and the club’s digital channels. Share the links around each week. Follow the club’s social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok), and convince your friends and family to do so as well. The more our online presence grows, the bigger this project can become.
3. Be Berwick proud. In time the club will embark upon new measures such as creating a new line of merchandise and memberships that will encourage the Berwick City family - and the wider community to become even more entrenched with our Club. We do have an existing stock of merchandise. If you need more, please take a look at our club shop. 
4. Join the committee, or just volunteer. This club is only as strong as its volunteers. We are still a community club. This is an exciting time to get involved. The more people that help, the less there will be for people to do. It might be helping once a week, or once a month, or a couple of times a year. Every bit helps. Please speak to Tim, Matt, Shahim or Sarah if you are interested in helping out.

Q: Will we have to pay to get into senior matches?

A: Berwick City players and parents are club members and will not have to pay to get into Berwick City matches. The committee has considered whether or not to bring in some form of ticketing system for non-members. Without a doubt in future, if and when the club rises through the ranks, it will have to introduce a ticketing system. However, it has been decided that for the 2026 season we will maintain free entry to encourage as many community members to come along and enjoy the game.

Q: If Berwick City makes the A-League, surely games are not going to be played at Jack Thomas Reserve?

A: Could you imagine?! Jack Thomas Reserve is our home and Sweeney Reserve is our satellite base. We are very proud of the facilities we boast and we are very thankful to the City Of Casey Council and to the Victorian Government for their support of our facilities over the years. We believe our facilities are of a VPL, if not NPL quality - bar, perhaps, lighting, and a couple of other small touches. However, no, it would be unrealistic to expect professional matches to be played at Jack Thomas Reserve. We have some ideas about what this may look like in future. Let’s hope it is a problem we have to worry about one day.

Q: Is the club taking on sponsors? I know my work would love to get involved.

A: Absolutely! We have introduced a new sponsorship program to the Club this year, which we will continue to grow in future seasons. It includes an entry-level Berwick Business Buddies group, which is designed to encourage as many local businesses as possible to get behind our Club and this project, but also to come together as one to network, embed themselves in our community and to help the local business community thrive as much as possible. If your business or any other businesses you know might be interested in partnering with our club in whatever way shape or form, please direct them to Matt Windley at vice.president@berwickcitysc.com

Q: Does Ed Kavalee own the club now?

A: No! Matt refers (jokingly) to Ed as our Ryan Reynolds (Ed hates that). At this point his role is purely Ambassadorial for the project. The thing about Ed is he is an absolute football fanatic. His love of the game and knowledge of the game is off the charts. He will be around the Club from time to time. You will get to know him, we will welcome him with both arms. His value comes in publicity, contacts, documentary production ideas etc as well as that left-of-centre football strategic nous. Should this Project progress to a point whereby we need to structure the Club to be able to take on a professional team (e.g. take on board a level of private investment, sell shares etc) then Ed could become a part-owner through a term called “sweat equity”. That’s a long way down the track though. For now, he does not sit on our committee nor has any money exchanged hands from him to us, or us to him.