![Corowa-Rutherglen, CDHBU, Wahgunyah and Rutherglen form the 'Corowa Cluster' Corowa-Rutherglen, CDHBU, Wahgunyah and Rutherglen form the 'Corowa Cluster'](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/131362666/35c45193-1013-4d5e-bfe3-933847e0f1b3.jpg/r0_0_2062_1159_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Corowa-Rutherglen has been in talks with another club over a possible merger in the past 48 hours.
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Roos officials have urged the community to embrace change as they prepare for a year without senior football or netball at John Foord Oval.
Merger discussions with neighbouring Rutherglen, Wahgunyah and CDHBU have broken down in previous years but Corowa-Rutherglen vice-president Craig Spencer revealed the proposal was back on the table.
"In November 2021, we got the four clubs together to talk about the community situation because we felt that every club was in the same boat," Spencer said.
"One club had been down the merger track a number of times and weren't really interested in talking to mergers.
"Another club was going through some real hardships around playing numbers and were struggling to come up with a joint idea about how to go forward, so there wasn't quite the appetite because they had more immediate problems to solve.
"The other club were very open to listen but it probably wasn't as high a priority at that time.
"Throughout 2022, we made approaches to another club who were struggling, to get them to the table, but that didn't eventuate in any form.
"But as far as the future goes, we still have clubs in discussion with us as late as Wednesday and Thursday.
"We've been proactive at trying to bring our community clubs together but, as we are all guilty of, we all want to fight for our tribe and keep it surviving.
"But change is inevitable and the more we fight against change, the harder the solution becomes.
"Change is definitely upon us, it's happening more rapidly now than it's ever happened before and we have to embrace it and try to solve the problem as a community.
"The things that should be drawing us together are essentially pulling us apart, year after year.
"We're talking families, friends, neighbours and work-mates; pulling each other apart because we have a problem in our area where we have too many jumpers and not enough players to fill them and that's become evident in a big way this year."
Club members will decide later this month on whether the club should go into a 'reset', with 75 per cent of the vote required to pass a special resolution.
But Steve Owen, who coached Rutherglen before stepping up to replace Peter German at John Foord Oval, is looking further ahead.
"Regardless of the decision that's made in three weeks' time, the footballing landscape in this region as a whole needs to be considered," Owen said.
"What does the community want? Do we want to have a representation in the Ovens and Murray Football League, the highest level in the area, and is the community willing to support this and do what is needed to make this team successful?
"Or do we need to look at a merger, a re-brand, a re-alignment with a fellow club and look to be represented in a different league?
"Any reset has to include a reduction of player jumpers in this Corowa cluster, otherwise the current teams cannot survive."
Beau Longmire, speaking on behalf of the club's football department, agreed.
"Our history is steeped in change, as it is for Wahgunyah, Rutherglen and CDHBU," Longmire said.
"Change has been going on for 100 years and it must continue to happen.
"It's my opinion we haven't changed quickly enough and we haven't really changed a whole lot in the last 30-40 years in our little community.
"We can blame AFLNEB for not enforcing change, for not forcing clubs to merge, we can blame the Ovens and Murray or we can blame district league clubs but this is a community problem.
"The community should come up with the answers because they're the ones that need to support it."
Roos president Graham Hosier is open to a merger.
"I think it needs to be looked at," he said.
"The district clubs need to get together and ask what's best for footy and for our kids in the future?
"If that means that one, two or three clubs need to merge, I think it really needs to be looked at.
"People need to get out of their comfort zone and try something different. The main reason is footy, our future and our kids."
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