By Alex Baldie – President of the Footscray Flickers Crokinole Club (FFCC)
A Japanese man, a Tibetan man, a Brazilian man and an Ecuadorian man walk into an Italian restaurant, run by Indians, to play a Canadian board game, at an event run by Anglo Aussies, in a suburb seasoned with Vietnamese flavour.
This is a peak Footscray scenario, right?
The Canadian game I speak of is called crokinole, a game that was once ranked 78 out of 107,000 other games by the Board Game Geek website. I am proud to say that my buddy Des and I are the co-founders of the Footscray Flickers Crokinole Club – and we’re on the cusp of the club’s 5th Birthday milestone!
But firstly, let’s rewind the clock back to roughly five and half years ago, when Melbourne was 44 days into dreary Covid lockdown.
On June 6th 2020, Des sent me a YouTube link called ‘Crokinole – Shut Up and Sit Down Review’, and let me know he wanted to find a board to buy. Des asked his dad if he could make a board, and his dad obliged.
Then, on July 2nd, Des receives the home-made crokinole board, made in Queensland and posted to Footscray. He sends me a photo of the bounty. Many vigorous games ensue.
Let’s propel forward to September 19th. A volley of Facebook messages between myself and Des take place, and they are very significant on this day, as a fresh idea to start a community group is born.
To sum it up, Des texted me and said that the matches between us might be the closest we will get to an Australian series, and that crokinole in Australia just needs some ‘youthful enthusiasm’. I reply that we can inject that into the game. Next, Des has his legendary moment, and he pops the question: ‘What about a Footscray Crokinole Club?’ The rest is history.
Now let’s slide forward 2 more months to November 2020. Five years ago.
Des and I hold our inaugural Footscray Flickers event to a humble crowd of six people. Who could have predicted the direction our club would take?
Noteworthy dates in the next half-decade period include:
15 August 2022 – A book called ‘Crokinole: The Illustrated Guide’ by Michel Cloutier is published, and the Footscray Flickers get a lovely mention.
3 August 2023 – We announce we are now sponsored by Tracey Boards, the elite board builders for the World Crokinole Championships. This is the most prestigious crokinole tournament globally.
21 September 2022 – I make the pilgrimage to Ontario, Canada to meet Jeremy Tracey, the Founder and CEO of Tracey Boards. He’s a top crokinole player globally and a significant ambassador for the game of crokinole. Jeremy claims that the Footscray Flickers are by far the best crokinole club in all of Australia!
14 June 2023 – Katie Hall MP attends our June event. The next day she writes a glowingly positive review about our club on her Facebook page.
7 October 2023 – Our club brings crokinole to PAX Australia for the first time. We will continue to bring the crokinole to Australia’s biggest gaming festival on a yearly basis.
11 October 2023 – A record attendance number for the FFCC! 53 flickers in the tournament at our October event!
18 October 2023 – The FFCC gets a shout out by Katie Hall MP in the Legislative Assembly Chamber of the Parliament of Victoria, and claims the club has created an amazing community. She also remarks that we are the largest crokinole club in the southern hemisphere.
1 September 2024 – The Footscray Flickers get the spotlight in Ceridwen Spark’s article called ‘Games Night’ for The Monthly magazine. This newsletter is widely regarded as one of Australia’s most respected publications.
11 October 2024 – The Footscray Flickers teach crokinole to Dan Clancy, CEO of Twitch TV, at PAX Australia.
30 September 2025 – We gain a second sponsor, Jenjo Games.
14 November 2025 – We will hold our 5th birthday event! We hope to see you there!
Join us on Friday 14th November, 7pm at Domenicos Pizza.
Come and discover the simple rules that make crokinole a joy to play, as we celebrate this five-year journey of trying to become one of Australia’s most inclusive, welcoming and fun-filled communities. It’s no mistake that our Instagram reads ‘Australia’s most loved crokinole club.’ Here’s to many more years of flicking fun!
