On a fine Sunday morning in late August, Fletcher Hunt ran out for the Lockhart Demons and kicked a season-high five goals to help his Australian Rules side to an 84-13 win over the Rand-Walbundrie Tigers.
When the Demons under-14s side returns to the same ground in Walbundrie on Saturday, it will be a team in mourning, after the deaths of 10-year-old Fletcher, his mother Kim Hunt, 41, and sisters Mia, 8, and Phoebe, 6, at the hands of their father.
The bodies of the mother and children were found at their NSW Riverina homestead on Tuesday.
Police said a gun was found with the body of 44-year-old farmer Geoff Hunt, pulled out of a dam on the family's Boree Creek Road property, 13 kilometres from Lockhart, on Wednesday.
Just a few days earlier, Mr Hunt had umpired Fletcher's minor semi-final.
A minute's silence will be observed when the team trots out, trying to make the Hume Football League grand final.
The team will wear black armbands in honour of No.4 and his family.
The club also will play in the face of grief with a presentation day planned for Sunday having been postponed.
Australian Rules is a big part of life in the Riverina, and Lockhart mayor Peter Yates says Saturday will be a hard day for the club.
He said it would be a long time before the 900-strong town comes to terms with the tragic events of the past week.
"The town is still in a state of shock, of course. It's going to be very, very difficult to get over," Mr Yates said on Friday.
"But what we need now is a period of mourning to occur."
Earlier this week, Lockhart club president Michael Tullberg said the best thing the community could do was to come together and help each other through the pain.
"A lot of people are hurting over this. If this can happen to a family like that, it could happen to everyone," he said.
* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467.
Share
