The Blues’ home ground remains in a race against time to be ready for the clash with Bungaree on April 18 after extensive drainage and resurfacing works.

Ballan president Billy Smith said it was a matter of waiting for the grass coverage to fully come through and that he believed it was a “50-50” chance the Blues would host the Demons at Maddingley Park.

He said the club had considered shifting the match to Korweinguboora – where Ballan cricketers have played throughout the season – but had decided against it because of the lack of netball courts at the venue.

There have also been discussions about reversing the round-three fixture with Gordon – currently scheduled for Ballan – if the ground is still not ready.

Smith remained confident that the worse-case scenario would see the Blues on home soil by the round-five match with Learmonth.

“If you drive in it looks like it’s perfect, but if you go and walk on there’s a few little

bare patches. They are starting to come through now,” he said.

“We don’t want to wreck the ground for the long-term future. There’s no point jumping on it, then wrecking the ground and we are off it for the whole year.

“If we can bear a bit of pain at the start of the year, hopefully, we will be on it for the rest of the year.”

Smith said new and bigger goalposts had been installed at the ground, which has been unfit for the club to use throughout its preseason preparations. Instead, the Blues have utilised a range of facilities, including the Darley Civic Hub, Ballan Primary School and the CFA Training College at Fiskville.

The Blues are preparing for their second full season under coach Mark Williams and will kick-start their campaign with a round-one clash at Creswick on April 11.

tim.oconnor@fairfaxmedia.com.au