Pools of standing water have formed on the northern end of the oval, with the club claiming existing drainage infrastructure is blocked.

The Wickers have been training at their former base at Hammon Park and have played away matches the past two weeks, but are due to host Buninyong this weekend.

Hepburn Shire mayor Don Henderson was unsure on Monday whether the match would need to be moved.

Creswick president Peter Considine believes Doug Lindsay Reserve won’t host another match this season.

“At the moment (the oval) has had a good break, but it’s still covered in water,” Considine said.

“If we play on it against Buninyong, are (council) going to turn around and say it’s wrecked and we can’t use it for the rest of the year?

“It’s like the sword of Damocles hanging over our head. It’s not a matter of if it’s going to drop, it’s a matter of when.”

The Wickers moved to their new home ground at the beginning of 2012, but the playing surface has been plagued by problems.

The club was forced to relocate for its last two home games in 2012, after the oval was deemed unsafe due to stones in the topsoil.

And the Wickers’ had to move another match last year because Doug Lindsay Reserve was waterlogged.

The drainage issues stem from a September 2012 council meeting, when a vote was held regarding remedial works to the oval.

“Option 1 was to put herringbone drainage through it and do it properly and ... I actually moved a motion to do that,” Cr Henderson said.

“My motion was defeated 4-3 and the council made the decision to take Option 3, which was the choice of the football club and a few of the councillors.”

Considine said the Wickers had supported the cheaper Option 3 as they were told by Hepburn Shire’s general manager of infrastructure that the ground might not be ready for the 2013 season if council voted for Option 1.

Option 3, which involved topping the oval with sandy loam and oversowing with cool-climate grass, was the option recommended by Hepburn Shire’s general manager of infrastructure.

“Yes, he did recommend that after consultation with the football club,” Cr Henderson said.

“Ultimately the council did make that decision on a vote of 4-3. And here we are — it’s certainly a mess.

“My view is we need to spend the money and do it properly.

“However, we’ve got more than one football ground in the shire, some with substandard facilities, and we can’t keep allocating all our recreation money to one ground.”

Council was due to meet yesterday to discuss options to repair the ground, Cr Henderson said on Monday.

“We might have to do some remedial work to just patch it up for now,” he said.

AFL Goldfields general manager Rod Ward said he had called a meeting with Creswick and Hepburn Shire next week.

“We’ve just got to work towards trying to get a solution,” Ward said.

“The club has contributed enormously, as has the council, but there are ongoing issues and we just need to get them addressed.”