For once, this kind of public complaint was dead on accurate. Indeed, when the Sydney Funnel Web spider is considered, “dead on” is totally right since those things have highly neurotoxic venom that can kill and adult, let alone a small child. Little kids should be encouraged to play with Aussie spiders as much as they should be encouraged to play with loaded guns, the risk with both being about the same.
Those funnel web spiders will chase you, they can bite right through a sneaker. If your yard has an infestation the entire yard would have to be excavated down three feet and hauled off and new dirt brought in.