Sport

Viv Markham. No matter how many lattes are sipped in Main Street, the true, beating heart of Maldon lies up at the Bill Woodfull Recreation Reserve - it’s the Maldon Football Netball Club (MFNC). One of Maldon’s best-loved institutions, the MFNC celebrated its 150th anniversary in style last weekend.

From Nobby to Westbrook and everywhere in between, locals ventured out west last Saturday for the first ever Pittsworth Pro Rodeo. The rodeo was a raging success, with more than 3,500 people through the gates and top class action as well as local juniors delighting an all-ages crowd.

When the show scene goes into hibernation over winter in the southern states, the Northern Territory springs into action. The NT has an active show horse community and several top-class shows are run during the dry season, including the Darwin Show Horse Club's State Show Horse and Riding Championships that has just been held at the Darwin Showgrounds.

Playing games on horseback is not just for kids. The 37th World Championships for Adult Mounted Games will be held at Werribee Park from October 8 to 15, with 18 nations competing. Most would know the story of how Mounted Games were created by Prince Philip as a competition for children who could not afford an expensive, purebred pony and that in 1957 the Horse of the Year Show staged the first Mounted Games Championship for the Prince Philip Cup.

On Saturday 8th July a small group of Nhill Auskick registered kids were invited to play at Marvel Stadium; during the halftime match between St Kilda and Melbourne ... Every child was smiling and playing just like their adult idols and you could see the determination on their faces to mark, collect and control the ball and kick to their teammates.

Carl and Marcy Agnew have been  publicans  at the Dog n Bull Hotel in Bonalbo for almost a year ... No one told him about the Bonalbo Bonanza Campdraft tradition. The one where the horses come into the pub.

The boxing club tucked away in a Woodburn laneway was flooded last year ... The Woodburn Amateur Boxing Club has been going since 1989 and a recent grant of $5000 from Richmond Valley Council has meant the club could replace the punching bags, boxing gloves and focus mitts.

Whether you are a coach of a junior sports team, president of a volunteer organisation, manager of a workplace, teacher or parent, an ability to coach and influence others is a life skill. Regional Australia has a long and proud history of coaching and influencing each other. It is how we get through difficult times together.

One of the world’s fastest and most iconic bowlers, former Australian cricketer Brett Lee, is taking Australian avocados to consumers in India. Hort Innovation has announced that the popular sportsman, at home and across the globe, has signed up as the new Australian Avocados ambassador.

The Narrandera Lizards scored a 24-18 win over the Ivanhoe Roosters in a Proten Cup grand final rematch at the Narrandera Sportsground on Saturday. The Roosters got out to a 12-0 lead but the Lizards retaliated through Geoff Johnson and skipper Campbell Lyons to level the game at 12-all.

Macorna Football Netball Club (FNC) will play host to the Golden Rivers Indigenous Round between Macorna and Wandella this Saturday, July 8 ... Each team will wear specially designed Indigenous Round uniforms, which were introduced to Senior levels in 2021.

The dreams of four young Australian riders came true when they lined up to compete in the Global Amateur Tour held at Quintas Equestrian Centre near Puebla in Mexico ... It is a two-star FEI event that includes international riders on borrowed mounts and local riders on their own horses.

The Milang Horse Trials in South Australia provided competitors with a great weekend, even though the weather gods threw everything at them ... Horse trial classes were run from EA 95, where the winner in the senior section was Jayden Coates and Deltoi rising from fourth after dressage.

Shane Grover. On Tuesday 20th June 2023 Nhill Golf Club hosted the Golf Australia Nhill Primary School Tournament ... 30 students were selected by travelling Golf Pro Tony Collier from Dimboola Primary, St. Peters Dimboola, Nhill Lutheran, St. Patrick's Nhill and Nhill College.

Nhill-based Kermit Racing team recently completed their first event for 2023 at Winton Raceway, near Benalla ... Twenty-two cars finished the event, from 34 starters, with Kermit Racing finishing 17th overall and 8th in class.

From an early age Reagan participated and excelled in all sports at Allora P-10 State School. Swimming, cross country, track & field, shot put, hammer throwing and rugby - she did it all - then became Sports Captain of Deacon House.

More than half of Dunoon United FC’s footballers this season are female - and it’s believed this is first time any club in the region has achieved the feat. "After years of pushing female participation we’ve finally broken the 50 per cent barrier," said club president Simon Webster.

“Freeriding is an extreme, high speed, aggressive sport. It's all about big mountains and steep slopes. To me, it's far more interesting than snowboarding down the same run over and over again. Where’s the challenge in that? In freeriding you go to places others don’t go."

From June 17 to 25, 2023, the Special Olympics World Games took place in Berlin and for the first time in Germany, and Sophie Nichols of Watchem was thrilled to be able to compete.

Pam Dillon. Two teams from several remote schools in the Barkly travelled to Darwin last week to participate in the NT 12 Years & Under Soccer Championships. The competition in both the boys and girls competitions was strong and all of our students played well.

The Barkly Regional Council’s Youthlinx School Holiday Program has been extremely busy with a range of activities including basketball and volleyball whilst partnering with Build It Up Skateboarding and Dream Impact to deliver a boxing program.

After a scare last week against Tumbarumba, Cudgewa wreaked havoc on a hapless Corryong on Saturday with the much vaunted Blues’ key forward setup of Drew Cameron, Adam Prior and Josh Bartel posting 24 of their 35 goals in a 203-point demolition. With Darcy McKimmie, Mitch Pynappels and Drew Carey running riot from the first bounce the Blues attack feasted on the delivery to rack up 20 goals by the long break to the opposition’s one.