Friday, December 24, 2010 — Page 47

Lions decision hurts Took

From Page 48
spoils in
turkey triples
The HDFL responded by statin g
through chairman Fred Mellington
“Whilst we are happy to support their
(Great Western) decision, should the
appeal be unsuccessful they will still be
a most welcome member of our league.”
It was then left in the hands of the
current teams within the Mininera
District League, who opted against
allowing the Lions entering their league,
believing it could impact heavily on their
southern clubs and their travel, indicat-
ing that “The delegates of the MDFL
believe that it is unacceptable to lose one
or two clubs just to gain an unknown.”
Taking their case to an appeal with the
VCFL board, Great Western committee
member Dale Hurley put together a 19
page application as to why they should
be allowed into the MDFL, however this
was denied by the board who stated they
didn’t want to make a forced change.
The VCFL board stated that “The
WorkSafe VCFL Board, when consider-
ing all submissions, did not see the need
to force change at this point in time
considering the recent inclusion of the
Ararat Eagles FNC to the Mininera DFL
and were of the opinion that the Mininera
DFL be given time to consolidate before
any further changes be contemplated.”
This decision not only gutted the Lions
committee, but also was set to put a huge
hole in their playing stocks.
Player retention has been an ongoing
concern for the club since joining the
Horsham District Football League with
players essentially travelling to the west
of the club’s base, while being located in
the east.
Struggling to fill committee positions
at their annual general meeting in October
due to the uncertainty of leagues, Great
Western held another meeting last week
and found to have the same problem.
This left the club no choice but to
painfully go into recess in a bid to come
back stronger in two years time and
hopefully in the MDFL.
Mr Hurley said the feeling around the
town was shock.
“The general feeling is shock. We had
reasons why we couldn’t go on any further
and it was a tough call to make, which
we think was the right call to make,” he
said.
“Since then you’d think there would be
an element of relief but it’s the complete
opposite.
“The core group on our committee have
battled on for years and they’re just worn
out, so they can now have a break. If those
people don’t come back re-energised then
the same situation could happen again.”
Hurley said the Lions will continue to
run fundraisers throughout the year and
also encouraged other sporting clubs and
organisations to utilise the facilities.
“Any community group that wants to
use the facilities, which are in top condi-
tion, for practice matches, football and
netball carnivals etc should contact Tony
Dark at the Northern Grampians Shire
Council. We just want to see these facili-
ties utilised by anyone in the community,”
Mr Hurley said.
STAWELL - Men’s R&B competition on Tuesday
saw the talented line up of Colin Bates, Steve Davis
and Greg Randle take the spoils in the Turkey
Triples event at the Stawell Golf Club.
The trio came home strong and ahead of the
other 33 players to finish with a 54 nett and win
the day by a close margin.
Sponsored by Les Montgomery and Gus Abbott,
Bates, Davis and Randle held off Gus Abbott,
Shannon Tate and Les Montgomery, who picked
up the R&B sponsored runner up place with a nett
score of 541/2.
Des Pickford, Joe Dunn and Norm Castle played
a top round to gain third place (Ian McLean
sponsor), while the best R&B gross score came
from Bruce Evans, Ian Stewart and Peter Homden
with 65.
Nearest the pin winners on the day were Nick
Seeary on the R&B sixth, Ron Bailey on the
Richard Lipovas ninth and Grame Trickey on the
Stawell Motel 13th.
Players are asked to watch the blackboard in the
rotunda for programs and announcements. The
men’s event will take a break this Tuesday, but will
be back in action on January 4 with a stableford.

Cricket bash Albert Feher

ELECTRICIAN Rec. No.

to ignite
14572
Pty Ltd

❖ Domestic, Commercial
New Year & Industrial
❖ Servicing Ararat, Willaura
GREAT WESTERN - The Great Western township
will come alive next weekend when they host the & Surrounding District
Great Western Hotel Community Cricket match. Rec. No.14572

Great Western’s Dale Hurley turns the ball to leg during his innings against
Chalambar last Saturday. Hurley was in top form with a score of 80 runs, which
assisted the Combine in picking up outright points in the final round of matches
prior to the Christmas/New Year break.
Set as a major fundraiser for the town’s football Phone: 5352 1093 Mob: 0438 077 079
and netball club, two teams of 20 players will battle
it out for bragging rights at the Great Western
Oval.
The 20 over a side match will see the Dale Hurley
skippered Northern Knights take on the Paul
McCord led Southern Suns.
Teams are to be drawn at the Great Western
Hotel tonight, with organiser Dale Hurley expect-
ing plenty of sledging to come into place after
tonight.
“We are going to draw out players for each team,
but also draw out who each player will be bowling
and batting against. This is when the sledging will
begin,” Hurley said.
Each player will get an over each to bat and bowl,
with each over being eight balls.
Rivalries will come into play with the battle
between the McCartney family being the highlight
of the day. Tracey, David, Nick and Jayden, who
live on the south side of the highway will take on
other son Josh who lives on the north side of town,
which should provide plenty of entertainment.
Hurley said the day is being well supported, with
Great Western Shoppe, Great Western Hotel, Great
Western Garage and Fosters Mensland in Stawell
and Ararat all jumping on board to support the
day.
“We have team uniforms for the day that
Mensland have generously sponsored for us, while
teams are known as the Great Western Shoppe
Northern Knights and Great Western Garage
Southern Suns,” he said.
Cricket action starts at 11am next Sunday, with
a barbecue lunch and drinks available throughout
the day. All welcome.

Stawell Sportspower’s Angels

No Need to Panic! are Ready to Help You with
Your Last Minute Gifts!!
Shane, Robyn, Kelsey, Lici, Meg & Sam
wish everyone a very Merry Christmas
and a Safe & Happy 2011
We All Thankyou for your support throughout the year
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Friday 8.45am-5.30pm; Saturday CLOSED; Sunday CLOSED;
Monday 8.30am-2.00pm; Tuesday 8.30am-2.00pm
146 Main Street, Stawell. Your sports, fishing & marine specialists. We’re on your team! Phone: (03) 5358 1038