Ron Lane
Rugby.
The appointment of the A grade captain for the season ahead, regardless of the sport, always has and always will be one of the most important decisions of the year. The right man or woman appointed to this position, will above all be a person of pride, leadership and have the willingness and ability to listen to things that they don’t wish to hear. It is this last virtue that enables the appointed captain to resolve any problem that may arise from within their ranks
For the Ray White Dolphins Rugby Union Club, this season’s appointment of Will Christie is no doubt a man possessing such virtues. Will, who takes over from last season’s captain Nick Colvin, a man who walked away with the reputation of having done a top job, has come up through the ranks. Starting as an under 11 junior tells us that here is a player, who played at scrum half, possessing the most important factor of all. Pride.
“I am beyond honoured to be named captain of this club. A club with so much history: great captains and players who have been before me. It is truly an honour and a dream come true.” We wish him all the very best.
Word from the Junior ranks tells us that Junior registration is now open and the first kit collection is this Friday the 11th. The second collection day will be Friday 18, 4 -6pm. That all important date for the commencement of training, is Tuesday 14 February for U/12 to Junior Colts and Friday March 4, U/6 to Under U/11 from 4pm. For those wishing for more info regarding registration and junior programs this can be found on Noosa Dolphins www. noosarugby.com.au To all at Dolphin Oval from the groundsmen sponsors, supporters’ players and administrators, happy hunting: and have a great season.
Little Athletics.
The two-day carnival for the Noosa Little Athletics, which was held at the Sunshine Coast Athletics Facilities, was indeed a tough one, with athletes being exposed to two days of severe headwinds and showers: however, the loud cheering of the parents provided a great moral boost for the competitors. “This was indeed a great contribution of support, for while cheering them on, the parents were struggling to keep their family tents from being blowen away. The days were indeed were a great example of a team effort with both the athletes and their families pushed to the limits.
The carnival was of the utmost importance as a top four finish in their events would see them qualify through to contest their state championships at the Queensland Sports and Athletics Centre in Brisbane over three days from the 11th to the 13th March 2022. Regarding their performance over the two difficult days Head Coach Mike Hooper said, “Our athletes, did an amazing job with 30 qualifying through to the state titles, up from 18 last season. This is a great credit to all involved with people helping every week to keep our club running so well.
Some outstanding performances from our athletes were as follows . Luca Gerrard U/13 boys won 5 medals (gold in the 100m and 200m and triple jump plus silver in the 400m and long jump). Taya Clayton also won 5 medals in the U/12 girls (gold in the 100m, silver in the 200m,80m hurdles, long jump and bronze in the triple jump). Jennifer Ladewig U/16 girls was not to be outdone, winning the gold and breaking the regional record for the 300m hurdles in very tough hurdling conditions. “Now its back to training for the next four weeks before we take on Queensland’s best athletes, at what promises to be a successful State Championships for Noosa.”
Boxing.
Our Impact Boxing team from Cooroy has seen several tournaments cancelled: however, some tournaments are now back on the go. March 5 Queensland Novice titles will get bunder way with 10 from the Impact Club competing. However, on the same weekend the Commonwealth Selection Trials will be held at Acacia Ridge. Regarding this Head Coach Mark Evans said ,’’We have two good prospects Keana Welch fighting in the 57k division and Erin Carter in the 70k. If they win through, they have a good chance of selection in the Queensland team: this would see them travel south for the Australian Titles. A win in this would see them eligible for selection for the Commonwealth Games.”
In the professional ranks Luke Martin will fight on March 19 at the Star Casino Gold Coast for the Australian Featherweight Title. Then on April 29 Kieran Whitehead will fight for the Queensland Super Middleweight Title and on the same card Bryce Hegarty will make his professional debut. Then April 30 will be a big occasion for Ben Cameron-Hands. On that evening he will continue his professional career, by having his third pro fight at the Nissan Arena in Brisbane. “It is this young lad that has drawn a lot of attention by winning his first two pro fights, after stepping up from the amateur ranks, where he made history by winning the National Golden Gloves 4 years in a row.”
Surf Lifesaving Competition.
The cancellation of surf carnivals, either because of health restrictions or surf and beach conditions, is becoming a common occurrence. The last one for the boat section occurred last weekend when the Dicky Beach boat carnival was shelved. However, not to be outdone some rowers got together and as a result Coolum and Noosa assembled on Nooses Main Beach for a morning of inter club boat racing. This may seem strange to some but, with the major carnivals the ASRL (Australian Surf Rowers League) Championships and the National Titles fast approaching, the crews must take every opportunity to compete; even if it is just a two- club unofficial event.
With a total of 9 crews in attendance, 4 from Noosa and 5 from Coolum, they organised themselves for a morning of competitive racing, that saw all crews racing six times: this gives them a hit out before the commencement of the championship season. The first major will be in a couple weeks’ time with an ASRL Open Carnival :this will be held at Elouera NSW. Organised by boat sweeps, Coolum’s Davie Tomba and Noosas Mick Gardner and Stewie Hooper, the event was a great success. If we are going to take pride in having these clubbies ware their colours and representing our communities in the major titles, then we should also join in congratulating them on taking Saturday Morning incentive: organising their own two club carnival.
For our local girl Lana Rogers, competing in last week-ends Nutri Grain Ironwoman Championship Final, was not the ending she had hoped for. Competing at Kurrawa, it was one of the biggest and toughest seas for many a season. From coach Sharlene Kelly a briefing on what occurred. “While contesting Round 4 and sitting in 4th place in the ski leg, she was unavoidable hit by another competitor’s rogue ski (a loose ski from which the rider has been knocked off) and this all but ended her day finishing 19th. This of course cost her any chance of winning the series.”
This type of incident in big surf, is not un-common: heartbreaking that’s surf. In Rd 1 and 2 she was a bit behind, but in Rd 3 fired up to finish on the podium in 2nd place: the rest is now history. Summing up the series Coach Kelly said, “Fortunately she wasn’t seriously injured. However, looking on the positive side her surf skills this season have greatly improved and we now look forward to next year.”
