By Ron Lane
Last season’s winner of the Coolangatta Gold Lana Rogers, who hails from our beautiful town of Noosa Heads, is now in the 14th week of her training program to contest this years’ Coolangatta Gold and, of course, we wish her every success in defending her title. To get an indication as to her level of her fitness at this stage of her program, on the weekend she competed in the 18 km Spec Ski Division ski race using the event as a training run.
After crossing the finishing line in first place, she continued on to complete a 2.5 km run and a 3.5 km swim, as part of her preparation for the Gold. Her performance in this event will give both herself and her coaches a good indication as to her progress.
“It is a great event,” said Lana, “and I really enjoy the whole thing. It was great for the Sunshine Coast to host this event, and I would like to congratulate Chris Price, organiser and director of Surf Sports at Sunshine Beach Surf Club. A job well done.”
On the weekend, members of the Noosa Paddle Sports Club took part in two events of the Old Woman Island Race. In one, 10 members of the club were on the start line for the 5 km race and two members went to the start line, for the 18 km event. For most of the members, it was not only the first time that they had competed, but also the first time they had paddled in the ocean. The conditions for the race were very tricky, with a decent swell and a strong north rast wind.
A club flyer tells us Noosa Paddle Sports owner Andy Ross was particularly excited to see the result of his vision, the results the hard work of his team and their leadership had achieved. He had taken over the business in February of 2020 and he’s worked hard to transform it from being mainly a tourist- based business into a fantastic paddling hub for locals. Seeing such a large NPS representation on race day was an inspiration. In the words of one of their coaches, Sharlene Kelly, “All our competitors pushed themselves completely out of their comfort zone and all the teams at Noosa Paddle Sports would be proud of their efforts and the courage they showed.”
“This organisation offers paddling groups for all ages and abilities. Our WoW (Women on Water) groups are particularly popular and a great way for women to be part of an active social group. We also teach people how to paddle, even if they have never done a water sport before,” said a spokesperson from the coaching panel.
The coaching panel consists of Andy Ross, Sharlene Kelly and Robyn Singh. If you ever visit the area on the river bank adjacent to the Boathouse Resturant, you will always see them running around and carrying skis to get people onto the water.
Following the success of the Australian Kayaking team at the recent Olympics, plus the announcement that the 2032 Olympic Games are to be held in Brisbane, the NPS will soon start a specific junior paddling program, hoping that one day we will not only see a local on the international scene, but also as a member of the Australian Olympic team. And remember, if you see these people on the riverbank, stop and have a chat. They will love to meet you and talk shop.
The Ray White Noosa Dolphins Rugby Union Club were in the semi- finals over the weekend and there were some good results from the junior and senior teams. The club fielded no fewer than 11 teams contesting a grand final spot from every age group from Under 12 to A Grade. On Friday and Saturday, the juniors playing at various venues up and down the coast recorded a win in every grade. Junior club president Zoe Griffen said, “We are so proud of our Noosa Dolphin teams. Under 12s through to junior Colts will be playing in the grand final at Sunshine Coast Stadium next Saturday the 11th of September. This is an amazing outcome for our club to have all teams qualify for the grand final. I am thrilled and excited for the teams to have this experience.”
In the senior ranks it was three wins from four games – the Colts, Reggies and the women all go straight through to their respective grand finals. These will be played at University Sippy Downs on September 18. As for the A Grade, who lost 13-10 to University at Dolphin Oval on Saturday, they will face Maroochydore at University this weekend for a spot in the grand final, the following week. So, for Dolphin A grade coaches, Matt Buckland and Josh Mason it will definitely be a tough week. To mentally lift the team back from Saturdays’ defeat for a win to earn them a grand final game will be no easy task.
In Saturdays’ game, in the first half, the ball control amongst the backs could have been better and the penalty count, which seemed to go against Noosa, indicates unnecessary mistakes. Both these factors will have to be eliminated if they are to reach the big one.
At half time Noosa held a slim 7-5 lead, but a try three minutes into the second half by Uni saw them in front 10-7. However, Noosa was unlucky when a try following some good rucking was disallowed and then 10 minutes on, an easy penalty was missed. But Noosa made amends when on the 39th minute a penalty was converted to make it 10 all. But then, in injury time, Uni scored out wide on the right wing, giving them a 13-10 lead and, with just minutes to go, Uni held their ground and the game was theirs. Congratulations to Uni and to Noosa – it is not over yet. Tighten up the game and better ball control and anything is possible.
Once again, the performance of the Dolphin Juniors has come to the forefront so, a big well- done to president Zoe and her team. But what does it tell us about the future of the club when you have so many great juniors coming up through the ranks?
Next week we keep abreast of the Proud Ones, the Noosa Outrigger Club. Their latest achievements and also future plans for the months ahead.
