Echuca Bowls Club
In the last Thursday game prior to our May Carnival, and on a calm and sunny day, 24 teams battled for supremacy.
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Playing on C and D greens provided fierce but friendly rivalry.
There were seven two game winners:
Steve Campion and Kevin Bursill- 2 +3.
Mal Thorn and Phillip Thorn- 2 +12.
Leigh Polkinghorne and Noel West- 2 +12.
John Dinsdale and Billy Cook- 2 +13.
Ashley French and Stan Barker- 2 + 18.
Geoff Tinning and Barry Tinning- 2 +20 and runners-up on the day.
Winners were George Thornley and Jerome Shaw- 2 +22.
Best one game winners: Toby Egan and Cecil Moss- +27
18 bowlers took part in Friday Scroungers, sponsored by the Echuca Workers Club.
Echuca was proud to welcome visitors from Bunbury WA, Adelaide, Ocean Grove and Lilydale.
The winner on the day was Colin Delamere, the runner up being Barry Milne.
Congratulations to all those who took part.
Saturday social bowls saw 20 bowlers compete in 2x4x2, 2x2x2x2, and 3 bowl pairs, in a tournament sponsored by Echuca Workers Club and Roma Pizza.
We had two visitors from St Leonard’s.
Runners up on the day were: Wayne Barnes and Col Berryman.
Winners were Jim Ferrier and Anna Meyer.
On a beautiful balmy night, the Pastoral Hotel social Monday night competition had 22 bowlers competing, with visitors from Parkdale, Newcastle and a few first time bowlers from Echuca.
Winner of the singles was Alan Howson, who unfortunately was less successful in the pairs.
In the 2x4x2 section we had three teams winning two games and only two shots separating them all.
In third place, playing her first game and teamed with Andrew Humphrys was Robyn Drake, finishing with a +6.
Runners-up with +7 were Chris Campbell and Rob Height.
Winners on the night with +8 were Barry Milne and Col Delamere.
Monday social bowls return on May 18 at new time of 12.30pm.
A reminder that the May Carnival commences on Thursday, April 30 at noon, with men’s and ladies pairs.
At the conclusion of the Carnival on Friday, May 8 we host the Moama overflow.
For members not playing, why not pop along to the club and offer your help.
Tickets are still available for the car raffle and will be on sale throughout the carnival.
Moama RSL
Indoor bowls - Monday, April 27
20 players played three games of nine ends.
The winners on 44 points were Neal Hardy (skip), Shirley McKinnon (third), — (second), and Bev Griffiths (lead).
The runners-up with 38 points were Pamela Reyment (skip), Mary Kane (third), — (second), and Isobel Wallis (lead).
Third place with 36 points were Carol Glass (skip), Mary Marwood (third), Sue Underwood (second), and Jean Shelley (lead).
New members are welcome.
Rich River Bowls Club
Due to the wonderful weather we are currently having in Moama, blue skies, no wind, and warm days, numbers have increased on our social bowl days. Lets enjoy it while it lasts.
Social Bowls Open - Tuesday, April 21
Winners: Cheryl Cargill/Moira Thomas, two wins
Runners up: Judy White/Wilma Williams, one win, one draw
Jackpot Pairs - Wednesday, April 22
Winners: Tim Noar/Ian Craigie, three wins, 80 points
Runners up: Sam King/John Langley, three wins, 78 points
Third Place: Gary Radford/Adrian Daley, three wins, 75 points
Social Open Pairs/Triples - Saturday, April 25
Winners: Joan Moss/Cec Moss, three wins, 77 points
Runners up: Eugene Xodo/Irene Hodge, three wins, 75 points
Third place: Ken Dashwood/John Langley, two wins, 70 points
Social bowls will continue throughout the winter months (weather permitting).
Tuesdays: 9.30am for 10am start.
Wednesdays: 11.30am for 12pm start.
Saturdays: 12pm for 12.30pm start.
Please place your name on lists on the notice board or phone the bowls office on (03) 5481 3390. New members welcome.
Anybody who is interested in playing bowls, whether you are a beginner or a seasoned bowler, you are welcome to come to our social bowls.
Bowls will be provided. Coaching will be be provided. A $10 playing fee will be waived for a trial period.
Contact the bowls office on (03) 5481 3390 or email richriverbowls@gmail.com.
Have a great week and good bowling everyone.
Rochester Bowls Club
Social bowls
On Friday, April 24, 13 bowlers delighted in the sunshine, good company, and competitive play down on B green.
The winners for the day were Anton Gusak, Beryl Elliott, and Glenda Bancell; congratulations.
Social bowls will continue through until the last game of the season on May 8.
Please ring the office on Friday morning if you would like to play (8.45 – 9.15am).
Our ladies match committee have done an exceptional job and look to be in good hands for next season, with five of our ladies accepting nomination for this committee already.
Premier pairs
Bowlers from all across Victoria flocked to the Rochester Bowls Club greens this last weekend for some great bowls and socialising.
It was wonderful to see so many bowlers making the most of our facilities and hospitality.
It takes many members to step up and help, making tournaments a huge success.
Well done and thank you to everyone who has fulfilled a vital role over the weekend.
Greens open
There is always one green open for practice on each day of the week.
Footy tips
Round six must have been a bit of an easier round, with 12 people coming away with eight correct tips.
Ryan Williams was the only one who managed to tip all nine correctly – good job Jack.
Key dates
Please ensure the following dates are locked in your diary:
- Presentation night – Friday, May 8 (arrive 6pm for a 6.30pm start)
- Extraordinary meeting – Monday, May 11 at 7pm
- AGM – Monday, May 25 at 7pm
AGM nominations
Please note that the cut off for nominations is Sunday, May 10.
Bar duty
Monday – Thursday 5 – 6.30 pm
27 – 30 April: H. Wilson and G. Chambers.
4 – 7 May: M. McArdle and J. Boyd.
11 – 14 May: B. Godden and D. Hocking
Lockington Bowls Club
A good week on the bowling greens this past week.
The highlight of the week was the soup and pie two bowl triples held on Wednesday, with 84 bowlers in attendance representing several local district clubs including Cohuna Golf, Echuca (8 teams), Elmore, Ky Valley View (two teams), Lockington, Mathoura, Rochester, Rich River, Serpentine, Stanhope, and Tongala.
This tournament received special sponsorship from Foodworks - Lockington, O'Connors Case Machinery - Echuca, and Auto-Barn - Echuca.
Club president John van den Bosch thanked all bowlers and the sponsors for their ongoing support.
Van den Bosch also made special acknowledgement to Brian Kinnane and Shane Felmingham for their brilliant job in attracting such talented bowlers on the day.
Neil Haines and Max McInnes were thanked for the mighty effort in the kitchen and keeping the soup and pies hot.
On the greens, there was plenty of action playing a game of 12 ends prior to lunch and then two games of eight ends after.
At the end of the day there were only two teams undefeated, with the outright winners decided by wins and shots up.
The Lockington-Echuca composite trio comprising Shane Felmingham, Cindy Felmingham, and Ivan Hicks (s) were victorious, scoring three wins +20 shots and finishing ahead of the Mathoura-Echuca trio of Joan Dovaston, June Clifford, and Gayle Kerr (s), two wins +18 shots.
Third place went to the local team of Andrew Harris, Leon Laffy, Phillip Cunnington (s) on two and a half wins +9 shots.
There were many winners in the special competition, thanks to Auto-Barn for the prizes.
Cindy Felmingham and Kim Ray, plus several members, organised the raffle and attended the kitchen duties after play. Steve Peter worked wonders behind the bar.
The soup and pie event will be planned for the next two weeks on a Wednesday. Contact Brian Kinnane or Shane Felmingham for details.
Members attended a few tournaments during the week but the scribe is awaiting results.
The club will hold their annual general meeting on Monday, May 11, starting at 7.30pm. Nomination forms are available in the club house.
Congratulations to the Moama Bowling Club rink (Paul Gaudal, Travis Kelly, Kevin Anderson, and Cameron Keenan (s)) on winning the state fours at the Victorian State Championships held at Bendigo East Bowling Club over the past two weeks. Moama won the title with a 24-3 scoreline over its opposition.
Rochester Golf Club
In ideal conditions, 66 played in the club's annual “Tradies Golf Day", a three-person Ambrose, and excellent scores were expected.
None better than the team of Col Harvey, Ben Newth, and Sam Frawley with 59.17 net, closely followed by the unlucky team of Bruce Bryant and visitors in Roger Mcminn and Stuart Newton (59.88).
Next best were Jimmy Lee, Liam Keenan, and local Jake Wright on 60.33, then followed the “tradies team" of Darcy Taylor and brothers Grant and Ian Fuller (60.5).
The non-handicapped event went to Joel Waters, Noah O’Sullivan, and Charlie NcLean.
Other novelty prizes went to Steve Bubb for his shot on the eighth, Louise Williams for her straight drive on the 10th, and visitor Heath Verhey.
Long drives on the seventh for the ladies were Rochester's Leisa Evans, and in the men's A division, Miccos Giorgianni, while big-hitting Col Harvey won the B division section.
Last Saturday, single-figure player Shane Bywaters took advantage of his length to win with 38 Stableford points, followed by another long hitter in Andrew Purdy on 37, then by president Leigh Hicks and Paul Evans both on 34, and Bruce Bryant and Chris Trewin (33).
Playing off the back blue tees, hitting the scrapes was hard work for most of the field; however, Bywaters was on eight, Hicks on 16, and young Zac McInness for his second shot to the 18th flag were the only nearest the pin winners.
A smaller-than-usual field played over the front nine last Wednesday.
Les Hedington has been showing some early form this year and once again took out top prize by shooting a fine 22 Stableford points, just enough to hold off Steve Harris on 21. There were no nearest-the-pin winners this week.
Lockington Golf Club
April 24
Stableford – 9 holes. The weather was warm and Sue Harris scorched around the course to return the day’s best score of 24 points, ahead of Sally Edwards (22) and Angela Bacon (18). Nearest the pin: Jenny Holt.
Terrific to see some new golfers enjoy some coaching with Kevin Humbert, before then joining in for a hit; great to also see past member Sally Edwards back having a hit and playing well.
Angela Bacon’s good round was highlighted by a super tee shot on the 17th that finished less than a foot from the hole – shame the nearest-the-pin was on the previous hole – but Angela did sink the putt for an excellent birdie.
April 25
Stroke – monthly medal. In a very competitive finish, Ron Dixon (86-20-66) took the medal and division two honours on a countback from Simon Portwine, who returned an identical score (his first nine was super, the second nine not so super).
Kevin Humbert played solid golf to finish with 77-10-67 to win division one, ahead of Stuart Newton (82-12-70).
Best scratch scores: Division one – Grant Humbert 76; Division two – Ron Dixon (c/b).
The eight novelties were shared among eight different players.
Nearest the pins: 16th – Ben Portwine; second shot 9th – Stuart Newton, Ian Maddison (birdie!), Ron Dixon; second shot 18th for the six-pack smack – Grant Humbert.
Spike’s longest drive on the fourth, sponsored by Hot ‘n’ Cold Plumbing – Kevin Humbert, Darren Carnie, and Brad Wakefield.
Neither the O’Connors case eagles nest on the third, nor Captain Grant’s yardstick on the 16th was won.
Upcoming events
Friday, May 1 – Stableford – First round Mona Hewlett Trophy. Duty: Pauline Humbert, Sue Harris.
Saturday, May 2 – Par. Duty: Terry Thomas, Grant Humbert.
Sunday, May 3 – Kelly Shield at Bamawm.
Saturday, May 9 – Centenary celebration – four-person ambrose, 11am hit off; special afternoon tea 2.30pm. RSVPs, enquiries, and entries to Darren Carnie on 0428 862 292 by Saturday, May 2 (for catering purposes).
Goulburn Valley Veteran Golfers
Superb sunshine again greeted the 84 veteran golfers at Kialla Golf Club on Monday, April 27.
The fairways and greens were in excellent condition, a credit to the all-volunteer staff.
Kialla again exceeded requirements in the catering department with the addition of an ice cream cone to the luncheon.
A-grade winner with the highest score of the round was captain John McHale, Valley View, with 37 stableford points. Runner-up on 36 points was Geoffrey Teague, Shepparton, with 36 points.
In B-grade, Phil Steers repeated his effort of last year to post a winning score, but was relegated to runner-up by Ian Godkin, Kialla, on countback with 35 points.
C-grade was also decided on a countback with Phil Cooper, Parkland, edging out Ian Clarke, Kialla, with 34 points.
Nearest the pin was contested on the 111-metre 11th hole with its narrow gap off the tee. Bruce Brown, Merrigum; Phil Steers, Shepparton; and Patrick Durant, Kialla; were successful in A, B and C-grade, respectively.
Down the line balls in A-grade were awarded to: Frank O’Connor, Euroa; Mick McAuliffe, Valley View; Graeme Waight, Shepparton; Shane Pollock, Kialla; Geoff Corboy, Deniliquin; Norm Purtill, Deniliquin; Peter Jeffery, Cosgrove; John Mortimer, Shepparton; Ray Coleman, Parkland; Mark Poulton, Merrigum; Michael Gallivan, Valley View; Bill Murphy, Mooroopna; Mario Brdaric, Shepparton; Garry Reese, Mooroopna.
B-grade included: Ray Gourlay, Kialla; Leo Hartup, Kialla; Lindsay Simms Parkland; Richard Stockdale, Parkland; Dennis Williams, Kialla.
C-grade included: Bill Chilcott, Shepparton; Patrick Durarant, Kialla; Bruce Whebell, Mooroopna; Lindsay Tatterson, Parkland; Peter Giorchino, Mooroopna.
The GVVGA will be represented at Phillip Island Golf Club in early May at the VVGA (Malcolm McPherson) Championship by Bill Murphy and Phil Cooper.
Our next event is the intra-zone challenge for the Ralph Sneyd trophy on Monday, May 18 at Benalla Golf Club. This event is limited to 36 players from each district (North East, Dalhousie, and GVVGA).
We have a full team, but if you would like to register as an emergency, please text the secretary, Rolf Weber.
Please note that our start time is 30 minutes earlier than usual.
Our next open event is at Valley View Golf Club, Kyabram, on Monday, June 1, for assembly at 9.30 am.
Rich River Golf Club
April 23
Men’s Par West, A-grade - M. Mahady +5, B-grade - P. Healy +1, C-grade - T. Freeman +3.
April 24
Medley S/Ford 9 & 18 holes, 9-hole - first, L. Alchin, 21 pts; 18-hole - first, A. Kennaugh, 36 pts.
April 25
Medley West, A-grade - Crackers, 42 pts (well done skipper), B-grade - A. Thomson, 41 pts, C-grade - L. Edmunds, 41 pts c/b.
April 26
Two-person Ambrose - first, T. Ring and A. Heap, 59.75 nett; second, G. Rogers and W. Jeffreys, 60.25 nett; third, L. Eldridge and T. Nevin, 61.5 nett.
18-hole Junior Comp S/Ford - first, X. Spiers, 40 pts; second, O. Leeds, 33 pts.
April 27
Women's Par West 9 and 18-hole comp.
9-hole: first, T. Plowman +1; second, M. Mocnik even; third, D. Thompson even.
18-hole Medley: A-grade - N. Mitchell +3, B-grade - B. Barnes Webb +3 c/b.
April 28
Medley S/Ford East: A-grade - G. Stevens 38 pts c/b, B-grade - S. Taylor 39 pts, C-grade - B. Callanan 39 pts.
April 29
West Women’s S/Ford: A-grade - K. Slater 42 pts, B-grade - A. Speight 41 pts, C-grade - L. Mitchell 41 pts.
Rich River Croquet Club
20th anniversary Anzac Classic AC Singles tournament, May 2 — 7
The upcoming Anzac Classic AC Singles tournament will be played over six days from May 2 - 7 in four divisions.
Division one will be played on Saturday, May 2 and Sunday, May 3, division two on Monday, May 4 and Tuesday, May 5, and division three and four will be played on Wednesday, May 6 and Thursday, May 7.
All visitors welcome to attend and watch association croquet and the players at their best. Croquet courts are at the Rich River Golf Club behind the bowling greens.
Seven of the 10 division one players are ranked in the top 15 players in Victoria, and will play on the Saturday and Sunday.
This highly respected competition has many players returning and consistently supporting the tournament.
Kevin Beard, Brunswick, and Chris Grant, Ringwood, being the winners of division one and two in 2010 are still playing this year.
Other top players include Greg Hill, Brunswick, third in AC men’s singles, won 14 of 15 games in Eire Cup, named in squad to play MacRobertson Shield in England in July (Australian team event against the UK, USA, and New Zealand), and Rich River Anzac Classic results –first in 2021, third in 2023, third in 2024, and first in 2025.
Lachlan Berryman, Melbourne Croquet Club, grew up in Moama, won 14 of 15 games in Eire Cup (Victoria team event against WA, SA, TAS, NSW, and QLD), and Rich River Anzac Classic results - second in 2023 and third in 2024.
Golf Croquet - April 23
13 members competed in singles croquet having a wow of a time.
Only two players won all three games, Sid Gomes-Vieira and Sandra Retallick.
Congratulations to both Sandra Retallick scoring three games +9 hoops to take the win, and the runner-up Sid Gomes-Vieira scoring three games +8 hoops.
Cherie Lessing was hitting straight and made the only hoop-in-one for the morning.
Golf Croquet - April 28
It was a lovely sunny morning for the 14 members playing a mixture of doubles and singles croquet.
Three people won all three games; Cherie Lessing, Anne Canfield, and Ian Fisher, all scoring three games +6 hoops.
All three players were declared equal winners, as the score in each game was identical — what are the odds of that occurring!