Wednesday’s competition was a single stableford event sponsored by Bowen Golf Club.  

Ladies’ winner was Denise Bianco 41pts, runner up on a countback Robyn Slade 40pts.

Men’s winner on a countback Kevin Clark 39pts, runner up on a countback Kaleb Brunker 39pts.

Saturday's competition was a stableford event sponsored by Sporte Leisure.  

Ladies’ winner on a countback was Penny Stewart 39pts, runner up on a countback Raewyn Glover 39pts.  

Men’s winner on a countback Garry Kukura 40pts, runner up on a countback John Storrie 40pts.  

Pin shots to Peter Coad, Brett Richards, Dylan Bartlett, Jason Bartlett, Paulette Barrett x 2 + the Car Wash Voucher, Robyn Slade, and Julie May.

COMING UP

This Saturday's competition is a single stableford event sponsored by P & O, Meehan Menswear for the Men and Commonwealth Bank for the ladies.

Joker is worth $3400.  

Contributed with thanks to Grace Nott.

Caption: Men’s runner up John Storrie and winner Garry Kukura. Photo supplied

‍

26 players teed up on Tuesday, Louis Neethling winning from Anna Winterbourn and Gary Scotford. NTP’s: Allen Roberts and Anna Winterbourn.

Elspeth Scotford edged out Tina Badenhorst, both on a very nice 38 pts, Penny Wardroper in 3rd place with 36 pts.

NTP’s: Lyn Muller, Pauline Redpath, Penny Wardroper, and Jan Shuwalow.

Thursday continued the great scores, with Geoff Harrison winning Division 1 on 67 nett, Wayne Temby and Ritchie Atkins claimed 2nd and 3rd, Division 2 winner was Mark McDougal on 68 nett, followed by Steve Mitchell and Ken Granger.

NTP’s: Bob Ross, Lewis Tuck, Steven Stewart, and Gavin Kerwand.

Chris Pirlo showed great form to win the Metropole 9 hole run on Friday, closely followed by Noelene Spurway and Trish McNeill.

NTP’s were covered by the Milne family, Harry, and Scott.

Tiina Randmae led the field on Saturday with 67 nett, followed by Helen Deighton and Renae Maxwell in 2nd and 3rd place.

NTP’s: Helen Deighton and Mandy Patterson.

John Wallace led the Saturday field with 66 pts to win Division 2, flowed by Ash Morley-Hart and Vic Feldman.

Division 1 winner was Michael Cragg on 68 nett, followed by Danny York and Scott Lee.

Steve Hickey, Brian Allen, and Levi Holmes won the NTP’s.

Proserpine hosted the first of the Scrambles for the year, with Karlene Lloyd, Jordyn Albergo, Kim McPherson, and Trish McNeill moving to the next round to be played later this year.

Second place went to Ann Gardel, Tina Badenhorst, Penny Wardroper and Sherri Meade.

NTP’s went to Tina Badenhorst by 2, Lyn Muller and Toni Clauss.

51 players enjoyed beautiful weather out on the course on Sunday, Renae Maxwell showing great form with 40 pts to win the ladies ahead of Peta Thomas and Jacqui Wall.

Kason Whitney edged out Chris Pham and Brendan Spann to win the men’s competition.  

NTP’s went to Don Maitland, Peta Thomas, Michael Cragg, Renae Maxwell, Len Booroff, and James Kean.

Contributed with thanks to the Proserpine Pro Shop.

‍

Karlene Lloyd, Jordyn Albergo, Kim McPherson and Trish McNeill – Winners of The Scramble Event on Saturday

‍

‍

Twenty-three players made the most of a glorious Whitsunday winter’s day to play a single Stableford round at Proserpine Golf Club on Sunday morning.

The sun was shining, there was almost no wind and after the heavy dew had dried off, the shots became a little easier.  

WINNERS:  

Men: Jason Whitney on 39 points and r/up, Jason Bourke with 33 points won the men’s A grade, Peter Fox with 35 points and r/up David Hoy won the B grade.

Ladies: Jacqui Wall with 34 points and r/up Tiina Randmae with 31 points were the Ladies’ A grade placegetters, and for the Ladies B grade, the winner was Karen Rix with 31 points and the r/up was Pam Casey with 29 points

NTPs: went to Jason Whitney, David Hoy, and Ritchie Atkins.

For the ladies the best pin shots went to Vickie Tuck and Jacqui Wall.

Longest Drivers: were Jason Bourke, Wilf Herweg, Tiina Randmae and Linda Wardroper.

NAGAs: were Don Cameron and Tina Cook.

Next Week: will be round 2 of the 3ball Ambrose trophy competition followed by a BBQ at the golf course.

Contributed with thanks Tiina Randmae.

‍

Caption L> R : Peter Fox (Mens B grade winner), Tiina Randmae (Ladies A grade r/up), Pam Casey (Ladies’ B grade r/up), Karen Rix (Ladies’ B grade winner), David Hoy (Men’s B grade r/up). Photo supplied

‍

‍

Another excellent field of 42 players including 2 guests, Bryan Mcleod from Queenscliff GC and Terry Duffy from Thurgoona GC who are enjoying our Qld “winter”.

June Monthly Medal Winners were Anna Winterbourn and Steve Mitchell.

Ladies’ placegetters:

Anna Winterbourn won on the day with a very creditable 70 nett,  

on a countback from Kathryn Borer, next came Tina Badenhorst with 71, Elspeth Scotford with 72, Jenny Hounsell with 74, large gap then to Tiina Randmae with 77 on a countback from Tessa Aitken, Mandy Patterson with 78, Paula McQuat with 79 and Robyn Whitham with 82.

Nice to see Moya Bradley back on the course after a long break.

Men’s placegetters:

Steve Mitchell continued his good run with a 65 nett, handicap gone there, followed by Louis Neethling with a 68 - same story.

Losing on a countback to take 3rd place - Billy Jesser with 68, handicaps going everywhere here, next came Gary Scotford with 70, Michael Cragg with 71 on a countback from Ron Jamieson, Ken Granger with 72 on a countback from Barry Shuwalow, on a countback from Peter Lindsay on a countback from Barry Mortimer.

Very competitive scores in the men’s game with only 7 strokes separating 1st place from 10th.

Least Putts: Elspeth Scotford putted best for the ladies with 29 putts, while Billy Jesser excelled with 24 putts, edging out Gary Scotford with 27 for the men.

The ladies’ NTPs went to Mandy Patterson and Kathryn Borer on the 2nd, Anna Winterbourn and Kathryn Borer (AGAIN) on the 13th, Jenny Hounsell and Jan Shuwalow on the 16th.

The men’s NTPs went to Warren Deighton and Billy Jesser on the 2nd, Nic Appruzzese on the 13th, Gary Scotford and John Oates on the 16th.  

Mandy Patterson tried to take out the Men’s A grade on the 13th, because no A Grade men made it so we gave her a ball for that one anyway.  

CHIP INS:  

Gary Scotford on the 2nd and 10th, Billy Jesser and Bryan Mcleod on the 5th, Louis Neethling on the 16th.

Elspeth Scotford was the only lady to chip in, she did it on the 1st.

‍

Our weekly 9-hole stableford competition saw Cameron Mutch take the win with 22 points, second on 21 points Dennis Moss and third place with 18 points Tyson Flavel.

On Thursday we held our first Ladies Day brunch and 9 holes. The winning team for the day was Deanna Norman and Jane Muller. Congratulations ladies.

We will be hosting a ladies’ day once a month on a Thursday to book in please give our friendly team a call 07 49461190.

Fridays 9-hole s/ford was Justin Durbin taking the win with 21 points c/b, second place saw Ryan Kenny on 21 points and third Scotty Hayes Williams with 20 points c/b. A great effort by all.

Sundays 4 ball better ball comp was a great turn out and coming in with a 45 NET saw the winners Glenn Rees and Robert Lodders.

Runners up with 46.25 NET were Glenn Scott and Scott Fewin.

Nearest the pin Glenn Scott and Tyson Flavel.

This Sunday 25th June will be our 18-hole Monthly medal tee off at 10:00am, looking forward to seeing you all there.

Contributed with thanks to Whitsunday Green Golf Club.

Kerrie, Narelle, Jane Muller, Deanna Norman and front Donna Henderson. Photo supplied

‍

Busy, busy….

Last weekend the club fielded mixed crews in the 41km beach changeover events around Magnetic Island.

Training continues - Shingley Beach to “Stingray Beach” (named by the club because there are lots of stingrays) at Bluff Point was the course for the clubs’ Saturday morning paddle, a mere 16.5 kms.

Both OC6’s took advantage of the gentle SW 5 to 10 knots and focused on technique, adding a race finish in the bay around from Bluff Point-there’s always a race sometime!

Contributed with thanks to Michelle Lynes.

Outrigger Whitsunday paddle session. Photo supplied

The Cannonvale Cannons hosted a very successful swimming carnival on Saturday with 140 North Queensland swimmers participating in awesome weather.  

Coaches, Ken Crittenden, and Mark Erickson were very impressed with their 38 Cannons who swam a total of 269 swims and accrued 138 PBs, 9 Club Records, 1NQ Record, some State Qualifying times and quite a few ribbons.  

Highlights include:  

Congratulations to the following swimmers who set new club records:  Holly Perrin (200m Back), Lucas Korosec (25 Fly), Jax Clayworth (100m Free, 50m Fly and 100m Fly), Ehsan Helou (50m Breast), and Jy Parkinson (100m Free, 50m Fly and 100m Fly).

Special mention to:  Ehsan Helou, Abi Maher, Millie Groom, Jacob Bell, Evie Doherty, Harris Delac, Dylan Reynolds, Alex Trefz, Zach Trefz, and Tora Delac for swimming extremely well in all their races, achieving personal best times in most of their events.  

The coaches were very surprised with team’s medley results, some of the biggest PBs were achieved in the medleys.  

In the 200m IM:  Harris Delac and Celeste Orenshaw both swam a massive 30sec PB.

Other swimmers who swam PBs in 200m IM:  Don Algie, Jacob Bell, Tora Delac, Charlie Doherty, Thomas Ganter, Millie Groom, Anisa Helou, Ehsan Helou, Matilda Nicholes and Andie Reynolds and Indi Smith.  

Liam Filewood swam a 10.83sec PB in his 100m IM.  

Congratulations to:  Jax Clayworth, Jy Parkinson, Levi Smith, Lucas Korosec, Don Algie, Holly Perrin, Isabella Pisaniello, Andie Reynolds, Isaac Pisaniello, Koa Harland, Celeste Orenshaw, Ruby Harland, Anisa Helou and Charlie Doherty swam top placings in all their events.

Connor Lee, Stevie Lee, and Lily Maher swam extremely well, achieving 3 or 4 PBs.  

They all swam super Breaststroke.  

Jasper Korosec, Roxy Groom, and Indi Harland swam hard and really enjoyed the carnival.  

Congratulations to all the Cannons!  A big thank you to all the wonderful parents and volunteers who contributed to the carnival’s success.  

Contributed with thanks to the Cannonvale Cannons.

‍

Cannonvale Cannons team photo Winter meet. Photo supplied

‍

‍

Light winds of 10-12 knots and a cloudless sunny day made for a perfect race for the Abell Point Yacht Club’s inaugural Round the Molles yacht race which saw 11 yachts with a crew list of 63 people all competing for a place.

With Mal Robertson (Eureka II) winning the best start followed closely by Rob Davis (Treasure VIII), the fleet slowly made their way up along the coast before rounding Pioneer Point and Almora Island.

Iyas Shaheen (Smooth Criminal) and Eureka II followed by Greg Hammon (Rossgo) and Jim Finch (Giggles) sailed over to the eastern side of the channel, while Charles Wallis (Reignition), David (Chippy) Chittleborough (Gnome), Rob Davis (Treasure VIII) and Terry Stevens (Matchless) went down the western mainland side expecting to pick up a back eddy, tacking countless times trying to get down to the Beak near Shute Harbour, only to get disadvantaged by the tide.

Racing fast up from the rear were Manteca, Mon Jouet and Location all trying to catch the front runners.

Smooth Criminal and Eureka II came out well in front by going down the eastern side where Rossgo also did well and crossed in front of Matchless at Sandy Bay.

Once around Denman Island the fleet set their spinnakers for a nice run up the outside of the islands to Hanna Point.  

Treasure VIII getting away from Matchless who had overtaken Rossgo by this point.

The fleet then enjoyed a nice close reach with assistance from the tide back into Pioneer Bay and with a bit of a procession to the finish line.

Then back at the Whitsunday Sailing Club it was time for the results while each crew enjoyed the fun, laughter, and much banter from each table.

With line honours going to Gnome followed closely by only 3 seconds was Smooth Criminal.  

After adjusting handicap times, 1st place went to Greg Hammon (Rossgo), 2nd Iyas Shaheen (Smooth Criminal) and 3rd place Terry Stevens (Matchless).  Michael Butler (Mon Jouet) won the Dead Man Fingers Rum.

All in all, it was a very successful day of sailing.

Contributed with thanks to Lorraine Island.

‍

Winning boat Rossgo. Photo supplied

‍

Boom rugby league hookers Paityne Johns and Xavier Kerrisk are the toast of Mackay after earning Queensland representative jumpers.

The St Patrick’s College students created some type of record when they were both selected in the Maroons’ Schoolgirls and Schoolboys squads for the upcoming Australian Secondary Schools Rugby League Championships to be staged at Redcliffe from June 30 to July 7.

Mackay can now boast two of the best young hookers in the State with the crafty Kerrisk – an Emerging Queensland Under 18s inductee - under contract to the North Queensland Cowboys and pocket dynamo Paityne keen to join the Cowboys’ NRLW ranks.

The promising pair along with gun five eighth Jaxon Purdue are now unavailable for St Patrick’s during the Queensland Independent Secondary Schools Rugby League Confraternity Carnival that kicks-off on June 26 at St Laurence’s College in Brisbane.

But the talented number nines – who are products of the Mackay Cutters’ Development system - are two players to watch at the National titles.

Team captain Paityne was a stand out for the Capricornia region at the State Schoolgirls Championships on the Gold Coast – earning Player of the Match awards in victories over the Darling Downs.

She was joined by St Patrick’s colleagues in lock Gracie Watt, half back Keely Pitt, second rower Shaylee Hazledine and forwards Ciara Thomson and Chelsea McLeod.

The 17-year-old rake has four major goals in 2023 – to help Queensland win a national womens schoolgirls title; earn selection in the Australian Schoolgirls squad; help the Mackay Magpies clinch an A Grade Junior League premiership and to secure an NRLW contract with the North Queensland Cowboys.

She began her career with the Magpies mixed teams as a 10-year-old before entering the girls ranks and was soon a regular in the Capricornia rep sides and Cowboys Academy.

Paityne has proved a revelation during the past 12 months – impressing keen judges with her guile, vision and speed around the rucks and ability to lift teammates with her tremendous work ethic.

Her leadership qualities shone like a beacon at last year’s inaugural Confraternity Games Girls Carnival in Mackay when she steered St Patrick’s to the Shield decider against champions Marymount College at BB Print Stadium.

The talented Johns was named St Patrick’s Most Valuable Player by tournament officials and has also featured prominently in the Cutters Under 19s Harvey Norman Women’s squad.

Paityne was blooded in the Cutters’ BMD Womens Premiership squad as a Development Player this season and is sure to attract interest from talent scouts at the National Schoolgirl titles later this month.

‍

Rising hooker Paityne Johns will represent the Queensland Schoolgirls at this year’s National titles at Redcliffe

Last weekend, Jubilee Park was party central for a heart-warming youth event that brought together teenagers from all around the region. The free event, open to all 11-17-year-olds, featured an array of exciting activities and entertainment that kept everyone on their toes. The park buzzed with energy as live music performances from talented musicians such as Tiffany Grace, Alessandro, and Will Blume captivated the crowd. Youth-run market stalls offered a variety of unique and creative products, while food vans satisfied everyone's taste buds. The atmosphere was filled with joy as attendees engaged in giant games and other thrilling attractions. Parents were also welcome to join in on the fun, ensuring a memorable experience for the entire community.

What made this event even more special was its origin. It stemmed from the YOL1000 project, Youth Out Loud 1000 Voices, which collected 1000 conversations from young people across the Mackay Region. The project identified a lack of events and activities as a top concern among the youth. In response, the Youth and Arts Development Team organised a series of Youth Focused, Youth Led Event Workshops called "FIRECRACKER!" These workshops empowered young individuals to take charge and create their own event. The result? Picnic in the Park—a vibrant gathering where the voices of Mackay's youth resonated through music, market stalls, and joyful interactions. The event was supported by Mackay Regional Council and Co-hosted by TEEN SHED Mackay.

Photos supplied: Mackay Regional Council

‍

Mackay Table Tennis Tuesday night fixtures June 6, 2023:

Division 1:

BMW (Ivan Perkins, Emma Widdup, Ian McKay) d Mercedes (Geoff Denman, Mark Sleeman, Graham Drury) 6-5. Graham d Ian -6, 8, -9, 8, 9.

Jaguar (Barry Patterson, Tony Bowman, Tim Sheehan) d Audi (Duncan Treloar, Neil Brown, Janice Kent) 8-3. Duncan d Barry 11, -5, 9, -8, 13.

Division 2:

Isuzu (Steve Mathieson, Andrea Nicholson, Donna Abbott) d Nissan (Graeme Walker, Will VanDeKaa, Matthew West) 7-4. Andrea d Matthew -9, 7, -7, 7, 7.

Mazda (Rymer Tabulo, Peter Goodson, Lily Boland) d Honda (George Camilleri, Daniel Warfield, Ishan Rana) 8-3. Rymer d Daniel 9, -5, 6, -7, 6.

Division 3:

Holden (Tiffany Camilleri, Trent Day, John McGee) d Kia (Craig VanDeKaa, Alok Rana, Virginia Clayton) 11-0. Tiffany d Alok 7, 6, -12, 8.

Hyundai (Ollie Hamelink, Noreen Fredericksen) d Ford (Steve Crocker, Val Austin) 5-4. Val d Ollie 6, -9, -7, 3, 10.

Mackay Table Tennis Tuesday morning fixtures June 6, 2023:

Division 1:

Blue (George Camilleri, John McGee, Don Boettcher) d Yellow (Donna Abbott, Peter Goodson, Bryan Marshall) 7-5. George/John d Donna/Peter 6, 9, -10, -3, 7.

Green (Charlie Payne, Pam Joyce, Noreen Fredericksen) drew Red (Branko Vucurovic, Steve Mathieson, Kevin Abbott) 6-all. Steve d Pam -6, 6, 9, -8, 4.

Division 2:

Orange (Helen Ware, Louise Gould, Gloria Vella) drew Purple (Iris Grasso, Ken Best, Judi Hicks) 6-all. Ken d Helen  -6, 6, 4, -10, 8.

Pink (Robyn Bushell, John Hamelink, Fred Saliba) d White (Kim Challender, Charles Hamlett, Kim Daffy) 8-4.  Fred d Kim 7, -9, 8, 9.

Division 3:

Lime (Frank Caruana, Glenda Brookes, Myles Dutton) d Tan (Cheryl Aprato, Madge Saunders, Trish Zamparuti) 8-4. Glenda d Cheryl -9, 9, -9, 9, 5.

Grey (Sharon Muller, Ian Dodds, Allison Day) drew Aqua (Pam Keune, Robyn Giles, Glenda Dutton) 6-all. Glenda d Allison 6, -6, 6, -10, 3.

Contributed by Charlie Payne

‍

Olympic bronze medal-winning Boomers guard Nathan Sobey and Illawarra Hawks forward Deng Deng proved the architects of Ipswich Force’s 119-114 overtime win over Mackay Meteors in NBL1 North action last Saturday night at Mackey Basketball Stadium.

The gallant Meteors pushed the third placed Force all the way in a gripping contest before Sobey combined with Deng and Kyrin Galloway to give Ipswich the edge after Mackay struck first in extra time and led by five after a triple from guard Isaiah Lee.

All eyes were on the fascinating duel between Sobey and Mackay magician Isaac White – who will team up at the Brisbane Bullets in NBL 2024.

Ipswich led 67-48 at the main break before the sixth placed Meteors stormed home with top games from White (33 points -15 assists, five rebounds and two steals); Lee (19 points, six rebounds and five assists); Christian Maran (15 points, six boards and four assists) and Tyler Williams (11 points, six rebounds and three steals).

Sobey finished with 26 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, three steals and two blocks for Ipswich with support from Deng (29 points, five rebounds and three assists); Kyrin Galloway (21 points, seven rebounds and three blocks); Jaylin Galloway (10 points and five boards) and Cameron Goldfinch (16 points and four assists).

IPSWICH forward Maria Blazejewski engineered an 89-67 victory over the Mackay Meteorettes in the early game.

Blazejewski led the way with 30 points and five rebounds in a stand out performance.

Other Force players to impress were Alison Gorrell (25 points, five steals, three assists and two rebounds), Grace George (12 points, 13 boards, three blocks, two steals and two assists) and Georgia Ralph (eight points, five rebounds and four assists).

Mackay ace Davida Dale posted 21 points, nine steals, eight assists and seven rebounds with Brittany Reeves (12 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks) and Ellie Collins eight points and four boards.

‍

Charli Bliss readies herself in defence. Photo credit: Keiron Place Photography

Wynnum-Manly Seagulls showed they are a force to be reckoned with in the Hostplus Cup this season after trouncing the Mackay Cutters 62-0 at BB Print Stadium last weekend.

Seven days after celebrating their first win of the season on the Sunshine Coast, the Cutters came crashing back to earth with a mighty thud – conceding eleven tries against an enterprising and experienced Seagulls lineup.

Wynnum ran amok with former Broncos centre Delouise Hoeter nabbing a hat trick of tries and interchange forward Kalolo Saitaua and hooker Oliver Pascoe collecting doubles with five eighth Josh Rogers scoring a personal tally of 22 points from a try and nine goals.

It was the Seagulls eighth win of the season and has the club entrenched in the top five on 18 points after 12 matches.

The Cutters host the eighth placed Tweed Head Seagulls this Saturday at BB Print Stadium at 6pm.

Wynnum Manly slammed the Cutters 56-6 in the Under 21 Colts fixture with wingers Blake Anders (4) and Elijah Mikaio (2) grabbing six of the Seagulls eleven tries.

Seagulls playmaker Jordan Davies posted 14 points from a try and five goals.

Promising centre Corey Shepherd was Mackay’s lone try scorer with pivot Henri Stocks potting a conversion.

‍

Mackay Road Runners Blacks Beach Bush Bash 5km, 9km was done and dusted in very cool, but perfectly sunny running conditions.  

Thanks heaps to Andrew Short who was very unwell, but still arrived early to set up the technical course for nearly seventy runners, give or take twenty or so.  

Mackay Road Runners’ athletes backed up well from BMA Mackay Marina Run to race the 5k & 9k Blacks Beach Bush Bash with front runners Luke Leven and Mick Vivian taking charge from the outset in the 9km.  

Luke and Mick were very successful in the BMA Mackay Marina Run events where Luke collected the coveted Frank Marchetti ‘first to the roundabout’ trophy in the 21km and finished his first ever 21km in 1hr 28 minutes…..sensational effort!  

First male and female in the 5km Craig McGahey and Jo Skinner were ecstatic with their efforts after a 20km training run the previous day in preparation for their next marathon event.  

Millie Bishop comfortably completed the 5km in a very commendable time backing up well after she and first female in the 9km, Lily Leven had very successful results in the BMA Mackay Marina Run and secondary school cross country titles throughout the week.  

Meanwhile the Blacks Beach Bush Bash competitors challenged themselves in their respective events, stopping the clock in very respectable times.

Excellent speed and stamina were shown by Mel Rich, Shane Donnellan, Grant Holmstrom, Michael Feenaghty, Alan Zamparutti, Heli Talinurm, Tahnie Malagueno, Carolyn Mapes, Shane Barben, Darrin Pullen, Joe Grech, Mick Scholer, Andrew Wallace, Natalie Lorraway, Leanne Connor, Al Lorraway, Geeta Ariana, Steve Oberg, Robin Stinson, John Couldrey, Emma Johnson and Jenny White.

This Sunday’s 30km Club Championship starts from the Northview Park playground, Schaper’s Road from 6am with the 5km and 15km options commencing 6.15am.  

Contributed by Janelle Tilse

‍

Front runners in the Blacks Beach Bush Bash 9km, Luke Leven and Mick Vivian go stride for stride throughout the entire event

Mel Rich, Carmel Mahon, Andrew Wallace and Steve Oberg loving the perfect running conditions in the 9km Blacks Beach Bush Bash

Mackay Road Runners Vice-President, Brendan Bishop with wife Julie, son Hughie and daughter Millie enjoy the cool sunny conditions at the Blacks Beach Bush Bash. Photo credit: Janelle Tilse

‍

Mackay Area Fishing Stocking Association hosted another great family friendly fishing tournament at Eungella Dam over the May Day long weekend, putting the region on the national fishing stage once again.

The 18th World Sooty Championship has been a popular fishing tournament for many anglers who are keen to target the vast quantity of stocked Sooty Grunter. This tournament is as unique as it is fun.

If you haven’t heard about the 2023 INDT World Sooty Championship, it is the only fishing tournament for Sooty Grunter, hence the tournament’s name. It is also the main fundraiser for MAFSA to operate and maintain the Rob Symons Hatchery in Rural View as well as promote the Stocked Impoundment Permit fishery at Eungella Dam.

MAFSA Chairman Tim Swann explains, “this year for the World Sooty Championship, on top of record numbers of anglers and boats, we have been able to work with Mackay Regional Council, Mackay Isaac Tourism, Mackay Airport and Reef Marine in attracting and hosting Mark Berg to fish our tournament.

“This highlights the attraction of Mackay’s stocked impoundment fisheries to national angling celebrities as well as other travelling anglers looking for world class fishery and is proof that MAFSA continues to work towards a better fishing future for the Mackay region.”

The event saw nearly 70 boats registered to compete with 107 anglers looking to score as many points for the bag of six Sooties over the three sessions from Saturday morning to Sunday lunch time.

“This three session format has proven to be popular over the years with allowing the public and the spectators, mainly kids, an opportunity to see these big brutes up close in the holding tank at the end of each session,” explains Mr Swann.

“These fish are then released by an army of helpers to be returned to the water to be hopefully caught again next year.”

This break in the sessions on Saturday also allows everyone to gather for a release of juvenile Sooty fingerlings from Bass, Barra and Barcoo who have been a regular supplier to MAFSA of quality Sooties to restock Eungella Dam with funds from the SIP scheme.

Even if you find the fish in big numbers, you still need the biggest overall length and the best bag of six fish with each millimetre worth one point to win. Around 180 Sooties being caught was attributed to an action-packed weekend.

The first session saw our regular bridesmaid in Mick Slade hold the lead on Saturday lunch with 2163mm to Peter Behrens with 2119mm with a few ex-WSC champions, Daniel Grech, Keegan Hayden and Ricky Wetherall, just a couple of fish behind.

Junior angler Darcy McFarlane was out to good lead on Saturday morning with 1168mm with only one fish to previous junior world champ in Balin Tweddle and last year’s biggest Sooty Winner Cohen Olsen.

Session two saw some regular WSC anglers change their plan and some persevere and with some good numbers returned we saw the lead change at the close of the day with Daniel Grech on 2379mm in the lead over Mick Slade by a mere 6mm sitting on 2373mm. Keegan finished strong in 3rd on 2244mm and a few others nipping at the heels of the leader.

Juniors did manage a few more fish this session but no one managed the numbers to give Darcy a concern with Michael Paton in 2nd on 830mm and Finn Gee in 3rd on 716 and all juniors looking to the Sunday session for a few more fish.

Session three saw an uninterrupted day with a slightly earlier start to last year and we like to keep the scoreboard covered until the presentation so no one could keep track of anyone else which means you just have to find the Sooties and upgrade your bag if possible.

Everyone in the top 20 found fish on Sunday which was promising and some found more Sooties or bigger Sooties which made for an exciting last session.

Mick Slade was lucky enough to hold onto the lead with 2517mm over Trent Power with 2508mm to crown Mick the 18th World Champion. Congratulations Mick!

Nick Moore was a very close 3rd place with 2497mm which is only 20mm behind Mick, just one more upgrade in his bag of 7 Sooties could have been the game changer for Nick but not this year unfortunately. Daniel Grech finished 4th on 2460mm which proves he can still find fish with a bag of 8 and his boating partner Daniel Curry finished in 8th with a bag of 8 as well, these two anglers did well to find that many.  

Keegan finished in 5th with a bag of 10 Sooties and a late upgrade on Sunday with last year’s World Champion Ricky in 6th with a bag of 6 just in time on Sunday. Peter Behrens found the most Sooties with a bag of 12 and a few small upgrades. Damien Casey found some good Sooties on Sunday for a late dash but only managed a bag of five and Ivan Baulch rounded out the top 10 with a bag of five, this made for an exciting finish.

We also saw a senior angler take out the largest overall Sooty over the juniors in recent years with a solid 496mm Sooty from Robbie Brook who fished surface lures for the majority of the last session on Sunday and he was fishing his 16th World Sooty Championship.

Juniors managed to find a few Sooties on Sunday too and the McFarlane boys gave each other a run for their money with Isaac landing the largest junior Sooty at 492mm over Darcy’s 491mm fish. Isaac managed to claw back into 3rd place with 1200mm with a bag of three behind Finn Gee with a bag of five Sooties for 1794mm. Darcy McFarlane rounded out the tournament with a bag of six Sooties and a total of 2377mm and was now crowned the junior champion! Congratulations Darcy!

‍

Pic: Mick and Darcy

Mick Slade and Darcy McFarlane

‍