Saturday saw the Mama Africa Raiders head down the highway again to take on the Mackay City Redmen for the first time this season at their home grounds of Quarry Hill.

This was going to be the big unknown game of the season, being round 3 of 3 and the first time the two teams have met this year.

Mackay Cities always bring the big men up the middle as well as the set piece, but the Raiders had prepared well during the week and were ready for the physical stuff.

The breeze as usual was quite strong blowing directly down the ground. Playing the first half into it, the Mama Africa Raiders advanced down the field and managed to put fullback Aden Spence in for the first try, five minutes into the game, aptly converted by Niall Clancy.

A little bit of ill discipline saw the Raiders put over a penalty at the 12-minute mark and then another break in plan saw scrum half Connor Spence go over for the second try.

The Cities Redmen were by no means going to let this game get away from them and 5 minutes later put themselves over for a converted try, Raiders up by 15-7. The Raiders were not going to let this become a trend of we score they score but, only three minutes later Raiders number 8, Matarae Tuaroa was across the line for the Raiders third.

Mama Africa Raiders were going into contact with zest, did not take a backward step from the Redmen big boys and defended like they were possessed.

This could be seen by the waning energy from the Redmen and the tenacity of the men in green and despite having four of the team now on the bench with injuries, the mighty Mama Africa Raiders ran out eventual winners by 44-7.

Game 17 of the season will see the mighty men in green take on Brothers at home in Jubilee Pocket.

Come down for a 3.30 kick off and cheer on the Mama Africa Raiders as this will be their second last home game of the regular season.

The Mama Africa Raiders still currently hold down the top spot but the Bowen Mudcrabs are biting at their heels.

Players who stood out against the Mackay City Redmen were Chad Stocking 1 pt, Matarae Tuaroa 2pts and Jack Briskey 3pts.

Contributed with thanks to Craig Spence

The Raiders are flying high, claiming another win against their opponents last weekend

Regardless of who the Whitsunday side face, they’re coming out the victors in another year of exceptional performances

Raiders were jubilant having absolutely smashed the Redmen

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Whitsunday Sea Eagles celebrated Sponsor and Volunteer Appreciation Day with all teams at home this week and Sponsors were treated to some fantastic wins throughout the day.

With three quality players returning from injury Sea Eagles Senior Men were determined to put in maximum effort against Bakers Creek and return to their style of footy. Max Mackay was back in the ruck giving Sea Eagles midfield first use of the ball with most of the game spent hitting the scoreboard taking out a convincing win 116 – 20. It was a great team effort throughout the match with Sea Eagles hoping to build momentum moving towards finals.

Sea Eagles Senior Women took on ladder leaders Bakers Creek going down 21 – 106 whilst showing improvement from the last two match ups during the year. Sea Eagles were able to score 3 goals against the dominant Tigers side making them work harder for their win.

It was important for Sea Eagles Under 17s to come out strong this week against Bakers Creek after a disappointingly close loss to the Saints last week. Impressing Sponsors the Sea Eagles midfield asserted their dominance to give their forwards first crack at the ball and take out the win 63 – 3.

Sea Eagles Under 14s showed what an organised outfit they have developed into with a great 57 – 17 win against Bakers Creek. Blake Hanks and Seanna Elies led from the front with great pressure and accuracy in front of goals.

Sea Eagles Under 12s won the toss against Sarina Demons and the day got better from there with a 60 – 0 win. Great teamwork kept the ball locked in Sea Eagles forward line for the majority of the game with the youngest Sea Eagles showcasing their skills.

Thank you to all Sponsors and Volunteers who support community sport, we could not achieve success without you. Head down to Mackay this weekend to support Sea Eagles teams taking on Mackay Magpies. Juniors from 8:45am, Seniors from 1:00pm.

Contributed with thanks to Whitsunday Sea Eagles

Whitsunday Sea Eagles U12s ran out a 60-0 win

The U14s on the other hand weren’t able to keep their opponents scoreless, but still crushed them 57-17

They impressed on the day against Bakers Creek, led by Seanna Elies

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With finals on the horizon and only four league rounds remaining, every match is a crunch one no matter where you look on the table.

Players have little room for error with points at a premium. A win now for any player could mean a top eight spot for some, and for others a chance to solidify a top four position and guarantee themselves a finals berth in this seasons Premier League.

The perfect example of this was Alan Green on Sunday afternoon, who won both his catch-up matches at Mika by a score line of 7/0 over Jayden Lloyd, and later 7/3 over Aaron Paull.

Those four points launched Alan up the table to sixth and created a little bit of daylight between him and the players following closely behind.

There is a massive battle shaping up for seventh and eighth place between Aaron Paull, Seumas Rose and Kameron Reason who are currently only separated by 1 point! That’s a battle to keep an eye on.

Joe Wilson who was the last player to have a 100 per cent record in the league, lost it to a 7/3 defeat to Jamie Woods. Jamie Maher defeated Nathan O’Hara for the second week running to a 7/1 score line. And Jamie Woods won his second match of the day against Aaron Paull 7/4.

It couldn’t be closer at the top with leg difference the only thing that separates both Jamie Woods and Jamie Maher, with Joe Wilson only two points back with a game in hand.

And in the battle to avoid the Wooden Spoon, Ross Gallichan has a one-point advantage over Lorraine Woods.

With battles all over the place, the next few weeks are shaping up nicely!

The Premier League is proudly sponsored by Mika Airlie Beach and Whitsunday Tattooing Airlie Beach.

As It Stands

1. J Woods 24pts

2. J Maher 24pts

3. J Wilson 22pts

4. A Peel 20pts

5. D Friend 16pts

6. A Green 15pts

7. A Paull 12pts

8. S Rose 11pts

9. K Reason 11pts

10. G Robbie 7pts

11. N O’ Hara 5pts

12. J Lloyd 4pts

13. R Gallichan 3pts

14. L Woods 2pts

Contributed with thanks to Jamie Maher

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Over the weekend, 10 Cannonvale Cannons competed at the Gardens Swimming Carnival in Townsville.  The Ganter brothers had an excellent weekend of racing.  

Jack swam 1500m Freestyle in 22.42.70 to take out 1st place. He swam an fantastic 400m Freestyle in 5.36.45, a massive 32.63sec PB and 1st place.  

Thomas Ganter swam PBs in every event.  Two of his best races included his 100m Freestyle and 200m IM which he swam PBs and achieved 3rd place.  

Ehsan Helou had a very successful carnival, swimming PBs in all but one event.  His “standout” events were his Breaststroke events.  He won them all.  Ehsan swam an awesome time of 35.11s for his 50m Breaststroke, taking 5.45sec off his previous time.  Ehsan’s sister, Anisa swam extremely well in her 50m Breaststroke and 50m Freestyle, achieving personal best times.  

Isabella Pisanello aged 11 years swam impressive times in a very competitive age group.  Isabella swam PBs in just about all her events.

Her biggest PBs (over 7 sec) were in her 100m Freestyle and 100m IM.  Isabella’s brother, Isaac aged 9 years also swam extremely well.  He swam a fantastic time in his 100m Backstroke, a massive 15.29sec PB (and 2nd place).  

Lukas Trevaskis aged 13 years swam 5PBs and achieved top placings in all of his races.  One of Lukas’s best races was his 100m Freestyle which he won in a time of 1.10.43.  

Jy Parkinson, 16, won all his four races. He was very happy with his 1.58s PB in his 100m IM.  Jacob Bell, aged 15 years won his 800m Freestyle, 400m IM and 50m Backstroke.  Jacob swam very well in his 50m Freestyle which was a 0.1sec PB.

Contributed with thanks to Raylene Rasmussen

The Cannons at the Gardens Swimming Carnival in Townsville

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A successful weekend of football for Whitsunday United despite power outages and forfeits as teams start to think about finals qualification and preparation.

The round started on Friday night with the Premier Women travelling to Mackay to play Rangers. With a squad of just 11 available, and several of them Div1 players – it was going to be a tough assignment. After a fairly even first half, the Whitsunday girls were ahead 2-1 when the lights literally went out. The power outage caused by a car accident meant the game had to be abandoned and the girls are awaiting confirmation on whether the result will stand. Regardless, Sari Goodall continues her impressive form adding another 2 goals to tally.

The U14 Div1 side was looking forward to a home game against Wanderers on Saturday morning, however a late forfeit by the opposition left them disappointed. The U14 Prems played Magpies in Mackay and kept their unbeaten record intact, winning 4-0 despite being a little short of players. Jacob Logan scored 4 goals in a remarkable performance whilst Luka Miller was tireless and created havoc on the park.

U16 Premiers were at home against Country FC and were comfortably in control against the brave visitors who played a man short. As the opposition tired in the send half, the Whitsunday youth really started to dominate but the Country goal keeper was sensation and kept the score to a respectable 4-0. Zane Hill added two goals with Tyler Jankowski and Kobi Miller adding the extras. A great team effort with some impressive passing football being played.

The Men's U23 side had their game postponed so it was only the Premier Men up against third placed Magpies Crusaders.

Understrength with many regular players away with injuries and other commitments, the side was still confidant of a result against the young Crusaders. It was tight tussle and with the goals locked at 1-1 thanks to a Ben Seago penalty goal the Whitsunday side pulled out a miracle last minute win with Hayden Filby scoring a cracker of a goal in the two minutes of the game to take a 2-1 win.

The win cements second place on the ladder and with two games in hand on first place, the Men are looking to take out the Premiership.

Contributed with thanks to Allan Milostic

Alex Grossi about to launch in a corner kick

Jacob Logan in full attack mode

Kobi Miller attracted lots of defenders all day

Sari Goodal made an immediate impact with her speed and precision

Tate Butler never stops. A genuine work horse

Image Credit: Nicole Jankowski

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The week started off on Tuesday with 25 bowlers including John Sutcliffe and Bill Butler.

Butler, who was travelling with his lovely wife Karen, was joined by Rosie Geeves – winner of the prestigious Health Hub award – each of whom were travelling from Howrah Bowls club in Hobart Tasmania.

John would form a devastating team with Rhonda Lloyd on the day, with the pair beating out all opponents, claiming a Tuesday overall win.

Wednesday afternoon saw 32 bowlers competing for the winner’s prize eventually claimed by Ted Cullen and Sue Pepyat.

The pair overwhelmed all comers, with visitor David Lavery taking home the wonderful Health Hub award to add to his memories of Airlie Beach.

Wednesday night saw the start of Business House Bowls which was an amazing success with many new bowlers competing.

Saturday morning Scroungers saw a strong roll up of bowlers with the Tony Whitehorn beating John Askew.

Nik Fernbach also lost out, although he seems to be regaining his old, outstanding form - and last week’s finalist Mark Mawson was also toppled in Tony’s trip to the winner’s table.

Sunday afternoon bowls was run by the club’s unsung heroes, Lyn Graham and Henny Tattam, who saw 36 bowlers competing for the first prize.

Skipper Steve Lawrie won the day with birthday girl Robin Brown and Lyn Graham, and visitor Barry Hirth won the Health Hub award.

Special mention must go to Jill Mazlin-Peterson who returned from coming second at the Champion of Champions in Mackay.

Contributed with thanks to Mark Mawson

Ted Cullen and Sue Pepyat were the big winners of Wednesday afternoon social bowls

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A local Bowen bowls club enjoyed a month of excellent bowls brimming with the company of southerners looking for a change in the weather, as well as representation across the Burdekin.

At the local group, social bowls kicked into gear on Wednesdays and Sundays, with plenty of excellent bowls played between competitors.

It was certainly an enjoyable week, but most enjoyable for those at the winner’s table.

That included Wednesday winners Charlie Van Bakel, Bev Smith, and Peter Thomson, as well as Dianne Harris, Lindsay Harris, and Jane Gilbert.

They were also joined by winners Jill Cunningham, Paul King, and Marilyn Turner.

Sunday socials winners were comprised of Klevo Takanen, Gavin Charles, and Ron Gould, with the following week’s top team Gavin Charles, Jill Brabon, Steve Roome, and Tiarna Rogers.

There were pennants matches in early July, too, with BBC Ladies’ team coming runners up in the Purple Pennants held in the Burdekin.

That team was comprised of Jill Brabon, Paula Welsted, Joan Edwards, Helen Jacobsen, Tiarna Rogers, Eddy Neylon, Tracey Roach, Bev Smith, and Aileen Fordham.

And there was the overall Winners of the Lions Trophy in the Purple Pennants: Aileen Fordham, Tiarna Rogers, Joan Edwards, and Bev Smith.

Purple Pennants runners up at the matches held in the Burdekin: Jill Brabon, Paula Welsted, Joan Edwards, Helen Jacobsen, Tiarna Rogers, Eddy Neylon, Tracey Roach, Bev Smith, and Aileen Fordham

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On the July 17 weekend, the Bowen Polocrosse Club travelled to the Lower Burdekin Carnival for their first carnival for the year.

After a few years away from the game, the section made a tremendous come back where they took out the Winners for the B Grade Comp.

The winning team was fielded by Anthony Sullivan, Ellisa Davis, and Michael Foster. It also had Michael Foster take out the ‘Best sportsmanship’ award for the carnival.

In the JNR comp we seen Ryleigh Mclean along with her section take out the runners up in the JRN comp.

Bowen will be hosting Its annual carnival on the 30 and 31 of July 2022.

With a full canteen, bar all weekend & roast dinner on the Saturday night, the club would love to see the any spectators come along and support their local club.

Contributed with thanks to Jesse Foster

Bowen’s Polocrosse team were winners at their first event of the year in the Lower Burdekin Carnival

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Wednesday’s competition was a single stableford event sponsored by Bowen Golf Club, with Men’s winner Michael Strickett 40 points, runner up Chris Healey 39.

Ladies’ winner was Freddy Lynch, with runner up Julie Martin, while Saturday was a Stableford competition sponsored by Sporte Leisure.

Ladies’ winner was Linda Scells 43 points, runner up Helen Fellows 36 on C/B, while Men’s winner was Gary Kukura 42 points, runner up Marcus Yasso 40 on C/B.

The club’s ladies’ team competed at Home Hill over the weekend and were victorious, bringing home the Division 6 Pennant.

Well done Grace Nott, Joy Hose, Bev Lowcock, Michelle Campbell, Marg Need, Tanya Gaudry.

This weekend it’s everybody’s favourite game, the Monthly Medal, with men up first on Saturday and the ladies will play Sunday.

Contributed with thanks to Grace Nott

Ladies’ Division 6 pennant winners, Grace Nott, Joy Hose, Bev Lowcock, Michelle Campbell, Marg Need, Tanya Gaudry

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A great rollup today of 33 players including five visitors enjoyed Whitsunday Veterans Golf in mid July.

It was also a special day for Albert Pini, who is celebrating his 90th birthday.  

Not only did he win the July Monthly Medal with a fabulous score of 69, he also won the raffle and a nearest the pin.

The runner up was John Oates, 72 on countback, from Wilf Herweg.  

The ladies’ winner was Mandy Patterson with another great score on 68 from Leanne Alexander 70 and Elspeth Scotford on 71.  

Nearest the pins went to Gary Scotford, Albert Pini and Barry Shuwalow and for the ladies, Leanne Alexander, Mandy Patterson, Vickie Wallace and Rehab Hull.  

Least putts went to John Roser and Elspeth Scotford.

Contributed with thanks to Paula McQuat

July Monthly Medal Winners Albert Pini and Mandy Patterson

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Whitsunday Golf Club held a single stableford for which 19 players braved the cold and windy conditions in mid July.

Congratulations to the Winners: Men’s A Grade Darren Reynolds followed by Peter Fox; Men’s B Grade Mark McDougall with runner up Benn Ryan.

Ladies’ A Grade was taken out by Tiina Randmae, Ladies’ B Grade winner was Jacqui Wall and runner up Joanne Moynihan.

Longest drives went to Wayne Temby, Tiina Randmae, Linda Wardroper and Benn Ryan. Pin shots were claimed by Peter Fox, Benn Ryan, Robyn Witham and Jason Bourke.

Peter Fox, Tiina Randmae, Mark McDougall and Benn Ryan

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Monday pairs winners were David Evans and John Fry, followed by P. Hamerlink and Phil French. Lucky draws went to Sandra Sommerfeld and Brenda Trannore.

Wednesday ladies’ game was taken out by Jenny Grech, Margaret Goldston and Lois Deguara. Runners up were Narelle Schmidtke, Isla Comelli and Maureen Blucher.

Thursday pairs winners were Tony Allsop and Warren Corbett, followed by Margaret Fogg and Barry Lehmann. The kitty toucher was won by Wayne Trannore, who had a resting toucher. Great bowl Wayne. Green vouchers went to John Stronach and Max Rose.

Friday pairs best card went to Vic Gaudion and Col Carey, who took out the $75 each. Winners’ draw winners were Lois Deguara and Isla Comelli. Fred King and Rob Evans won the losers' draw.

Saturday men’s day winners were Peter Delaney and Alan Cooney, with Mick MacKenzie and P. Hodgson in second spot.

Contributed by Tony Allsop

Action in the mixed pairs club championships last Sunday - Mick Mackenzie bowling

Debbie Mackenzie bowling

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An area record that had been standing for 20 years was broken last weekend, at a North Mackay Athletics club day.

The U11 girls high jump record was broken when Ayla Moon set a new centre record with an impressive jump of 1.28m.

The club is gearing up for its annual team challenge, and you don’t even have to be a member of the athletic club to compete.

The team challenge is a non-traditional day of fun, with modified events in track and field, where athletes compete in pairs for a chance to win overall medals.

The fun kicks off from 9am on 31 July at the Mackay Aquatic and Recreation Centre (ARC). Visit North Mackay Athletics on Facebook for more information.

This weekend North Mackay Athletics is hosting its annual team challenge

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Students faced off on the green last Friday as the finals of the Bowls Queensland Secondary Schools Cup took place at Goosies.

Three schools from Mackay and three from Whitsundays were represented by teams of two, with one team from each region to attend state finals in Brisbane in August.

North Mackay Coordinator Ian Beveridge says students showed great commitment to the competition, practicing and competing during school hours and in their own time for months.

“It just shows that bowls does attract the younger generation,” he said.

Skye Duncan and Cleo Mcleod of Mackay Christian College won group one with Corey Stroud and Harry Craig of St Catherine's College coming second.

North Mackay State High School’s Claire O'Loughlin and Drew Lawn were victors in group two, finishing on top of John Barber and Luke Ullrich representing Pioneer State High School.

North Mackay State High beat Mackay Christian College in the finals 10-4.

North Mackay State High will now travel to State Secondary Schools Finals on August 24-25 at Club Pine Rivers in Brisbane along with St Catherine's College from the Whitsundays.

Six schools from Mackay and the Whitsundays took to the green last week for the finals of the Bowls Queensland Secondary Schools Cup. Photo credit: Sam Gillespie

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Ashlee Knight and Lexie Foot guarantee that lawn bowls isn’t an old person’s sport.

“I honestly wouldn’t have thought lawn bowls would be a competitive sport but the more I get into it, the more you see,” said Ashlee.

“I think most people have the view that it’s an old person’s sport but it’s not,” added Lexie.

“The earlier you start with it, the better you can be at it.

“I think we’re both pretty privileged to have picked it up as early as we did.”

Ashlee started playing lawn bowls at age 13 and Lexie at 15 and they have recently been selected to represent Queensland in the under 25 team, taking on New South Wales in Sydney next month.

Both women started playing bowls casually with their families, never expecting their skills to take them this far into the sport.

Now playing regularly at Mackay City Bowls Club where she has previously won A and B grade competitions, Ashlee gets on the green as much as she can, balancing bowls with work and other sport.

She’s previously been selected in Queensland under 18 teams with both tournaments being cancelled due to the pandemic.

“To actually be selected now for the under 25s, I felt really, really good about myself,” she said.

Ashlee’s also had to balance bowls with health issues that took her away from the green for some time, but clearly, it’s barely slowed her down.

“It’s affected me in a way that I can’t play as many games as I wanted to,” she said.

“I had to go away for two months at the start of this year and that pretty much wiped me out of all my games.

“As soon as I got the clearance to come back home, I was out here, straight back to bowls.”

Lexie is a resident bowler at Northern Beaches Bowls Club where just last week she won A grade singles.

“I’m pretty proud of that, it’s generally a pretty big achievement,” she said.

“Last year I did an interview with Bowls Queensland, and they asked, ‘what’s the one thing you want to achieve?’ and that was what I wanted and I did it.”

Their love of bowls started with their families, who they both cite as massive inspirations as well as key individuals at their clubs and in Brisbane.

What brings them back every week is their love of the teamwork and the technicality involved in the sport.

“It’s challenging, every game’s different,” said Lexie.

They both now move on to their next challenge, with training ramping up before travelling to Sydney in August.

“It’s really good, I’m proud to represent Mackay and Northern Beaches,” said Lexie.

“We test ourselves, so we play against each other and sometimes we’ll do drills together,” said Ashlee.

Coming up against old rivals New South Wales, the bowlers say they’re hoping to follow in the Maroons’ footsteps and come away with the win.

“It also puts a bit of added pressure, I guess. We’ve got to back it up,” Lexie laughed.

The excitement of the tournament is heightened by the fact that it will be Ashlee’s first trip to the New South Wales capital.

“I actually can’t wait to fly over Sydney and see the Harbour Bridge,” she laughed.

Queensland take on New South Wales at Taren Point Bowling Club in New South Wales on August 23 and 24.

Ashlee Knight and Lexie Foot have been selected to represent Queensland

Ashlee and Lexie will travel to Sydney for the QLD vs NSW Test Series next month

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