Boundary rider
THERE was no joy for the large contingent of Armidale racegoers that made the trip to the Walcha Cup last week to see Brave Ali return from a spell.
The Craig Martin-trained gelding finished seventh, beaten around four lengths by his stablemate Jefferson Park.
But the Armidale Cup is Brave Ali’s main target and he’ll continue to improve in the lead-up to the race.
While crowd numbers were down at Walcha on Friday, mainly due to the drought, the track was in great condition considering the hot and dry summer we’ve endured.
Hats off to the committee at Walcha who obviously worked around the clock in January and early this month to have everything in great order.
Killer road trip
SOME junior rugby league players in Armidale, as well the league tag women, are not looking forward to the trip to Goondiwindi in 2014.
The newest addition to Group 19 is 320km from Armidale and will take the best part of three and a half hours to get there.
For the league tag players, they’ll have to leave at 6.30am to get to Goondiwindi an hour before their matches.
While Armidale will only have to make the trip to the Queensland town once a season, it’s a tough ask, especially as there will be two trips to Moree as well, which is 270km away.
Upset brewing?
ARMIDALE might not have beaten Tamworth for many years in a senior cricket match, but there’s a feeling an upset could be on the cards in this Sunday’s War Veterans Cup final.
Spinner Stephen Butler said the Armidale players were keen to try and catch Tamworth napping early.
“They’ve played a lot of representative cricket this year and might not be as keen as us,” he said.
“We think we will have to play really well to win, but we’re confident of putting in a good performance.”
Sunday’s 50-over-a-side match starts at 10am at Tamworth’s No. 1 Oval.
Sports parent of the year
WE’VE all heard those horror stories about parents at junior sporting matches, but we don’t hear a lot about those great mums and dads.
Helen Dennis is a shining light for the Armidale Junior Cricket Association. Not only does she support her children on the field, but she also does all the publicity for the regular and representative competitions.
Most of the great junior cricket pictures you’ve seen in this paper over summer have come from Helen’s camera.
Keep up the good work.
McGrath Foundation fundraiser
ONE of the most popular Australian films in recent times is currently touring around the country and makes a stop in Armidale next week.
Backyard Ashes, which stars Logie-winning actor John Wood, was a low-budget film, but has produced plenty of laughs.
Belgrave Cinema, in partnership with Armidale Junior Cricket, is screening the movie on Thursday, 20 February at 6pm.
Tickets are $18 for adults and $14 for children and money goes towards the McGrath Foundation.
A signed Glenn McGrath pink cap will also be given away as a lucky door prize.
Soccer entries extended
NOMINATIONS for SportUNE’s twilight soccer competition have been extended.
Sports development officer Brad King said numbers were growing, but they were still looking for more teams to enter.
The under-10s, 12s and women’s matches will be played on Tuesdays, while the men’s competition will be on Wednesdays.
The under-14s, 16s and mixed matches will be played on Thursday evenings.
To register, go to www.unisport.com.au/sportune or call King on 6773 5181.
City set to shine
THE 2014 hockey season is fast approaching and City Hockey Club is gearing up for another great year.
City retained the bulk of last year’s committee at its recent AGM.
Paul Eichorn was re-elected as president with Paul Tearle as secretary.
Registration for the 2014 winter season will start with a sign-on day on Sunday at the Armidale Bowling Club barbecue area between noon and 2pm.
