1979
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Barry Rowston admitted he hadn’t given himself a chance when he was competing in the final of the Valley View Golf Club’s championship against Phil Downe.
Rowston beat Downe in a play-off to win his first championship, having gone into the final round five shots off the pace set by Bert Adams, Downe and Les Baker.
Rowston put together seven straight pars in blustery conditions to finish with a round of 79 and win his first title after 21 years of trying.
⋅ It wasn’t quite a premiership victory, but the 28-men workforce of the Kyabam district’s State Electricity Commission were celebrating a huge win – of the professional variety.
They were recognised with having amassed an amazing 100,000 man hours of accident free labour, receiving a visit from the regional manager for their first class safe working habits and planning procedures.
Each member of staff was presented with a fluorescent torch as a memento of the occasion and received a framed certificate from the National Safety Council – accepted by Chairman of the Kyabram Safety Group, Peter Mortimer.
Jack Morris was also recognised for 30 years of work with the SEC at the event.
1989
Kyabram netballer Janelle Fitzgerald was the club’s entrant in the Miss Goulburn Valley Football quest.
The 19-year-old full-time employee at the family business, Fitzgeralds SSW Supermarket, is studying accounting at night school.
The winner of the quest was announced at the GVL Morrison Medal Count, which was attended by all entrants.
⋅ Seymour ruckman Jon Solomon won the Morrison Medal that year, two years after another ruckman – Kyabram’s Peter Gittos – had walked away with the major individual honour.
At the opposite end of the height spectrum was Kyabram rover Benny Gugliotti, who was the winner of the award in 1993.
⋅ Two Kyabram Netball Association stars were the toast of the town after being recognised with selection and recognition by the state body.
Teenager Margie McQueen was selected in the Victorian Under 21 team and Pauline Laidlaw was named the winner of Victorian Netball Association’s distinction award.
McQueen was combining netball with her VCE studies and was bound for the national titles in Canberra.
Laidlaw was recognised for 31 years of volunteer work in the Goulburn region, having already been made a life member of the Kyabram association and a manger of teams at country week and state league level.
⋅ Bryce Fraser was named the Parkland Golf Club champion, following in the footsteps of his father Peter.
Bryce wasn’t born when Peter won the first of his 12 championships and he managed to upset the hot favourite Bob Troy to take the title at just 16 years of age.
Peter was 22 when he won his first title and Bryce took no pity on his father, knocking him out of the championship race in the semi-finals.
1999
⋅ Danny Irwin had 81 goals for the season with half a dozen rounds of the home and away season remaining in 1999, ahead of Nagambie’s Shane Loveless (63), Wayne Webber from Undera (61) and Lancaster’s Tim Hancock.
Scott Hearn, who had 42 goals for the year, was a star for Lancaster in its 28 points win against Merrigum in a game where Mick Pell, Steve Grills and Andrew Thomas were the best players.
For Merrigum Steve Pedretti, Anthony Mann, Scott Greig and Hayden Howard were the best.
Girgarre lost to Tallygaroopna by 10 points, despite Gino D’Angelo kicking four goals and Brett Hobbs’ outstanding game alongside Jeff Turpin and Matt Flanagan.
Stanhope beat Undera by 43 points, Mark Patten kicking six goals, Leigh Haw five and Ash Comer among the best players on the ground.
Stanhope was second to the unbeaten Nagambie, with Lancaster sitting fifth on the ladder, Merrigum sixth and Girgarre second last.
⋅ Mark Patten played his 300th game for Stanhope a week later, having started his career way back in 1981 when the club was in the Heathcote league. He was involved in a history-making Kyabram district league premiership of 1995, the 34-year-old also having grand final wins in 1987-88.
⋅ Two years after slipping and falling on his back, resulting in a diagnosis that he would never walk again, David Cartwright was named the club champion of the Kyabram Parkland Golf Club.
David had spent two months in intensive care at Austin Hospital in Melbourne and another three months at a Melbourne rehabilitation centre. Within two months of checking out of the centre he was hitting a golf ball and two years after the accident he was the club champion.
2009
Corey Carver added to his long list of achievements when he played his 200 th senior game of football for Lancaster.
The skilful rover arrived at Lancaster, from Kyabram, in 1997 when just 20-years-old. He was a five time best and fairest winner and was twice runner-up in the league best and fairest award.
He listed Mick Pell and Andrew Thomas as some of his best teammates and had various other honours – coach of the 2006-07 senior team, coach of a premiership winning thirds team in 1998 and involved in three grand finals (including the winning 2001 team).
⋅ Drag racer Mick Donohue made history when he broke the national speed record at Sydney International Dragway, recorded at 236.5 kmph on his turbocharged Suzuki GSX-R 750.
The bike had 320 horsepower and Mick, along with his team, were bound for the United States to compete against the world’s best after registering the extraordinary 8.77 second run for the quarter mile (400 metres).
Kyabram Free Press and Campaspe Valley News editor