MORE than 20 officers from the Traralgon Police Station and The Police Association of Victoria (TPAV) walked off the job last Wednesday (December 11), amid ongoing wage negotiations.
AdministeredbyTPAV, staged with abannerreading ‘BREAKING POINT’, officers spent 30 minutes offthe job from 9am until 9.30am as part of their Protected Industrial Action (PIA).
Last mont h, offi cer sf ro ma cr oss Victoria began walking off the job for the first time in 25 years.
Despite being ‘off the job’, media was reminded thatifpolice were required to attend to the public urgently, they would have returned to work.
Representing the 17,000members on the Victorian Police force, speaking outside the Traralgon Police Station was TPAV president, Sergeant Karl David.
“It’sadisgrace.Pushingthis matter to theFair Work Commission is hiding from the issue,” Sergeant David said.
“Tim Pallas (wh oa nno unced his
resigna tion as state treasur er on Monday) said in an interview recently, thatifhewas told by the FairWork Commission to pay acertain amount of pay risetothe police, then he wouldfind the money to do it. We say to Tim Pallas, why wait for the Fair Work Commission? Pay us now.
“Shane Patton(Victoria Police Chief Commissioner) says that in respect to unpaid work, that it was an expectation by being apolice officer that you would support the community, and therewould be an expectation to do alittle bit of unpaid work. He called it good will. I’m saying to the chief commissioner, it’s not good will, it’s against our will.”
Sergeant David complained that IT systems that are currently in place are creating more work,making “a four-hour job an eight-hour job”.
“Working for VictoriaPolice is like skydivingwith aparachute fromTemu The problem is that this employer wants us to do an extra couple of jumps in our own time, it’s unacceptable,” Sergeant David said.
Sergeant David added comparisonsto the recent New South Wales Police pay dispute,saying that the NSW government and commissioner have respect for its police force.
In November,itwas confirmed that NSW police won pay rises of up to 40 per cent in the biggest wage increase in 30 years. The Guardian reported that “senior constablesand sergeants will receive increases of at least 25 per cent before shift allowances”.
“Shane Patton could fix this today,” Sergeant David reiterated.
“Our members demand afair pay rise, better conditions, including an end to unpaid work, and above all -respect.”
Sergeant David once again outlined the conditions of the PIA, and the actions that Victorian police officers can perform.
The first action includes not starting work 30 minutes to an hour earlier than their paid hours, in order to kit up for their shift.
“Back in thosedayswhenI started, you justput on apair of pantsand a
At breaking point Winning recipes
shirt, you’d put on apancakeholster and walk out the door. It’s different today, now there is 20 kilograms of equipment, we wear firearms, we wear video recording equipment, we carry tasers, we haveaballistic vest -all of this stuff needs to be integrated, signed out, downloaded -ittakes time. The job has changed,” Sergeant David said.
Oth er action saspart of the PIA include the likes of refusal to respond to emails or phone calls outside of working hours, bans on performingvoluntary duties,bargaining negotiationswritten on police vehicles, and an interruption to work to attend location of fixed speed or red light cameras.
Vict orian poli ce off ice rs are also encouraged to speak to media including newspapers and radio stations about theirexperiences under the PIA, which they are able to do for the firsttime.
Continued -Page2
Churchill resident and former Masterchef contestant Noelene Marchwicki has released a cookbook. The book hascommunity front of mind, with its contents aiming to inspirepeople to rediscoverthe magic of home cooking, while book sales aregoing to alocal not-for-profit.
Photograph: Katrina Brandon
Students uproar amid lunch pass removal
By TOMHAYES
NEARLY 600 people have signed apetition created by Lowanna College students, who want their lunch passes reinstated.
At Lowanna College, students could previously apply for lunch passes -requiring permission from a parent/carer,allowing them to leaveschool grounds during lunch.
As of Monday, December 2, Lowanna College no longer provide lunch passes for students for the purpose of leaving school groundsduring breaks. Instead, the school will require the parents/ guardians to provide consent, sign the student out via Compass (online system), or approve early departure by calling the front administrationor mini school office.
Students,parentsand carers were notified of this in an email from Lowanna College Acting Principal, Julia Niamh on Friday, November 29, meaning they had no time to react to the news before the next school day.
Ms Niamh alsowrote:“The LowannaCollege canteen has the capacity to accommodate student numbers at the college, and our on-site café is available for Year 12 students”.
“I encourage students to supportour on-site business during school hours.”
The letter clearly didn’t soften the blow, as students didn’t take well to the news.
LowannaCollege students Larissa Toet and Lisa Watson shared with the Expresshow they felt when the news was delivered to them.
“It wasn’t discussed withanyone. We didn’t even get achancetofight it, it was just there,” Larissa said.
“I was abruptlyevoked, and there was no nothing about it,” Lisa added.
The Lowannastudents were quick to react, creating apetition with hopes of reinstating the lunch passes for Year 11 and 12 students.
“I just made one just randomly, and Isent the link in agroup chat and my friend Kai (Welch) he really liked the idea, and he added way more that what Ihad (to the description). At lot of the language in the petition is his,” Larissa said.
Once the petition had reached around 100 signatures, during an assembly the students were asked
to remove the petition from the change.org website.
“We didn’t expect to get 50, we expected our friend groupand afew Year 12sand that’sit,” Larissa said.
But this only appears to have heightened the issue for Lowanna College, as the petition gained more traction, blowing out to 599 signatures at the time of print.
It’s not just the affected students that are signing either, younger students,parents and even past students have been frequent in the petition comments.
“We were definitely surprised,” Larissa added.
“I stand up for the kids 100 per cent,” Larissa’s mother, Helen, said.
Gettinga lunch passisseen as aprivilege by students, who say they look forward to the time they enter Year 11, becoming eligible to do so.
Dozens of students leave the campus at lunch, many returning during the break, ensuring not to miss their following class.
Now that the no lunch pass policy is in full effect, lunch time looks abit different for many students at Lowanna.
“Wedon’t leavethe building anymore. Everyone basically has theirareas in the yard, it doesn’t look
likeit, but everyone has theirareas,” Larissasaid.
“Even last year, alot of the Year 12s would go out and sit at Danbos and relax because, as much as it’s okay sharing the (on-site) café with teachers, there’s alot of teachers that use that space not leaving much space for the kids.”
“None of us leavethe building. We’ve got areally, reallysmall kitchen, and basically,wejuststay inside all the time now,” Lisa added.
Ms Toet (Helen) believes it would be quite simple to setupand signing in and out system for students which can be implemented in cases of emergency.
“That is something we would be completely willing to do if thatwas the extra step thatwe had to take to go down the street,” Larissa added.
Another issue that was raised was the fact that students couldn’t be monitored if they were using their mobile phones or not off the campus.
Lowanna College students are not permitted to usemobilephonesduringschoolhours,which has also raised concerns with students and parents/ guardians.
“They said they weren’t going to budge on the phone rule, and they’ve said that for years,” Larissa said.
In the initial email providedtostudents, parents
and guardians,announcing the fact that lunch passeswouldnolongerbeavailable,MsNiamh cited Department of Education’s Duty of Care policy, last updated in 2020.
Ms Niamh points to the line: “students must be supervised during recess and lunch”. Her letter also states: “After seeking advice from the Department’s legal branch, Ihave been advised thatthe current practicedoes not comply with the legal requirements to meetappropriate levels of duty of care.”
However, in the petition’s description, the Lowanna students alluded to the fact that in the Department of Education’smore-recently-updated policy, Supervision of Students(2021),italsopoints to similar facts that contradict the backing of the Duty of Care policy.
Students pointed to the subheading ‘Supervision responsibilities during school hours’. The policy states: Students must be supervised during recess and lunch. For students who seek to leave school premises during lunch or recess, procedures must be in place that incorporate:
-Written parent/carer requests for students under 18, and;
-Short and long-term lunch passes.
It appears to students that lunch passes must not force adiscrepancy in the Duty of Care policy, according to the most recently updated policy.
The Express contacted Lowanna College for a response, however, was told questions regarding lunch passes had to be directed to the Department of Education.
“The school is working with the department to ensure compliance with duty-of-care requirements,” aDepartment of Education spokesperson said. Also within the petition, students are worried that Danbos, the café in close quarters that also supports LowannaCollege’son-site café, will have their usual customers taken away.
Thestudentspredict that Danbos may pull its fundingwhich would not only hinder the on-site café, but also students who are undergoing barista courses.The students have noticedthatthe on-site café is no long using Danbos’ cups for coffees.
Danbosowner Daniel Chessellswas contacted for acomment, but the Express did not receive a response before print.
Police hold out hope for decision, uncharted territoryreached
From Page 1
SENIOR Constable Kyle Arestia said that the force remains hopeful that adecisioncan be made by the Fair Work CommissionbyChristmas, as promised, after Mr Patton’s application was to move negotiations to “intractable bargaining”.
“We remain hopeful that they will order afurther period of negotiation,” he said.
If the Fair Work Commission rejects the request, negotiations could last for an unknown period of time.
“TPAV have never found themselves in this position before of along, drawn out EBA (Enterprise Bargaining Agreement),” Senior Constable Arestia said.
Although Senior Constable Arestia wasn’t present at the TPAV Stop Work event at the Traralgon Police Station last week, he believes it sends a strong message to the state government.
“Victoria Police members are stopping work for short periods of time and gathering out the front of their stations to show aclearmessagetothe government that we are fed up, burnt out, and serious aboutnegotiating an impactful agreement thatcan savethe futureofVictoria Police,”hesaid.
“With the currentclimate of policingpostCOVID-19 and the soaring crime rates, this EBA is set to be the most important in the historyof
VictoriaPolice.Itscares me to thinkwhatVictoria Police could look like in the next five years if we don’t get this right now.
“Victoria Police members are currently leaving the job at rates faster than we can recruitnew members.
“Withpublicperception of police officers shifting andwork loadsincreasing, Iforesee the problem worsening at an exponential rate over the coming years.”
It must be remembered that police officers are humantoo.
“As the weeks and months tick by though, it’s only natural that some of us lose focus on the end goal.
“WithNSW police recentlynegotiating agreat deal, Ithink there would be manyofmycolleagues seriously considering making amove to an interstate force that treats their members better.”
At the Traralgon Police StationStop Work event were local Nationals members Martin Cameron (Morwell) and Melina Bath (Eastern Victoria), who showed their support.
The Nationals condemnedPremier Jacinta Allen for her failure to reach afair deal that address overtimeand excessive workloads. Mr Cameron said the state government had let down the police force, leaving officersfeelingundervalued at atime when their service has never been more critical.
“Each day they go to work knowing they have to perform asignificant amountofunpaid work to help keep our community safe -it’sablightonthe government’s record that there is well over 1000 job vacanciesand 700 officers out on sick leave state-wide,” Mr Cameron said.
Ms Bath said that police members want to be tackling crime, not locked in an arm wrestle with the Premier.
“Our police put their lives on the line to help keep us safe -it’soutrageous that the Allan Labor government will not sit down and sortout this mess,” Ms Bath said.
Last week, the Herald Sun reported that Victoria Police is facing court action from its members’ union, who claim they’ve missed out of hundreds of millions of dollarsinovertimepay, adding to the pay dispute crisis.
TPAVreportedly launched proceedingsinthe Federal Court, demanding that Victoria Police pay six years’ worth of unpaid wages for officers.
TPAV says that thousands of officers miss out on five overtime hours per week before and after ashift -equal to nearly six weeks’ pay over ayear.
Liberal Member for Berwick, Brad Battin called out the state government, saying PIA by Victoria Police could have been avoided if the state government hadshown respect.
“The decision by Premier Jacinta Allen and her colleagues to walk away from the negotiating table, and for Treasurer Tim Pallastosay he willfind the money to pay the police if forced by Fair Work Australiahighlights the contempt Labor hasfor our thin blue line,” he said in astatement.
“Today (December 12),the Premier and her Police Minister must actively engagewith the Police Association to resolve this ongoing dispute with the frontline.
“Premier Jacinta Allen can fix this today by doing the right thing and returning to the table.”
The state government stood its ground in a response to the comments made.
"Victoria Police officers play acriticalrole in protecting the community andsaving lives, and we are grateful for their vitalservice," astate government spokesperson said.
"We have delivered arecord $4.5 billionfor Victoria Police to ensure they have the resources they need to keep Victorians safe.
"After aprotractedperiod, VictoriaPolice sought the assistance of the FairWorkCommission in progressing bargaining.
"Any planned Protected Industrial Action is a matter for The Police Association of Victoria, and we welcome the assurance that any action would not affect community safety."
Photograph: TomHayes
Heat sweeps through the Valley
By KATRINA BRANDON
HOT weather scorched the LatrobeValley on Monday, with the temperature hitting 41 degrees.
Mondaywas the hottest day since 2019, when on January 25, it reached astaggering 45.4 degrees. Black Saturday (February 7, 2009) reached 46.3 degrees.
Authorities have warned that throughout summer, there could potentially be more daysreaching extreme temperatures.
For travellers, V/Line has told passengers to plan and allow extra time whenever there is an extreme heat timetable.
V/Line Executive Director Operations, Rochelle Reynolds said extra precautions are in placeon days forecast to be above 36 degrees.
“Safetyisour toppriority, and on thosereallyhot days,steel tracks can expand in the heat, which is why trains may run at slower speeds or be replaced by coaches when necessary,” she said.
“Passengers can confidentlyplan their tripusing extreme heat timetables on those hot days when temperatures reach 36 degrees and above.
“Information about these timetables can be accessed on the V/Line website, or passengers can speak with our staff for information.”
Slowing trains reduces dynamic forces that can initiate amisalignment on hot days.
V/Line closely monitors weather conditions during the warmer months to determine when extreme heattimetables will be activated. On extreme heat days, extra crews are on standby to manage issues andensure minimal disruptions to passengers as they travel.
On an average summer day, pets and children can't be left in vehicles becausecars and other forms of transportation can reach extreme temperatures. For days that go above 30, not only are pets not allowed in vehicles,but the RSPCA warns that there will be other hidden dangers.
If you are walking your dog, the RSPCA recommendsdoing so early in the morning before footpaths and roads start to warm up, and conversely, late in the evening once they have cooled down. Checkthe temperature withthe backofyour hand to test if the ground is cool enough. If it is too hot for you, it’s too hot for your dog.
Hot weatheralsoelevates the risk of sudden storms, bushfires and snakes.
RSPCA Victoria ChiefVeterinarian, Dr Bronwyn Oke said: “Hot and extremely hot weather can be devastating for pet health”.
“Heat stroke is potentially deadly and occurs quickly for many pets; some signs of heat stroke include your pet panting excessively, vomiting or has diarrhoea, or hasvery bright or very palegums.
“Heat stroke can occur even after acool change
comes through with footpathsand concrete continuing to radiate heat,creatinghighground-level temperatures.
“If your pet displays these symptoms or you’re concerned, call your vet immediately.”
To prevent heatstroke, Ms Oke recommendsthat petshave access to shaded areas with fresh, clean drinking water and good ventilation at all times to help them cool down.
ATotal Fire Ban was also in placeinmost Victorian districts.OnanExtremeFireDanger day,fires willspread quickly andbeextremely dangerous.
To keep safe during hot weather, authorities say to drink plenty of water, keep cool using afan, air conditioner or cold shower, wear light and loose clothing and cancel or reschedule activities for a cooler time of the day. It’s also important to check in with family, friends and neighbours.
CHRISTMAS
Firsttimeina long time: Temperatures soared over 40C on Monday. Photograph: iStock
Jur yout after Labor decade
By DAVIDBRAITHWAITE
LAST month marked adecade since the Labor Party regained government in Victoria.
Daniel Andrews replaced Denis Naphine as state premier after leading Labor to victory in the 2014 election. Labor has had two comfortable victories in the two subsequent elections, with Jacinta Allen taking over the leadership last year following Mr Andrews' retirement.
The next election is due in November 2026.
In astatement to the Latrobe Valley Express' sister paper the Gippsland Times,Premier Jacinta Allen said the government has worked hard for and with regional communities just like those across every corner of Gippsland.
"Every dollar we invest in regional Victoria is a dollar well spent -and we've invested more than $45 billion over the last decade," she said.
"Of course,our work is far fromover.I'llkeep working every single day to achieve aVictoria that is better, fairer and kinder."
Lea der of the Na tio nals and Memb er for Gippsland South Danny O'Brien said Gippsland has been sent backwards in the last 10 years.
"After 10 years under aLabor state government, Gippslandersare leftpaying the price through record debt, record taxes, falling standards of living, and billions of dollars in cost blowouts across major projects," Mr O'Brien said.
"Victoria now has arecord net debt that is on tracktoreach $187.8billion by 2027/28 after increasing by astaggering$80.4 millionaday over the last quarter.
"Weare paying more than ever before, but what are regional areas like Gippsland South getting in return?"
Mr O'Brien said he believed Gippslanders were footing the bill for acity-centricstate government that continued to fail regional communities.
"We have watched on in disbelief as the Labor stategovernmenthas wasted billions of dollars to cover major project cost blowoutsofover $40 billiononcity-basedmegaprojects, including $21.2 billion on the North East Link, $4.7 billion on the West Gate Tunnel and $4.87 billon on the Metro Tunnel. Meanwhile our local roadsare riddled with potholes and subject to speed reductions after funding cuts to the road maintenance budget," Mr O'Brien said.
"Under Laborwehave seen local voices silenced in the rush for new renewableenergy projectswhile at the same time energy prices are soaring with electricity costs up 21.5 per cent and ideological bans on gas.
"Power stations have been shut down after the tripling of coal taxes and our sustainable native timber industry has been axed by agovernment moreconcerned about Green votes thantimber towns."
Mr O'Brien said the list of failures under Labor would be comical if it was not so devastating.
"Labor made big promises to Gippsland ahead of the last election including apromise of economic stimulus and increased social housing by bringingthe 2026 Commonwealth Games to regional Victoria," he said.
"All this from agovernment thatwentonto pay $380 million to not host the Commonwealth Games.
"In fact, despite being in the midst of ahousing crisis, Gippsland South now has less social housing stock than it did 10 years ago.
"Indeed, after 10 years of Labor the only thing regional communitieslikeGippsland are seeing more of is crime."
Mr O'Brien wasreferringtodatareleased in September 2024 whichshowed that crime has risen 93.3 per cent in South Gippsland Shire, almost double since Labor came to power in 2014.
The government told the Gippsland Times it has has invested close to $1.5 billioninroad maintenance funding in Gippsland since 2014.
As partofthis government's $219million investment in up to 200 additionalweekend V/ Line services(a2022election commitment), trains are running every 40 minutes on the Traralgon line from 8am to 9pm on weekends.
Since the state government introduced the regional fare cap, passengers have saved more than$100millionintrainfares including those usingthe Gippsland line.
The state government hasalsoinvested $228 million into social housing for the Gippsland community. There will be 540 new homes with nearly half of those already complete.
The state government also claimed to have delivered better facilitiesand more healthcare workers for all Victorians, backed by arecord more than $21 billion investment in this year alone.
Some health investments benefiting or set to benefit Gippsland locals include the works at the LatrobeRegional Hospital ($223.5 million for Stage 3A and $73 million for Stage 2), Urgent CareClinics in Moe and Warragul, multiple new ambulance branches, and public sector residential aged care facilities in Bairnsdale, Maffra, Sale, Leongatha, Traralgon, Orbost, Omeo and Warragul.
Almost $37million hasbeen providedtobuild or upgrade 22 police stations in Gippsland, while the government pointedtothe delivery of more than 160 new police members and specialist family violence officers to the region and 205 crime prevention initiatives.
Offshore wind projects will also support thousands of jobs in Gippsland and help power homes and businesses across Australia with renewable energy, the government also highlighted.
The government has invested $16.9 billion over
the past decade to build new schools and deliver
more than 2200 school upgrades, including more than $325 million on 172 upgrade projects in Gippsland.
Member for Eastern Victoria, Harriet Shing said it had been aprivilege and ajoy to represent the Eastern Victoria region in Parliament, and to advocate for the ambitions and opportunities Gippslanders told her were most important.
"Gippsland is strong and proud with ahistory of resilience and innovation and afuture that's full of potential,and I'm determined to do all that I can to support it," she said.
Fellow Labor Memberfor Eastern Victoria, Tom McIntosh said the government was investing in Gippsland's future, withsustainable industries, resilient communities, as well as transport, health, and education infrastructure.
"We are supporting workers and businesses to ensurethey are part of athriving future for the region," he said.
Men’sshed opening the doors for all
By BLAKE METCALF-HOLT
TUCKED away in front of Yallourn PowerStation is asmall community going well under the radar. They definitely should be known, given their mission to forge ahead and create asanctuary in which all can seek out.
Based at the old SEC Production Centre, the Newborough Yallourn Men’s Shed is avibrant and compassionate environment of men and women.
Longneglected and abandoned, the heritagelisted ‘Whitehouse’ became atarget forvandalism before the men’s shed arrived, who are slowly beginning to bring it back to life.
Coinciding with their 18-month project to repurpose and conformthis 100-year-old building into a community meeting point and tourist attraction, the men’s shed boasts awide array of activities cultivated to give all an opportunity to learn,grow and be apartofsomething truly special.
These includewoodworking,metalwork,art classes, gardening, self-defence classes, crocheting, knitting and many other communal projects.
Their change of venue and forward-thinking men’s shed ideals have seen Newborough Yallourn welcome outside organisations to truly become an inclusive group.
Members of the men’s shed supported in Andrew Hislop’s fanaticism and dreams of creating the iconic Doctor Who TARDIS.
From the initial idea making it from asmall box, being able to step footinthe time-travelling phone box became areality for Andrew.
Knowing each other for 30 years,One Choice Support ServicesClientSupport Manager, Kerrie Seychell said this opportunity with the men’s shed had given Andrew achancetoengage and reach outcomes in asupportive environment.
“I happened to stumble across this (men’s shed) and thought it’s so inclusive and (it) has so much equipment, it was just so fantastic and really great supervision for Andrew,” she said.
“You’re supposed to be doing things with them
Bringing backtolife: Themen’s shedhas gardening and plant lifearoundthe outside of the heritagelisted Yallourn ProductionCentre.
Photographs: BlakeMetcalf-Holt
surround Andrew Hislop and hiswonderful Doctor Whoinspired creation.
to fulfiltheirdreams to buildtheir capacity and so Andrew’s built capacity… that he has learnt to sand, to paint, to interactwithpeople around him, to problem-solve and things like that.”
Newborough Yallourn Men’s Shed Secretary, Michael Fozard made note that this is afirst for them but willblossom, welcoming more all-abilities people to the site.
“What we’re looking at is trying to increase our capabilityofhandling people like this.The difficulty you’ve got in this situation is you’vegot to convince your community out there that they are part of our community,” he said.
“So our objective… is that we need to be inclusive. We’re not just amen’sshed for men, we have women, we have people with disability, (and) we have people withother issues that are justlooking for somewhere to do things.
“So that is why we see this now as agreat opportunity to try and develop that.”
Ms Seychellemphasised what the men’s shed membersprovided Andrew, notonly practically, during the project.
“These guys (at the men’s shed) have got alot to give,” she said.
“I thinkthe skills that come along with this older generation,(they’ve) got so much to give and to teach, that Ithink to alarge degree gets lost.
“Bringing them here, and they may not be as able as whatAndrew is, but that doesn’t mean they can’t participate.”
Mr Fozard is also involved in other local NDIS organisationswho have visitedthe men’sshed including Perceus and Morwell’s Kameruka Run.
Themen’s shed have worked with corrections as well to bringinpastoffenderstocomplete their
NEW BUSINESS IN GIPPSLAND
community service hours, supporting in the cleanup of the facility.
Theyare also working on bringing another NDIS organisation, SASI, in to do aLego program early next year.
Previously simply known as the Newborough Men’s Shed,locatedonRutherglen Road (in Newborough), RedKrauth has been apart of each iteration for the past nine years as it has developed and flourished.
“The whole point of it was to help people, mainly guys that were having problems,” he said.
Mr Krauth credits previous Newborough Men’s Shed Owner, Tanya Bowles for seeing the men’s shed integrate more women into its fold.
“Since I’ve retired, likeeverybody, you’re looking for something to do, the problem is this place takes over, I’ve still got those same somethings five, six years ago Ihaven’t done at home, so the missus is getting annoyed,” he joked.
“Sotofix that Ibrought her here, she’s the artist here and does all the other stuff, now she lives in this place as well (which) got me out of trouble.
“Like alot of us, I’m getting older, there’s alot of things Ihave problems doing now, being apartofa men’s shed that helps, you’ve got that community there, people help you do things.”
Mr Krauth also conducts the Chi (breathing meditation) andself-defence classes, but spoke about how the aspect of the men’s shed, keeping people busy, benefits the mind.
“Mental stabilityisanother one…besidesgetting depressed things like that, you keep your mind on an even-keel, it’s much better when you’re involved doing these sorts of things because your mind is beingactive and challenged all the time,” he said.
Otherprojectsand partnerships cultivatedat the men’s shed include offerings for young people from the Gippsland Trades and Labour Council to learn mechanical skills, working with motors, body panels and welding.
Another is the establishment of an urban farm and plantlifedisplayed at the entrance to the building (the used back side of it) including anew 30-foot green house.
“An urban farm is to try and show people what you can do on your own property, whether it be a small property or large property, whatever it may be,” Mr Fozard said.
“We are fortunatethat within our land… we have one-and-a-half hectaresthat we can work with. We’reworking with another organisation that wants to grow plants (so) that they can beautify theLatrobe Valley.
“What we are going to do is startpropagating plants… we’re looking at bees, we’relooking at worms, we’re looking at agriculture, we’re looking at growing different fruit plants, fruit trees, etcetera.” Mr Fozard said the men’s shed aims to do all this to enrich the area and have it become atrue attraction for the community.
“Tourism to me is the industry that we can have an opportunity (with) here,” he said.
“We’re trying to sort of say ‘what’s the future?’, we are now building something for the future, it’s old, it’s part of our past but let’smake sure that we utilise it for the future.”
They are also working on aprogram that will rehouse plants from past locations to new homes. The men’s shed is continually looking at awide variety of activities, projects and actions that will appeal to all those across the area and will continue to grow in stature.
After-Hours PetEmergency Care to Gippsland
Gippsland PetEmergency (GPE) is proud to announce the opening of its doors, providing much-needed after-hours veterinarycaretothe pets of Gippsland. Located in Warragul, GPE was established to address acritical gap in emergency veterinaryservicesinthe region, ensuringthatyour beloved pets can access expert carewhenitmatters most Foryears, the veterinarians of West Gippsland have beenworking tirelessly to meet the needs of their communities, but the after-hours workload has beena growing challenge. GPE wasbornout of the vision to support these dedicated professionals while ensuring pets and their families have access to reliable, highquality careduring evenings, weekends,and public holidays.
Our clinicoperates exclusively as an emergency service, open from Saturday 8:00am through Monday8:00am, as well as on Public Holidays.
This means that whenyour general practice veterinarian is off-duty,our team of skilled emergency vets and nurses areheretostepin,
delivering compassionate, expert careduring life’s most stressful moments.
Equipped with state-of-the-art facilities and ateam of experienced professionals,GPE is dedicated to making adifference in the lives of animals and their families. From trauma and acute illnesses to urgent surgeries, our clinic is prepared to handle awide range of emergencies, ensuring your petreceives the caretheyneedwhenthey need it most.
We’remorethan just an emergency clinic— we’reatrusted partnerinyourpet’s healthcare e journey.AtGPE, we aim to collaborate closely y with your regular veterinarian, ensuring a seamless transition of careoncethe crisis has s passed.
Gippsland PetEmergency is herebecause we believe thatevery petdeserves access to exceptional care, evenwhen the unexpected happens. We look forwardtoserving the Gippsland community and becoming avital resource for pet owners in their time of need.
To learn moreabout ourservices, visit us at https://gippslandpetemergency.com.au/, call us at 03 5623 4421.When your pet faces an emergency,Gippsland PetEmergency is ready to help.
Longstanding: Red Krauth (right) hasbeen withNewboroughMen’s Shed and its current iteration (Newborough Yallourn) forthe past nine years. He is pictured with fellow men’sshed member Brad Drust.
Together: NewboroughYallournMen’s Shed Secretary Michael Fozard, foundingmember Kevin Coad and Graham Taig with One Choice Support Services’Kerrie Seychell (second from right)
Safety first when decorating
IT'S that time of year again when Victorians string up their Christmas lights and set up their Christmas trees to celebrate the holiday season.
But with thefun and festivities comesthe potential for serious fire hazards.
CFA and FRV are urging Victorians to check their Christmas lights before use to ensure they bring nothing but cheer this Christmas.
Using damagedlightsalongside tinsel and paper on Christmas trees can present afire risk.
CFA Chief Officer, Jason Heffernan is urging everyone using Christmas lights to thoroughly inspect them for damage before hanging them on their trees and homes.
“Christmas lights are awonderful way to brighten up Christmas but use year after year can result in frayed wires,damaged bulbs, and other wear and tear that makes them unsafe for the tree or your home,” he said.
“Turn your lights off before you go to sleep or leave the house to ensurethey don’t overheat and considerusingbattery operatedorsolar lightsthat don’t require electricity.”
Fire Rescue Victoria Deputy Commissioner Community Safety, Joshua Fischer said it was also important to closely check and monitor any decorations containing alithium-ion battery.
“Lithium-ion battery powered decorations and
applianceshave becomeincreasingly popular,and we just want to ensure everyone is using them as safely as possible,” Mr Fischer said.
“Only buy products from reputable suppliers, use the charging cords supplied with the device and only charge items outdoors or in rooms with asmoke alarm.”
Christmas fire safety tips
When buying Christmas lights, make sure they have the Regulatory Compliance Mark tick of approval;
Consider using battery-operated LED or solar lights which don’t require electricity;
Inspect your Christmas lights for any sign of damage or wear and tear. Make sure there’s no exposed wiring and that there are no missing globes;
Don’t overload power boards; use no more than three sets of lights per power board, even if there are four or more outlets on it, and avoid using double adaptors, and;
Place your tree as far as possible from any heat source, curtains or furnishings. Find more information at: cfa.vic.gov.au/batterysafety and frv.vic.gov.au/battery-safety
Bath thanks local Christmas charity efforts
By MELINA BATH
MEMBER FOR EASTERN VICTORIA REGION
AS Christmas and for many, the holidays rapidly approach, may Itakethis opportunity to thank you for the contribution you make to our beautiful eastern Victoria region.
Our streets are ahiveofactivity. It is good to see our small businesses busy as Christmas events draw people to our town hubs and CBDs to shop and dine locally.
The holiday season is awonderful opportunity to touch base with neighboursand friendsand spend time with loved ones.
Kindness and compassionare ever present in our region with many examples of locals helping locals. It has been heart-warming to see charities receiving donations of toys, clothing,and food hamperstosharewithhouseholds where budgets areespeciallytight.
To all those who have donated, looked in on a
neighbour or gone out of your way to show kindness, Ithank you for your generosity.
This year signalled my ninth representing eastern Victoria in state Parliament, and it is an honour that Icontinue to cherish and never take for granted.
Iamdeeply committed to our region’s prosperity and the wonderful peopleand communities making up our rich fabric.
Remaining focused on advocating for those in need and fighting for our fair share, it is time for ashort break, areset and return renewed for the new year.
The roads will be busy as tourists flock to our coastal towns over the summer break. If you are travelling on our roads, please take care, be patient and always drive to the conditions.
May you celebrate Christmas with love in the way of your choice and may peace, good health and happiness be your foundation to begin 2025.
To the Lavalla Catholic College Graduating Class of 2024
ass 202
ollege
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tulates
co result been comm some cha one another has n compassionate heart y ur Sco
The entire Lavalla community congratulates you on yourwell-earnedand impressive final results.
Median Study Scoreof30
a a n o a
nd applied yourselves stances times care d you personify strong and l strives nurture!
Congratulations on yourexceptional results, which include:
l your well-earned and
You have beencommitted, resilient and appliedyourselves with diligence throughout somechallenging circumstances and times. Your generosity and care for one anotherhas never wavered and youpersonify the strong minds and compassionateheartsthat our school strives to nurture!
Our highest ever CollegeMedian ATAR result
A perfect S o
24 study scores of 40+
Highest ever perc
Arun Kumar
Aperfect Study Score of 50 for Rohini ArunKumar in Biology
Highesteverpercentageofstudentswith 30+ study scores50%
5% of our VCEstudents receiving an ATARofabove 90 placing theminthe top 10%ofstudents state-wide
20%ofVCE students receiving an ATARofabove 80
ents with study scores 21% ents with scores 50% ATAR of above them in the ATAR of above
50 studentsreceiving Certificate II and/or Certificate III VET Qualifications
20% of VCE stude students recei students securi
mmunity congr s itted, llenging circum ever a s that scho our exception College Median re of 30 core of f entage of stud entage of stud dents receiving tate-wide nts receiving ving ng app leged have w ceived the man
13 studentssecuring full time apprenticeships withlocal industry and business
a staff feel privi have re community the many
As astaff we feelprivileged to havewalkedtogether with you on your journey and are blessed to havereceived the many gifts and talents, which you haveshared with our community. We are proud of your collectiveefforts and wishyou wellon themany varied and exciting paths,whichlife will now takeyou on.
Congratulatio Gree
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We proud o paths, w ns, o
Congratulations, Class of 2024!
Mr Ryan Greer Principal
Pressuremounts as Pesutto loses case
By LIAM DURKIN
TRARALGON-BORN JohnPesutto’s future as leader of the state opposition is under fire once again, after losinghis defamationcase against former party room colleague Moira Deeming.
The drawn out saga reached averdict in federal court last week, with Mr Pesutto ordered to pay Ms Deeming $300,000 in defamation damages.
JusticeDavidO’Callaghan found Mr Pesuttohad defamed Ms Deeming on five separate occasions after shespoke at awomen’s rights rally on the steps of state Parliament that was gatecrashed by neo-Nazis last year.
Justice O’Callaghan said the casewas a“shameful state of affairs”.
Pressure had been mounting on Mr Pesutto to resign as party leader while the trial was ongoing, but despite the verdict, saidnoneofhis parliamentary colleagues had told him to step down.
“We need better leadership in Victoria. That’s why Ihave this job. That’s why Iintend to continue in this role,” he told reporters in the wake of last Thursday’s decision.
“Now,today’s decision by the federalcourt is
obviously avery disappointing outcome, but I respect the court’s decision.”
Conversely, Ms Deeming said she was “delighted” with the decision.
“Not one Liberal Party value was honoured or furthered in Victoria by this relentlessand remorseless campaign to discredit me and all those who stood by me,” she said.
“This should not have come to this, Ishould not have had to go to court. This could have all been avoided.”
There are now calls for Ms Deeming to be readmitted to the party room, with former Prime Minister Tony Abbott among those in support.
Former Liberal Premier Jeff Kennett meanwhile has urged Liberal MPs to back their under siege state leader,who will likelyneed financial support.
“We’ll have to raise some funds for John to pay for this,” he told The Age
“He was the leader of the party and if this sort of legal actionwas to take place on aregularbasis no one would stand for Parliament.
“We have got to raise some money to make sure he is not bankrupted.”
The timing of the verdictwas rather horrendous
Politically
POLITICAL EXPERT DR ZAREH GHAZARIAN
for Mr Pesutto, as it occurred on the same day his daughter received her VCE results.
In awhirlwind few weeks, the opposition leader had nudgedaheadofJacinta Allan as preferred Premier only late last month.
However, with the result of the defamation case now confirmed, senior lecturer in politics and international relations at Monash University, Dr
ZarehGhazarian believed the saga would surely hinder the Liberals in their bid to win government at the next state electionin2026.
“Politically this is agift for Labor just as support for the Allan government has been sliding in Victoria,” he said.
“The Coalition appeared to be attracting voters and building momentum towards the next state election. Today, the Liberal Party is once again talking aboutitself.History suggeststhat voters shun parties when they appear divided.
“The Liberal Party continues to appear divided, even after 10 years in opposition.
“The Christmas period will allow the party to take some time and evaluate its next steps. With lessthan two years to go untilthe next election, the Liberal Party seems to be running out of time to present itself as acoherent and cohesive political force.’’
Will he stay or go: Leader of the stateopposition John Pesutto hascomeunder fire againafter losing hisdefamationcase.
1. What is the world’s longest river called?
2. What was the name of the Robin Williamsfilmwhere he dresses up as an elderly British nanny?
3. What is the name of the actor who played Jack in Titanic?
4. Which planet is closest to Earth? TWOPOINTERS
5. How many players are there on abaseball team?
6. What has agravitational pull so strong that light cannot even escape it?
7. What is the scientific name of the process where plants prepare their food?
8. Which U.S. State is the largest? THREE POINTER
9. Which band sings the popular ’80’ssong “Ever y Breath YouTake”?
10. Isee dead people” is aline from which horror film?
11. Where is the world’slargest active volcano located?
12. What are the 3primar ycolors? FOUR POINTER
13. Where do the Mamma Mia movies take place?
14. What was the name of Harr yPotter’spet owl? FIVE POINTER
15. I’ll give you five famous inventors, and you give me what they are most notable for.One point for each answer: 1.Thomas Edison 2. Alexander Graham Bell 3. Karl Benz 4. Wright brothers 5. Johannes Gutenberg
Eager VCE students receive their results
By KATRINA BRANDON
THE results are in.
High school students have been waiting as long as threeweeks to see results for their VCE exams.
With the countdown rolling in earlylastThursday (December 12), the question for students beckoned for what was to come.
More than 22,700 VCE graduates received study scores of 40 or higher, more than 688 received the maximum study score of 50, and 3160 students have been awarded the VCE-Baccalaureate.
Minister for Education, Ben Carrollcongratulated the 61,998 students acrossthe statethatwill graduate this year in VCE, including 8250 VCE Vocational Major graduates who gained practical experience in industries through VET studies.
"Congratulations to every student -you should be proud of everything you’ve already achieved as you move to the next exciting step, whether it be further study, training, the workforce or agap year," he said.
Labor Memberfor Eastern Victoria Region, Harriet Shing reassured those who may not have received the score they wanted, that alternative pathways were available.
"Congratulations. Truly. Your stamina and determination have beenyears in the making You’ve put in alot, given up alot to get to this point, and there are so many things you can and should be proud of," she posted.
"It’s absolutely ok if you feel alittle bit lost, anxious, exhausted, overjoyed, aimless or sad all at once. Ifelt awhole rollercoaster of things on that day, and in the weeks that followed.
"You are enough. Andnomatter what today’s number says, that doesn’t change.
"I just missed out by the narrowest of margins, on getting in to the uni course Iwanted to do, and Iwas devastated. But fast forward ayear and I transferred to that course after my first year.
"There are always paths, they may just be alittle different to what you imagined."
St Paul's Anglican Grammar School
THE 2024 St Paul's Anglican Grammar School Dux was Indily Francis of Boolarra, who received an ATAR of 98.65.
Close behind, India Van Berkel of Traralgonwith an ATAR of 97.8 who also achieved aperfect study score of 50 in Cert III Sport and Recreation, and Annalisa Baxter of Warragul got a96.25 including
aperfect study score of 50 in Visual Communication and Design.
Other very high achievers included: Ann-Maria Thomas of Warragulwith94.35, Oliver Haberl of Traralgon (94.05), Codey Jackson of Warragul (93.85), Lucinda Waller of Buln Buln (93.25), Sienna Christian of Warragul (93.10), Max O’Connorof Mountain View (92.65), and Angela Mirkovic of Warragul (91.50).
In addition to the two perfect study scores of 50 achieved by the class of 2024, Year 10 student Asmi Pathania also achieved astudy score of 50 in General Mathematics.
"The school is incredibly proud of the way our class of 2024 embraced every opportunity they werepresented with bothinand outside of the classroom," astatement from the school said.
"They have applied themselves to their studies in adedicated and enthusiastic manner and balanced this with involvement in awide array of co-curricular pursuits.
"The class of 2024 approached this year with maturity and good humour and have consistently responded to situations in away which fills the broader community with pride.
"In all,10per cent of students achieved an ATAR over 90 and 44 per cent of students achieved an ATARover 70. The fact that St Paul’sdoes not stream students out of Year 12, or offer aVCE Vocational Major stream, means that these results are truly indicative of the quality environment of learning and teaching that St Paul’s offers."
This year’s cohort have avariety of plans for the immediate future from tertiary study in areas such as health, commerce and law, as well as employment opportunities such as apprenticeships and Australian Defence Force traineeships.
"We are pleased to note the increasing number of students who have already secured conditional places in tertiary institutions prior to the completion of Year 12," the school said.
"We look forward to continuing to work with the class of 2024and helping them find apostschool pathway which allows them to pursue their potential.
"Weare incredibly proud of the class of 2024 and wish themthe very best for the future."
Lavalla Catholic College
ROHINIArunKumar was Lavalla Catholic College’s Dux for 2024.
Shereceived an ATAR of 98.35, including a perfect study score of 50 in biology.
Nextyear, Rohini hopes to study medicine at university andforge asuccessful career helping others with their health and wellbeing.
LavallaPrincipal, Ryan Greer said the community was proud of Rohini and the rest of the 2024 graduates.
“Whilst Rohini’s results are incredibly pleasing, she is also an exceptional young person who is caring, kind and compassionate towards others,”
Mr Greer said.
“We celebrate Rohini’s success and know that she will make astrong and positive contribution to society, with whichever career path she chooses."
Lowanna College
BROOKE Hunter wasLowanna College’sDux for 2024.
Brooke received an ATAR of 91.55.
"I am surprised," she said.
"Next year Iplan to work and travel and then study something in the sportingfield at university.
"It was aweird feeling after exams -they were harder than Iexpected. Ididn’t think Iwould do thatwell, and Ifelt relieved (when examsfinished)
"Subjects completed were Sport and Recreation (in 2023), Psychology, Biology, General Maths, English and Physical Education.
"PhysicalEducation and Psychology were my favourite subjects. Biology was hard but Idid better
than expected, Iwas surprised at my score (for Biology)."
When asked how her family was feeling, Brooke said: "Mum is just as excited as Iam."
Ben Hall was next best with a90.1 ATAR.
Ben will be studying engineering at Federation University next year.
The subjects he completed wereSpecialist Maths, Maths Methods,Music (Contemporary Performance), VET Music Performance, English andPhysics.
LowannaCollege Acting Principal, Julia Niamh congratulated students on their achievements.
“The VCE results are atrue reflection of the outstandingeffort anddetermination shown by allour students throughout the year. These impressive efforts will provide our students with the opportunity to access arangeofpathways, whether it be university, TAFE,orapprenticeships, shesaid.
“We are immensely proud and wouldlike to congratulate our CollegeDux for 2024.Not only hasBrooke achieved exceptional VCE outcomes, but she also consistentlyupheld and demonstrated our values of ‘respect, integrity, determination, growth and excellence’ which will place her in good stead for her future.”
Trafalgar High School
TRAFALGAR High School had exceptional VCE results for 2024.
Thirteenper cent of students achieved an ATAR above 90, while 21 per cent had an ATAR above 80.
Duxwent to Poppy Susa, with an ATAR of 97.95.
There were six per cent of study scores over 40 and 10 per cent of study scores over 37, amedian study score of 27 and mean study score of 28.
Trafalgar High School students excelled in Maths Methods and Specialist Maths, Physics, Biology, Legal Studies, Music, and Food Studies.
"I am incredibly proudofthe dedication and commitmentdemonstrated by our students," Trafalgar High School Principal, Brett Pedlow said.
"It is particularly noteworthy that one of our SEAL program students, who commenced at
Trafalgar High School in Year 7, has carried through to Year 12 and achieved the prestigious title of Dux.
"Poppy’sremarkable ATAR of 97.95 stands as our second-highestresult in over adecade -atestament to her hard work and perseverance."
"Equally impressive is the fact that 13 per cent of our students achieved an ATAR above 90, with 21 per cent scoring above 80.
"These outstanding resultsreflect the breadth of academic success across awide range of subjects and key learning domains. At Trafalgar High School, students are empowered to pursue pathways that align with their interests and strengths, supported by adedicated team thathelps them achieve excellent outcomes.
"It is also worth highlighting the exceptional resultsachieved in high-level mathematics andscience subjects. These outcomes not only underscore the calibre of teaching and learning in these areas but also position Trafalgar High School as aleader in academic excellence across Gippsland."
Gippsland Grammar
GIPPSLAND Grammar students excelled in this year’s VCE, with 26 per cent of the class of 2024 achieving an ATAR above 90, placing them in the top 10 per cent of students in Victoria.
Those20high-achieving 90+ students represent an increase of 13 per cent of Gippsland Grammar students reaching those same heights from 2023, and includes 10 students who achieved an ATAR above 95, including Dux recipient Grace Ng with an ATAR of 99.85.
Gippsland Grammar’s average ATAR was 74.4, significantlyhigher than the state average of 69.52.
Gippsland Grammar students received aremarkable 41 study scores of 40 or above, including 11 students who receivedmore than one40+ study score.
Year 12 student Zara Clydesdaleachieved her second perfect study score with a50inVisual Communications Design, after receiving the perfect score of 50 and asubsequent 2023 Premiers Award for her perfect score in Media last year, which she studied as aYear 11 student.
This year,two Year 10 students who studied Unit 3/4 Biology achieved 40+ study scores, with Lily Canfield achieving a46and Kate Edgar a44. Gippsland Grammar’s Head of Year 12, Justin Henderson said thisyear’s outstanding results were some of the strongest he had seen in his five years at the school.
“This year’s results show the commitment to excellence our students have,” Mr Henderson said.
“Theyhave worked incredibly hard to achieve these results but many of these students have also embraced the whole-school experiencealongside theirdedicationtotheir studies. In additiontotheir academic focus, these students have also starred in our school productions, taken on prefect roles, embraced our co-curricular program and competed in our sporting teams; they have displayed excellence both inside and outside of the classroom."
Trar algon’s Ala nna Magee was Gipps land Grammar’s Dance Captain this year and was thrilled with her ATAR of 93.2 and an early offer to study Nursing at Australian Catholic University.
“I couldn’t look at my results this morning so I gave the phone to my sister and Ihad to judge off her reaction,” Alanna said on the morning of the ATAR results release.
“AndwhenI saw her jaw droptothe floor, nothing could prepare me for the feeling of relief and pride that Ifelt. And then Iburst into tears, and my mum did the same thing when she heard.
“I’ve had areally tough year so Ireally wanted my score to show that good things can come from struggle.Iwantedtodomybest for myself andfor my family to make everyone proud.
Thenextmilestone for many of these students willbeonDecember23whenuniversityoffers are announced.
Academic: St Paul’sDux for2024, Indily FrancisofBoolarra, pictured with school principal Cameron Herber t.
Support: Lowanna College’s Year 12 Dux, BrookeHunter, picturedwithLowanna educator Nicole Taylor Photographs supplied
Kudos: Trafalgar High School DuxPoppySusa, withthe school’sprincipal BrettPedlow. Trafalgar High School had exceptional VCEresults,with morethan20per cent of students achieving an ATARabove 80.
Varicose Veins and the Risk of Blood Clots
Forthose with varicose veins, acommon concern is whether you aremorelikely to develop blood clots. While varicose veins arenot adirect cause of deepvein thrombosis(DVT), theycan be linked to underlying venous issues that mayincrease your risk.
Varicose veins developwhenvein valves weaken, causing blood to pool and veins to enlarge. This slowerblood flow cancreateconditions thatare morefavourable forclot formation, particularly if combined with risk factors likeimmobility,recent surgery, or agenetictendency towardclotting disorders.
Recognising the Warning Signs of aBlood Clot
Deep vein thrombosis symptoms often include:
When to Take Action
If you suspectablood clot or experience any symptoms of apulmonaryembolism, seek immediate medical attention. Early treatment with blood thinners or other therapies can prevent severecomplications.
Protecting Yourself
Swelling:
Typically in one leg, often in the calf
Pain or Tenderness:
Acramping sensation thatmay worsen when walkingorstanding.
Redness or Discoloration:
The skin around the area may look reddish or bluish.
Warmth:
Awarm sensation over the affected vein.
If aclotdislodges and travels to the lungs, it can cause pulmonaryembolism, alife-threatening emergencywith symptoms such as:
•Sudden shortness of breath.
•Sharp chest pain, especially with deep breaths.
•Rapid or irregular heartbeat
•Coughingupblood.
If you have varicose veins, speakwith your doctorabout your riskfactors. Preventive measures such as staying active, wearing compression stockings,and staying hydrated can reduce your chances of developing clots, especially during extended periods of long-haul travel. If you’reconsidering varicose vein treatment,you’ll be pleased to know that the latest advancements no longer requirehospital stays or general anaesthesia. Modern treatments arewalk-in, walk-out procedures, offering quicker recoverytimes and outstanding results.
Dr.Gan Paramisahighly skilled phlebologist and medical doctor specialising in the treatment of vein disorders, including varicose vein removal.Athis state-of-the-art vein clinic, Dr.Gan employs thelatest,most advanced techniques to deliver effective and minimallyinvasive treatments.
Experience the Doctor Vein Difference -expert carefroma professional and experienced doctor,dedicated aftercare from acompassionate team,and exceptional outcomes for smooth, vein-free legs.
is now consulting at the Warragul Specialist Centre. To book an appointment, call 03 9781 0646 today Medicarerebates are available, and no GP referral is required. Take the first step towardhealthier legs!
Dr.Gan
Hopeful return for Moe Show
In theworks: MoeAgricultural Societyare hopeful of hosting ashownextyear,but need communitysupport. Photograph supplied
PLANS are in place to host aMoe Show next year.
Locals are hoping to see an agricultural show return to the town in 2025.
However, money needs to be raised in order to cover arange of expenses, and show organisers are seeking the community’s support and generosity.
Agricultural shows, once astaple in the Latrobe Valley,have dwindled in recent years, but with a new committee at the Moe Agricultural Society, there is renewed hope for arevival. Traralgon has not held its ag show since 2016.
The Traralgon Show was pulled in 2017 due to bad weather after amassive community push to save the event due to spiralling attendances. It was then cancelled in 2018 due to structural damage to the pavilion and was put on ice in 2019 to reinvigorate the event.
As if that wasn’t enough,COVIDthen wiped out the next two years, while the 2021 major flood has meant the grounds at Traralgon Recreation Reserve have been virtually unusable since.
Agricultural shows welcome an array of attractions, and given the success of eventssuch as the Thorpdale Potato Festival,there appearstobe an appetite for large-scale community events. Thoseinterestedinassisting the Moe Ag Show are encouragedtoemail: moeagriculturalsociety@ gmail.com
Social Dance Club
MOE Social Dance Club is nearing the end of 2024, and will celebrate with aChristmas theme on Monday, December 23.
Start time is 7.30pm and costs$8.
Fun, music and prizes.
The club will then see in the New Year withsherries andnibbleson Tuesday, December 31.
The New Year will bring The SilhouettesbandonJanuary 20 andanAustraliaDay theme for the January 27 event.
Lessons will be held on January 27 and February 3. Arrive at 6.30pm for a6.45pmstart.
The club dances every Monday at the Newborough PublicHall from 7.30pm. All welcome.
Christmas gathering
IT’S not too late to bookfor the Traralgon District Uniting Church Christmas Lunch. If you don’t have anyone to share this special day with, you are welcome to join with us.
Agood meal, good conversations, some entertainment and friends you may not yet know.
Lunch will be held on Christmas day from 12pm at Traralgon Uniting Church (19 Park Lane, Traralgon). Call the church officeon51761029 to add your nametothe list. Leavea clear message with your name and phone number.
For the children,thereisalsoa children’s service on Christmas Eve from 5pm.
Chess action
THE accurate technique used by Jack Holme helped to complete the round with two wins, one draw and one loss at Latrobe Valley Chess Club.
PeterBakkerfinished theround with no defeats after accepting a draw against Cliff Thornton.
Community Corner with Liam Durkin
Ian Hamilton managed two wins but mistakes in other games caused three losses.
John Davenport completed the round with two wins.
Steve Ahern was able to force checkmate in the clash with Samantha Juers.
Goshen Wu enjoyed each contest and continuedthe studyofcheckmate patterns.
Phone Cliff Thornton on 0413 330 458,orIan Hamilton (0400 221 649) for more information on local chess.
Bridgeresults
TRARALGON Bridge Club results:
Monday, December9:1st Roxy Lamond and Barbara Brabets (56.25 per cent); 2nd Heather Watt and Cheryl Halse (52.08).
Tuesday, December 10: N/S1st Maria Mactaggart and Heather Henley (61.67); 2nd Rob Graham and Glenis Lohr (57.5). E/W 1st Kevin Taylor and MarionTaylor (64.64); 2nd Heather Watt and Anne Howes (53.57).
Thursday,December 12: N/S 1st Rob Grahamand Glenis Lohr (66.67); 2nd Maria Mactaggart and Barbara Barr (57). E/W 1st Fred Kaminski and Heather Henley (55); 2nd Helen McAdam and Moira Hecker (54).
If you would like to play or learn more about bridge, phoneTraralgon Bridge ClubPresident, Greg Nicholson on 0419 365 739.
Activities galore
TRARALGON Neighbourhood Learning House offers peoplethe opportunity to enjoy anew hobby and learn anew skill. Now is the perfect time to join for fun, friendship, and learning.
Term1,2025commences on January 28. Have achatwith Meagan about which class would best suit you. Perhaps you would like to build your confidence with technology by registering in adigital essentials Level 1course.
Learn how to use your new camera with the photography course. Come along and enjoy ahobby and meet new friends in creative craft, cake decorating, knitting/crochet, sewing, mosaics, art, cooking or creative writing.Languageclasses are available in French, Italian, Spanish and Auslan. Focus on your health and wellbeingwithyoga,danceand stretch, tai chi,belly dancing and breath work classes.
Discoverhow TNLHmakes learning fun by phoning 5174 6199,email enquiries@tnlh.org.au, or drop into the office at 11-13 Breed Street, Traralgon.
Last meeting
TRARALGONDistrict Historical Society held its last general meeting for the year on Tuesday, December 10. There was 26 memberspresent and seven apologies.
Aspecial presentation was made to long-serving member Jenifer Whitwam.
The Rotary Club of Traralgon Central presented Jeni with the Paul Harris Award. This award is the means by which RotaryInternationalrecognises people who have made asignificant contribution in the community.
David Blythman of TheRotary Club of Traralgon Central mentioned the support Jeni has given the Traralgon and District Historical Society (TDHS) in six years as committee minute secretary, recording
and uploading the many speakers addresses and writing and formatting for theTDHS Bulletinarticles.
Jeni is also an active member of the Traralgon Cemetery Trust from 2012 to present,attending to the preparationofgrant applications for the Trust. And with all the above volunteering she hasfoundtime to do research and publication of the books Nurses with connection to Traralgon who served in WW1 and WW1 returned servicemen and women of Gippsland Memorial Park Traralgon.
Jeni has also overseen the more recent development of the self walking tour coveringthe Early Settlers of Traralgonburiedat‘The Bluff’ The society congratulates Jeni on receiving this prestigious award Following the presentation, those in attendancewere entertained with avirtual display of photos taken by Graeme Crawford on the changes that have taken place in Traralgon over the past year.
Aworking bee has been scheduled for Saturday, January 18 and Sunday, January192025from 9.30am to 2pm and Wednesday, January 22.
All are welcome to come and lend ahand. No special skills required. The society looks forward to seeing everyone in 2025 and would like to wish all avery happy and safe Christmas and New Year.
Youcan be apart of Community Corner
IF you are acommunity group and haveany news itemsyou need publicised, feel freetoemail us at news@lvexpress.com.au
You can address the correspondence to Editor, Liam Durkin. Please write ‘Community Corner’ in the subject line and nothing else. Deadline is Friday 9am to appear in the following Wednesday issue.
The Range Retirement Village is aretirement living community in Moe, boasting alive-in Manager and high-quality residential villas set inside agated community.
The Range offers elegant new and refurbished two and three-bedroom independent living villas, set in attractive and well-manicured surrounds. Each villa features an open-plan living area,wellappointed kitchen, private courtyardgarden and single or double garage.
Plan your social life with your new community.
Youwill have the flexibility and freedom to embrace life with asocialcalendar that includes, billiards, indoor bowls, craft, movie nights, trivia, bingo,cards and many moresocial activities and make use of our community bus to getaroundour local area
Now is your time to down size and embrace life at The Range
Acceptscience andfacereality
AT the First Vatican Council held in the years 1869 to 1870,the Catholic Churchdecreedthat where there was adisagreement between science and religious dogma, that science would prevail.
Undoubtedly, thiswas aresponse to Darwin’s theory of natural selection at the time and the lingering embarrassment that the church faced in their dealings with Galileo acouple of centuries before.
Pleasingly,the current Pope, Frances, has continuedthis tradition and called for “swift and unifiedglobal action” to fight climate change in his encyclical Laudato Si
However, it is the political dogma of the modern day Liberal and National parties that needs to bow to science and not the other way round.
Theurgencyofaddressing climate change is now
Divisive politics: local, state and federal
COMMENT
BY WENDY CASTLES
LATROBE City Mayor, Dale Harriman was electedwithanapparent majorityof five to four, giving him leadership authority to furtherthe issues of all Latrobe City residents -only that.
The mayor is not there to promote the motives of invested interests.
On hearing acouple of media comments from Mayor Harriman, many Latrobe Valley constituents will wonder who he is representing.
Federal Opposition Leader, PeterDutton’s response to thetorching of the synagogue in Melbourne was telling.
It is reflectiveofthe authoritarianstyle of otherglobal extreme leaders fromboth ‘democratic’ and ‘dictatorship’ governments. He is ahead of himself. He is projecting to when he is ‘head of state’ and he believes he will be able to overrule statutory bodies -in this case the AFP and its state equivalents.
This is ignoring legal systems and practices and is dictatorial. Over the past months the opposition has had the opportunity to support abipartisanapproach to Middle Eastissues. This would have reflected the will of many Australians for apeaceful solution to the complex situation that has evolved between Israel and Palestine and now the broader Middle Eastern geopolitics.
Ihave not found anybody that Iknow living in Australia who did not condemnthe events of October 7, 2023.
IknowpeopleofJewishfaith who condemn the Israeli response.
Mr Dutton’s response to thesynagogue torching was purely political and disgusting. Even more disgusting is his manipulation of press conferences in the aftermath of the event. His initial spokesperson was brought to heal.The Coalition’s disrespect of Josh Burnsgivesusapicture of the extent to which Mr Dutton is prepared to go on any issue. Anthony Albanese is not weak. He respects all people, and our country’s statutory systems and practices. The PrimeMinister’s press conference was very powerful and emotional. Mr Dutton’s bullying behaviour is on show forall to see. There are other issues with Dutton, namely his grievance of the Labor Party practice to stand before the British/Australian,the Aboriginal and the TorresStraitIslander flags. Let’s be honest and pragmatichere. Had Dutton notscuttled the referendum to include the Voice into the Australian constitution, I am sure we would have had the initiation of an inclusive flag design by now.
Perhaps if Mr Duttonand his Gippsland representative considers this, they may reflect that it was an opportunity to demonstrate reconciliatory intent and they missed it.
We are not united under the British based flag.Ithas no inclusion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Mr Dutton and his Coalition colleagues (federal and state)are the publicfigures intent on dividing us. WendyCastles is aTraralgon resident.
beyond argument, as everyonecan see how the changing climate is reducing ourstandardofliving and decreasing productivity worldwide.
What scientists have been warning about since the late1980s, we areseeing in themoreviolent storm events, longer droughts and severe floods and bushfires in our most prone parts of the globe. This year will be the hottest on record and surpass the 1.5 degrees Celsius milestone set in the Paris Accords of 2017.
According to the Australian Financial Review, home insurance companies lost $650 million from 2020 to 2024 despitehome insurance premiums increasingbyanaverageof56per cent in that timeframe. And don’t expect premiums to go down, ever.
Yet,the Lib/Nats, who have found numerous ways of stalling the roll-out of renewable energy infrastructure when they have been in power such as refusing to sign the Kyotoagreement, defunding the Atmospheric Physics Division of the CSIRO, scrapping the Carbon Tax, reducing the RET(RenewableEnergy Target) encourage new coal and gas development.
Today, the trend continues in promoting nuclear power to become the main supplier of electricity in the country. This technology will see Australia’s carbon emissions increaseuntilatleast 2050 as nuclear powerstations take on average 19 years to plan and build. This means coal and gas have to stay in thesupply system for another 10 or 15 years longer than planned.
This idea is simply at the behestofthe LNP’s most generous benefactors, the Minerals Council of Australia and their millions of dollars of financial support to swing elections.
The idea of agovernment backed nuclear industry is not there to fight climate change. It is there specifically to scare off investment in largescale wind and solar farms as well as storage projects like pumped hydro schemes and big batteries, which according to the experts at AEMO and the latest CSIRO GenCost Report will deliver reliable electricity at less than half the cost of nuclear and can replace the bulk of coal fired power by 2035, not 2055.
Yet Peter Dutton’s COALition want the more expensiveoption that will not reduce emissions for another 20 years and still relyongas for at least 20 per cent of generation forever more. They should really take agood hard look at themselves like the Catholic Church did 150 years ago, otherwise their credibility is shot.
Dan Caffrey Lat ro be Valle yS ust ain abil it yG rou p
President
Firstmove
CONGRATULATIONS to Member for Gippsland South, Danny O’Brien on becoming Leader of the Victorian Nationals.
After10years of the invisibleand failed leadership of Peter Walsh, who has zero achievements to his name and who expended more energy attacking his own members and voters instead of fighting Dictator Dan’s socialist regime, let’s hope that this leadership change enablesthe National Party to properly represent regional Victoria once again.
Agood starting point wouldbefor Dannyto channel the spirit of Jack McEwen and deliver an ultimatum to theLiberalPartydemanding they remove John Pesutto from the leadership and reinstateMoira Deeming to the Coalition party room.
SincebecomingLiberal leader, Pesutto’s sole ‘achievement’ was the racist and sexist act of expelling Moira Deeming becauseMoira,a young female Maori-Australian, had the temerity to advocate for woman’s rights.
If the Nationals and the Coalitionwant to win the 2026 election, Danny O’Brien can make agood start by beating some sense into theLiberal Party on this issue. Unless Moira is reinstated, the Coalition will remain stained by the racist, sexist, and defamatory actions of Pesutto against Deeming.
Nicholas Tam Traralgon East
No comparison
JOSEPH Lis (‘No objections’, Latrobe Valley Express Opinion,11/12/24) seems to be living in afantasy world, disconnected from current reality.
No, Lucas Heights’ 10-Megawatt (non-generating) reactor is not the same as Dutton’s 1000-Megawatt reactors, however many he intends to build here.
Whatever it took to build the Lucas Heights reactor 66 years ago, the current average time to build in Westerndemocraciesismuch,muchlonger. And that is after the necessary legal and regulatory framework is putinplace. You may express all the opinions and personal insults you like, but Iwill be putting my faith in logical and scientific analysis of the cold, hard facts that our nation faces today. There is no pathtoany nuclear powergeneration in Australia within the next 20 years.
John Gwyther
Coongulla
Fear yes, butnodeaths
FACTS aboutthe ThreeMile Island nuclear power plant from1979: There were no deaths and no sickness related to the meltdown. Ican understand the fear of the time but in answer to Rim Zitkevicius’ letter (‘History acts as stark reminder’,11/12/24) ‘you don’t know this, you don’t know that’, all Idoknow is we have not been told thecost of renewables, so why does it matter about thecostofnuclear?
Three Mile is still operating, the residents are safe, just the same as Lucas Heights nuclear reactor in Sydney.The nuclearworld has learntlessonsfrom Chernobyl and Fukushima.
The Greens have beendetrimental to the environment with their push for power (not electricity).
The quote from H.L Mencken(used in JohnDuck’s letter, LVE 11/12/24) is true: “Foreverycomplex problem there is asolution that is clear, simple and wrong”, but our present leaders are simple and wrong so they are still struggling to get it right.
Patricia Correa Traralgon
Moneyfor jam
IDON’T understand why people are opposed to renewables.
Chris Bowen keeps telling us that renewable energy is free.
It then follows that the massive increase in electricity bills is all in our minds (laughing out loud).
Patrick Ansell Morwell
Chinese elephant
IN reply to Tom Crook’s comment piece ‘Nuclear just another worryfor emergency services’ (LVE 04/12/2024),nomatterhow manytimes Ihave highlighted the fact, Mr Crooks and otherslike him seem determined to keep ignoring the red elephant in the room, which is China.
Irepeat, even if Australia reaches net-zerotomorrow, even if we all stop driving cars, eat bugs, and shut down all industry and manufacturing, it will make “net-zero difference” to “global” greenhouse emissions because theturbines of China’s nearly 1200coal-fired power stations will keep turningtill doomsday! To be sure, China is not asignatory to the economy-wrecking Paris Agreement and nor will the US be once Trump takes his oath of office on January 20, 2025.
As apostscript, to ease Mr Crook’s paranoiaabout hostinganuclear power station at the LoyYang site, Isuggest he talk to the million or so Sydney residents who have been living worry-free for the past 66 years right beside the Lucas Heights nuclear reactor.
Joseph Lis Morwell
Supportisavailable
THE festive season can be ajoyous time for many people, as they take awell-earned break fromwork and school and spend time with family and friends. It’s atime to rest and reset for the new year. Yet for others,this time of year can be particularly difficult, and the holidays may not feel jolly at all. It can bring additional financial pressures, relationship strain, or pressure to host the perfect Christmas. The season to be merry can also amplify feelings of isolation and loneliness, especially for those who are separated from family or have lost aloved one.
So, as we head into the holiday break, regardless of what you’re dealing with, please know that you don’t have to face this time alone.
The Beyond Blue Support Service is free, confidential, and available around the clock, including on Christmas day. You can call 1300 22 46 36, or chat online to us at: beyondblue.org.au/get-support It’s really common to put off seekinghelp because we can’t quite find the words to express our needs. But when you contact us, you don’t have to know what to say. Our skilled counsellors will meet you where you’re at and guide you towards where you need to be.
And finally, abig thank you to everyone who has donatedtoBeyond Blue this year. Our support serviceisrun purely on donations, so your kindness and generosity allow us to always be therewhen people need us the most.
Georgie Harman
Beyond BlueCEO
Debate persists, time to move forward
COMMENT
BY ANTHONY WASIUKIEWICZ
WHILE cleaning out the office, Istumbled across the first issue of this very newspaper, dated July 14, 1965. Alook inside revealed small opinion and lettersto-the-editor sections.
The former cited Nicholas Murray Butler, “I dividethe worldinto three classes:the few who make things happen; the many who watch things happen; and the overwhelming majority who have no idea of what happens”. Ouch.
The letters section was just as unkind, suggesting Morwell be renamed Churchill -with seeming reference to the attention the newfound town was receiving at the time. The hospital could be renamed “Church-ill”, the footy ground “Church-chill” and “Hub and BubChurchill”for the council. More ouch. There were other things in there that shouldn’t be restatedinthe 21st century -areflection of the times.
What it did outline is while things change, many stay the same.
The conflict between towns stillexists, despite our best efforts, and of course we’d never miss the opportunity to take apot-shot at council today.
Energy still floods our pages as much as it ever has overthe last 60 years. Yet one does start to wonder if armchairexperts aren’t having acaseof reverse “bike shedding” -referring to Parkinson’s 1957 observations that people give more attention to simple things they understand in decision making, such as abikeshed, as opposed to large
incomprehensible yet important things such as a nuclear power plant.
Inversely everyoneseems to know about the energy sector, what will work, what won’t, what is cheaper, what is costly. The engagement seems noble, yet the outcome often appears less than ideal. It reminds me of my time spent in community meetings. I’d attend raring to go only to have to listen to an hourofdiscussionabout howgreat the town of Yallourn was.
I’m sure it was fantastic but it was gone before I was born, so couldweplease move on to discussions about resurfacing the tennis courts?
Ican hear dad’s voice in my head grumbling about people living in the past. Heck Iwas in primary school when Cain, Kirner and Kennett did their number on the SEC. Why is it still atopic of discussion?
More recently Ilearned such discussions and verbalisations are useful and necessary in dealing with what could be put under the umbrella term of ‘trauma’. It’s partofthe healing process. Yet lamentationsare often suited to dedicated forums. But that’s adiscussion for another time.
Nonetheless, the rest of us unaffected and unfamiliar were oftenleft scratching our heads wondering what all the fuss is about. But it doesn’t always work that way in reality. People need to heal in away that works for them. Lesson learned. It all reminds me of the parable of the Chinese farmer and the horse. Youcan Google that one,but the moral of the story is that sometimes good things come from bad situations, and bad from good, so any assertion of the future is best met with ‘maybe’.
Then we could get into the two types of discussions. One is about ‘one-upping’one’s opponent, or ‘dunking’ on them in the modern vernacular, versusdiscussionwiththe aim of learning and understanding. It stems back to the ancient Greeks Ibelieve.
Which circles me back to the beginning. Please keep writinginto these pages,sharing your views, postulations, concerns and questions, on everything from toilet blocks, bike sheds through to nuclear and renewable power -just like people have done so over the decades.
But maybe the pot shots and dunking of other contributors needs to be turned down anotch, or even seven. It’s seldom enjoyable to read. By all means hold our elected officialstoaccount. Thatcomes with their publicly paid job.But be kind to your fellow concerned resident. Wishing you all well for this Christmas and holiday time, and Ilook forward to the vivid, yet cordial, discussionsinthese pages in the New Year. Rememberifyou have astory you’re awareof, either abig milestone,achievementorother concern or issue, make sure you let the paper know. There’s many stories in our region other than energy. So make sure you help the paper be aware of them. I’m sure everyone would love to read about them. Merry Christmas, travel safe, take care and be well.
Anthony Wasiukiewicz is aYallourn North resident.
MAKE ADIFFERENCE THIS CHRISTMAS
This year The Express will be providing aChristmas Tree for placement of gifts for children less fortunate in our
Feel the warmth as you give the gift of GIVING and place agift under the tree to do your part in putting asmile on someone's face this Christmas.
All gifts will be passed onto Anglicare, Morwell Office, for distribution at their discretion on Thursday 19 December,2024 at 3pm.
Gifts should be for babies and children up to 16 years and received no later than 2pm Thursday 19 December, 2024
Please do not wrap presents
Feel the warmth and visit us at: Latrobe Valley Express 21 George Street, Morwell
Youthtakingaction
By KATRINA BRANDON
AIMING to strengthen youth skill development, the Gippsland Trades and Labour Council, in collaboration with the Latrobe Proactive Unit, celebrated the graduation of six individuals from their five-weekCommunity Turf Force earlier this month.
About 25 people came to the graduation to celebrate the achievements of those throughout the program.
Starting withfriendly chatter and apresentation,Johannes De Bruin, Senior Constable of the Proactive Policing Unit, shared avideo presentation with the group, showing photographs and moments throughout the course. He mentioned to the group that he has always wanted to create ayouth supportand skilldevelopment project, such as Community Turf Force.
The Turf Force is alawnmowing program that aims to provide proactive, voluntary activities
for youth and offer asocial outlet. Throughthe program, the youth involved learned life skills such as teamwork, communication, and problemsolving, enhancing their employability and overall wellbeing while helping clean up local areas.
Gipp sland Tra des and Labour Coun cil Community Project Officer, Kellie Bertrand told the group she was proud of the group that had come through.
“This group brought humour,kindness, comradery every week. Friendships were being built throughout the course, she said.
“Wehave had so muchpositive feedback from their mentors and site visitors regarding their amazing efforts,work ethic and willingness to learn and do the job.”
The Gippsland Tradesand LabourCouncil runs courses such as the Community Turf Force throughout the year and offers support to youth, giving them alocal outlet or just someone to talk to.
Local doctor receives boost
LOCAL doctor Grace Yap was one of 32 junior doctors across Gippsland and NorthWest Victoria to receive extra funding for their professional development, thanks to the Rural Resume Boost BursaryProgram, deliveredbyMonash Rural Health’s Gippsland RegionalTrainingHub. Seven doctors fromLatrobe Regional Health received bursaries this year.
Thankstothe bursarysupport, Dr Yap was able to attend and present her research at the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand (TSANZ) conference in Adelaide this year.
“This work was essential to my trainingasa respiratory registrar, and Iamsograteful to the support of the Gippsland RegionalTraining Hub in helping me thriveinmytraining. Iwill endeavour
to bring the knowledge and skills Ihave acquired to improve the respiratory health of patients in the Gippsland region,” she said.
Director of the Gippsland Regional Training Hub, Associate, Professor Rob Dawson said that being able to support local doctors to boost their resumes and get into specialty training programs was akey part of the hub’s mission to nurture a sustainable local medical workforce.
“Through these bursaries, we are helping to overcome some of the barriers rural health professionals experience in gaining access to speciality training programs and conferences,” he said.
“We are proud to support local talent and give them training and opportunitiesthat willhelp support them in their future careers.”
Teamwork: Joseph Hayes, Damien Hayes, Vic PolPPU Johannes de Bruin, Gippsland Trades and Labour CouncilSecretar ySteve Dodd,SethCoull, Tyson Christopher,Kayla Cassar and Kellie Ber trand (GTLC) celebrate thecompletion of theCommunityTurf Forcecourse
Photographs: Katrina Brandon
Local chef releases top notch book
By KATRINABRANDON
IN recent years,people have takentotakeaway rather than cooking for themselves.
Churchilllocal Noelene Marchwicki hopes to change that with the release of her new cookbook, Cooking with Noelene
All cookbook profitswillgotowards Churchill and District News,which helped print the book.
“You don’t need to spend alot of money to make adecent meal,” Noelene said.
“It’sabout flavour. It’s about sharing it. The best thing about food is sharing with friends and family.
“I really hope the book does well because Iwant the Churchilland DistrictNews to do well. It is so supportive of the community. That is what we are about. Food is acommunity.Itfeeds people. It nurtures people.”
Noelene has along connection with food, starting with beinga stay-at-homemum of fivekids. She talked with aneighbour and friend and then thoughtofstarting her own catering business, Dial An Occasion. Mortified,the friend wentalong with Noelene’s enthusiasm. Later, Noelene applied to be on My Kitchen Rules andwas accepted, but she decided to step down as it wasn’t what she was looking for.
In 2013, when her youngest son,Dale,moved out of home, he delivered Noelene with paperwork for MasterChef, which she was accepted for. The 20-week journey brought Noelene to being one of Australia’s Top 10 cooks.
Thelongjourney wasn’t just hard for Noelene; shesaid it inspired her to return and follow her dream of cooking fulltime.
Neolene has also sharedher recipes online through her blog, and has lived in the local area all herlife.Asachild, she started at Jeeralang Junction, before moving to Churchill, where she attended the Gippsland InstituteofAdvanced Education, now known as Federation University.
Churchill andDistrictNews and Noelene held abook launch with asigning,allowing locals to chat with Noelene and buy the book. Member for Morwell, Martin Cameron was one of many who attended the event.
“The younger generation nowadays don’t spend alot of time cooking. They would rather UberEats or order it online and have it delivered to the door,” he said.
“Weneed to put our trust in peoplelikeyourself, who can actually have the passion, the time, and
to want to be able to come up with cooking books that we can all read, share and teach our younger children that you can stay at home and make yourfood thatyou prepareyourself and get the ingredients out of that.”
The book contains recipes for egg dishes, lemon dishes, desserts, mains, bread, cakes, and preserves, with cooking tips. One of Noelene’s sons, Paul Mercey, described the book as areflection of her love, creativity and generosity.
“The kitchen has always been her heart and her haven,” he said.
“(It’s)aplacewhere she is not onlycreatingdishes but also creating laughterand moments that have brought family and friends together. Whether it is her perfectly balanced flavours or her ability to turnasimple ingredientinto something magical.”
Cooking with Noelene best recipes picked by Express’ own foodie
WITHthe release of abook,there is always a review to follow.
And when it’s acookbook, recipes are amust.
Churchill local Noelene Marchwicki has released her very own cookbook, with proceeds going towards the Churchill and District News Express journalist Katrina Brandon has selected the following as her top picks:
CRANBERRYCHEWS
Ingredients
60 grams of flaked almonds
3egg whites
110 grams of caster sugar
One tablespoon of cornflour
One teaspoon of finely grated lemon rind
105 grams of dried cranberries
One tablespoon of icing sugar
Method
Preheat your oven to 160 degrees C.
Line two oven trays with baking paper.
Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, using your electric beater.
Gradually add the caster sugar in tablespoon increments, beating after each addition until the sugar has dissolved.
Now fold in the cornflour, lemon rind, cranberries and nuts in two batches.
Drop heaped tablespoons of mixture onto the trays about one and ahalf inches apart.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.
Let stand for five minutes before transferring to awire rack to cool completely.
Dust with sifted icing sugar.
CHOCOLATE MAYONNAISE CAKE
Ingredients
Two cups of all purpose flour
Three tablespoons of cocoa powder
One dessert spoon of baking powder
200 grams of caster sugar
225 grams of whole egg mayonnaise
One dessert spoon of vanilla extract
200 milliliters of warm water
Icing
100 grams of softened butter/ margarine
100 grams of cream cheese
250 grams of icing sugar
Two tablepoons of cocoa
One teaspoon of vanilla essence
Acouple of drops of coffee essence
Method
Grease and line the base of a23centimetre springform cake pan.
Preheat your over to 180 degrees C.
Place in the bowl of your electric mixer; all purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, caster sugar, whole egg mayonnaise, vanilla extract, warm water.
Now beat with your electric beater until smooth.
Spread into the prepared pan.
Bake for 40 minutes or until askewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Remove from the pan and allow to cook completely on awire rack.
Dust with icing sugar or ice with abutter and cream cheese icing.
Icing
Process softened butter/margarine with cream cheese, icing sugar, cocoa, vanilla essence, a couple of drops of coffee essence.
Process until smooth.
Spread over cooled cake.
CHICKEN TIKKASTARTER
Ingredients
700 grams of chicken breast
Marinade
150 milliliters of natural yoghurt
Two tablespoons of minced garlic
One teaspoon of chili powder
One tablespoon of ground coriander
Half ateaspoon of slat
Juice of one lemon
Two table spoons of canola oil
Four metal skewers
Method
First step is to skin, bone and cube the chicken breasts.
Mix all of the marinade ingredients together in abowl, add the chicken cubes, stir well, cover and leave in the refrigerator overnight.
The next day thread the chicken on to four skewers and cook under ahot grill for five minutes turning frequently.
Remove the chicken from the skewers and arrange on individual serving plates.
Serve with sliced onions, tomatoes, lemon wedges and parsley leaves.
Westend Supermarket Grubb Avenue
Kats Fish &Chips 31 BarkerCrescent
Hazelbank Fish &Chips 2HazelwoodRoad ▶ Foodworks 13 Hyland Street ▶ Foodworks 63 HenryStreet ▶ KosciuskoCorner Store Cnr Coster Circuit
Traralgon Bowls Club
Gwalia Street and LiddiardRoad
Traralgon News &Lotto
Franklin Street
Manny’s Market
Post Office Pl, Traralgon
Montague’s Pharmacy 19 Rintoull Street
HOROSCOPES
by Joanne Madeline Moore
December 16 -December 22
phys cally and mental y The wider your c rcle of friends and acqua ntances, the more influence you w ll have n the big wor d outs de your door Being curious and confident are the keys
t’s a fabulous week for many Bul s, especial y involv ng work, career, money and business Mercury moves forwards on Monday and Venus (your patron planet) forms a trine w th prosperity planet Jup ter on Fr day So look out for a fortu tous meeting or a special sign/synchronicity/opportunity But you must make the most of good fortune when it comes along If you procrastinate or fa l to recognise the signs, then Lady Luck will promptly pass you by
Mercury (your ru ing planet) moves forwards on Monday When it comes to work, habits, hea th and fitness, the more proactive and organised you are, the better the resu ts w ll be But Neptune squares the Sun midweek, so a lack of focus, d rect on and d p omacy could temporari y side-track relationsh ps and confuse you And don’t let a dubious acqua ntance lead you down the pr mrose path to trouble Keep your trusty Truth Detector set on high
With the Sun shift ng into your partnership zone, you can’t escape c ose relationships this week Crabs! And Mercury fina ly moves forwards on Monday, so don’t approach th ngs with the same old stale attitude It’s time to reca ibrate If there s a problem: fix it If there is a m sunderstanding: sort it out If there is too much distance between you and a loved one: get c oser The more pos tive energy you pour nto partnerships, the more enjoyable they wi l be
On Monday, Mercury finally moves forwards, so communicat ng (especial y with young children and moody teenagers) should gradua ly improve On Wednesday and Thursday, the Sun (your power planet) squares Neptune, so be on alert for confusing nformation, fake news, and dodgy deals (espec ally involving friends and finances) Friday is fabulous for romant c re ationships, close friendships, social sing, joint ventures and financial matters
Courtesy of the Sun, the Venus/Jupiter trine, and Mercury turning direct, the buzz words this week are communicat on and educat on Your curiosity is piqued, and you’re keen to connect with a wide range of stimu ating peop e, w thin your oca community and further afie d But Neptune squares the Sun ( n your conversation zone) so some relationships will be complicated, and communication could be confusing Clever Librans wil isten and learn!
This week, Mercury moves forwards n your money zone and the Sun shifts into your communicat on and education zone So it’s time to be more financially l terate, more conversationa ly engaged, and more curious about the world around you Your motto for the moment is from b rthday great, actress and activist Jane Fonda (who turns 87 on Saturday): “Stay curious, keep learning and keep growing ” But friends and finances could be a dodgy mix and generos ty over greed
Mercury finally moves forwards on Monday morning (in your s gn), which boosts your confidence, energy leve s, and personal magnetism But then Neptune squares the Sun on Wednesday/Thursday (in your sign) so, if you indu ge in goss p or make vague pronouncements, you cou d end up in a confusing mess Smart Sagittarians w ll have a better week if you s ow down, th nk th ngs through, communicate clear y, and double-check often
You’re in the mood to let your hair down and party but don’t accept things at face value W th Mercury mov ng forwards n your mystery zone (and Neptune squar ng the Sun) look beneath the surface gloss to d scover what’s rea ly go ng on And - when you’re buying last-minute presents - Saturn encourages you to choose gifts that are time ess, practical and sturdy When the Sun transits into Capricorn on Saturday, it’s your turn to sparkle and sh ne!
Your ruling planet Mercury has been reversing through your home zone which may have resulted n mistakes m sunderstandings, setbacks and/or self-doubt (especial y involv ng domestic matters and fam ly members) Thank goodness Mercury final y moves forwards on Monday and – hopefully – you’ve earned a th ng or two over the ast few weeks So your motto is from fellow Virgo, actress Lily Tom in: “The road to success s always under construction ”
This week, vivacious Venus (in your sign) trines jol y Jupiter, so you’re at your charismat c Aquar an best as you charm the cyn cs and dazzle the doubters Compatib e companionship is a must, as you surround yourself w th st mulat ng friends, posit ve peers and curious colleagues As writer (and birthday great)
Jane Austen wrote: “My dea of good company is the company of clever, well-informed people who have a great deal of conversation ”
The Sun/Neptune square (on Wednesday and Thursday) could drain your Piscean energy and sap confidence so pace yourse f and prioritise projects Don’t make commitments unless you have the time and motivation to follow through on your we l-meant intentions f someth ng can be put off until another week, then do so Communicating with oved ones and work colleagues also looks confusing and frustrat ng, but things should mprove from Friday onwards
Adate with Kurt: the walking calendar
By BLAKE METCALF-HOLT
BLANKING on adateand can’t remember when something has taken place?
In all likelihood, Kurt Jackson can help you with that.
The 27-year-old is something of awalkingcalendar, and while his tall stature hides his modest personality, he is aperson you wouldn’t soon forget from his impressive abilities and knowledge.
Kurt has cracked the code of the years and days, easilymemorising when and what took place, especially when it comes to his love of football.
Pick adate, any date and Kurt can provide the day it fell on in an instant, and probably had it worked out before you even finished asking him, anticipating and ready to hand the information out.
While he doesn’t supportaspecific AFL team, Kurt has been watching and attending footy since he was 10 years-old, and can give you the teams and scores simply off the date provided.
Say, Sunday, April 22, 2012?
Instantaneously, that was Round 4, Geelongbeat Richmond by 10 points, Sydney defeated North Melbourne by 36 points and the Western Bulldogs won by 21 points over Melbourne.
He can even give you the details of agiven day, like when mentioning the 2009 Grand Final when GeelongdefeatedStKilda, Kurt noted it was cold.
Checking (for no apparent reason obviously), of course he was right! It was nine degrees and raining at the start of that two-goal thriller.
“I can just see it in my head. (The) first time I see it, I’ll remember it,” Kurt said.
“Becauseevery28years,the calendar repeats itself…sometimes Ihave alook at it first to get an idea (of how it all plays out).
“If you go back to 1953, the ninth of June would be aTuesday which is 71 years ago, that’s going back so long.”
Kurthas beenlucky enough to watchalot of football live, namelywitnessinginperson Sydney winthe 2012 premiership over Hawthorn. He’s impressed even those at the top level with his knowledge. After taking part in the YoorallaGreat Vic Trek, meeting AFL legends Danny Frawley and Doug Hawkins, they both got him in touch with Collingwood where he was able to meet the group. Former Magpiescoach Mick Malthouse was notably stunned by Kurt’s memory.
When speaking with Kurt, this writer let slip his unfortunate barracking of Essendon and his birthdatebefore Kurt swiftly reminded me that Ihaven’t seen my club win afinal since Iwas a one-year-old. Kurt also reminded me that the dayIwas born was on aMonday (correct).
Birthdays are another speciality of Kurt’s, who also lovescricket.
UsmanKhawaja? December 18 (“he’s going to be 38 this year!”). Marcus Labuschagne? June 22, 1994. And his favourite, SteveSmith? June 2, 1989. It can go beyond that -celebritybirthdays,movie releases, songs, other world events, the list goes on. Kurt has alove for countries also, and looks forward to travelling overseas one day.
Kurt takes part in Your Own Way’s Return-It program, which has been running in the Latrobe Valley for afew months, helping depositcans across the community -collecting more than 2000 aday. Kurt recently moved to Morwell from Yarram, butwas previously travelling downtotakepart in the initiative.
Special: Kurt flankedbyAFL legends,the late DannyFrawleyand DougHawkins at theYooralla Great Vic Trek. Photograph supplied
Pitching in: BenJones,Adam Caroleo, support coordinator AmandaGrumley, James Mooreand Kurt Jackson.
Photograph: BlakeMetcalf-Holt
TheGuide
PICK OF THE WEEK
A(VERY) MUSICAL CHRISTMAS
ABC TV,Friday, 7.30pm
Filmed on the festively decorated set of Hamiltonat the SydneyLyric Theatre, this enchanting Christmas concert is theperfect gift formaking musical theatrefans merry, as it bringsAustralia’s brightesttalent together in support of Beyond Blue. Hosted by ABCNewspresenter Jeremy Fernandez and ABC Classic’s Megan Burslem, this breathtaking intimate special invites Eddie Perfect Casey Donovan, Justine Clarke, Cody Simpson, &Juliet’s Lorinda May Merrypor Hamiltonstar Jason Arrow, DearEvanHansenlead Beau Woodbridge and Marney McQueen (Titanique’s own Celine Dion)to sharetheir favouritecarols and spread alittle Christmas cheer
CHRISTMASWITH DELTA Nine, Sunday, 7pm
Now in its fifth year,this holiday concert is quickly becoming a Christmas tradition. Australian music royalty Delta Goodrem (pictured) returns for2024 with ablend of unforgettable highlights from past Christmas specials and exciting new performances. This year,Delta and her musicallytalented friends are ringing in the season in Hollywood with singer-songwriterJoshGroban, “Kid at Christmas”crooners Calum Scottand Christina Perri, Howie from the Backstreet Boys, Men at Work’s Colin Hay, chef Curtis Stoneand Aussie DJ Fisher justsomeofthe starstaking to thestage. Therewill be all the classic carols,aswell as modernChrissysongs including Delta’s signature original hit “Only Santa Knows”
4.15 Grand Designs: House Of TheYear. (R) 5.00 AntiquesRoadshow. (R)
6.00 ABite To Eat With Alice.
6.30 Hard Quiz. (PG, R)
7.00 ABCNews.
7.30 7.30
8.00 Neighbours Does Hard Quiz (Final, PG) Presented by TomGleeson. 8.30 TheYearly With Charlie Pickering. Alook back at 2024 9.30 TheCleaner (Ml, R) Wicky attends the home of an influencer 10.35 Adam Hills: TheLastLeg. (R)
11.15 Summer Love (PG, R)
12.20 Grand Designs: House Of The Year (R) 1.10 Long Lost Family.(PG,R) 1.55 Rage (MA15+adhlnsv) 3.30 Monsters Or Medicine? (PGm,R) 4.30 GardeningAustralia. (R) 5.30
7.30.(R)
5.00 Peppa Pig 5.15 Supertato 5.20 PJ MasksPower Heroes. 5.35 Peter Rabbit. 5.45 Kiri And Lou. 5.55 Octonauts. 6.05 Kangaroo Beach. 6.20 Bluey 6.25 Thomas. 6.40
CAROLS IN THE DOMAIN Seven, Saturday, 8pm
There’ll be aspecial touch of Christmas magic in the air this year with this festivestaple broadcastlivefromThe Domain in Sydney. Carols producerMichael McKay says the return to alivebroadcast is an exciting milestone: “This event has always been about bringing people together andbeing able to shareitlivewiththe entire nation enhancesthat spirit of connection and celebration.” Hosted by Sunrise’s Natalie Barr and MattShirvington(both pictured), the line-up includesThe Wiggles, Samantha Jade, Rhonda Burchmore, Hugh Sheridan, Conrad Sewell and Budjerah, amongothers. Long-timeviewers will also be pleased to see thereturn of musical maestroChong Lim, who will be on handtoguide the performers
SBS (3)
6am Morning Programs. 10.05 Paddington Station 24/7.(PGl,R) 10.55 Earth’s Sacred Wonders. (PGa, R) 12.00 BBC News At Ten. 12.30 ABC World News Tonight. 1.00 PBS News. 2.00 TradFest: TheFingal Sessions. 2.30 Language Of Light.(Premiere) 3.00 PlatDuTour.(PG,R) 3.10 French Atlantic. (R) 3.40 The Cook Up.(PG, R) 4.10 TheSupervet. (PGa,R) 5.05 Jeopardy!(R) 5.30 Letters And Numbers. (R)
6.00 MastermindAustralia. (R) Presented by Marc Fennell.
6.30 SBS World News.
7.30 Wham!LastChristmas Unwrapped Alook at Wham!’s LastChristmas
9.30 TheNight Manager (R) Ahotel night manager receives apleafor help from awell-connected guest.
10.35 SBS World News Late. 11.05 Maxima. (Mals) 12.00 Pagan Peak (Return, Mas) 3.00 Legacy List With Matt Paxton. (PG, R) 4.05 MakeMeADealer.(R) 4.55 Destination Flavour Down Under Bitesize. (R) 5.00 NHK World English News Morning. 5.30 ANC Philippines The World Tonight.
SEVEN (7,6)
6am Morning Programs. 10.30 Test Cricket: Pre-Game Show 11.20 Cricket. Third Test. Australia vIndia. Day 5. Morning session. (Please note: alternativeschedule may be shown due to changes to cricket coverage). 1.20 Test Cricket: The LunchBreak. 2.00 Cricket. Third Test. Australia vIndia. Day 5. Afternoon session. 4.00 Test Cricket: Tea Break. 4.20 Cricket. Third Test.Australia v India. Day 5. Late afternoon session.
6.00 SevenNews. 7.00 Cricket Big Bash League. Match 4. Melbourne Stars vBrisbane Heat. 10.30 Big Bash League Post-Game. Post-match coverage of the game. 11.00 Unbelievable Moments CaughtOnCamera. (PGa, R) Footage of headline-grabbing moments.
12.00 CriminalConfessions: She NeverCameHome. (MA15+alv,R) Alook at the case of Kenia Monge.
1.00 Stan Lee’sLucky Man (MA15+av) Ahitman takes out an entirecharterplane.
6am TheFishing Show By AFN. 7.00 Step Outside. 7.30 Creek To Coast. 8.00 America’s Game. 9.00 AFootball Life 10.00 Barrett-Jackson:RevvedUp. 11.00 Storage Wars 11.30 American Pickers. 12.30pm Pawn Stars. 1.00 OutbackTruckers. 3.00 BillyThe Exterminator. 3.30 Barrett-Jackson: RevvedUp. 4.30 Storage Wars. 5.00 American Pickers. 6.00 Cricket. Third Test. Australia vIndia.Day 5. Late afternoon session. 7.00 Pawn Stars. 7.30 Highway Patrol. 8.30 The Force: BehindThe Line. 9.30 World’s Wildest Police Videos. 10.30 Getting ATicket In America. (Premiere) 11.30 Late Programs.
Produced by Elvis Presley s granddau Riley Keough, ChristmasatGraceland celebrates the festive season at the s famed family home Big-name music stars are joining the fun performing Christmas songs and Elvis classics in locations throughout the home and grounds Performers include Alanis Morrisette, Lana Del Rey, Post Malone (pictured) John Legend Kacey Musgraves and Lainey Wilson This special also includes neverbefore-seen home movies of Elvis and his family, while friends of the King of Rock’n’Roll share their memories of Christmas at Graceland – Elviss favourite time of year
NINE (9,8)
Allthatglitters: Australia’s musical theatre starscelebrate Christmas. ghter d inger’s
TEN (10, 5)
6.00 Today 9.00 Today ExtraSummer (PG) 11.30 9News Morning. 12.00 MOVIE: Destination Christmas. (2022, PGa) Natasha Wilson, Edward Ruttle,Eva Tavares 2.00 Pointless. (PG, R) 3.00 Tipping Point. (PG, R) 4.00 9NewsAfternoon 4.30[VIC]TippingPoint Australia.(PG) 5.00 Tipping Point Australia. (PG,R) 5.30[VIC]WINNews. 6.00 The Talk.(PGa) 7.00 Deal Or No Deal. (R)
8.30 Budget Battlers. (PGl) Hosted by Jess Evaand Norm Hogan. 9.30 Space Invaders (PG, R) Acouple are drowning in clutter
10.30 Millionaire Holiday HomeSwap. (PG) 11.30 The Equalizer.(MA15+v,R) 12.20 Tipping Point. (PG, R) 1.20 Talking Honey (PG) 1.30 TV Shop: Home Shopping. (R)
2.30 Global Shop. (R) 3.00 TV Shop: Home Shopping. (R) 4.00 Believer’sVoice Of Victory.(PGa) 4.30 ACurrent Affair.(R) 5.00 Today EarlyNews. 5.30 Today
9GO! (93, 82) 6am Remi Nobody’sBoy.(2018,PG, French) 8.00 Whale Rider.(2002,PG) 9.55 The Falcons. (2018,PG, Icelandic) 11.50 Juliet, Naked. (2018, M) 1.40pm Lola. (1961, PG, French) 3.15 Magnetic Fields.(2021, PG, Greek) 4.50 Viajeros.(2022, PG, Spanish) 6.25 Heidi. (2015,PG, German) 8.30 The Nugget. (2002, M) 10.20 Long Story Short. (2021,M) 12.05am Falling.(2020,M) 2.10 Yardie. (2018, MA15+) 4.05 Home Song Stories. (2007, M)
6.00 Deal Or No Deal. (R) 6.30 TheProject. Alook at the day’snews. 7.30 Jamie Oliver: Christmas. Jamie Oliverhosts aChristmasparty 8.30 NCIS. (Mv) Torres receives intel from an informantregardingtop secret naval informationthat is at risk of being sold. 9.30 NCIS: Origins. (Mav) The team investigates acaseofa woman who disappeared after anight of clubbing with aUSNavy seaman. 10.30 10’s Late News. 10.55 TheProject (R) 12.00 TheLate ShowWith Stephen Colbert. (PG) 1.00 Home Shopping. (R) 4.30
Thursday, December19
ABC (2)
6.00 News. 9.00 News. 10.00 Australian Story.(R) 10.30 Back Roads. (R) 11.00 Antiques Roadshow.(R) 12.00 ABC News At Noon. 1.00 Grand DesignsAustralia.(Final, PG,R) 2.00 Anh’s Brush With Fame.(PG, R) 2.30 Back Roads. (R) 3.00 ABite To Eat With Alice.(R) 3.25 Long Lost Family.(PG, R) 4.15 Grand Designs: House Of The Year.(R) 5.00 Antiques Roadshow.(R)
6.00 ABiteToEat With Alice.
6.30 Hard QuizKids. (PG, R) 7.00 ABCNews.
7.30 7.30 (Final) Presented by Sarah Ferguson
8.00 Long Lost Family:Born WithoutATrace. (Premiere) Hosted by Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell.
9.05 Fake Or Fortune? Joshua Reynolds. Fiona Bruce and Philip Mould takealook at apainting suspected to be by Sir Joshua Reynolds.
10.05 Long Lost Family:What Happened Next. (Final, PG) 10.55 GrandDesigns: House Of TheYear. (Final, R)
11.45 Long Lost Family (PG, R)
12.30 Rage. (MA15+adhlnsv)
3.35 The Truth About Menopause With Myf Warhurst. (PG, R) 4.30 GardeningAustralia (R) 5.30 7.30.(Final,R)
ABC FAMILY (22)
(3)
6am MorningPrograms. 10.20 Paddington Station24/7.(PGal,R) 11.10 KewGardens: SeasonBySeason.(R) 12.00 BBC News At Ten. 12.30 ABC World News Tonight. 1.00 PBS News. 2.00 TradFest: TheFingal Sessions. 2.30 Language Of Light 3.00 Plat Du Tour (R) 3.10 French Atlantic. (R) 3.40 The Cook Up.(R) 4.10 TheSupervet. (PGa,R) 5.05 Jeopardy! (R) 5.30 Letters And Numbers. (R) 6.00 Sunrise. 9.00 The Morning Show.(PG) 11.30 SevenMorning News. 12.00 MOVIE: AChristmas Spark. (2022, PGa, R) 2.00 MotorbikeCops. (PG, R) 2.15 CatchPhrase. (PG, R) 3.00 TheChase. (R) 4.00 SevenNews At 4. 5.00 TheChase Australia.
6.00 Mastermind Australia. (R)
6.30 SBS WorldNews.
7.30 Going Places With Ernie Dingo (PG) Mark Coles Smith visits Esperance.
8.30 GodsOfTennis: Martina Navratilova AndChris Evert. (Ml, R)
The storyofthe intense rivalry between Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert.
9.35 Daddy Issues. (Premiere, Mls) Awoman discovers she is pregnant.
10.35 SBS World NewsLate.
11.05 DNA (Mav)
11.55 Blackout: Tomorrow Is TooLate. (Malsv, R)
12.50 Miniseries: TheNight Logan Woke Up (MA15+a, R)
3.05 LegacyListWith Matt Paxton. (PG, R)
4.05 Make Me ADealer (R)
5.00 NHK World EnglishNewsMorning 5.30 ANC PhilippinesThe WorldTonight.
SBS VICELAND (31) 6am Children’s Programs. 5.15pm Supertato 5.20 PJ Masks Power Heroes. 5.35 Peter Rabbit. 5.45 Kiri And Lou. 5.55 Octonauts 6.05 KangarooBeach. 6.20 Bluey 6.25 Kangaroo Beach 6.40 Do,Re&Mi. 7.05 Andy And The Band 7.20 Bluey 7.30 Shaun The Sheep 7.35 The Inbestigators. 7.50 Operation Ouch! 8.20 Secrets Of The Zoo. 9.05 Teenage Boss: Next Level. 9.35 Doctor Who 10.35 Late Programs.
2pm First People’sKitchen 2.30 The CookUp. 3.00 Jarjums. 4.05 Cities Of Gold. 4.35 Motown Magic. 5.00 Our Stories 5.15 Harlem Globetrotters. 6.00 Bamay. 6.30 NITVNews: Summer Yarns. 6.40 Guardians Of The Wild. 7.30 Going Places With Ernie Dingo 8.30 The Walkers. (Premiere) 9.30 MOVIE: Jimi: AllIsByMySide. (2013, M) 11.35 Late
6.00 SevenNews. 7.00 Cricket Big Bash League.Match 5. Melbourne Renegades vHobartHurricanes. From GMHBA Stadium, Geelong.
10.30 Seven’sCricket: TheSpin
An expert panel tackles all the big news and issueswitha deep dive intothe wild worldofcricket
11.15 Pam& Tommy. (MA15+alns) Rand teams up with an old porn-world associate to shop the sextape around town.
12.15 CriminalConfessions: Who Killed Little Mama? (Madlv,R)
An elderly free spirit is leftfor dead.
1.15 Travel Oz. (PG, R) Presented by GregGrainger.
7.30 GreatGetaways. (PG) The team tours some of Turkey’sancient sites.
8.30 Budget Battlers. Jess Evaand Norm Hogan come to the aid of acouple who spent their wholelives helpingothers.
9.30 A+EAfter Dark. (Mlm) Language is abarrier in dealing with an aggressive male who claims he has been attacked.
10.30 Captivated. (Mals) Elliot and Rachel’sattraction grows.
11.30 Resident Alien. (Msv)
12.15 Tipping Point. (PG, R) 1.05 CrossCourt (R)
1.30 TV Shop: Home Shopping. (R) 2.30 Global Shop (R) 3.00 TV Shop: Home Shopping. (R) 4.00 Believer’s Voice Of Victory. (PGa) 4.30 ACurrentAffair (R) 5.00 Today Early News. 5.30 Today
6.00 Deal Or No Deal. (R) Hosted by GrantDenyer 6.30 TheProject Alookatthe day’snews. 7.30 Jamie Oliver: Christmas. Jamie Olivershares spectacular dishes. 8.30 MOVIE: MeanGirls. (2004, Ma, R) The homeschooled daughter of zoologists, who is attending public school in the US forthe first time, findsherselfatodds with aclique of snooty girlswhen she falls for their leader’s ex-boyfriend. Lindsay Lohan, RachelMcAdams, LaceyChabert. 10.30 10’s LateNews. Coverage of news, sportand weather 10.55 TheProject. (R) Alook at theday’snews. 12.00 TheLate ShowWith Stephen Colbert (PG) 1.00 Home Shopping. (R) 4.30 CBSMornings. 6am WorldWatch. 10.00 Food Lover’sGuide. 12.15pm WorldWatch. 12.45 Who Gets To Stay In Australia? 1.50 Derry Girls. 2.50 Earthworks 3.45 WorldWatch. 5.45 JoyOfPainting. 6.15 Curse Of Oak Island. 7.05 Jeopardy! 7.35 8Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown. 8.30 Holy Marvels With Dennis Quaid. 10.05 The Last Overland:Singapore To London. 11.55 Late Programs.
(1961, PG,French) 7.35 AHero.(2021,PG, Farsi) 9.55 Magnetic Fields. (2021, PG, Greek) 11.30 Home SongStories. (2007, M) 1.25pm Viajeros. (2022, PG, Spanish) 3.00 Remi Nobody’s Boy. (2018, PG, French) 5.00 The Falcons. (2018,PG, Icelandic) 6.55 Fantastic Mr.Fox.(2009,PG) 8.30 TheRover. (2014,MA15+) 10.25 The Frozen Ground. (2013 MA15+) 12.25am Late Programs. SBS WORLD MOVIES (32) 6am Morning Programs.
Friday, December 20
ABC TV (2) SBS (3)
6am Lola.
Programs. Noon Survivor 47.(Final) 2.00 The Golden Girls. 2.30 The Nanny 3.30 Seinfeld. 4.30 TheAddamsFamily 5.00 Bewitched. 5.30 IDream Of Jeannie. 6.00 The Golden Girls 6.30
SEVEN (7,6)
NINE (9,8) 6.00 News Breakfast. 9.00 ABC News Mornings. 10.00 Back Roads. (PG, R) 10.25 I WasActually There.(Final, PG, R) 10.55 Royal Carols: Together At Christmas 2023.(R) 12.00 ABC News At Noon. 1.00 Shetland. (Final, Mal, R) 2.00 Maggie Beer’s Big Mission. (Final R) 3.00 ABite To Eat WithAlice. (R) 3.30 Long Lost Family.(PG, R) 4.15 Grand Designs: House Of The Year.(R) 5.00 AntiquesRoadshow.(R)
9.00 TheYearly With Charlie Pickering. (R) CharliePickering is joined by celebritiestotakealook
To Build Houses. (R)
12.20 Rage Best New Releases 2024 (MA15+adhnsv)
5.00 Rage. (PG)
6am MorningPrograms. 11.10 KewGardens: Season By Season. (R) 12.00 BBC News At Ten. 12.30 ABC World News Tonight. 1.00 PBS News. 2.00 TradFest: The Fingal Sessions. 2.30 Language Of Light. 3.00 Plat Du Tour (R) 3.10 French Atlantic.(PG, R) 3.40 The Cook Up.(R) 4.10 TheSupervet. (PGa, R) 5.05 Jeopardy!(R) 5.30 Letters And Numbers. (R)
6.00 Mastermind Australia. (R)
6.30 SBS World News. 7.30 EveryFamilyHas ASecret: Jacquie Blatchford AndMike Damnjanovic (PGa,R) 8.35 Marlon Brando In Paradise. Explores Marlon Brando’s environmental legacy
9.35 Kennedy:A Legacy(June 1963-November 1963) (Final, PG) Explores JFK’sfinal months. 10.25 SBS WorldNews Late. 10.55 De Gaulle. (Premiere, Ma) 11.55 Kin. (MA15+dlv,R) 1.55 Miniseries: Too Close.(Madls, R) 2.50 Legacy ListWith Matt Paxton.(PGa, R) 3.55 MakeMeADealer. (R) 4.45 Destination Flavour ChinaBitesize. (R) 5.00 NHK World English News Morning. 5.30 ANC PhilippinesThe WorldTonight.
Wars. 9.50 Doctor Who 10.50 Late Programs. ABC FAMILY (22) 6am The Falcons. (2018,PG, Icelandic) 7.55 Heidi. (2015, PG, German) 10.00 Long Story Short. (2021, M) 11.45 The Nugget.
6.00 SevenNews. 7.00 Better Homes And Gardens Summer JulietLove revamps acluttered laundry
8.30 MOVIE: Jaws. (1975, Mlv,R)A police chief,a game fisherman and amarine biologistset out to hunt down agiant killer shark thatisterrorising beachgoers in asmall seaside community,despite a lack of support from thelocal mayor.Roy Scheider,Richard Dreyfuss, Robert Shaw
11.00 MOVIE: Underwater (2020,Mlv,R) Disaster strikesanunderwaterfacility Kristen Stewart, Vincent Cassel. 1.00 Taken. (Mav,R) 2.00 HomeShopping. (R)
4.00 Million DollarMinute. (R)
5.00 NBCToday
6.00 9News.
7.00 ACurrent Affair
7.30 Find My Beach House Australia. Hosted by Shelley Craft.
8.30 MOVIE: Jingle All TheWay (1996,PGv,R)After leavingituntil Christmas Evetobuy his son’s Christmas present, aloving father embarks on awild journey. Arnold Schwarzenegger,Sinbad, Phil Hartman.
10.15 MOVIE: Parenthood. (1989,Mas, R) Anover-protectivedad dotes on his son. Steve Martin.
6.30 TheProject Alook at the day’s news. 7.30 MOVIE: Daddy’sHome 2. (2017,PGals, R) Twomen plan to have theperfect Christmas, but when their fathers arrive, theirholiday is turned into chaos. Will Ferrell,Mark Wahlberg. 9.30 Matlock. (PGal, R) Mattyworks on acase with Julian. Olympia learns asecret about Julian’s past. 10.30 10’s Late News. Coverage of news, sportand weather 10.55 TheProject (R)A look at theday’s news. 12.00 TheLate ShowWith Stephen Colbert. (PG)Hosted by Stephen Colbert 1.00
Saturday, December21
ABC TV (2) SBS (3)
6.00 Rage Best Of The Charts 2024.(PG) 7.00 WeekendBreakfast. 9.00 Rage. (PG) 10.30 Rage BestOfThe Guests 2024.(PG) 12.00 ABC News At Noon. 12.30 All Creatures Great And Small. (PG, R) 1.15 Miniseries: Douglas Is Cancelled. (Ml, R) 1.55 Matthew Bourne’s Nutcracker! (R) 3.25 SolarSystem With Brian Cox. (R) 4.30 Headliners. (Final, PG,R) 5.30 Landline. (R)
6.30 Muster Dogs: WhereAre They Now. (PG, R) Presented by Lisa Millar
7.00 ABC News. Alookatthe topstories of theday
7.30 All CreaturesGreatAnd Small. (PG) James prepares for hisnew life.
8.20 Vera (Final, Mav, R) Vera and her team investigatethe death of abelovedfamily man.
9.50 Miniseries: Douglas Is Cancelled. (Ml, R) The furore around the jokecontinues.
10.30 Shetland. (Mal, R) Calder decidestostay on in Shetland.
11.30 Rage Best Of The Guests2024. (MA15+adhlnsv)
6am MorningPrograms. 9.00 Cook Up Bitesize. (R) 9.05 The EcoShow.(PGa, R) 10.00 Love Your Garden. (PGa, R) 11.00 Along Ireland’sShores. (R) 12.00 BBC News At Ten. 12.30 ABC World News Tonight 1.00 PBS News. 2.00 Portillo’s Greatest Railway Journeys. (PG, R) 2.55 Plat Du Tour.(R) 3.05 French Atlantic. (R) 3.35 Ethnic Business Awards.(R) 5.35 Weeks Of War. (PGa,R)
6.30 SBS WorldNews.
7.30 Magical Train Journeys In Switzerland: On TheGoldenPass Belle Époque From Montreaux To TheBernese Oberland (PGn)
8.30 Christmas At Longleat Alook at Longleat at Christmas.
9.25 TisThe Season: TheHolidays On Screen. (Mal, R) Acelebration of holiday filmsand TV specials.
10.55 GreatAustralian Railway Journeys. (R)
12.05 Miniseries: The Dark Heart (Mal, R)
2.40 Love Your Garden. (PGa, R)
3.30 MakeMeADealer (R)
4.20 Peer To Peer (R)
4.50 Destination FlavourChina Bitesize. (R)
5.00 NHK World English NewsMorning. 5.15 France 24 Feature. 5.30 ANC PhilippinesThe World Tonight.
(7,6)
NBCToday 7.00
TheMorning Show:
(PG) 12.00 Horse Racing. Royal Randwick Raceday, Pakenham Cup Dayand SevenMembers Mile Raceday 5.00 SevenNews At 5. 5.30 Border Security: Australia’s Front Line. (PG, R)
6.00 SevenNews. 7.00 Better Homes AndGardens Summer Theteamcounts down to Carols In TheDomainwith a Christmas camping celebration
8.00 Carols In TheDomain. (PG) Coverage of CarolsInThe Domain from Sydney.Featuring The Wiggles, Samantha Jade, Rhonda Burchmore, Hugh Sheridan, Erin Holland, Conrad Sewell,Mark Vincent, Silvia Colloca and many others.
10.30 NSW Schools Spectacular (PG, R) Coverage of the Schools Spectacular from the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney’sOlympic Park.
1.00 Taken. (Mav,R)A CIA analyst’sson is kidnapped.
2.00 HomeShopping. (R)
4.00 It’s Academic (R) Hosted by Simon Reeve.
5.00 My GreekOdyssey (PG, R)
7TWO (72, 62)
NITV (34)
6am MorningPrograms.
11.40 MOVIE: Where The Wild Things Are.(2009, PG) 1.25pm Ocean Parks. 2.15 MOVIE: Emu Runner (2018,PG) 3.55 Jarli. 4.05 Thalu 4.20 TheFirst Inventors. 5.10 Carpool Koorioke. 5.20 Larapinta. 6.20 NITVNews: Summer Yarns. 6.30 The Other Side 7.30 AloneAustralia. 8.30 MOVIE: LetMe In. (2010, MA15+) 10.35 BobMarley:Uprising Live. 12.40am Late Programs.
6.00 The Garden Gurus. (R) 6.30 ACurrent Affair.(R) 7.00 WeekendToday 10.00 Today Extra Summer.
6.00 9News Saturday.
6.00 Jamie’sChristmas Shortcuts (R) JamieOlivertransforms leftovers. 7.00 TheDog House (PGa, R) The team at Woodgreen makes its abandoned dogs feel extraspecial this time of year with adoggy Christmas dinner 9.00 TheDog Hospital With Graeme Hall. (PGm)GraemeHalltakes alook at afive-year-old dachshund thathas become very unsteady on its back legs and requireslife-changingspinal surgery to give it achance to get back on its feet. 10.00 Ambulance Australia. (Maln, R) Acrash results in abroken leg, but paramedics fear the patient may also have spinal cordinjuries. 11.00 Ambulance UK. (Ma, R) It is a busyshiftfor the ambulanceservice 12.30 Home Shopping. (R) 5.00 HourOfPower. 6am WorldWatch. 10.00 Food Lover’sGuide. 12.10pm Scrubs 2.15 Beyond OakIsland. 3.00 Jungletown 4.00 BBC News At Ten. 4.30 ABC World News Tonight 4.55 PBS News. 5.55 TheMega-Brands That Built The World. 7.35 Impossible Engineering. 8.30 Icons Unearthed: HarryPotter 10.20 Hudson &Rex Midnight The X-Files. 2.45 NHK World English News. 5.00 Al JazeeraNewshour
6am Go! (2020) 7.55 Fantastic Mr.Fox.(2009,PG) 9.30 Petite Maman. (2021, PG, French) 10.50 Nowhere Boy. (2009,M) 12.40pm The Comeback Trail (2020,M) 2.35 Bride And Prejudice. (2004, PG) 4.40 ARiver Runs Through It.(1992,PG) 6.55 AHard Day’sNight. (1964,PG) 8.30 Last CabTo Darwin. (2015, M) 10.45 Nymphomaniac: Vol1 (2013,MA15+) 12.55am Late Programs.
6am Home Shopping. 8.30 Travel Oz. 10.00 Escape To The Country Noon The Yorkshire Vet. 1.00 IEscaped To TheCountry 2.00 Escape To The Country. 5.00 Horse Racing.Royal Randwick Raceday,Pakenham Cup Day and Seven Members Mile Raceday 6.00 Heathrow 6.30 Bondi Vet. 7.30 The YorkshireVet. 8.30 Escape To The Country 9.30 IEscaped To The Country. 10.30 Australia’s Amazing Homes. 11.30 Late Programs.
6am Morning Programs. 1pm Blokesworld. 1.30 The Weekend Prospector 2.00 Rides Down Under: Workshop Wars. 3.00 Drag Racing. NDRC TopFuel C’ship.SpringNationals. H’lights. 4.00 Desert Collectors. 5.00 Counting Cars. 6.00 Pawn Stars. 7.00 Storage Wars. 7.30 Aussie Salvage Squad. 8.30 Heavy TowTruckers Down Under 9.30 Air Crash Investigations: Special Report. 10.30 Late Programs.
7.00 ACurrent Affair
7.30 MOVIE: Central Intelligence. (2016,Mlsv, R) An accountant anda CIAagent reconnectata reunion and proceed to work together on atop-secret case. Dwayne Johnson, KevinHart.
9.40 MOVIE: Vacation. (2015,MA15+ln, R) Aman embarks on across-country trip to an amusement park with his family Ed Helms,ChristinaApplegate.
6am Morning Programs. 8.30 Tomorrow’sWorld. 9.00 TurningPoint. 9.30 TV Shop 10.00 Helping Hands. 10.30 Avengers. 11.40 MOVIE: Poison Pen. (1939,PG) 1.15pm MOVIE: TheRagingMoon. (1971, PG) 3.30 MOVIE: Attack On The IronCoast. (1968,PG) 5.25 MOVIE: The WarWagon. (1967,PG) 7.30 MOVIE: Die Another Day.(2002, M) 10.10 MOVIE: TheNice Guys.(2016,MA15+) 12.30am Late Programs.
9GO!
6am Children’s Programs.
1.30pm MOVIE: Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back –Evolution. (2019,PG) 3.30 MOVIE: Pokémon TheMovie: Secrets Of The Jungle.(2020,PG) 5.30 MOVIE: Tom&Jerry.(2021) 7.30 MOVIE: Harry Potter AndThe DeathlyHallows: Part 1. (2010, M) 10.20 MOVIE: The Legend Of Zorro.(2005,M) 1am TheOriginals. 3.00 Teen Titans Go! 3.30 Beyblade X. 4.00 Transformers: Prime 4.30 Late Programs.
Sunday, December 22
ABC TV (2) SBS (3)
Havewecaughtyourattention?
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SEVEN (7,6)
NINE (9,8) 6am Morning Programs. 10.30 TheWorld In 2024.(R) 11.00 Compass. (PGa, R) 11.30 Praise. 12.00 News. 12.30 Nigella’s ChristmasTable.(R) 1.30 Extraordinary Escapes: Christmas Special. (R) 2.20 Outback Musical. (PG, R) 3.05 Long Lost Family:What Happened Next. (Final, PG, R) 3.50 Long Lost Family:Born Without ATrace. (R) 5.00 Fake Or Fortune?(R)
6.00 Antiques Roadshow. (R) 7.00 ABCNews.
7.30 Muster Dogs: Where Are They Now. (Final) Lisa Millar’s journey concludes.
8.00 Miniseries: Douglas Is Cancelled. (Final, Ml) Thepractice interviewisunderway.
8.45 Love Me. (MA15+s) Life and love starts to flourish.
9.30 SpicksAnd Specks. (PG, R) Hosted by Adam Hills.
11.10 Take 5With Zan Rowe (PG, R) 11.40 YouCan’t Ask That (Ma, R) 12.45 NewLeashOnLife. (R) 1.10 Rage Vault. (MA15+adhlnsv) 3.05 Australia Remastered: Forces Of Nature. (R) 4.00 Gardening Australia.(R) 5.00 Pilgrimage: The Road Through North Wales. (Final, PG,R)
ABC FAMILY (22)
A (Very) Musical Christmas. 10.30 Speechless. 10.50 Late Programs.
6am MorningPrograms. 2pm Football. First Nations Indigenous Football Cup. Women’s.Round 4. NT YappasvSydney City Replay 3.40 Our Footprint. 4.05
6am MorningPrograms. 7.30 France 24 English News. 8.00 DD India News Hour 9.00 The EcoShow. (PG, R) 10.00 FIFAWorld Cup Classic Matches. 12.00 APAC Weekly.(R) 12.30 PBS Washington Week. 12.55 Ballroom Fit. (R) 1.00 Speedweek. 3.00 Seeds: Planting Hope Through Education. (PG, R) 3.45 Portillo’s GreatestRailway Journeys. (PGa, R) 5.35 Weeks Of War. (PGavw,R)
6.30 SBS WorldNews
7.30 Tsunami 2004: The Day TheWaveHit: Sri Lanka (Ma) An account of the Indian Ocean tsunami. 9.20 Jonathan Ross’Myths And Legends: Isle Of SkyeAnd Scottish Highlands. (PGa, R) Jonathan Ross visits theIsle of Skyeand the Scottish Highlands to hear about the local myths and legends. 10.15 Curse OfThe Ancients: Middle Ages. (Mav,R) 11.05 Napoleon: In The Name Of Art. (Mans, R) 1.00 Rise Of The Nazis: Dictators At War. (Mav R) 2.10 Love Your Garden. (R) 3.05 MakeMe ADealer.(R) 4.00 Peer To Peer.(PG, R) 4.30 Bamay.(PG, R) 5.00 NHKWorld English News Morning. 5.15 France 24 Feature. 5.30 Al JazeeraNews.
6.00 NBCToday 7.00 WeekendSunrise. 10.00 The MorningShow: Weekend.(PG) 12.00 To Be Advised. 1.00 Reignite: A BrisbaneHeatStory.(PGl) 2.00 Christmas With The Salvos. (PG, R) 2.30 MOVIE: AFurry Little Christmas.(2021, PGa) Kristi McKamie. 4.30 Beach Cops. (PG, R) 5.00 SevenNews At 5. 5.30 Border Security: Australia’s Front Line. (PG, R)
6.00 SevenNews. 7.00 Cricket. Big BashLeague. Match9 Brisbane Heat vAdelaide Strikers. 10.30 Big Bash League Post-Game Post-match coverage of thegame between the Brisbane Heat and Adelaide Strikers. 11.00 7NEWSSpotlight. (R) Alook at tactics scammers use.
12.00 Miniseries: Patrick Melrose (Final, MA15+a, R) Patrick confronts his resentment.
1.15 Travel Oz. (PG, R) Hosted by GregGrainger.
2.00 Home Shopping. (R)
3.30 Million Dollar Minute. (R) HostedbyGrant Denyer
4.00 NBC Today. News and current affairs.
5.00 Sunrise 5am News.
5.30 Sunrise
6am MorningPrograms. 10.00 CrossCourt. 10.30 Fishing Aust 11.00 Maritime Masters: Expedition Antarctica.(PGl,R) 12.00 Drive TV 12.30 Innovation Nation. 12.40 Bondi Vet. (PGam, R) 1.40 Find My BeachHouse Australia. (R) 2.40 MOVIE: Unforgettable Christmas. (2023, G) 4.30 Helloworld. 5.00 9NewsFirst At Five 5.30 Postcards Summer.(PG)
6.00 9News Sunday.
7.00 Christmas With Delta. AChristmas concert with Delta Goodrem. 9.00 MOVIE: TheHoliday. (2006,Mls, R) Twowomen who liveonopposite sidesofthe Atlantic meet online and impulsively switch homes for Christmas. However, shortly after arriving at their destinations, both find thelast thing either wantsorexpects.Cameron Diaz, KateWinslet,Jude Law 11.40 TheBrokenwood Mysteries. (Mv) Awriter is found murdered.
6am MorningPrograms. 10.00 Drew Barrymore. (PGas, R) 11.00 Luxury Escapes. (R) 11.30 Buy To Build. (R) 12.00 Pooches At Play.(PGa, R) 12.30 Cook With Luke. (R) 1.00 Everyday Gourmet. (R) 1.30 Expedition: Australia’s West Coast. (R)
6.00 TheDog House. (PGa) The Griffiths family hopes Gigi the Labrador cross will help dad Daveget into the festivespirit. 7.00 Mariah Carey: MerryChristmas To All. Mariah Carey performs a repertoire of her festiveholiday hits, including AllIWantforChristmasIsYou 9.00 TheGraham Norton Show. Graham Norton is joined on the couch by Timothée Chalamet, Colman Domingo,Andrew Garfield, James Corden, RuthJones andLaufey. 10.10 MOVIE: Baywatch. (2017,MA15+ln, R) Adevotedlifeguard and anew recruit must put asidetheir differences afteruncovering acriminal plot. Dwayne Johnson, Zac Efron. 12.30 Home Shopping (R) 4.30 CBS Mornings. 6am WorldWatch. 9.30 Small BusinessSecrets. 10.05 Food Lover’s Guide. 11.55 Gymnastics. FIG Rhythmic World Cup series. Replay 1.55pm Jeopardy! 4.00
11.15 Late Programs. 6am Morning Programs. 7.25 AHard Day’s Night. (1964 PG) 9.00 Walking On Sunshine. (2014,PG) 10.50 Priscilla Queen Of The Desert. (1994,M) 12.45pm We Might As Well Be Dead. (2022, M, German) 2.35 Go! (2020) 4.30 Princess Caraboo.(1994,PG) 6.20 Little Women. (1994,PG) 8.30 Force Of Destiny (2015,MA15+) 10.30 The Woodcutter Story. (2022, MA15+, Finnish) 12.25am Late Programs.
7.30 Tracy:AForce Of Nature. Narrated by Leigh Sales.
8.30 ABBA: AgainstThe Odds. (Mal, R) The inside story of ABBA’s battle for critical and commercial success in the face of personal challenges.
10.05 TheRise AndFall OfBoris Johnson. (Final, Ml,R)Boris Johnson’s position becomesimpossible.
11.00 ALife In TenPic tures: Nelson Mandela. (PGa, R)
11.55 Grand Designs: House Of TheYear. (PG, R)
12.45 Long Lost Family (PG, R)
1.30 Rage.(MA15+adhlnsv) 3.30 That Christmas. (PG, R) 4.30 GardeningAustralia: Christmas Family Special 2017.(R) 5.30 ABite To Eat With Alice. (R)
6.00 Mastermind Australia. (R) Presented by Marc Fennell. 6.30 SBS WorldNews
7.35 Christmas At Graceland. Acelebration of Christmas at Graceland.
8.25 NeverMind TheBuzzcocks
Christmas. Greg Davies is joined by Holly Johnson, Lauren Laverne, Asim Chaudhryand Jamali Maddix.
10.10 HowToMakeItInComedy (MA15+l,R)The story of Edinburgh Fringe.
11.05 Dead Mountain: TheDyatlov Pass Incident. (MA15+av)
1.10 Wisting (Malv,R)
2.00 LegacyListWith Matt Paxton (PGa,R)
3.05 Make Me ADealer (R)
3.55 Legacy ListWith Matt Paxton (PGav,R)
5.00 NHK World English News Morning. 5.30 ANC PhilippinesThe WorldTonight.
6.00 SevenNews.
7.00 Cricket. Big Bash League. Match 10 Melbourne Renegades vPerth Scorchers. From Marvel Stadium, Melbourne
10.30 Big Bash League Post-Game Post-match coverage of thegamebetween the Melbourne Renegades and PerthScorchers.
11.00 Murder In ASmallTown. (Mav)A murderer is on the loose and is headed towards Gibsons.
12.00 Satisfac tion. (MA15+ads, R) Neil and Simon start abusiness together.Adriana helps Grace with her sexual boundaries.
1.00 Travel Oz. (PG, R) Hosted by Greg Grainger
2.00 Home Shopping. (R)
4.00 NBCToday. News and current affairs.
5.00 Sunrise 5am News Thelatest news, sport and weather 5.30 Sunrise News, sportand weather
6.00 9News 7.00 ACurrentAffair
7.30 RBT. (Ml, R) Followsthe activities of police units. 8.30 Australian Crime Stories: TheInvestigators: UnderThe Gun. (MA15+alv,R)While serving as an undercoverpolice officer,Keith Banks became used to ahigh-octane lifestyle.
9.30 Miniseries: Love Rat (Premiere, PGal) Arecently divorced woman embarksona whirlwind holiday romance with ahotel proprietor 11.30
Australia. (PGa, R) Narrated by Mark Coles Smith. 7.30 WheelOfFor tune Australia. (PGs) Hosted by GrahamNorton. 8.30 Matlock. (PGa) Olympia defends a defamed nanny at her children’s school.
Tuesday, December 24
ABC TV (2) SBS (3)
(7,6)
(9,8) 6am Morning Programs. 9.30 Pilgrimage: The Road To TheScottish Isles. (PG, R) 10.30 The Art Of (Ml, R) 11.00 Antiques Roadshow (R) 12.00 News. 1.00 Headliners. (Final, PG, R) 1.50 Bluey.(R) 2.00 Brush With Fame. (R) 2.30 Shaun The Sheep. (R) 3.00 ABite To Eat. (R) 3.30 Long Lost Family.(PG, R) 4.15 Grand Designs: House Of The Year.(R) 5.05 Antiques Roadshow. (R) 6am MorningPrograms. 11.10 KewGardens: SeasonBySeason.(R) 12.00 BBC News At Ten. 12.30 ABC World News Tonight. 1.00 PBS News. 2.00 Tradfest: The Dublin Castle Sessions. (Premiere) 2.30 Language Of Light. 3.00 Plat Du Tour.(PG,R) 3.10 French Atlantic. (R) 3.40 The Cook Up.(R) 4.10 The Supervet. (PGa, R) 5.05 Jeopardy!(R) 5.30 Letters AndNumbers. (R) 6.00 Sunrise. 9.00 TheMorning Show. (PG) 11.30 SevenMorning News. 12.00 MOVIE: Love In Winterland. (2020, PGa, R) 2.00 CatchPhrase. (PG, R) 3.00 TheChase. (R) 4.00 SevenNews At 4. 5.00 TheChase Australia.
6.00 Mastermind Australia. (R)
6.30 SBS WorldNews.
7.35 Christmas Carols From London Coliseum. (R) Aselection of Christmas carols.
ChristmasSpecial. (PG)
8.05 MOVIE: ABoy Called Christmas. (2021, PG) Ayoung boysearches for his father.Henry Lawfull. 9.45 Believing In Australia: Faith At TheFringes. (Mns,R) An exploration of Australians’beliefs 11.30 Ithaka: AFight To Free JulianAssange. (Final, Mlv,R) 12.30 Keep On Dancing. (Final R) 1.35 Grand Designs: House Of TheYear (R) 2.25 Long Lost Family.(PG, R) 3.10 Rage (MA15+adhlnsv) 3.35 Rage Closer.(R) 3.40 Christmas In Australia With Christine Anu. (R) 4.30 Gardening Australia. (R) 5.30 ABiteTo Eat With Alice. (R)
8.30 ChristmasInThe Cotswolds. Takesa look at the popular holiday destination, The Cotswolds, during thefestiveseason.
9.25 ABBA In Concert (R) Coverage of performancesbyABBA in 1979,focusingon their concertatLondon’s Wembley Arena.
10.25 TheBig FatQuizOfTelly (Mls, R)
12.05 Babylon Berlin (Mav)
2.05 Portillo’s Greatest Railway Journeys. (PG,R)
3.55 Legacy ListWithMatt Paxton.(PGav,R)
5.00 NHK World English News Morning. 5.30 ANC PhilippinesThe WorldTonight.
6.00 SevenNews.
7.00 RoyalEdinburgh Militar y Tattoo. (PG, R) Ashowofmilitary precision, entertainment,massed pipes and drum performancesfrom Scotland.
9.00 MOVIE: GroundhogDay (1993,PGal, R) Acynical TV weatherman finds himself living the same day over and overagain. Desperate to find away out of his predicament,hetriesmaking changes in his attitude towards the world. Bill Murray,AndieMacDowell,ChrisElliott
11.10 ABBA Vs Queen. (PGa, R) Acomparison of ABBA and Queen.
12.10 Satisfac tion. (MA15+ads, R) Adriana introduces Grace to the world of BDSM.
2.00 Home Shopping. (R)
4.00 Million Dollar Minute. (R)
5.00 My GreekOdyssey (PGal, R)
6.00 9News.
7.00 ACurrent Affair
7.30 Christmas With Delta. (R) AChristmas concertwith Delta Goodrem.
8.00 Carols By Candlelight. (PG) Coverage of the Vision Australia Carols by Candlelight from Sidney Myer Music Bowl,Melbourne
11.00 MOVIE: Candy CaneChristmas. (2020,G)Awoman finds love at Christmas. Beverley Mitchell.
1.00 DriveSafer (Final, R)
1.30 TV Shop: Home Shopping. (R)
2.30 Our StateOnAPlate. (PG,
(10, 5)
Or No
Xmas cheerspread throughout Mitchell House
Li ghtUpLatrobe
CALLIGNEE
Dancing around: Christmas is not Christmas without dancing,music,food and fun according to Dianne Berends,Gail Rondall andSusan Rerguson.
Merry times: PatGreig enjoyed the Christmas celebration with Santa. Photographs: Katrina Brandon
More than 600 years of service
TRAFALGAR locals know that when you hear the Mynardnamearound town, you are in safe hands
The familyhas givenacombined636 years to fire service.
It all started with John Francis (Jack) in 1946, and his three brothers Robert (Bob), Herbert (Bertie) and Ronald(Ron) who followed in his footsteps from 1960.From there, it was their children who took the reins, with the thirdgeneration nowmakingtheir way through theranksofTrafalgar Fire Brigade.
Current Trafalgar 2nd LT Peter Mynard,who hasspent months researching his family’sCFA history, said he grew up not knowing any different.
“Our fathers wereall in the brigade,startingout before we were born, so for the second generation and definitely for the third generation, it is the norm,” Peter said.
“It wasn’t necessarilyexpected for us to join. I knowfor myselfand my brothers, it was more so if we wanted to, that we were encouraged.If we didn’t want to, we were free to go off and do whatever else we wanted to do.
“Every time the fire siren went off back then, it was aget up and disappear mentality. If you were at afriend’s place and an alarm called and their dad didn’t do that, it was odd for us.”
While the Mynard family is synonymous with CFA, it seemsvolunteerism has always been in theirblood, with three family membersalsoserving with SES alongside CFA for more than 50 years combined.
Their allegiance to Trafalgar has remained strong across the family, with18out of the 21 family members walking through the doors, and only three venturing elsewhere. Now, seven still turn out as active firefighters, and others assistassupport members.
Incredible: TheMynardfamilyhavegiven morethan600
“Danny, Brian, and Iare at Trafalgar, Gil is at Mount Taylor and Nick is at Traralgon West, while David is interstate, and Shane is astaff member with FRV,” Peter said.
“While there are no sisters, there is one daughter and acouple of wives that were firefighters, but now still help with fundraising activities and functions. Everyone is involved.”
Whenasked if competitive with each other,it
could be said they all play to their own strengths andhave gravitated naturally into arole thatbest suits them.
“For those of us on the fireground still, we all have very different skills, and we utilise them alongside each other to bestbenefit the brigade. One has just stepped down as captain, one is 1st LT and Training Officer, and Iam2nd LT and Group Delegate,” Peter said.
Peter said once the family members hit the fire station it is strictly brigade business, and having had one of their names continuously on the honour board since 1970, it is clear the Mynard family resume spans all walls of CFA.
“We’ve had captains, lieutenants,secretaries, communication officers, training and OH&S Coordinators, firefightersand members,” Peter said.
“Some have started fromjunior ranks,while others have become deputy group officer’s, group delegates, volunteer association delegates and worked in air operations.
“Ourlongest serving family memberhas reached 60 years, while Chris was recently presented with his 50-year medal and others have achieved between 10 to 50 years.
“We are made up of brigade and CFA life members, National Medal and NationalEmergency Medal recipients, Outstanding ServiceMedal and Valour Medal recipientsand Gold Star award recipients with 38 accolades between us.”
The21family members have brought skillsets from arange of different occupations. From office jobs to truck drivers, fitters, welders, mechanics, bus drivers, storeman’s, accountantsand teachers.
It took afamily funeral and the tragic loss of an aunty to bring the family members together in one room. It was therethey discussed gathering at the station before Christmas lunch to get agroup photo to celebrate their service.
The 16 members have acombined 506 years of service, 370ofthose at Trafalgar. For the entire family, 494 years has been dedicatedtoTrafalgar, whileatotal of 636 yearshas been given across the entire fire service, including as staff and with New South Wales Rural Fire Service.
Morwell’sjuniorprogram stalwart honoured
MUCH loved Morwell Fire Brigade member Jackie Dalrymple was formally recognised at aspecial event for her extensive efforts in developing and nurturing the town’s juniors.
At asurprise celebration held earlier this month, Deputy Chief Officer, Trevor Owenhad the honour of awarding Jackie aCFA Commendation for Service in front of an adoring community crowd.
Trevor said it was areal pleasure to acknowledge the hard work and dedicated effortJackie hasgone to developing the young people in the Morwell Fire Brigadethroughthe junior volunteer development program.
“The impact Jackiehas had on the lives of young peoplestretchesfar and wide, and does not go unnoticed by participants, families and the broader township,” Trevor said.
“It was areal treat and asurprise to her, and a great pleasure for me to publicly thank her for the lengths she’s gone to over the past two decades.”
Having not had ajunior program for many years, Morwell Fire BrigadeCaptain, Wayne Draper said themuch-admiredJackiegrabbed theopportunity to revamp it.
“Jackiehas agreat deal of passion for the program and for junior kids learning the discipline side of the fire brigade -she’s been at the forefront of the program’s success,” Wayne said.
“She is committed to making it accessible for all local youth, it doesn’t matter if you have adisability, she finds away to make you comfortable. It’s her forte.
“The love and appreciation for Jackie felt across the brigade was only further emphasised on (the)
night. The amount of people joining the occasion was just incredible.”
The 14 juniors, made up of both girls and boys, focus on basic fire skills, first aid and team building exercises, alongside fun activitieslikemovie nights and theirrecent presentationnight at the bowling alley.
“The best part of our brigade is that we treat each other with respect and as family, and as captain, Iwas so proud to see that embodied. There were afew tears in the room,” Wayne said.
“I set achallengewhenI firsttook over, and
thatincluded the juniors. Iset the framework and they’ve just gone fromstrength to strength, and Jackie’s been abig part of that.
“Two senior members are also involved who came up through the junior ranks themselves.”
Jackie’s son andWarragul brigademember Brian Dalrymple said CFA has always been abig part of his mum’s life and that she is always raving about the juniors.
“Overthe yearsshe’s seen the benefitsofthe impact that the program can have on young and disadvantagedkids -which there are quite alot
of in Morwell and in the program,” Brian said.
“She gets an immense sense of pride when they go on to become senior members, and when they go on to have kids. She loves it when they bring their babies down to meet her.”
The program will continue to grow in the new year, with hopes to integrate with other CFA brigades and agencies like the Army Reserve for overnight camps, while across the station, numbers are strong, havingwelcomed 20 new brigade members in the last 18 months.
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Acknowledgment: Morwell Fire Brigade member Jackie Dalr ymple (holdingcer tificate) had thehonour of receivinga CFACommendationfor Ser vice, and wasthankedbygrateful brigade members. Photograph supplied
Artisticexpression
AVIBRANT arts celebration took place at St Paul’s Anglican Grammar School, showcasing the creative growth and accomplishmentsofjunior school students in an artsshowcaseextravaganza.
The evening brought together the school community, allowing families to experience the rich artistic expressions of young minds.
Staffhad worked hard to present agallery-style exhibition of junior school artwork, which included morethan800 pieces of artwork, withtwo 2D artworkand one3Dpiece fromevery junior school student where possible.
Families admired the dynamic colours and imaginative works displayed throughout the ‘gallery’, with each piece atestament to the students' evolving talents.
In addition to the visual art exhibits, the evening also featured live performances, adding an extra layer of creativity to the event.
More than just an exhibition, the evening was acelebration of artistic expression, and the vital role of educators who inspire and nurture the next generation of artists.
Bush kinder programs to be doubled following funding
THE state government is helping 150 more kindergartens take kids outdoors to learn in nature with new funding doubling the number of bush kinder programs across the state.
Minister for Children Lizzie Blandthorn has announced $900,000 to deliver the new round of bush kinder, aprogram designed to increase the amount of time children spend playing and learning in nature.
Bushkinder is runinparks, bushlandand beaches, giving children the opportunity to explore and develop curiosities through activities such as climbing trees, playing with natural materials and watching wildlife.
The one-off $6000 grants help kindergartens buy the items and equipment they need to run programs.
The state government is investing $3.6million overfouryearstoexpand bushkinderprograms in up to 600 kinder services across Victoria.
Theeducational program builds on findings
thatregularoutdoor playdeliverssignificant benefits for achild’s learning and development, including their physical and mental health and wellbeing.
Children who experience bush kinder develop greaterconfidenceand capabilities while learning how to recognise and manage risks in new environments. They also gain adeeper understanding of science, technology, engineering and mathematics concepts in ahands-on way. The Bush Kinder Grants Program funds kindergartens to establish or enhance abush kinder program in al ocal natural space Kindergartens without access to asuitable off-site location can use their grant funding to improve the biodiversity of their existing outdoor environment.
Funding in this round of grants is allowing bush kinder programstobeestablished at 43 regional kindergartens and 107 metropolitan kindergartens across 53 local government areas.
Codettaconcert showcases the talents of St Paul’sstudents
ST Paul’s Anglican Grammar School students shone brightly as they took centre stage at the Gippsland Performing Arts Centre (GPAC) at this year’s Codetta concert.
The audience was mesmerised by the unique expressionofthe studentswho presentedan unforgettable experience.
Dramaticperformances captivated hearts, dance routines told powerful stories, ensembles harmonisedseamlessly and vocal renditions filled with emotion, delighting all in attendance.
Voice: Year 9student Sienna performing ‘Don’t Rain On My Parade’ by Merrill and Styne Photographs supplied
Colourful: Year 4student Marcwith his sunflowerpiece.
Artistic: Prep student Quinn took part in the ar t show. Photographs supplied
Effort: Year 5student Khloe with her creation. Handcrafted: Year 6student Avawas meticulous in her preparation.
Movement: Year 7student Luka, dancing to ‘Fix You’ by Coldplay.
Responsible shift from coal: Liberals
By PHILIP HOPKINS
THE federal Coalition, by avoiding Labor’sunnecessary overdevelopmentonpristine landscapes and farmland, will integrate nuclear power into a broader and cheaper energy mix, the Leader of the Liberal Party, Peter Dutton, has vowed.
"Nuclear energy is the key to achieving net-zero emissions sooner," Mr Dutton said, releasing the Coalition’s energy plan last week.
"Australia will meet net zero emissions by 2050 -one year earlier than Labor -while generating fewer emissions beyond 2050."
Mr Dutton saidthe Coalitionwouldensure a more sustainable and responsible shift from coal to zero emissions nuclear.
"Ourplan responsibly integratesrenewables, increasing large-scale solar and wind capacity while protecting regional communitiesfromoverdevelopment," he said.
"At the same time, zero-emissions nuclear energy and gas provide the reliability thatLabor’s plan fails to deliver. Labor’s plan will see 90 per cent of Australia’s 24/7 baseload power forced out of the system by 2034, leaving the grid vulnerable to blackouts and instability.
"In contrast, the Coalition’s approachensures retiring coal plants are replaced with reliable, zeroemissions nuclear energy, supported by renewables,
gas, and storage. By 2050, our plan will deliver up to 14 GW of nuclearenergy, guaranteeing consistent andstable electricity for all Australians.
"Australians face soaring energy costs, record levels of hardship,small business insolvencies, and growing uncertaintyunder Labor’s renewables-only energy plan."
The Coalition's analysisisbased on areport from Frontier Economics, whichhas been an independentconsultant for 25 years.
"The Coalition’s energy planwill save Australians up to $263 billioncompared to Labor’s renewablesonly approach -a44per cent saving for taxpayers and businesses," Mr Dutton said.
Frontier Economics Managing Director, Danny Price, emphasisedthat the report had been funded and directed solely by the firm itself.
"Consultationwithvarious government and private sector parties has been sought to ensure we modelled the inclusion of nuclear power most accurately," he said.
"We expect and welcome robust debate on the work we present."
Mr Dutton said Labor’s energy plan comes at five timesthe costAustralians were initially promised.
"This excessiveburden is alreadybeingfelt by families and businesses, withenergy bills rising by up to 52 percent and more than25,000businesses
forced to close their doors in part due to skyrocketing energy costs," he said.
In contrast, theCoalition’s lowercost planmeans reduced power bills for households, lower operating costs for small businesses, andastronger, more resilient economy.
"Anthony Albanese promised Australians a$275 cut to their power bills, but instead, families are paying up to $1000 more under Labor’s costly and chaotic energy policies," he said.
Mr Dutton said Frontier Economics’ analysis leaves no doubt: "Australians will be betteroff under our plan".
"Wewillavoid hidden costs, reduce unnecessary infrastructure expenses, and lead to lower energy prices," he said.
"The Coalition’s plan ensures Australians are not overburdened by unnecessary expenses or reckless policies. Nuclear energy is at the heartofour plan, providing the 'always-on'powerneeded to back up renewables, stabilise thegrid, andkeep energy affordable."
Mr Dutton said advanced economies worldwide were expanding nuclear programs to meet their energy and emissions goals, and Australia must notbeleft behind.
"Onl yt he Coalition’s energy plan delivers acheaper, cleaner, and consistent futurefor Australian households and businesses while
protecting our environmentand securing the energy Australians rely on," he said.
Liberal candidate for the federal seatofMonash, Mary Aldred, said right now, people in Monash were hurting with the cost-of-living crisis.
“Energyaffordability andreliability is raised every day of the week with me by families, and business are struggling to keep their heads above water,” she told the Express.
Ms Aldredsaidthe Coalition’splanfor zeroemissions, and affordable and reliable nuclear energy offered abetter path forward.
“In the hundreds of conversations that I’ve already had with local people, they want agrown-up, factbased discussionabout ourenergy future,” she said.
“While the Greens-Teals-Labor alliance wants to saddle people in Monash with expensive and unreliable energy, the Coalition has aclear plan for the Latrobe Valley to continue as anational energy hub.
"I want to seehighly skilled and highly paidjobs stay in our region and contributingtoour national prosperity.
“I’m looking forward to continuing to listen to people in Moe and Newborough about what they wantand to be astrongvoicefor them in the federal Coalition government to get Australia back on track.”
Report: nuclear energy the cheapest alternative
By PHILIP HOPKINS
INCLUDING nuclear power in the energy mix is cheaper-byupto44per cent-inthe medium-term future, but people in rural and regional Australia still bear adisproportionate burden from the energy transition.
Thatwas akey finding of the report by independent consultants Frontier Economics,who modelled the impact of includingnuclear power in the national electricity market (NEM).
It is based on the Integrated Systems Plan (ISP) of the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) and does not include Western Australia or Northern Territory.
The federalOpposition has proposed building seven nuclear power stations on the sites of coalfired power stations, includingLoy Yang in the Latrobe Valley, and useexistingtransmissionlines
The Oppositionhas based its policyonthe Frontier Economics report.
The managingdirector of Frontier Economics, DannyPrice, said his firm had funded and directed the report,but had consulted with the federal Coalition about their nuclear plans.
“The modelling approach and assumptions do not necessarily reflect the federal Coalition’s view abouthow nuclearpower would be included in the national electricity market (NEM),” he said.
The analysis uses AEMO’s ‘Step Change’and ‘Progressive’ scenarios through to 2051 to compare the costs of nuclear power.Athirdscenario,Green Energy Exports, was not modelled because it was deemed unlikely to occur.
AEMOconsiders Step Change the most likely -a world with rapid growthinelectricity demand as electrification of services provided by fossil fuels (mainly coal, gas and oil) gives way to rapid development of wind, solar and energy storage.
The Progressive scenario, deemed one per cent less likely, also assumes growth, but not as rapid as Step Change.
The Coalition regards the Progressive scenario as most likely, in contrast to federal Labor’s pursuit
for policy: StepChange requires more landfor wind and solar farms, and more transmission across rural and regionalAustralia; required land and transmission inputs are needed in advancetogive investors certainty; and more money will have to be spent in advance to bring about development.
Mr Price said: “You can’t compare renewable energyand nuclear power generationand costs like apples to apples.”
Many commentators simplyand erroneously comparedthe cost of arenewable generator (wind or solar) plus the costs of back-up generation to the capacity and operating costs of anuclear power station.
“Such crude assessments do not account for the fact thatmuchmore renewablecapacity is required to produce the sameamountofelectricitycompared to anuclear power station,” Mr Price said.
“Nor does it account for the requirement to store surplus electricity from renewable sources as well as the back-up generation. Such simple comparisons also neglect to take into account the enormous amount of investment required to connect renewable generators located in areas where there is presentlynoorinadequatetransmission network capacity.
“There is also an enormous cost to rural and regional Australians who have to bear adisproportionate burden of the energy transition -first with the loss of jobs in the coal generation sector and now they havetobar the lossofamenity from living with wind and solar farms in their community, and expensive new and augmented transmission networks across their land.”
This loss of amenity “is alegitimateeconomic cost”, but many calculations ignored transmission costs entirely, he said.
Mr PricesaidFrontier Economics’ modelling had concluded:
The AEMO’s Progressive scenario including nuclear power is 44 per cent cheaper than the Step Change model without nuclear;
Using aStepChange model with nuclear will be 25 per cent cheaper than using renewable and storage alone, and; system
Asummary of the scenario cost findings for the period from 2025 to 2051, including the impact of different transmission costs, is:
AEMO’s preferred Step Change is by far the most expensive, with combined generation and transmission costs of $595 billion. These do not include consumer energy resources or distribution costs;
For AEMO’s Step Change scenario, using nuclear power, the total NEM system costs can be reduced by about $150 billion from $594 billion to $446 billion -25per cent cheaper than renewables and storage, and;
For AEMO’s Progressive scenario, using nuclear power, the total NEM system costs can be reduced by $106 billion from $437 billion to $331 billion -also 25 per cent cheaper than renewables and storage.
The federal Coalition’s stance is close to the Progressive scenario including nuclear power, which is 44 per cent cheaper at $331 billion compared to the federal Labor government’s AEMO’s Step Change scenario. This is estimated to cost $594 billion, the report says.
Mr Pricesaidthe cost differencesbetween the AEMO cases and the nuclear alternative were so large, the costs of nuclearcapacity coulddouble before the costs of AEMO’s approach and the nuclear alternative were equivalent.
“It is very unlikely that the inclusion of nuclear power in the NEM would, in practice, ever be more expensive than AEMO’s approach,” he said.
The report’s modelling does not include the costs of consumer energy resources (rooftop solar panels and behind-the-meter batteries), the costs of upgrades and extensions to the distribution networks, nor the costs to consumers who switch appliances and equipmentthat use gas to electricity.
“These costs were not accounted for to maintain consistency with the ISP, which also does not account for these costs. These missing costs will be very large and when they are takeninto account, the total cost of the transition of the electricity sector will be well above atrillion dollars over the next 25-30 yearsifAustralia continues with AEMO’s transition plans,” Mr Price said.
Despite the inclusion of nuclear, renewableswill continue to dominate electricity output.
Under the Step Change scenario, when 13,000 MW of nuclearcapacity is included, wind and solar capacity grows from 24,000 MW in 2025 to 72,000 MW by 2051. Nuclear capacity would account for just eight per cent of NEM capacity. If wind and solar generate 60 per cent of the electricity under Step Change with nuclear included, nuclearpower stations would generate 29 per cent of electricity.
Whenthe Progressivescenario includes nuclear, wind and solar grow from 24,000 MW to about 46,000 MW by 2051 -about 50 percent of electricity. Nuclear would generate 38 per cent of electricity with just 13 per cent of total capacity.
Mr Price said using nuclear, only about half the amount of gasgeneration is requiredascompared to AEMO’s approach under Step Change.
Mr Price said continuing with coal generation would not lower the long-term costs.
“Every coal fired generator that currently exists will reach the end of their operational life during themodelling period to 2051. Indeed, many coal generatorsare closetothe end of their operational lives now,” he said.
“The assumedpattern of coal closures usedinthe report modelling is very similar to the announced by the owners. Nuclear power stations are modelled to replace around 65 per cent of existing coal-fired generators.”
Even building new coal stations would not cost less than nuclear.
“This is because the capital cost for areplacement coal generator with carbon capture and storagewhich, realistically, is the only way existing coal generators would be permitted to repower or anew coal-fired generator to be built -is, according to the (CSIRO) GenCost estimate,” he said.
Mr Price said the economy was much better off in the Progressive scenario, with nuclear power compared to AEMO’s preferred Step Change solution using primarily renewables and storages. It was 44 per cent cheaper and likely to be more economic that replacing existing coal generators.
First steps taken in VicGrid study area, hub established
By PHILIP HOPKINS
VICGRID has refined the study area for the transmission infrastructure needed to support offshore wind generation off the coast of Gippsland and is seeking abuilder for the project.
VicGrid’s study area, released in March this year, starts around six kilometres from the coast near Giffard and extends north-west past Stradbroke West to Willung, across to Flynns Creek to the Loy Yang Power Station.
The area will host the transmission to enable the development of two gigawatts (GW) of offshore windgeneration, developed through community consultation during2023
VicGrid Chief Executive, Alistair Parker said VicGrid had now taken the first steps in refining the study area, identifying some areas not suitable for further investigation to host the transmission. These areas include land hosting threatened native plants, areas where there are construction challenges and some areas west of the Loy Yang Power Stationthat are not needed or not suitable to host transmission
After consideration of the merits of 330 kilovolt (kV)and 500 kV transmissiontechnology, VicGrid has also decided a500kV transmission line is the most suitable solution for this project.
“We will now continue to engage with landholders to identify importantareas and featuresand carry out field investigations as it works to refine the study area to apreferred corridor in the first half of next year,” Mr Parker said.
VicGrid was keen to work closely with landholders so it couldunderstand important areas and features on their properties and take this into account in its design work.
“Local knowledge will play acrucial role in the planning of this infrastructure and Iwould like to thanklandholders who have been engaging with us and sharing information about their properties,” he said.
“The more we can understand about things like people’sfarming practices,irrigationsystems and soil and pasture types, the better job we can do of minimising impacts.”
Mr Parker said talking with VicGrid early in the process provided the best opportunity for localsto influence the location for the new transmission.
Landholders are encouraged to getinvolved in the next stage of refining the study area by meeting with their dedicated landholder liaison adviser, joining aneighbourmeeting where they and their neighbours can come together to askVicGrid questions as agroup, and by completing asurvey on important areas and features.
VicGrid has also set up alocal hub in Rosedale for landholders and the community to drop in and speak to the project team. The VicGrid Rosedale hub will be open at the Rosedale Neighbourhood House on Thursdays until the end of March 2025, with ashort break over Christmas.
The authority has alsoreleased an expression of interest for an industry partner to help design, build, finance,operate and maintain the transmission infrastructure to support offshore wind.
VicGrid said it is looking for adevelopment and construction partnerthat willwork closely with local communities, Traditional Owners and landholders while driving value for money for Victorian energy users.
The project is expected to create an average of 600 jobs ayear in the construction phase, peaking at 1460 during 2027. Construction is expected to start in late 2027 and the infrastructure willbegin operating in 2030.
The transmissiontosupport offshore wind is subject to an Environmental Effects Statement process, whichisnow underway and involves a thoroughinvestigation of the potential environmentalimpacts of the project,including social, agricultural and economic aspects.
Victoria has alegislated 95 per cent renewable energytargetsby2035. Communities and Traditional Owners that host new transmission lines will benefit from special funds created by the state government.
Landowners that host transmission infrastructure willreceive$200,000 per kilometreof transmissionhosted on their properties, which is on top of existing compensation arrangements which cover the loss of land value.
For more information abouthow peoplecan get involved and sharetheir feedback,visit VicGrid at engage.vic.gov.au/vicgrid Companies who wish place an expressionof interest or seeking further information should visit, tenders.vic.gov.au
Six figure mark for carbon capture storage
By PHILIP HOPKINS
CARBON capture and storage in Gippsland has received aboost with amilestone event- the celebration of the injection of 100,000tonnes of carbon dioxide underground by the CO2CRC at the Otway International Test Centre.
The chiefexecutiveofthe CO2CRC, Dr Matthias Raab, said the event was aglobally significant in demonstrating the feasibility, safety and scalability of geological carbon storage.
“This achievement cements OITC’s reputation as one of the world’s leading subsurface laboratories and reinforces Australia’s position as atrailblazer in applied climate science,” he told the Express. “The importance of the milestone of 100,000t of CO2 is not the quantity, but as asymbolic milestone.”
TheOITC, in the west of the state, consists of seven purpose-drilled CO2 storage wells more than 1.5 kilometres deep within aroughly one kilometre square area.
Attendees at the celebration included Victoria’s Lead Scientist, Dr Amanda Scales; alocal federal LiberalMPand former Coalition minister, Dan Tehan; and representatives from CarbonNet, which aims to build apipeline from the Latrobe Valley taking CO2 emissions from industry for storage in empty Bass Strait reservoirs.
The Ministerfor Energy, Resources and Climate Action, Lily D’Ambrosio, was invited, but a spokesman said she could not attend due to other commitments but passed on her congratulations for hitting the milestone.
Dr Raab said the CO2CRC had gone from ‘blue sky’ research to commercially relevant demonstrations across the whole value chain of CCS.
“We are developing the next generation technology for the next generation projects. We are developing monitoringtechnology to safeguard the environment, to be complaint with regulations, to reduce the cost of operating CCS or geological carbon storage projects -technology that we can rely upon for high integrity, the measurement of the permanentstorage of CO2 and permanent abatement, for hundreds and thousands of years,”
he said
Dr Raab said the CO2 was being ‘packed away’, so “the climate benefits are immediate and permanent”.
“This is easy to demonstrate; we have been demonstrating this together with national and international research partners, eight Australian universities, GeoScience Australia, CSIRO, and regi onal univ ers itie s, inclu ding Fede rat ion University, with whom we havebeen working for many years,” he said.
The federal Resources Minister, Madeleine King,announcingnew CCS exploration permits earlierthis year, emphasisedthe need for CCS. The Minister acknowledged that the International Energy Agency,the CSIRO, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and Australia’s Climate Change Authority “all identify that carbon capture utilisation and storage will be needed to support the net zero transition”.
Withoutoffshore CCS, storage hubs and shared infrastructure, hard-to-abateindustries such as concrete and steel had no chance to reduce their emissions under the SafeguardMechanism, Dr Raab said.
The CO2CRC is in aparadoxical position. “We have been in leadership globally for 21 years. We are recognised across the entire world -but are
barely known and recognised in Victoria,” he said.
“We receive an incredible amountofattention fromresearchersglobally, from Asian partners in Japan and Korea, with whom we have long-term, trusted relationships. We recently signed amemorandum of understanding with Carbon Management Canada.Weare the only two organisations that make national research infrastructure available for scientists. Our work and data are published withoutencumbrances and peer-reviewed by experts from around the globe.”
Dr Raab said the significancefor Victoria was that “Victoria has an organisation genuinely leadingthe worldtodevelop the technologiesrequired to expedite the energy transition”.
“The credibility of the work that we undertake is rigorouslyreviewedand tested over decades, so we know how long it takes to develop new technologies,” he said.
“The reason Isay it, we see ‘start-ups’with great publicity popping up everywhere; they are getting awards fromnewspapers without due diligence, they are getting listed on the top 100 list of Australian green CEOSwithoutproviding any evidence about the credibility of their work -some, not all of them.”
Dr Raab said thelessons from OITC pave the way for replicable solutions globally.
“While this milestone is significant, it is not the end of the journey. Continued fundingand support are essential to advance our understanding of underground storage for CO2 and emerging solutions like hydrogen,” he said.
“Future research will further de-riskstorage technologies, optimise monitoring systems and improve cost-effectiveness, making CCS acornerstoneofthe energy transition.”
Kawasaki responds
By PHILIP HOPKINS
KAWASAKI Heavy Industrieshas reaffirmed that it is committed to developing the HESC commercial scale project to produce clean hydrogen from Latrobe Valley brown coal and transport it to Japan.
This fol lows report sf ro mJ ap an that Kawasaki had withdrawn from the Hydrogen Energy Supply Chain venture because it had become difficult to procure hydrogen in Australia within its 2030timedeadline, when the demonstration testofacommercial plant was scheduled to be completed.
This prompted accusations from the Leader of the Nationals, Danny O’Brien,and the NationalsMember for Morwell, Martin Cameron, that the state government, particularly the Energy Minister, Lily D’Ambrosio, had failed to enable the investment.
Kawasaki said in astatement that as part of the development process,Japan Suiso Energy (JSE) was awarded funding from the Japanese governmenttoprogressa demonstration project.
“However due to time and cost pressures, the commer cia ld emo nstr ation phas e of the project will now occur in Japan This completes the demonstration of the commercial-scaleequipment and prepares it for commercialization,” Kawasaki said. Representatives of Kawasaki recently met with both state and federal government stakeholders in relation to the project. Group Manager,Executive of Hydrogen Project Group, Kawasaki, Yasushi Yoshino said: “The changetoPhase1ofthe project does not impact Kawasaki’s commitment to acommercial scale project in the Latrobe Valley and Kawasaki remains committed to the Latrobe Valley and Victoria.”
Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) is a major shareholder in Japan Suiso Energy (JSE), responsible for hydrogen liquefaction and transport by marine carrier. KHI was amajor projectpartner in the successful HESC Pilot in 2022, having manufactured the world’s first LH2 carrier, the Suiso Frontier. Industry leaders J-Power and Sumitomo Corporation Joint Venture (JPSC JV) propose to establish ahydrogen production plant at the Loy Yangmine to produce cleanhydrogen, extracted from Latrobe Valleycoal combined with carbon captureand storage in Bass Strait, forbothdomestic and international customers.
Japan Suiso Energy (JSE), comprised of Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) and IwataniCorporation, is responsible for the downstream elements of the supply chain and aims to liquefy aportion of JPSC JV clean hydrogen in Hastings for transport to Japan. Jeremy Stone, non-executive director of J-Power Latrobe Valley, said JPSC JV was currentlyinthe late stagesofits engineering feasibility and economic studies.
“These studies are the next step towards a commercial phase of the project,” Mr Stone said.
The move towards ademonstration plant followed the successful testing of the technology last year in apilot plant. The Treasurer and Ministerfor Economic Growth, Tim Pallas (who resigned on Monday), has said HESC could create thousands of jobs in the Latrobe Valley.
Chr is tmas
Business Guide
GMACK Electrical Solutions
PtyLtd star tedtheir local business in Churchill in 2020, offering awide varietyofexperience in domestic,commercial, rural and industrial electricians
OwnersGlenn Reid and Shawn McAvoyare therefor those who requireelectrical workscompleted by afriendly and professional electrical business at competitiverates
The companypride themselvesonbeing the tradies that call people backwhen work is needed to be done This work includes services such as:
Consumer mains upgrades, switchboardupgrades;
Electrical and smokealarm inspections;
Renovations in domestic and commercial;
Light and powerinstalls and upgrades/spa faults;
General fault finding and enance;
Generator change over itches,and;
TREATED pine, 90mm x 40mm 120, lengths 4.8. 90mm x50mm 200, lengths 5.1 -$5000 cash for the lot. Phone 0409 534 616.
NEWSPRINT REEL ENDS
CARAVAN and camping accessories sale, Iceocube coolers 12v ideal for caravans, tents etc. Only $149. C&A OUTDOORS, 61 Tramway Rd Morwell. 5134 8038
DOUBLE bed, near new, cream leather header and footer, quality matt., incl. doona. Pick up only, no delivery, Longford, $400 cash only. 0422 395 478.
FOOTWEAR sale, Zamberlan boots 30% off, Otway boots 20% off, new Beretta hiking boots 10% off only why stocks last. C&A OUTDOORS, 61 Tramway Road Morwell. 5134 8038
HAYCOVERS?
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Notice to ADVERTISERS and RESPONDENTS
Price: $6 each or 2for $11 (GST incl).
Available at the Latrobe Valley Express Office 21 George Street Morwell
Enquiries: 5135 4444
LAKES ENTRANCE
CHURCHILL, 21 Wattle Cres., Sat. 8-1pm. Elec. Tile cutter, plumbing materials, x2 bikes (like new), Grandtec tyre (brand new) 265/60 RS18, large no. 1200x1800 MDF/particle board (assorted thickness) and more.
MALE
70 year old, slim, widower, easy going seeking easy going lady, no strings. Ph 0451 776 821.
Voicemail introductions advertisements and voice messages may only be submitted by persons 18 years and older. When making contact with people for the first time, it is advisable to meet in apublic place and let amember of your family or atrusted friend know where you will be. We would advise readers and advertisers to exercise caution in giving out personal details. This will be respected by genuine respondents.
GUITAR LESSONS
Gippsland Guitar School, all ages, 8-80, beginners to advanced, banjo and ukulele lessons also available. 0439 111 610.
Responsibility PLEASE CHECK YOUR AD
Please check your ad on the firstday and bring any errors to theattention of the Classifieds
EXPRESS RECEPTION will be CLOSED -
BORDER Collie pups, purebred with pedigree papers. Ready to go to their new homes. $600 ea. Source No. RB177604 m/c nos. 9530100068671 71/8824/8482. 0413 772 331
BULLS for Hire/Sale
Angus, Limousin, Jersey, Hereford and Friesian, very quiet. 0447 331 762.
MALTESE XPoodle, 2 males, D.O.B. 15/10/24, vet check, vacc., m/chip 95600016643221/6066, RB-211780 $1200. Phone Kath on 0438 453 063.
TOY Poodle XMaltese pups. $1500. 3F avail to view. Lovely honey colours, D.O.B. 28/10/24, immun., wormed and m/chip. RB 220449. Traralgon. 0406 533 098. Ready Christmas week. 956000017477429/ 748511/74992.
MARKET DAYS
WEDNESDAY 25/12/2024
THURSDAY 26/12/2024
WEDNESDAY 1/1/2025
Normal Office Hours for all other days (9am - 5pm)
If you live in Moe and need to place a CLASSIFIED ADVERT you can visit Moe Nextra Lotto or you can still visit our Morwell Office*
*Please see abovefor Morwell Office Christmas tradingdays
NEWS STORIES can be directed to the Editorial Team on 5135 4429 or email: news@lvexpress com au
Memorial Park -Kellie Eddy will be hosting abrief Christmas Memorial Service to honour and remember the loved ones of our community whohave passed Predominantly, this Service is open to any families who have entrusted the care of their loved one into the hands of the Staff at Gippsland Memorial Park, or those families whom have had their loved ones life celebrated through Kellie Eddy. However, if you have celebrated the life of aloved one outside of this; you're still most welcome. Just make contact with us before the event, so we can provide you with further details.
Children welcome Flowers by Bell will be onsite with flowers for purchase. Lahrra from 51 Coffee will be serving all your hot treats with acoffee van on site. This is free event with Kellie Eddy and Gippsland Memorial Park Staff donating their time and space to enable this event to go ahead
Door Installer
ELECTRICIAN
FENCING
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Afantastic new opportunity for Engineering Internship in the Latrobe Valley
About the role: Embark on arewarding journey as an Engineering Intern at AGL Loy Yang, where you'll take part in the journey to reshape our Energy Portfolio, being one of the most significant decarbonisations initiatives in Australia. We are committed to re-purposing the site into the Latrobe Valley Integrated Industrial Energy Hub to support regional economic diversification and to create new employment opportunities.
This 12-month, 2day/week placement will be an amazing opportunity to work with &gain experience at our coal Power Station while also looking at the future into renewable energy sources.
About you:
Are you acurrent Engineering student with a passion and desire to learn about the Energy Industry? This paid placement could provide you with an opportunity to undertake meaningful employment related to your studies.
What You Bring:
● Current Engineering Student studying mechanical or mechatronics engineering (preferably 2nd or 3rd year).
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To submit your application and for more information, please visit: https://www.agl.com.au/about-agl/careers
Or send your resume to: Julius Toth, Talent Acquisition Partner directly -jtoth@agl.com.au
DODERICO, George 5/5/1953 -8/12/2024. Passed away suddenly at Cherry Hill, Glengarry, Aged 71 years
Dearly loved and devoted husband of Michele. Extremely proud and dedicated father to Emma, Jack and Toni. Father-in-law to Sam and James. Pa to Indie, Ivy, Danny and Ollie You worked so hard for those you loved Forever in our hearts For funeral details and livestreaming. Please visit our website www.latrobevalley funerals.com.au
MOE-MORWELL-TRARALGON TRARALGON 5174 2258 Place your tribute on latrobevalleyfunerals.com.au
MELARKEY, Anna Doreen. Born in Coleraine, Northern Ireland 2/5/1950. Passed away after along illness 10/12/2024 at LRH. Aged 74 years Much loved sister of Danny (dec.), Maureen, Sheila and Bernie (dec.).
In the midst of death, life persists In the midst of untruth, truth persists In the midst of darkness, light persists -Gandhi
POLLARD, Raymond. Passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his loved ones 12 December 2024.
Aged 68 years Loved and loving husband of Liz.
WOOTON, Denise. It was with asad heart that we learnt of the pass ing of Denis e Wooton. Denise had a long association with Probus Newborough since joining in 2006. The President and members of Probus Newbor ough extend their condolences to Denise's family.
POLLARD. The Funeral Service for Raymond Pollard will be held at the Rose Chapel, Gippsland Memorial Park Crematorium, Cemetery Rd Traralgon, THURSDAY (19th December 2024), commencing at 1pm. This service will also be livestreamed. Please visit John Galbraith Funerals Fac ebo ok pag eo r Gippsland Memorial Park Website and click on link provided. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Brain Cancer Foundation.
Births
DODERICO, George. In memory of amuch loved workmate, atrue gentleman and afriend of many. Our thoughts are with Michelle and family. You will be missed From all of your Loy Yang Mine Aroster workmates, past and present.
DONELLY, Beverley. Passed away 16/11/2024. Mum, Ican't believe you're gone. Mum, you were and always will be in my thoughts. Sadly missed, till we meet again Your loving son Peter.
Loved father and fatherin-law of Justine and Steve, Kimberley and Alex. Much Loved Pa of Lachie, Archie, Ella, and Alexander.
BESWICK. AMemorial Service to celebrate the life of Gregg Beswick will be held at Latrobe Valley Funeral Services Chapel, 6Ollerton Avenue Moe WEDNESDAY (18 December 2024) at 1.30pm. Gregg's service will also be livestreamed. To view the livestream, please visit: latrobevalley funerals.com.au and click on livestreaming.
MOE-MORWELL-TRARALGON
Place your tribute on latrobevalleyfunerals.com.au
GOODWIN. The Funeral Service and Committal for Cremation for Mr William (Bill) Goodwin will be held at Latrobe Valley Funeral Services Chapel, 6Ollerton Avenue Moe, THURSDAY (19 December 2024) at 1.30pm.
NIXON JOHN HARDMAN
5/12/2024 -9.11am
Weighing 9.5lbs Length 53.5cm
Another beautiful grandson for proud grandparents, Colleen and Joe (dec.), John Snr and Ruth, precious great-grandson, nephew and cousin.
Congratulations Tayler and John on the safe arrival of Love and best wishes from all your family and friends XXXXX
Deaths •
BEILHARZ, Irmgard. Passed away peacefully 13/12/24. Formerly of Newborough. Beloved wife of Herbert (dec.), mother of Manfred, Doris and Martin and their partners. Adored Oma of 7grandchildren and proud great grandmother of 10. Much loved and will be sadly missed. Acommemoration of her life will be held in January.
BESWICK, Gregg. Passed away suddenly at home in Moe, 12 December 2024 in the presence of his loving wife.
Aged 72 years Dearly loved husband of Phyllis for 51 years. Much loved father and father-in-law of Ron and Rosa, Vanessa and Nhir. Adored Pa of David, Tanya, Jacob, Noah, Aliya. Great Pa to Jaxon and Marley. Second Dadtomany!
DONELLY, Beverley. Passed away 16/11/2024. Dearly loved mum of Paul. Nan to Ryan, Lauri and Jason and her greatgrandchildren. Special thanks to Narracan Gardens. You will be greatly missed
GOODWIN, William (Bill). Passed away 2December 2024 at his home in Morwell. Aged 68 Years
Much loved father of Michael and Justin. Adored Poppy to Eloise and Mabel.
LATINA (nee Feeley), Suzanne. 16/6/1947 -14/2/2024 Passed peacefully with her loving husband and son by her side at LRH. Dearly loved wife of Paul, mother of Francesca (dec.), and Eric, sister of John and Roger, sisterin-law of Josie and Marie (dec.). Cherished Forever
LOVETT, Melissa. 6/5/1987 -6/12/2024
We are heartbroken to announce that our beautiful Melissa has passed away. Dearly loved daughter to Steven and Sue (dec.) Lovett. Beloved and admired sister to Kristylee, Daniel (dec.) and Lisa. Mum of Kaleb, Lily and Harper. Aunty to her 7nieces and nephews. Cherished by all who knew her.
Our hearts still ache in sadness and secret tears still flow
What it means to lose you no one will ever know Forever and always loved
McGREGOR, Sandra. Wife of Charlie (dec.). Alifetime of fond memories In our hearts forever Moira, Davie and family.
PRICE (nee Ferguson), Elva Florence. With great sadness we announce the passing of Elva Florence Price. Elva passed away peacefully Thursday 12 December 2024 at O'Mara House, Traralgon. Aged 95 years Loved and loving wife of Vic (dec.). Cherished sister of Joy. Loved mother of Janine, Linda (dec.), John and respective mother-in-law of Clive, Colin and Lisa. Cherished Nana of her seven grandchildren. Great Nana to her twelve great grandchildren and great, great Nana of two. We all miss you Mum and will hold loving memories of you
ROCKALL, Sheryl Marie. Passed 9/12/2024 at LRH. Beloved wife to Eddie and mother to Nerelle. May she rest in eternal peace. Celebration of life will be in March 2025. Venue T.B.C.
SALT (nee Timmins), Elaine. Of Bairnsdale, formerly of Traralgon. Passed away 9December 2024. Loving wife of Morris. Much loved Mumma of Andrea, Julie and John, and Mandy. Grandma of Ryan and Emily, Ashleigh and Trent, Laura, Brooke and Dan, Rylee and Carl. Great Grandma of Alby, Charlie, Rhonnie, Tanner, Billie and Stevie. Forever in our hearts In keeping with Elaine's own wishes, aPrivate Funeral has been held. Elaine's family wish to thank all of their dear friends for their love and support.
STEPHEN BAGGS FUNERAL DIRECTORS BAIRNSDALE 5153 2150
MOE-MORWELL-TRARALGON MOE 5126 1111 Place your tribute on latrobevalleyfunerals.com.au
LATINA. The Funeral Service for Mrs Suzanne (Sue) Latina will be held at the Rose Chapel, Gippsland Memorial Park Crematorium, Cemetery Rd Traralgon, FRIDAY (20 December 2024) commencing at 2pm.
LOVETT. The Funeral of Ms Melissa Lovett will be held at Latrobe Valley Funeral Services Chapel, 260 Princes Highway, Traralgon MONDAY (23 December 2024) commencing at 1.30pm. At the conclusion of Mass, the Funeral will leave for the Traralgon Cemetery, Gippsland Memorial Park. This service will be livestreamed. Please visit our webs ite for det ails. www.latrobevalley funerals.com.au
MOE-MORWELL-TRARALGON
TRARALGON 5174 2258 Place your tribute on latrobevalleyfunerals.com.au
PRICE. AService of Thanksgiving for the Life of Mrs Elva Florence Price will be held at Latrobe Valley Funeral Service Chapel, 260 Princes Highway, Traralgon on FRIDAY (20 December 2024) commencing at 2pm. Following the service the funeral will leave for the Traral gon Ceme tery Gippsland Memorial Park, Cemetery Dve, Traralgon. Elva's service will be livestreamed. To view the livestream, please visit our website. Guests are requested to wear something red.
MOE-MORWELL-TRARALGON
TRARALGON 5174 2258 Place your tribute on latrobevalleyfunerals.com.au
Respectful, dignified, simple and affordable FuneralsMoe, Morwell and Traralgon
DYKES, Gavin W. 21/12/2021. You always had asmile, and you left behind beautiful memories over the 40 years we had together. Iwill miss you every day and night, until Ijoin you again. Love Judy, Pamalee and Bill, and Jef and Sharron (USA).
MASSARO, Donato Antonio (Tony). 20 December 2011. May the winds of Heaven blow softly, And whisper in your ear, How much we love and miss you, And wish that you were here. Loved, missed and remembered every day Vin, Maria, Jan and families.
SHIRREFF, Adam. 29/2/1972 -24/12/2005. Taken too soon, but never forgotten. Love Dad.
Birthday Memoriam •
SAMPSON, Noel Francis (Sam). 19/12/1926 -30/9/2016. Wish you were here to celebrate another birthday, my darling Sam. Love you and miss you so much. Heidi (dec.), Steven (dec.), Betty and me. SHAW, Trent Stephen. 24/6/1996 -18/11/2024. Son of Michelle. Brother of Addam. Step-brother of Andrew and Stuart. Grandson of Mavis. Deep in our hearts, You will always stay, Loved and remembered every day.
MELARKEY. The Committa lf or Cremation and Service to Celebrate the life of Miss Anna Melarkey will be held at the Gippsland Memorial Park Rose Chapel, Cemetery Drive Traralgon on FRIDAY (20 December 2024) commencing at 11am.
STALLION, Michael. To my precious grandson Michael, you had asmile for everyone, you had a heart of gold, you left the most beautiful memories the world could ever hold. Rest In Peace Bereavement Thanks •
MOE-MORWELL-TRARALGON TRARALGON
RALLS. To all family and friends, On behalf of Annette and family, we wish to thank you all for attending Allan's Funeral Service. We appreciate all flowers, cards and condolences.
Family owned and locally based Funeral Directors We bring 35 yearsexperience to familiesin Traralgon, Morwell, Churchill, Moe, Trafalgar, Korumburra and surrounding areas. THE CHOICE IS YOURS Practical, sensible and affordable. We offerboth at-need and pre-paid funerals. All female funerals are available. Dignityand respect ,always CREMATIONPACKAGES
AMSINK, Heinz Gert. 22/12/2015. Another sad year Mein Liebling. Always remembered, never forgotten. Deeply Missed Ich Lieber Dich, Gloria.
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Traralgon winconvincingly beforebreak
BOWLS
STRZELECKI NORTH
WEEKEND PENNANT
BY MICHAEL HOLROYD
ALL games in Division 1onSaturday were won convincingly in Round 10 of Strzelecki North Pennant.
Trafalgar had a43shot win over Morwell with Nathan Cook and his rink of Peter Rosenboom, Barry Leicester and David Cook winning 33 to 12 Longwarry won by 27 shots at Warragul with Ken Towt and his rink of Hayden McCarthy, Col Finger and Craig Cousin winning 26-9.
Traralgon defeated Drouin by 42 shotswith James Scullin and his rink of Jedd Ladgrove, Ron Sherlock and Wayne Barnes, 27-11.
Traralgon RSL had a24shot win at Newborough with Beau Williamson and his rink of Tim Allen, Peter Barnes and Maurie Sutcliffe, 24-11. Saturdaypennant now breaksfor Christmas, and resumes on January 18.
Division 2
MOE had a26shot win at Traralgon (3) with John 'Banger' Harvey and his rink of Stan Myers, Dave Wurlod and Sandy Caines winning 29-13.
Traralgon RSL (2) had a17shot win over Thorpdale with Brian Smith and his rink of Shirley McKenzie, Gordon Bakker and Paul Matters, 23-9.
Traralgon(2) hadafourshotwin at Garfield with GregMcRonald and his rink of Derek Hewling, Rosie Lorenz and Shane Priestley, 20-16.
Neerim District went into the last end needing two shotstowin the matchand they achieved this to win by one shot with the best rink Peter Throup along with Ray Throup, Terry Griffin and Pat Fraser-Aurisch.
Division 3
DROUIN (2) defeatedMorwell (2) by 11 shotswith Wayne Hawken and his rink of Ashley Rees, Robert Dickson and Lyn Jeffrey winning 24-18.
Newborough (3)had an 18 shot win at Yinnar with Michael Weatherall and his rink of Di Slayford, Heather Mooneyand 'Eagle' Edwards winning 34-11.
Newborough (2) defeated Trafalgar (2) by 21 shots with Trevor Kennedy and his rink of Brian Carpenter, Carmel Goss and Albert Van Stekelenburg winning 20-12.
Boolarra won by 11 shots at Moe (2) with Steve Davy and his rink of JackCleaver, Michael Schelling and Darren Napier winning 21-14.
Division 4
YARRAGONwon by 45 shots againstYallourn North with Jason Roberts and his rink of Richard Chetland,Bevan Romans and Murray Grigg winning 35- 9.
Neerim District(2) gave their club its second win by one shot against Traralgon (4) with Tony Thornton and his rink of Roger Till, Richard Kerr and Greg Bond winning 22-15.
Longwarryhad a17shot win over Churchillwith John Majkut and his rink of Michael Clark, Ian Charge and Geoff Bailey winning 27-16.
Warragul (2) had a58shot win over Morwell (3) at Newborough with Greg Mitchell and his rink of Bernie McIntosh, George Moi and Glynis Mitchell winning35-4.
Divisions 5-7
IN Division5,Garfield(2) defeated Morwell (3) by 10 shots, Trafalgar (3) defeated Traralgon (5) by 14 shots, Yallourn North (2) with only the rink of Mary Weir winning 32-12defeated Morwell Club (2) by 13 shots, Drouin(3) defeated Boolarra (2) by 65 shots with Neil Smith winning 42-11 and Warragul (3) defeated Traralgon RSL (3) by 26 shots.
The state pairs was completed on Sunday with the winner being Strzelecki North Ladies Pairs Sheryl Atkinson and Jo Gibcus from Newborough and in the Men’s Pairs the current Victorian Men’s Pairs championsJames Scullin from Traralgon and Wil McIlwain from Trafalgar.
In Strzelecki South, Jenny Suttie from Tarwin Lower and Denise SilverfromWonthaggiwon the Ladies Pairs and Frank Seaton and Michael Raman won the men’s pairs.
On Friday nightatLongwarry,the Strzelecki Ladies Region team defeated Mornington Peninsula by 13 shots and the men lost to Mornington Peninsula by 11 shots.
The Longwarryclub provided an ideal setting for anight match with its modern roof and updated surrounds. Planningisunderway for areturn bout next season.
In Division 6, Moe (3) defeated Newborough (4) by nine shots, Traralgon (6) defeated Longwarry (3) by 30 shots, Trafalgar (4) defeated Drouin (4) by 22 shots and NeerimDistrict (3) had the bye. In Division 7, Traralgon (7) defeated Traralgon RSL(4) by three shots, Churchill (2) defeated Moe (4) by eight shots and Thorpdale (2)forfeited to Warragul (4).
Successful outing for TraralgonKeenagers
TABLE TENNIS
By MARK STRINI
FOURTEEN Traralgon Keenagersrecently travelledtoBairnsdale forthe Annual East Gippsland Table Tennis Tournament along with other players from Lakes Entrance, Bairnsdale, Moe/Newborough and Drouin.
The hotlycontested competitionconsisted of men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles. Traralgon had strong representation in all events and enjoyed avery successful day.
In the men's doubles Grand Final, it was an allTraralgon affair which was won by Jeff Pollard and Alan Fullard who defeated Colin Rode and Don Milner in anail-biting fifth set match. Making it through to the semi's was also Traralgon's Brian Considine and Andy Webb.
The women's doubles Grand final was won by Traralgon's Sheila Whitehead and Fiona Fullard fromthe Moe/Newborough pairing of Helen Procak and Heather Wilson in an entertaining match.
Traralgon's Nicky TePaa and Kay Baxter also figured in aclose semi-final match.
Themixed doublesGrand Final saw Traralgon's JeffPollard and Sheila Whitehead prevail against the Moe/Newborough pairing of Graeme Smith and Helen Procak. Asemi-final appearance by Alan Fullard and Fiona Fullardshowed the depthof Traralgon's players as they were defeated in the semi's by the eventual winners. CongratulationstoBairnsdale Table Tennis Association who have been running this event since 2010 and it is always afriendly and well organised tournament.
On show: Traralgon TableTennis Association celebrated anothereventful year.Picturedisjuniorpennant players Photograph supplied
MorwellClubdestroyMoe
BOWLS
STRZELECKI NORTH
MIDWEEK PENNANT BY MICHAEL HOLROYD
MIDWEEK pennant continued in Strzelecki North playing AreaonTuesday, December 10 for Round 8.
Division 1
Drouin defeated Warragul by five shots with Les Firth and his rink of Glenda Jarred, Mary Firth and David McIlfatrick winning 26-14. Traralgon RSL had afive shot win at Newborough with Maurie Sutcliffe and his rink of Margaret Gibbins, Shirley McKenzie and Chris Mackintosh winning 27-11. Trafalgar defeated Traralgon by 10 shots with Matt Schreyer and his rink of Heather Taylor, Frank Farrugia and Ted Kuklinsky winning 22-16.
Morwell Club had a37shotwin over Moe with Tara Harle and her rink of Duncan Hanlon, Vaughan Reimers and Lynne Smith winning 29-13 and Neil Whitelaw and his rink of Roger Rejmer, Sue Karleusa and Gail Rejmer winning 31-15.
Division 2
TRAFALGAR (2) defeated Traralgon (2) by two shots with Peter Watson and his rink of
Graham Ralls, Lyn Hill and Greg Sephton winning 22-17.
Neerim District won by two shots at Morwell Club (2) with Pat Fraser-Aurisch and her rink of Terry Griffin, Gerry Englestad and Angus McGillivray winning 26-18.
Drouin (2) won by three shots at Yinnar despite Jenni Harris and her team of Russ Peters, Betty Fox and Max Aumann winning 27-11.
Newborough (2) defeated Morwell Club (2) by 10 shots with Robbert Cook and his rink of Brian Carpenter, Bev Luck and Phil Marston winning 29-15.
Divisions 3-6
YARRAGON defeated Drouin (3) by 42 shots with Richard Chetland and his rink of Denese Reynolds, Marion Chetland and Kevin McLaren winning 30-14. Churchill defeated Morwell (2) by 19 shots and Newborough (3) defeated Traralgon (3) by nine shots.
Moe (2) defeated Traralgon RSL (2) by 11 shots, Warragul (2) defeated Morwell (3) by 34 shots and Longwarry defeated Garfield by 22 shots.
Yallourn North defeated Newborough (4), Traralgon (4) defeated Trafalgar (3) and Drouin (4) defeated Yinnar (2).
Warragul (3) defeated Traralgon RSL (3), Traralgon (5) defeated Churchill (2) and Neerim District (2) defeated Morwell (4).
Elliott inducted as Life Member
GOLF
TRARALGON Golf Club's annual meeting for 2024 was highlighted by the induction of Ron Elliott as alifemember.
Elliott joined the club in 1991 and has been a loyal and dedicated member for more than 30 years. He has served the club in the following roles:
Director of golf men and leader of the match committee for five years (2012 to 2017);
Being the driving force behind the delivery of several new competitions;
Created the fantasy league which has increased winter fields and raised tens of thousands in increased competition revenue;
Introduced the Thursday competition providing alow-cost midweek golf competition;
Introduced the twice-yearly Par 3 competition;
Introduced the annual eliminator competition; and,
Under his leadership as director of men's golf, competition revenue increased from $85,000 in 2012 to $140,000 in 2017 based on increased participation in golf as competition fees remained virtually the same over the 5-6 year period.
Elliott has been amember of the club's match and play committee for seven years (2018-present), and continues to drive the fantasy league, Thursday competition, Par 3competition and eliminator competition.
Elliot also served on the juniorcommittee under Gary Robbins for several years and created and servedaseditor of the weekly
Newlyinducted
newsletter for six years from 2018 to 2024. The newsletter started as asimple black and white issue, and has progressedtoaprofessionally edited coloured version with photos. Elliott has brought aspeciallevel of professionalism,leadership and innovationtothe role of director of golf.
He was also instrumental in attracting capable and effective people to his match and play committee.
His leadership has played akey role in the match and play committee, delivering substantial improvements in the running of Traralgon Golf Club competitions.
As aformer schoolprincipal, Elliott has applied his management expertise to board deliberations, particularly withrespectto process to deliver good governance of the club.
Shelley fitting into new role at Geelong
BASKETBALL
WNBL/NBL
BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT
BOTH Latrobe Valley exports in the WNBL featured in some exciting games last week.
Moe’s Jaz Shelley went one-for-two in Round 7with matchups against Southside Flyers and Sydney Flames.
Geelong United defeated the Flyers by two points at the State Basketball Centre, 88 to 86, handing them their fourth win of the season and just shy of afinals position midway through.
Shelleyhas begun to play off the bench for United and posted two rebounds and an assist across 18 minutes in the win.
United then lost 81-74 to the Flames at Geelong Arena, with Shelley providing 10 points, five rebounds and three assists.
Traralgon’s Jade Melbourne and the UC Capitals haven’t had the same luck this season despite Melbourne’s efforts.
The Capitals were downed 87-63 at Bendat Basketball Centre in Western Australia.
Melbourne had aseason-low two points, six rebounds and six assists in the loss.
On the trip back, they stopped into Adelaide, losing to the Lightning by one excruciating point, 68-67.
Melbourne had five points, eightassists and seven rebounds.
The Capitals currently sit at arecord of two wins and eight losses at the bottom of the WNBL.
Fellow Traralgon export JackWhiteand his NBL squadare beginningtoget tested after many weeks at the top.
ATHLETICS
GIPPSLAND
TheGippsland Athletics Club 2024/25 Vern Curnow Pentathlon Championship washeld on Tuesday10th of December 2024.
30.31, Rachel Denbrok 30.66; U/18–Janella Archer 29.72; Open –Sarah Lewis 29.55, CourtneyClark 33.94, Anna Moore 35.25, Brandy Forget 45.84; Masters–Fiona Saltmarshdnf
Men: U/14–Nathan Moore33.38; U/18– Will Dowel28.35; Open –Aaron Saltmarsh-Milne 24.66, Miles Wrigley 25.22; Masters–David Ancrum 27.54, Jude Fernando 27.93, StuartDalton 34.94, Ian Twite41.34, Simon VanBaalen dnf,Wayne Seear dnf JAVELIN
Men: U/14–Nathan Moore10.25; U/18– Will Dowel9.27; Open –Aaron Saltmarsh-Milne 29.96, Miles Wrigley18.17; Masters–Jude Fernando 27.09, David Ancrum 25.70, Simon VanBaalen 25.24, Wayne Seear 19.32, StuartDalton 19.01, Ian Twite14.72 800M
Men: U/14–Nathan Moore3.37; U/18– Will Dowel3.03; Open –Miles Wrigley5.47, Aaron Saltmarsh-Milne 4.74; Masters–David Ancrum 4.99, Jude Fernando 4.54, Stuart Dalton 2.97,Wayne Seear 2.89, Simon Van Baalen 2.11, Ian Twite2.02
DISCUS
Melbourne United has lost three games in arow including back-to-back in Round 12.
IllawarraHawks jumped ahead of United on the ladder after a106 to 93 victory at John Cain Arena on Friday night (December 13).
White finishedwith13points, four rebounds and three assists but only shot 30 per cent from the field (four-for-13).
United needed to respond in their showdown against South East Melbourne Phoenix, but were downed yet again 109-97.
White posted eight points, five rebounds, two steals and an assist.
Men: U/14–Nathan Moore12.59; U/18– Will Dowel12.99; Open –Aaron Saltmarsh-Milne 30.11, Miles Wrigley16.98; Masters–Simon VanBaalen 33.40, Wayne Seear 26.30, StuartDalton 26.21, Ian Twite 21.16, David Ancrum 19.95, Jude Fernando 16.17
To be eligible to contest the pentathlon forthe perpetual trophies the competitors must be Athletememberswith Athletics Victoria and amember of one of the 4 local clubs
PENTATHLON PLACINGS
U/14WOMEN
1stBrooklyn Wyatt GPA1320
2nd Melian Archer WEL 999
3rdXanthe Dalton GPA789
U/16WOMEN
1stZaria Dalton GPA1809
2nd Rachel Denbrok SCA1299
3rdIsabelle Egan GPA1101
U/18WOMEN
1stJanella Archer WEL 1653
OPEN WOMEN
1st SarahLewis SCA1620
2nd Anna MooreSCA 864
3rdCourtneyClark SCA763
4th Brandy Forget GPA613
MASTERSWOMEN
1st Fiona SaltmarshGPA 356
PENTATHLON PLACINGS
U/14MEN
1st Nathan MooreSCA 736
OPEN MEN
1st Aaron Saltmarsh-Milne GPA1895
2nd Miles WrigleySCA 1617
MASTERSMEN
1st David Ancrum SCA1421
2nd Jude Fernando GPA1313
3rdSimon VanBaalen GPA765
4th StuartDalton GPA638
5th Wayne Seear GPA597
6th Ian TwiteTH444
VERN CURNOWSHIELDPLACINGS –
combined club scores
1st Gippsland Athletics 10095
2nd South Coast Athletics 9421
3rdWellington Athletics 2652
4th Traralgon Harriers444
GOLF
CHURCHILL &MONASH
Wednesday11th December 2024
Winner: BScurlock39pts
Runner Up: GClark 38 pts
DTL: ELau 37 pts
NTP: 2nd Lvan Rooy 15th APollutro
MIRBOONORTH
Saturday14th December,Stableford.
AGrade: TBradshaw(8) 42pts
Elite netball on the way
NETBALL
THE state government is bringing more elite netball to regional Victoria for fans and families to enjoyacross Traralgon, Ballarat and Bendigo over the next three years.
Member for Wendouree, JulianAddison, representing the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events joined Netball Victoria Chief Executive, Andrea Pearman andVixens and Australia Diamonds superstars, Kate Moloney and Jo Weston announced the exciting preseason matches.
“Victorians live for sport and that passion is certainly not lost in the regions,” Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Steve Dimopoulos said.
“We are bringing elite sport to all corners of our state so fans and families can experience the magic in their own back yards.”
Following the success of the two-day Ballarat Blitz in March this year, Netball Victoria will now bring Super Netball to Ballarat, Bendigo and Traralgon in 2025, 2026 and 2027 -giving local netball fans the opportunity to see their heroes in their own town.
NTP: 4th JKus,6th TBradshaw, 13th G Shandley 16th WReynolds, Birdies 4th SWoodall, MPayne,16th W Reynolds
MOE
Sunday, 08 December 2024 OPEN Sunday 9hole Stableford
Grade AWinners: Clegg,Jeff(33) 19
Sunday, 08 December 2024 OPEN Sunday Medley Mens
Grade AWinners: Johnson, Charles (9) 40
Grade BWinners: Donaldson, Leanne (24) 40 Place Getters: Boorer,Greg37
Wednesday, 11 December 2024 Twilight
Stableford
AGrade Winner: P. Stephens 18
BGrade Winner: A. Mead 21 Birdies: 8th -A.Pickard,18th -T.Johnson Thursday, 12 December 2024 Competition :OPEN Medley Stableford
Grade AWinners: BRADSHAW, Terry(8) 36 C/B
Grade BWinners: Willshire, Phillip (12) 42
Grade CWinners: Brien, Graeme (19) 41
Grade DWinners: Pace,William (21) 44
Place Getters: Tomski, Uwe40Pace
James 39 C/B Rodaughan, Peter39 Cunningham, Steve38C/B Frei, Harry38 Collins, Jamie 37 White, Rodney37C/B Nyko, Steve37C/B Pisa, John 37 Cropley, Mike36C/B Harland, Bob 36 C/B Hodgson, Robert36C/B Backman, Phil 36 C/B Johnson, Tony 36 C/B Dunstan, Craig 36 C/B Colvin,Anthony36C/B Garlick, Karl 36
Great Score: Tony Johnson (Eagle) @ 3Shane Bruce (Birdie) @14Shane WOODALL (Birdie) @8 TerryDonnison (Birdie) @14GeoffShaw(Birdie) @14 Phillip Willshire(Birdie)@14Daniel Aird (Birdie) @4 Shane Backman (Birdie) @4 Paul WOODALL (Birdie) @8
Nearest to Pin: 4th Daniel Aird8th Paul WOODALL14th TerryDonnison
Saturday, 14 December 2024 Competition
WOMEN'S SATURDAYSTABLEFORD
Grade AWinners: Lang,Marj (21) 35
Great Score: Marj Lang (Birdie) @8
Saturday, 14 December 2024 Competition MENS 4BBB Stableford
Winners: Darren Morrow &Kevin Ayton49 Place Getters: Harber,John &Wilkinson, Wally48Lee,Shaun &Jamieson, George 45 Beath, Ken&Devent, Anton 44 C/B Wilson, Robert&Commadeur,Gerard 44 C/B Wolski, Ted&Doak, Shaun 44 Backman, Shane &Backman, Phil 43 C/B
Great Score: Laurie Veenman (Eagle) @2 MannyBorg(Birdie) @8
Nearest to Pin:4th Charles Johnson 8th Charles Weir
MORWELL
Wednesday11th December 2024
Winner: BScurlock39pts
Runner Up: GClark38pts
DTL: ELau 37 pts
NTP: 2nd Lvan Rooy 15th APollutro
matches played at Selkirk Stadium ,with the Adelaide Thunderbirds, GIANTS Netball and West Coast Fever all travelling to Ballarat for the competition against the Melbourne Vixens. Amen’sleague exhibition matchwas also part of the Blitz.
As partofthe roadshow there will be 15 matches, training sessionsand community activities, junior clinics and coaching and umpire workshops for locals.
The regionalmatches have been made possiblebythe SignificantSporting Events Program (SSEP), which has supported more than 1000 sporting eventsofall shapes and sizes across the state, with more than half of all SSEP events being held in regionalVictoria.
“We’re thrilledtocontinue working with the Victorian governmenttodeliver exciting netball events in regional Victoria each year, and this investment will enable us to expand our offering,” Ms Pearman said. Further details, including the schedule and ticketing information, willbeannounced in coming months.
TRAFALGAR
Friday, December 13th 2024, Open Men’s
&Ladies Stableford
AGrade Winner: Tony Shearer 42 pts
BGrade Winner: Les Ellis 40 pts
CGrade Winner: Iann Browne 39 pts
DTL's: Adrian Jones 41, Noel Cornish 40, Sue Klemke39, Jeff Hasthorpe 39, Lockie Cornish38, Todd Malone 38, Trevor Allan 38, KarenMacGregor 38, John Dodorico 37, David McCann 37 C/B
Eagle: 3rd: David Radovich
Birdies: 2nd: Todd Malone,TrevorAllan, Les Stothard5th:RyanMortimer,Karen MacGregor,Adrian Jones 11th:Lockie
Cornish13th: John Toyne 15th:Jeff Hasthorpe
Saturday, December 14th 2024, Mulligans
Stableford
AGrade Winner: AnthonyGould 45 pts
BGrade Winner: MarkAndo 46 pts
Visitor Winner: Jackson Kos47pts
DTL’s: NickCastle 45, Jess McGrath 44, Max Taylor 44, Glenn Doolan 43, Brandon Allen 43, GarryJansen 43, PeterBurghardt 42, Noel Cornish 42, Zavier O’Reilly42, Paul Massey42, ParisChristian 42
NTP’s: 2nd: Graeme Grant 5th: Jess McGrath 11th: Noel Cornish 13th:Paul Massey15th: John Tabuteau
RunnersUp: SteveGould, NormMether, Glenn Doolan, Chris Barfoot (51.75)
NTP: Ivan Grant (5)
Thursday: 12/12/2024 -Stableford/Davey
DaySponsored by Harvey Norman Moe
Women’s Winner: KarenSwingler (22)
Runner Up: June Tickell (21)
DTL: Sonia Roberts (20), Heather Savige (19), Cheryl Toyne (19c/b)
NTP: JanGriffin (11), Di Bayley(13), Heather Savige (15)
Men’s Winner: Brian McKenzie (25)
Runner Up: John Kerr (24)
DTL: MarkJackson (20), Max Taylor (20), Russell Balfour (19), RayWilliams (19), Chris Barfoot (19)
NTP: Ed Hayward(11), Paul Fogarty(13), Max Pugliese (15)
YALLOURN
Ladies Thursday12/12/24 Picnic Dayand
Split Sixes
Winner Div 1. (0-32)Sue Riches (32) 47 pts
Winner Div 2. (33-54) Sue Caldow(33)
Wed4/12/24 Standard pistol
BGrade: CBond 500-49-549. CGrade: GHarvey422-87-509. DGrade: FBorgnine 427.M Howard 374-171-545. BChapman 296. Sat 7/12/24 StandardPistol DGrade: AUrban 484-118-602. CBenelli 474-80-554.
No luck: Traralgon’s Jade Melbourne and the UC Capitals have arecordof2-8. File photograph
ROUND 1-April 5
Woodside vTTU
Gormandale vSale City
Heyf ield vChurchill
CowwarrvYarram
Glengarry vRosedale
YYN- BYE
ROUND 2-April 12
Rosedale vWoodside
YarramvGlengarry
Churchill vCowwarr
Sale CityvHeyfield
YYNvGormandale
TTU-BYE
EASTER BYE-April 19
ROUND 3-April 26
TTUvRosedale
Heyf ield vYYN
CowwarrvSale City
Glengarry vChurchill
Woodside vYarram
Gormandale -BYE
ROUND 4-May 3
YarramvTTU
Churchill vWoodside
Sale CityvGlengarry
YYNv Cowwarr
Gormandale vHeyfield
Rosedale -BYE
ROUND 5-May 10
CowwarrvGormandale
Glengarry vYYN
Woodside vSale City
TTUvChurchill
Rosedale vYarram
Heyf ield -BYE
ROUND 6-May 17
Churchill vRosedale
Sale CityvTTU
YYNv Woodside
Gormandale vGlengarry
Heyf ield vCowwarr
Yarram-BYE
ROUND7 -May 24
GlengarryvHeyfield
Woodside vGormandale
TTUv YYN
Rosedale vSale City
YarramvChurchill Cowwarr-BYE
ROUND 8-May 31
Sale CityvYarram
YYNvRosedale
Gormandale vTTU
Heyf ield vWoodside
CowwarrvGlengarry
Churchiil -BYE
KINGSBIRTHDAY BYE-June7
ROUND 9-June14
Woodside vCowwarr
TTUvHeyfield
Rosedale vGormandale
YarramvYYN
Churchill vSale City
Glengarry -BYE
ROUND 10 -June21
YYNvChurchill
Gormandale vYarram
Heyf ield vRosedale CowwarrvTTU
Glengarry vWoodside
Sale City-BYE
SEASON FIX TU RE
ROUND 11 -June28
TTUvGlengarry
Rosedale vCowwarr
YarramvHeyfield
Churchill vGormandale
SaleCityvYYN
Woodside -BYE
ROUND 12 -July5
Sale CityvGormandale
Churchill vHeyfield
YarramvCowwarr
RosedalevGlengarry
TTUvWoodside
YYN- BYE
ROUND 13 -July 12
Woodside vRosedale
Glengarry vYarram
CowwarrvChurchill
Heyf ield vSale City Gormandale vYYN
TTU-BYE
ROUND 14 -July19
YYNvHeyfield
Sale City vCowwarr
YarramvWoodside
Rosedale vTTU
ROUND 15 -July 26
TTUvYarram
Woodside vChurchill
Glengarry vSale City
Cowwarrv YYN
Heyf ield vGormandale
Rosedale -BYE
Gormandale,Churchill, Glengarry -BYE
ROUND 16 -August 2
Gormandale vCowwarr
YYNvGlengarry
Churchill vTTU
YarramvRosedale
Heyf ield, Sale City, Woodside -BYE
ROUND 17 -August 9
Rosedale vChurchill
TTUvSale City
Woodsidev YYN
Glengarry vGormandale
CowwarrvHeyfield
Yarram-BYE
ROUND 18 -August 16
Heyf ield vGlengarry
Gormandale vWoodside
YYNv TTU
Sale CityvRosedale
Churchill vYarram
Cowwarr-BYE
Finals
QualifyingFinal
August 23
Elimination Final
August 24
SecondSemi Final
August 30
First Semi Final
August 31
PreliminaryFinal
September 6
GrandFinal
September 13
Roos settocruise,Tigersget it tough
FOOTBALL
NORTH GIPPSLAND
BY TOM HAYES
WITH therelease of the 2025 NorthGippsland Football-Netball Leaguefixture,discussions regarding whichteam hasitbetter than others accompanied the release of games.
Dissecting each team’s fixture for the 2025 season, the Express has determined which teams indeed have it better than others.
Nailing down on afew factors, including games against last season’s finalists, games against the 2024 bottom three, consecutive home or away games, wheneach team gets arest, have all contributed to its ranking.
Looking back on years gone by,teamshave securedatleast fifth place on the ladderwithnine or 10 winsduringthe last three home-and-away seasons.
Which clubs have the vital draw to help them reach at least that?
Let’s find out.
1. Heyfield (easiest)
THE onlyissue with Heyfield’s fixturein2025 appears to be the fact they have one set of back-toback away gamesinRounds 11 and 12.
For ateam that snuck into finals last season, but easily made it into the second week, the Kangaroos have been given adraw that will more than likely see them play finals for athird consecutive year. Heyfield only has to play two of last season’s finalists twice, with neither of them being grand finalists, coming in the form of Yallourn Yallourn North and Sale City.
During the first six rounds, Heyfield only plays two teams who played finals last season, and in its final four rounds of the year, they face four teams who didn’t play finals in the season just gone. Nonetheless,this proves that the Kangaroos’ middle part of the season will be their trickiest, coming up against Woodside and Traralgon Tyers UnitedinRounds 8and 9, albeit with theKing’s Birthday break in between. However, the bye in Round 5isoptimal when includingthe likes of the Easter breakthreeweeks prior and the King’s Birthday break three weeks later.
To top it all off, Heyfield gets to play each of this year’s bottom threeteams (Gormandale, Glengarry, and Cowwarr) twice each. Considering the average winning margin of nearly 130 points overthese three teams in season 2024, you can at least pencil in the Kangaroos to win six games with relative ease. Essentially, Heyfield would only need four wins from its remaining10gamestoplay finals in 2025, history would state.
Rating: 8/10
2. Sale City
IT gets atad trickier to pick the next few in the correct order, but Sale City don’t have it as bad as some sides that missed finals this year.
TheBulldogs have consecutive home games in Round 11 and 12, abig advantage for asidesofar away from the centre of the league.
SaleCityhas to only play two of thisyear’s finals teams twice, those being TTU and Heyfield. The Bulldogs actually defeated Heyfield last season but were smashed by nearly 10 goals to the same team in the elimination final. The Bulldogs should pick up six wins when they play Gormandale, Glengarry, and Cowwarr all twice each.
Something thatmay be considered amajor negativemay be the fact the Bulldogs’ firstbye
isn’tuntil Round 10. Before that, they get two weeks off for Easter and the King’s Birthday, but another bye two weeks after the King’s Birthday mightbeenough to knock their consistency about.
Rating: 7.5/10
3.Yarram
IF anything, Yarram are on par with Sale City.
The only thing that hangs over them is pressure to get back inside the top five.
Like the Bulldogs, the Demons also managed to snag two consecutive home games across Round 11 and12, and for ateam so far away from everyone (besides Woodside), that is amassive boost. Especially consideringthe teams visiting will have to travel: Heyfield and Cowwarr.
One of the downsides to the 2025 draw for Yarram is the fact it will play both grand finalists twice. Only having to play them both once last year, the Demons were easily beatenbyover sevengoals on both instances against Woodside and TTU.
With five gamesagainst Gormandale(1), Glengarry (2), and Cowwarr (2), the Demons will givethemselves aright chancetobounce back into the top five in 2025.
Rating: 7/10
4.Woodside
CONSIDERING they are the reigning premier; the Wildcats shouldn’t find too many things difficult next year.
The only things that go against the Wildcats from the aspect of the draw is athree round stretch of no home games (bye in between), and the lengthy wait until Round 11 for their first bye.
They only play two teams from last season’s top five twice, decent in comparison to some, however those two games are against runners up TTU and third-placed YYN.
Anotherthing thatplaysinto Woodside’s favouris the fact the Wildcats get to play four games against last season’s bottom three teams, giving them an edge over TTU, who play those three teams just once each.
Rating: 6.5/10
5.TTU
LIKE half of the teams in the league, TTU was a part of the lucky half that received back-to-back home games in Rounds 11 and 12. The Round 12 fixture will prove to be vital, as they host Woodside. Not having to travel for thatgame willplay a vital role.
Luck didn’t fall the way of the Bombers for what else was to be discovered in the fixture release.
They will be forced to play threesides who played finals this year twice, those being reigning premier Woodside, preliminary finalist YYN, and surprise package Sale City.
Thereisnoguarantee TTUwill be able to win halfofthose games. They very well could win them all, but there is no guarantee.
This only becomes more important when it is noted thatTTU is the only side thatplaysone gameeachagainst Gormandale, Glengarry,and Cowwarr -essentially three automatic wins, where some clubs might gain four, five, and even six.
The Bombers will still have short odds to feature in the finals, however depending on how competitive the top two to three teams are, they may not have it as easy as before.
Rating: 6.5/10
6. Cowwarr
COWWARR has been given adecent chance to succeed nextyear, comparedtootherteams at the bottom halfofthe ladder from last season.
TheSaints have walked away better off as far as thefixture for 2025 goes.
Like many, they miss out on back-to-back home games, and are punished with back-to-back away games from Round 11 to 12, travelling to Rosedale and Yarram.
Not getting abye until Round 7could be critical if they are struggling with injuries issues, with only the Easter break five weeks beforehand.
Cowwarr will get the same three games against Gormandale (twice) and Glengarry (once). For good measure, they will get two cracks at Churchill -who finished just above them in seventh last season.
With finals being amassive shout and unlikely with this group in previous seasons, Cowwarr will hope the bye in Round 18 does not mean another earlyend to the season. If the Saints are in the hunt however, they will have to watch everything unfold out of their hands.
Two games each against the like of Sale City, YYN, and Heyfield drag its rating down. The Saints lostbyanaverage of 96 points to thesethreeteams last season.
Rating: 6/10
7. Rosedale
UNUSUALLY, Rosedale will be on the road from Rounds 3to5,withthe byeinRound 4.
The Blues will find it tricky to start the season, hosting Woodside in Round 2, then visiting TTU in Round 3.
They will gain something back in their favour during the midway point of the season, with back-to-backhome gamesinRounds 11 and 12. Coming up against Cowwarr and Glengarry, the Blues will hope to capitalise and give their final five games aboost.
But just as their season starts, it ends hard too. Woodside in Round 13, then TTUinRound 14 might just have them buried before their bye. If they don’t, another finals side by the likes of Sale City might do.
Doubling up against those three sides could be killer for the Blues, who will need at least nine wins to stand achance.Iftheylosesix games there, they will have to beat the likes of YYN and Heyfield to play finals.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like the stars have alignedfor Rosedale in 2025.
Rating: 5/10
8.YYN
THE toughest fixture of any finals side from last season easily goes the way of the Jets.
To start things off, they fell on the half of clubs that received two away games in the middle of the season. With the bye in Round 12, YYN must play away from home in Rounds 11 and 13.
When it comes to what could determine its season, YYN feels pretty balanced, in the sense that they have to play TTU, Woodside, and Heyfield twice. Out of those sides last season they only managed one win, which came against the Kangaroos.
But on the flip side, they should collect six wins with two games against Gormandale, Glengarry, and Cowwarr.
The remaining fixtures could definitely have YYN droppingdown the ladder, perhaps to the point where they won’t be blessed with the double chance. What makes this more of achanceisthat YYN plays Woodside and TTU in the final two rounds of the year. If those two sides are as good as they havebeeninrecent years, the Jets’fatemight already be decided for them as early as Round 16. They will be forced to do the brunt of their work in themiddle portion of the season,but that resilience is what successful teams require.
Rating: 4.5/10
9. Glengarry
NO one expectsGlengarrytoplay finalsnext year. The Magpies could only beat Gormandale last season, as they slumped to second-last on the ladder.
Glengarry get the unlucky draw of aRound 9 bye, which would usually be aterrible time for a break, but coming aweek after the King’s Birthday weekend, they will get afortnight off. Some will like this, some will hate it, as it gives players more time to get themselves right, but also more time to fall out of form.
As ateam that finished with two wins last season, they will be forced to play three 2024 finals teams twice, those being Sale City, YYN, and Heyfield, giving them no greater chance of winning games. The Magpies willhowever have the chance to climb from two wins to three, with two games against Gormandale, and one against Cowwarr (whichwould ultimately determine who finishes ninth or 10th many would assume).
With no home games either between Round 11 and 12, it only makes their draw worsened than it already was.
Rating: 4.5/10
10.Churchill
DESPITE finishing eighth last season,missing finalsfor only thesecondtimein30years, Churchill might still be seen as ateam to watch out for considering how their fixture was drawn.
Foraside that slumped three positions on the ladder,there certainly was no leniency for the Cougars.
Like many sides, Churchill was granted two consecutive home gamesinRounds11and 12, however unlike any others, the Cougarswill suffer back-to-back away fixtures in Rounds 13 and 15, with the bye in Round 14.
Speaking of byes, Churchill won’t get one until Round 8, spaced out alittle too much for their liking,withthe Easter break on mid-April, then their first officialbreak nearly two monthslater Justtorub it in,they will get another break the following week due to the King’sBirthday weekend.
To make matters worse Churchill must play the two grand finalists, and Heyfield twice. From the games against these teams last season, the Cougars lost by an average of 11 goals.
With games against Cowwarr (twice), Gormandale (once), and Glengarry (once), the Cougars are likely to pick up somewins, but where the other wins will come from is another question.
Rating: 4/10
11.Gormandale (hardest)
EVERY game is generallyahard game.Especially for asidethat finished with apercentage of 13.61 last season. Luckily for the Tigers, they will get four chances to collect their first win since 2022, with two games each against Glengarry and Cowwarr.
But the rest is just plain harsh.
They fall unlucky with two away games in Rounds 11 and 12, and their start to the season won’t be easy, with the opening three games against finals teams fromthisyear: Sale City, YYN, and Heyfield And for some weirdreason, the Tigers get the most games of any NGFNL team against 2024finalists with nine. Unlike any other team, Gormandale will play Sale City, YYN, Heyfield, and Woodside twice next year. More than half of their games willbeagainsttop five teams from lastseason. Hardly fair for ateam thathas clearly struggledthe most in recent years
Rating: 3/10
Expert: Heyfield hasbeen gifted the easiest draw,and Glengarryone of the hardest for2025, according to Express analysis
File photograph
Ex Students in commanding position
CRICKET
CLVPREMER A
BY LIAM DURKIN
THE progressive score section was frequented by those with pen in hand on the openingday of Round 8inCricket Latrobe Valley Premier A.
All games saw more than 200 runs peeledoff, as anumberofbatsmen made use of favourable conditions.
Away from the top flight, the league continued its experimentationwith some innovative ideas, the latest of which saw third grade teams play twenty20 double headers.
Latrobe opener Robert Borlase provided plenty of fireworks in his CGrade game, smoking an unbeaten 102 off 66 balls against Rawson on the Maryvale astro.
With Cricket Latrobe Valley now into its second season, officials appear to be adopting a‘see what works and what doesn’t’ mentality after the inaugural season was all aboutgetting the second-biggest country cricket competition in the state up and running.
So far, the league has trialled two day games in Premier B, while Moe and Ex Students are set to play aday/nighter in Premier Anext month.
GLENGARRY posted 237 against Centrals.
The Magpies elected to bat first at Apex Park, and found anumberofcontributions from the middle order.
Ben Marks made the most significant ‘mark’ with 74, while Connor Robson and Sam Marks scored 53 and 37 respectively.
Centralstoiled manfully across morethan 80 overs,and wouldn’t have felt the game was slipping away when all was said and done.
Veteran Marc Fenech was rewarded for his persistence, walking off with figures of 5/46across ahugebut familiar shift of 20.3 overs.
EX STUDENTS hold the advantage at Yinnar.
The Sharks have already defeated Raidersonfirst innings, and are well and trulyinthe driver’s seat to take the game in whicheverdirection they choose.
The visitors bowled Raidersout for 123; the home side’sbattingfalling away dramatically once Akila Silva was dismissed for 37.
Jimmy Pryde cleaned up with 3/5, backing up the good work of seamers Adam Brady (2/27) and Mitch Harris (2/29).
Matt Dyke and Pryde then got to work with the stick, with the former making 27 in a50-run openingpartnership.
JacksonMcMahon andRick Battista took the team to firstinnings points, and willresume with a leadoffiverunswithseven wickets stillinthe shed
Both returning batsmen are on 24 not out, and will look to build asizeable lead before possibly sending Raiders back in.
Tom Robertson has picked up 2/26, and there remains the chance Raiders can wrestle back some momentum if they go into the first drinksbreak with afew wickets.
MOE need 160more
The Lions are 1/44 in pursuit of Toongabbie’s 204
The Rams recovered from an indifferent start at home, with the middle order going about their business.
Amal Athulathmudali continued his stellar form, making 72 off just 42 balls -five of which wentover the picturesque white pickets of Roger Reis Oval.
There was some friendly-fire in the encounter, with former Yarragon teammates Athulathmudali and Laytten Smith coming up against each other.
Smithended up taking twowickets, while his new ball partner Keenan Hughes had abusy day, snaring 4/64 and nailing two run outs.
Further runs came from Gayashan Munasinghe (26) and Toongabbie legend Tom Shippen (33) playing his second game for the season.
Munasinghe now has something in common with former Australian opener Joe Burns, who was recently announced captain of the Italian national side -the same team Munasinghe captained.
Much as the Rams probably don’t want to keep relying on Shippen, they would be happy to have him in the side whenever he’s available.
The same could be said for Moe and Rob Phoenix, who took 2/21 and got to stumps 30 not out.
How the Lions approach Day 2remains to be seen, but if history is any indication, they will view it as a300 rather than 150 chase.
MORWELL kept CATS in the field all day and put up 247.
In astrongteam performance from the Tigers, virtually the entire card made double figures. Perhaps most pleasingly for them, thehighest individual score was 42.
This came from Kris Fortuin, who played avery uncharacteristically slow innings,making his runs off 162 rocks.
Fayaz Homyoon (39), andskipper Blair Clymo (29) also sawoff their share of deliveries, making life easier for Brendan Brincat to come in at eight and pound arun-a-ball 39 (three bombs).
CATSused nine bowlers, six of whomwent at around 2.5 an over.
Cal Stewart proved ahandful, taking 2/30 off 21, while Rory Hare had success against oneofhis old sides, claiming 2/59.
Spinner HarryCooper (who bowls and throws with opposite hands) also helped out with 2/52.
Cricket Latrobe Valley lower grades scoreboard
Saturday, December 14
Premier B(Round 9): Glengarry0/74(PHenry 33*, CDunn31*)def Mirboo North 73 (P Henry 2/10, JSands 2/12,G Waack-Hawkins 2/14, J Porter 2/17), Churchill 5/93 (R Johnson 41*, C Seymour 2/12) def Morwell 92 (R Johnson 4/10, SFreeman 3/20, RMarks 2/8), Ex Students 5/80 (H Canny37*, JBrierley 2/18) def JeeralangBoolarra 78 (N Cameron 26, ZBastin 4/16, D Churchill 2/4, KDuncan 2/10), Toongabbie 4/146 (M Whitechurch 75*, BGrieve29) def Traralgon West 6/154 (S Varsaci 55*, GStephens 33, M Whitechurch 2/9, JLove2/23), CATS 9/134 (S Webley 29, LPass 25, JFahey 3/20,RKerrison 2/21, LMorphett 2/27) defThorpdale 117 (R Kerrison 32, JBellingham 3/19, THagley 2/11, J Motta 2/21, MAnthofer2/39).
2/8), WillowGrove0/51 (M Donoghue 28*) def Imperials 5/44(RReid 30*, KWheildon 2/9, K Mann 2/13).
Juniors
Under 16 (Friday, December 13, Round 8, Day2): WillowGrove 7/267 (D van derStoep 124*, DWalsh 85, JKeily 27, HBoothman3/43) defMoe 7/72 (W Addison30, NSallee 3/10), Ex Students 153 (J Kee 26*) def Raiders 112 (P Mills51, RConway3/5, LRichards2/7),Centrals 4/201 (NGamage 50 ret, SRajapakse 49, AHurley 41, HMcKay 2/50) def Morwell/Latrobe 71 (E Dissanayake 2/2, OSpeairs 2/5), Toongabbie 5/169 (R O'Donnell 2/15)vsGormandale 5/19 (game not completed on PlayHQ), Glengarrybye.
Under 14 (Wednesday, December 11, Round 6, Day2):
Moe4/197(ANardone 41, HBoothman 34*, B Savige 26*, DHiggins 21) def Morwell 81 (C Gray 29, NKeltie 4/9), Ex Students 8/132 (J Churchill 23*, TChurchill 22*, SDarby22*, RO'Brien 2/8, C Stanton 2/26) def Jeeralang-Boolarra (O O'Brien 19), Mirboo North 9/139 (L Chila 47*, FGannon 36, JBull3/6, XClark2/15,P Pantha 2/19) def Gormandale/Rovers 8/95 (J Armstrong 21, LChila 3/5, OMcCarthy2/3, CTaylor2/9), Centrals -bye. Under14girls (Friday, December 6, Round 2): Raiders 0/61 def Traralgon West 3/46 (M Varsaci 19*), Ex Students 4/50 defWillowGrove 2/49. Friday, December 13, Round 3(Friday, December 13): Traralgon West 2/68 (A Hodson 25*, MVarsaci 15*) def Willow Grove4/59 (L Blackshaw13*, A Hodson 3/4), Ex Students 2/63 def Raiders 0/57 (H Baker 14*).
Cobras cruising in top of the table clash
CRICKET
CLVAGRADE
BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT
OPENING the final matchof2024inCricket
Latrobe Valley AGrade,itappears that while the weakare gettingweaker, the strong aregetting even stronger.
Day 1ofRound 8displayed the likes of Churchill and Mirboo North favourably- while others are dealing with similar performances week-to-week and familiar setbacks.
JUST looking at the ladder at this current stage, there would be no denying the two of Churchill and Imperials are the best outfits in the competition.
In the midst of alull period, Imperials are however in danger of dropping two matches in arow after being bowled out for 109 at Andrews Park, before Churchill ran the table with them in their first innings to 205 -netting ahuge lead. Imperials would havewished to draw asomewhat
modest start to hold of araring Cobras outfit, however bar captain Ryan Morley shiningwith 62 not out, Imperials featured seven ducks on their scoresheet.
Dennis Caulfieldwas second-bestwith26, but Imperials were unable to get anything going whatsoever.
Ryan Harvey took 3/14 and Ross Whelpdale 3/11 including six maidens for the home side.
Once the fieldswitched, Churchill past their nearest opponents well short of the 30 over mark through 141 combined runs from Brae Kelly (61), Steve Warr (41) and captain Ryan Ayres (39).
Archie Norman sits with 21 notout after passing 200 before stumps.
Tom Starkeyhas taken 4/70across 17 overs and Dominic Thompson 3/51 in 12.
MIRBOO NORTH is etching closer to their fourth win of the season just before the Christmas break upon holding Willow Grove to 142 and building themselves at Mirboo North Recreation Reserve.
It took Mirboo North 58 overs to bowl the Wolves out with marginal damage sustained fromthe likesofcaptain Josh Hammond (35 off 66 balls) and Brody Hams (26).
Max Woodall took 4/38 including nine maidens and Dale Banks 3/21.
Matthew Snell (47 not out on return) and Tigers captain Ben Heath (11) are currently liningup for Day 2.
AN inner-Traralgon matchup looks possible to go the way of Traralgon West after posting 176 against Rovers at Jack Canavan.
Sitting bottom of the ladder,the Eagles are going through quite the weird season so far with atie to theirname(Round 3againstWillowGrove) and securing their first victory in aDuckworth Lewis Stern (DLS) situation against Gormandale.
Hayden Kimpton led from the front with 67 off 100 balls, while Luke Phillips (25) and Bryan Griffiths (22) followed suit.
Rovers bowler NavdeepSingh dismissed Jack
Cooke duringthe 66th over to end theirfirst innings.
Simon Duff took 5/67 in 24 overs and Singh 2/41 in 11.2.
Rovers have seen effective batting to start their stint, and will go into Day 2at3/65.
LATROBE are proving to be atough fixture, remaining at the crease for 97 overs to be 7/185 against Gormandale at Maryvale Recreation Reserve.
Salman Rasool was undeterred,making 49 off 233 balls while captain Steven Freshwater is not out on 48.
Anthony Bloomfield wassound with 38 off 82 including six fours.
Tigers captain Matthew Hibbs has taken 2/12 in fiveovers, Tyler Reynolds and Campbell Peavey have 2/27 each.
The Sharks have the option of batting for another 10 overs into Day 2, which will need to see close to 100 overs completed to match Day 1.
Second career double ton coming up for Holdsworth
CRICKET
By LIAM DURKIN
RHYS Holdsworth is set to play his 200th First XI match for the Trafalgar Cricket Club this weekend. Atrue modern day greatofGippslandcricket, there isn’t much the 34-year-old hasn’t achieved in hisclose to 20 seasons with the Ships.
Holding down aspot at first drop, Holdsworth has scored the best part of 7000 runs, to sit third on the club’s all time First XI aggregate.
He is also third on the all time wickets tally, taking more than 200 poles at First XI level.
These numbers have led to him winning an astonishing four league best-and-fairest awards.He was CentralGippsland's top playerin2013/14, won two league medals in the Latrobe Valley District league (2019/20, 2022/23) and was the Warragul District Cricket Association’s best player last season (note: Trafalgarmoved fromLatrobe Valley to Warragul in 2023).
Playing as aleft hand bat/right arm bowler, his best knock is 228 (still aWDCA Division 1record), while best bowling is 7/24.
Remarkably, he scored his double ton when he was only 16-years-old.
Efforts such as these caught the attention of Victorian Premier clubs in Melbourne, and he went on to play at First XI level for St Kilda and Casey South Melbourne respectively.
Other higher levels during his time have included Victoria Country, GippslandPride, Country Week and Gippsland Cricket League.
He captainedCentral Gippsland/Latrobe Valley for atotal of seven seasons at seniorGCL and Country Week.
Holdsworth has also had stints playing for Buln Buln and Ex Students.
Trafalgarhoweverhas alwaysbeen where his heartlies, and wherehehas enjoyed his most memorable moments.
He has playedinthree First XI premierships for the Ships -2006/07,2014/15 and 2019/20 -captaining the last two, as well as an All Gippsland one day title in 2010.
Milestone: Trafalgar cricketerRhysHoldsworthwillplayhis 200th FirstXIgame this Saturday. File photograph
He has captained the Trafalgar First XI on-and-off for atotal of 10 seasonsand coached for five, at times combining the two roles.
Club awards have been prolific: seven best-andfairests, nine batting aggregates and two bowling aggregates.
Areliableslipper (usually standing at second), he has also taken more than 100 catches.
Perhaps the only blemish is his number of centuries (nine), although he has been dismissed in the 90s countless times.
His off field work for the Trafalgar Cricket Club has been equally significant.
He knows the centre wicket and the nets better than anyone, having concretedthe pitches in both, as well as at at Trafalgar High School.
CRICKETLATROBE VALLEY
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In
Laurie Rankin (280+), Craig Nielsen (233), Vic Jean Jr (220+) and John Asmussen (205).
Holdsworthhas
club’s sponsorship director,and played akey role in recruitment and helping mentor future club leaders.
reaching 200 First XI games, he becomes the seventh Trafalgar player to do so, joining Graeme Rankin,who played 305, AlanRankin(300+),
Respect: Raiderscaptain LiamMaynard congratulates Rhys Holdsworthafter hissublime inningsof163 in 2021 Photograph: Liam Durkin
Fortuna makesthe switch
SOCCER
By TOM HAYES
FORTUNA 60 Soccer Club has officially made the move to the Men's State League (MSL).
TheLions will leave the Latrobe Valley Soccer League, after theirapplicationtojoin the MSLwas officially accepted on Friday, December 6. At this stage, Fortunaiswaiting on Football Victoria to providethem with the adjusted structure of the MSL, as well as fixtures for the 2025 season.
Fortuna will be joining the MSL 5South league, which includes the likes of Rosebud SC (2024 Champions), Bunyip District SC, and Pakenham United.
Of Fortuna’s sides, only the men’ssenior and reserves teams will be making the move, with the club’s Division 2and women’s sides remaining in the local LVSL.
Fortuna President, Giuseppe Deluca plans that the club’s MSL sides can progress to around Division 3inthe next three to five years, providing abetter pathway for Gippslanders wantingtoplay in the metropolitan leagues.
“We commendthe work of Gippsland United in providing atop tier pathway for the region’s talented players, but the question we ask is what of those players that many be coming out of the GUFC JuniorNPL systemthat may not receive aStateLeague 1offer -but still wanttoplay at astrongerlevel than what is currently available in Gippsland,” Fortuna’s MSL application read.
Currently, GippslandUnited compete in the Men’s State League 1South-East.
Deluca hopes that Fortuna can help bridge the gap between LVSL clubsand Gippsland United and beyond.
“Itwasn’tjust for Fortuna, Ithink (it benefits) thearea, and kids. We say we want to give them apathway,” Deluca told the Express
“In three to five years if we are in State 4, State 3, we’d be that next option, another steppingstone (for players that don’t make it at Gippsland United)
“Some kids want to play in Melbourne. Why not give them that opportunity to get there?”
Despiteleaving the LVSL behind, Deluca still believes the league will thrive without them.
“The league (LVSL) is still strong,” he said.
“Pegasusleft many,manyyearsago, everyone
said the same thing. Warragul left, everyone said we’re going to struggle.
“We continue doing what we do, that’s what we did as clubs when they all left.”
By removing Fortuna (and points from games against Fortuna)from the last three LVSLseasons, Falcons 2000 would have won the 2024 season by five points, the 2023 season by four points, and the 2022 season by six points.
Deluca admitted that if the project to create the pathway ultimately fails, they would essentially be forced to apply to re-join the LVSL.
Withthe Fortunaseniorsand reservesonthe younger side, it also presented agreat argument for the club to have two ambitious sides for the foreseeable future.
“That was another big step for us. We put it out there to our playing group… to get their expression of interest first,” Deluca said.
“Theresponse we gotfromour current playing group was really, really positive.”
Fortuna 60 returns to training from Tuesday, January 7.
The club welcomes anyone interested in playing in the MSL to train with the club.
Harriers heating up this summer
Cornthwaite and Verschuur opened asizeable gap through the next leg. Cornthwaite extended this space as the daywarmed up.
HOT conditions awaited 67 runners and walkers at the bottom of Cochranes Road in Hazlewood North for arecent Traralgon Harriers five kilometre run.
The course they were presented with featured agruelling1.5 kilometreclimb to begin, before snaking back through harvested plantations to the finish, meaning little shade was on offer.
On the women’ssideofthe draw,competition was tight,withtriathlete Molly Irvine besting Courtney Ellis by amere 12 seconds. Ellis celebrated her birthday with a30-kilometre run the previous day. Yani Cornthwaite (26:03) was justaheadofthe fast-improving Chelsea Fox (26:30).
The men’s fieldwas chock fullofhigh-end talent, with recent King of the Mountain winner Sav Mavrofridisholding off afast-finishing PeteCutler, further ahead of Dempsey Podmore, with Miles Verschuur and Ian Cornthwaitealsointhe mix. Pete’s son Jim Cutler continues to make excellent strides with his running, as does Darrel Cross from injury.
King and Queen of the Mountain
ON the first day of December, close to 70 runners faced up to and conqueredMount Tassie, the highest point of the Strzelecki Ranges. On offer was an individual 30-kilometre run or a 30-kilometre relay with five people in each team, running legs between four and 7km long.
The run began at the startofthe Traralgon South Shared Trail near Loy Yang Power Station and included some early undulation in the Traralgon SouthFlora and FaunaReserve, before crossing Flynn’s Creek at slowly climbing up Callignee SouthRoad to the summit,with 360-degreeviews of Mount Baw Baw, the Latrobe Valley,and Wilson’s Promontorythe reward. Despitethe heavy rain the previous day, the run was dry and towards the end, the sun began to shine. In the individual 30kms, Sav Mavrofridis cleared out early and establishedafirmlead.The trio of Ian Cornthwaite,GregSemmler,and Miles Verschuur went through the first checkpoint together, before
Mavrofridis (2:29:59) wasfar enough ahead to win despite anavigational mishap, but had to put in a sprint effort to beat Cornthwaite by asinglesecond, aclose result given the vast distance.
Verschuur finished in third place, eight minutes behind, withKylie Murray (2:42:15), the first woman, shortly thereafter, withthe ever-improving CourtneyEllis nextacross theline. Across the second half of the race, Andrew Greenhill moved aheadofSemmler, finishing ahead by two minutes
Further back, stalwart Ian Twite and Glenn Crawford swapped positions, but it was Crawford who opened aone-minute leadbythe top of Mount Tassie. Rebecca Andersonand Rickie Glover remained together the entire length, just over the four-hour mark.
In the 30kmrelay, the team'INeed Morepod', consisting of Belkey, Jerzey and Dempsey Podmore, alongside Angus and Amanda Reid were victorious by more than 20 minutes and would have placed third in the individual event.
Dempsey put in aparticularly fast last leg, overtaking Verschuur quite early in the fifth leg. 'TTRG' were next in, with Phill and Kate Mayer, Molly Irvine, TrentKooyman, and Ash Dugan combining for second place.
Volunteers across the event: Yani Cornthwaite, BarryHiggins, David Barr, Andrew Legge, Sam McGown, Phill Mayer, Bruce Sailsbury,RickMann, Des Dalton, Bob Duljus, Randella Barnes, Kaye Livingstone, Nicky Semmler, Greg Semmler, Callie Cook, Ann Bomers, Danelle Wright, David Hood, Miles Verschuur, Ron Verschuur.
Results
Cochranes’ Road5km
SavMavfrofrids 18:43, PeterCutler 19:09, Dempsey Podmore19:54, Miles Verschuur 20:22, Ian Cornthwaite20:54, Daniel Furmston 21:53, Andrew Greenhill 22:21, MatthewDeppeler 23:49, Stephen Renehan 24:01, MollyIrvine 24:02, Clinton Jolly24:02, RobPreston 24:12, CourtneyEllis 24:14, Geoffrey Francis 25:32, Owen Notting 25:46, Trent Kooyman 25:50, Yani Cornthwaite26:03, Adrian Sutcliffe 26:20, RonVerschuur 26:26, Chelsea Fox 26:30, David Barr
26:47,Warren Shields 27:00, Jason Odlum 27:22, Chris VanUnen 27:26, Seth Bomers27:32, GaryFox 27:32, Darrel Cross 28:00, Andrew Broberg28:12, Dave Mann 29:20, DavidHood 29:22, Tobiasz Grzmil 29:40, Giuseppe Marino 29:45, Jim Cutler 30:37 Rebecca Anderson 30:49, Liz Kenney31:12, Mark Lansdown 31:18, Belkey Podmore31:48, Megan Scott32:02, ReeGraham 32:16, DesleyGray33:54, Lauren Peter34:09, KatKent 34:19, PeterSanders 34:25, Phillip Mayer34:32, Collette Hofmann 35:00, Angelo Guadiano 35:10, BjornLuxmann 35:20, Kaye Livingstone 36:14, Catherine Leonard37:00, Andrew Legge 37:00, Tania Whitehead 37:38, Mandy Ellis 37:58, ShayLorenz 40:53, Paul Smith 42:00, Ian Heafield 44:05, Belinda Heafield 46:27,BarryHiggins 47:40, Bob Duljus 48:48, Des Dalton 57:22, Michelle Colwell 58:02, KathyQuinn 58:02, NickHodson 58:09, Kylee Earl58:10, Shane Wilson 59:01, KarenGraham NTR. Volunteers: Adam Riddle,Samantha Riddle,Pete Sanders.
30km individual
SavMavrofridis 2:29:59, Ian Cornthwaite2:30:00, Miles Verschuur 2:38:05, Kylie Murray 2:42:15, CourtneyEllis 2:51:20, Andrew Greenhill 2:51:33, Greg Semmler 2:53:40, Mario Vicente2:58:43,Simon Janiw 2:59:48, Dave Mann 3:18:38, Jason Odlum 3:21:09, Gordon Knight 3:31:28, Glenn Crawford 3:36:04, Ian Twite3:37:07,Stephen Renehan 3:39:26, David Wakefield 3:52:40, Shane Wilson 4:01:15, Rebecca Anderson 4:03:08, Rickie Glover4:03:08, DesleyGray4:11:06,Peter Sanders4:34:49, Wendy Chambers4:39:48, Clinton Jolly4:39:48, Marty Lynch DNF,Jay McGown DNF
30km relay
INeedMorepod (Angus Reid, Belkey Podmore, Jerzey Podmore, Amanda Reid, DempseyPodmore) 2:33:34, TTRG (Phill Mayer, Kate Mayer, MollyIrvine, Trent Kooyman, AshDugan) 2:53:53, Danelle’s Friends (Danelle Wright, KatKent, Shane Gavin, Warren Shields,Tobiaz Grzmil), 3:12:09, Foxy’sFerals (Carly Korab, CatLeonard, GaryFox,AdrianSutcliffe Andrew Panayiotou), 3:12:31, TwoManyCooks (Ethan Cook, Callie Cook, Tania Whitehead, David Hood, Daniel Furmston) 3:20:25, Twitey’s Whities (Denise Twite, Travis McInnes,Mel Jones,Anna Cardillo,Mark Lansdown) 3:21:32, The ReeAnn Rinos (Ann Bomers, Emma Marino,Giuseppe Marino,JackMarino,Ree Graham) 3:23:51, Team Preston(Mattias Preston, Rob Preston, Kathryn Preston, Charlotte Preston) 2:57:22, Just Running (Karen Graham, Darrel Cross,Liz Kenney) 3:19:25.
Goannas soar to victoryover
CRICKET VETERANS
BY GORDON
COWLING
GIPPSLAND Goannas hosted Iona/Koo Wee Rup Over 60s cricket team at the Bundalaguah Cricket Club last Sunday. The groundwas in magnificent condition and Goannasacting captain,Ray Floyd had no hesitation electing to bat first. Floyd and Rob Bacchetti opened the innings and set the tone for the day with 12 runs from the first over. Floyd retired for 42 from 27 balls. Mark BrownjoinedBacchetti and they took the score to 83 whenBacchettiwas brilliantly caught in the covers by Andrew Patterson for 20.
Col Carmody joined Brown and they kept the scoreticking over. At the 20 overdrinks break these two both retired, Brown for 37 from 40 balls, and Carmody for 12 from 19. The score was then 1/118.
Graeme Ingle and Bernie Symons took up the attack, with Ingle scoring 10 runs fromhis first two balls.Hewas eventually stumped for 23 from 18 balls when the score was 154. This led to amini-collapse as Andrew Smith, Barrie Nunn, then Symons (17 from 19)wereout in quick succession as the score reached5/166in the 29th over.
ChrisDevent (15 from12) and Gordon Cowling (22 from 21), advanced the score to 7/206 after 35 overs.Ian Gibson (20 not out from 21), and Peter Anton (33 not out from 22 balls) completed the innings safely as the Goannas score was7/255 after their 40 overs.
Graeme Davey for Iona/KWR had good figures of 4/32 from eight overs.
Davey then opened the innings with Ron Wernke,asSymons and Anton bowled the first six overs for 13 runs.
Bacchetti and Cowling then came on, with Wernke well caughtbyInglefrom Cowling's bowling. The score after 10 overs was 1/38. Davey retired for 11 from30 balls. Smith and Devent then came on and took the side through to the 20 over drinks break, when the score was 4/89. Nunnand Inglethenentered the attack, with Nunn bowling Steven Nadj for 27; the fifth wicket falling in the 23rdover at 102. These two, plus Floyd and Anton bowled the rest of the overs without any further wickets, as the Iona/KWR innings finished at 5/161 from 40 overs.
The Goannas Over 70 team playedat Frankstonagainst the AustralianCricket Society team on Tuesday (result not known at time of print), while the Vic Country veteranswill cometoGippsland on the first weekend in January for adoubleheader against the Goannas Over 60 and Over 70 teams.
TheGoannas Over 50 team will resume theirseasononJanuary 19 with agame at Geelong.
The Goannas will next train at Rovers Cricket Club, Traralgon on Friday, January 3.
Morecricket-Pages 40-41
Guns out: Atypically shirtless Ian Cornthwaite, just ahead of MilesVerschuur. Podium: Medal winnersfromthe Traralgon HarriersKing and Queen of theMountain event.
Season forit: Mario Vincente enjoying a festive30kilometres. Photographs supplied
Parkrun milestone reached
ATHLETICS
PARKRUN
NEWBOROUGH Parkrun was home to aspecial occasion at the weekend,whenAmber Ericksen and her son Corey Simmons completed their 500th Parkrun.
The 500 reflects more than 12 years of commitment, getting up early on Saturday mornings, and completing 5km every week.
Along the way, the family has had the privilege of meeting so many incredible people who make Parkrun such aspecial community.
Amber’s mum Jen has also completed 500 Parkruns, which means Newborough is presumably the only family of three generations in Australia to reach 500 Parkruns.
Moe unable to dethrone undefeated Warriors
BASKETBALL
CBL
BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT
WARRAGULwere crowned champions after defeating Moe 72 to 62 in the Country Basketball League Gippsland Women Grand Final at Cardinia Life, Pakenham at the weekend.
The Warriors completed the perfect season, 10-for-10 in matches for 2024.
The two sides finished top of the ladder, creating an anticipated matchup after Warragul beat Morwell and the Meteors took downKorumburra by apoint in the semi finals.
Proceedingsopened hotlywith teams trading baskets throughout the first quarter througha combination of inside work and perimeter play.
The feisty contest had the ball loose on amultitude of occasions, with players diving to the floor understanding that the little things would make the difference in agame of this intensity. Two minutes remainedinthe opening term when Moe’s CaitlinDemczukstopped an early transition poking the ball loosebefore batting the ball out on the ground corned by Warragul players.
The Meteors controlledtempo beforeRenee Moss
found DanielleDavies for three keeping it at 16-15.
Samantha Labrosresponded immediately down the other end, walking intoher own three-pointer as the Warriors ended on aseven-nothing run through to the second quarter.
Warragul continued, disrupting Moe’soffensive creation as they led by 12 early in the term.
The Meteors broughtthe game back to asix-point margin, only for the Warriors to answer once again as they led by 10 as the halftime break hit.
Returning, Warragul continued to set the tone, pushing out to their biggest leadall night with arelentless attack, hungry for the moniker of ‘champions’.
Moe were held to their lowest quarter score all nightinthe third, with just nine points to their name as they trailedby15heading into the final term.
While the Meteors began with anumberofscores to open the fourth quarter, Warragul still collected the necessary stops to keep the game out of reach and the result in their favour.
Labros was awarded Grand Final MVP for her game-leading 22 points followed by Skye Rees (21) andAlysha Marcucci (18) thatleftthe Warriorstoo much to handle for the rest of the league.
Labros was amenace this season and proved to
be the best player going, as she collected overall MVP, the Defensive Player of the Year and All Star Five honours.
The Morwell partnership of Emily Scholtes and Abbey Noblett were named to the Gippsland Women All Star Five.
Warragul pick up their second CBL Gippsland win in last four years after defeating Moe in the 2021 Grand Final also.
Despite first leg excitement for Warragul with the women’s victorious, the same couldn’t be said for the men’s.
The Warriors succumbed by three points, 102-99, to Pakenham.
Warragul led practically the entire way, including being aheadby20points before Pakenhamrallied backtotake out the win in the lastminuteofplay
Jared Small was awarded Grand FinalMVP for Pakenham with a29-point performance, while Maffra’s Sam Whelan took home regular season
Traralgon’s Ben Barlowand KodyTibballs were named in the All Star Fivewith Tibballs also awarded Defensive Player of the Year for an exceptional two-way season.
Hill End: league move revealed
FOOTBALL
By BLAKE METCALF-HOLT
AFTER all the whirlwind of clubs attempting to removethemselvesfrom the Mid Gippsland Football-Netball League, another has risen to the surface.
The Express understands Hill End FootballNetball Club held multiple conversations during the year with the Ellinbank &District FNL about apotential move. While the club had gatheredinformation and conducted their own investigation comparing the league’s structure and operations against what is currently in Mid Gippsland, achange of competition will not happen.
Ellinbank &District has in its constitution that amaximum of 12 clubs occupy its league, and following Bunyip’sapproval to re-join (previously in EDFNL in 2016 before being forced into West Gippsland), no other club can attempt to enter until another leaves. It is understood that even if Hill End got to the point of presenting their case to clubs, it would have be voted against. The application window for season 2025 closed on October 30. This follows Mid Gippsland clubs Morwell East, Yinnarand Newborough -who allapplied to join the North Gippsland FNL for season 2025, saw amajority of NGFNLmember clubs vote to remain with the status quo. Newborough also presented asubmission to join Ellinbank, but received negative feedback from clubs and withdrew their application. Morwell East has been attempting to join North Gippsland for the past threeyears, which mostrecently broughtinformer Mid Gippsland club Yallourn Yallourn North in 2021. Ellinbank clubs Trafalgar (joined 2021) and Yarragon (2019)were also previously in Mid Gippsland.
The Latrobe Valley Express, Wednesday, 18 December, 2024
MVP.
Congratulations: Newborough Parkrunpar ticipants were on hand to offertheir best wishes to the 500 milestone trio
Photograph supplied
Generations: AmberEricksen, her mumJen and grandon Corey Simmons have nowall completed aremarkable500 Parkruns each.
