Mail - Lilydale Star Mail - 12th November 2024

Mooroolbark one of state’s worst suburbs for postie dog attacks

Just barking mad

By Mikayla van Loon

Mooroolbark has ranked in the top three suburbs in Victoria where posties have experienced a dog attack in the last six months.

As the busy festive season approaches, Australia Post and its posties fear the number of uncomfortable or vicious encounters will only increase.

Australia Post’s latest data revealed that 114 dog-related incidents occurred in the state with Caroline Springs (13), Hoppers Crossing (11) and Mooroolbark (nine) topping the list, with Belgrave not far behind on seven.

Melbourne based postie of 26-years Jamie Perri said he’s experienced nearly all kinds of incidents, from being chased to cornered, which “can be quite scary”.

“My worst two experiences involve the same breed of dog, and that’s the German Shepherd,

which I guess traditionally we know as guard dogs,” he said.

“On one occasion, two jumped through the front lounge room window to get out to catch me and chase me in the front yard but I got out of the front yard in time.

“The worst occasion was when I was delivering down this particular street, and a house had a high fence, and I’d see the dog every day, and he’d run from left to right, barking at me as I delivered.

“But on this day, he ran parallel to the front fence, hurdled the side fence into the neighbours front yard which didn’t have a fence at all. He then proceeded to chase me for a kilometre and a half.

“It’s not like he chased me along a straight road, I had left and right intersections to approach, T-intersections, and it was just a matter of whether a car was going to be coming. So it’s

quite scary.”

Eventually Mr Perri said the dog gave up the chase.

And while training for posties instructs them not to run away because it might encourage the dog, Mr Perri said instinct says run.

“When you’re in the moment, it’s hard not to try and get away,” he said.

Mr Perri said when he first started the job over 20 years ago, the likelihood of having to get off the bike to deliver something to the front door was rare.

“Since the online shopping boom dog interactions with posties, particularly in front yards, have skyrocketed. Back in the day, 20 years ago, we never delivered parcels unless we had a passport letter.”

With the peak delivery period fast approach-

ing, Australia Post is urging councils to enforce stricter measures for dog-related incidents and for residents to keep their dogs secured.

“Dog attacks remain one of the highest safety concerns for our people. As we head into our peak season and delivery volumes increase, there is a serious concern for the physical and mental wellbeing of our posties, particularly around dogs,” Australia Post general manager of safety and wellbeing Rod Maule said.

Mr Perri too said he and his colleagues just want to be safe when doing their job.

“We just want the dogs to be secure so we can do our jobs and at the end of the day we can go home because I know posties that haven’t gone home at three o’clock because they’re in the hospital getting stitched up,” he said.

Continued page 3

Terry Sully, Saffron Foster, Mal Clark and historian Courtnay Lucas with Lady Vestey’s car at Coombe. (Mikayla van Loon: 442858)

School bomb threat

By Mikayla van Loon

Students and staff at Birmingham Primary School

had to be evacuated on Thursday afternoon after a bomb threat targeting the school was made.

The school reportedly received an email making the threat.

Victoria Police confirmed that police were called to the school on Francis Crescent around 2pm on 7 November to conduct a safety check.

“Officers cordoned the area, and the Bomb Response Unit attended the scene at 4.25pm,” a spokesperson said.

“The area has been checked and deemed safe.”

The Primary School was reopened as normal on Friday 8 November.

Parents and residents in the area commented on social media about the incredible action of all teachers, admin staff and police involved to ensure the safety of the children.

“Staff, teachers and police were amazing and kept all of our kids safe!”

“The staff and police were absolutely amazing. Job well done to everyone for keeping our kiddos calm.”

“Well done to staff for managing this emergency so well. What a stressful time for lots involved, especially our kiddies but glad it all turned out OK.”

“A huge day for our kids and the teachers today. But was handled with so much care, calmness and professionalism. The teachers did a great job.”

Dogs putting the bark into Mooroolbark

From page 1

“We don’t want to be another statistic. So there is a heightened level of anxiety these days when it comes to dogs.”

Mr Maule said it is common practice for Australia Post to report aggressive or dangerous dogs to councils.

“However, too often we see risks are not properly mitigated. This often leads to multiple instances of the same dog repeating aggressive behaviour, which can result in a severe attack on our Postie,” he said.

“Dog ownership comes with responsibilities, and we need council support to effectively enforce laws and regulations to ensure the safety of our people.”

Yarra Ranges Council communities director Leanne Hurst said reports that are investigated “can range from biting, rushing and attacking” and follow the Victorian Domestic Animals Act 1994.

The investigation must include a sworn statement of the incident, images or video footage and medical or injury reports from the victim.

“Council has the legal power to seize dogs during the investigation and to declare a dog as menacing or dangerous,” Ms Hurst said.

“Reports of serious dog attacks and non-serious reports where the owner is not present and dog rushes can be heard in a Magistrates Court.”

This can result in the council making specific

requests to rectify containment, the destruction of animals or restitution for the victim by way of damages or costs.

All Posties are equipped with a hazard device to log aggressive dog behaviour, with more serious cases alerted to councils.

There are currently more than 29,000 active dog-related hazards nationally, and many are expected to stay unresolved.

Mr Perri said in his view “owners need to take ownership” and asked people to put themselves in a postie’s shoes to understand what it’s like when delivering between 50 and 70 parcels a day.

“If someone’s knocking on the door, whether it be the postie or in recent times, it could have been a small kid trick or treating for Halloween, and you’ve got a dog inside, place the dog into

another room while you open the door or in the backyard,” he said.

“Or if the dog is in the front yard, lock the gate or put a sign up saying ‘be aware of the dog’, because quite often, a lot of these houses don’t have signage or they don’t have their dog secure.”

Ms Hurst said Yarra Ranges residents are urged to check gates, fences and accessible areas to ensure an animal can be properly contained, especially if they are unsure how their dog will react to delivery drivers.

“All workers and passers-by should feel safe from dogs when out and about,” she said.

“Ensuring your dog is registered, safely contained and properly socialised will greatly reduce the chances of a dog developing behavioural issues with other animals and people. This will, in turn, reduce the likelihood of an attack happening.

“Dogs can be highly territorial and their reaction to an unknown person entering the property can be unpredictable. If you are concerned about a dog loose on a property it is not recommended to enter if your safety can’t be guaranteed.”

Ms Hurst also suggested referring to the RSPCA Dog Behaviour and Training Handbook.

Posties will not make a delivery if it is unsafe for them to do so and will cease deliveries to a customer’s home until the danger is resolved.

IN BRIEF

Mooroolbark truckie dies in collision

A Mooroolbark truck driver died after colliding with another truck on a rural highway near Rockhampton in Queensland last Tuesday.

Around 6.30am on 5 November, police and emergency services responded to reports a green Kenworth truck and a white and blue Kenworth truck had collided on the Capricorn Highway near the Kabra rail crossing.

The driver and sole occupant of the green Kenworth truck, a 60-year-old Mooroolbark man died at the scene.

The 66-year-old male driver and sole occupant of the white and blue Kenworth truck was not physically injured.

The Forensic Crash Unit is investigating the circumstances of the crash.

Lucky escapes in three collisions

Lilydale’s SES had an extremely busy 33 hour period between Friday 8 and Saturday 9 November responding to three tricky collisions.

The first one occurred on Paynes Road in Wonga Park at 8.20am on Friday involving three vehicles, including a horse float and a car on its roof. Police are investigating whether speed was a factor.

The second saw a momentary close of Hull Road in Mooroolbark at around 1.30pm, near Greenslopes Drive, after a car flipped on its roof. Luckily neither crash had serious injuries.

On Saturday around 3pm a car and truck collided while attempting to merge after the traffic lights on Maroondah Highway outside Nexans (Olex) in Lilydale.

Though only suffering minor injuries, it was the car driver was initially unable to exit the vehicle because the truck was blocking the door.

Once removed, it was necessary to use hydraulic rescue tools to open the drivers door which was jammed due to the impact, releasing to driver to be further assessed by paramedics at the scene.

It is worth noting that heavy vehicles often have large blind spots and this can sometimes result in this type of crash.

Indecent exposure incident

Detectives from the Knox Sexual Offence and Child Abuse Investigation Team (SOCIT) are appealing for public assistance following an incident that occurred on the Yarra Valley Trail in the Yering vicinity, between Beresford Road, Lilydale and Coldstream West Road, Coldstream.

At around 9am on 21 September 2024, an unknown male has exposed himself to a female who was walking on the trail.

The male was described to be Caucasian, approximately 60-years-old, wearing an unbuttoned leopard print shirt and a distinctive brown hat.

Anyone who witnessed the incident or was in the area at the time is urged to contact Knox SOCIT on (03) 8335 6701 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

Facial composite of the suspect. (EyewatchYarra Ranges Police Service Area)

On a regular basis posties have to manage aggressive behaviour from dogs, with further concern raised heading into the holiday period.

(Stewart Chambers: 442256)

A bomb threat was emailed to Birmingham Primary School on Thursday 7 November. (Stewart Chambers: 291743)

You

keep fighting fatigue,

Working 17 continuous hours causes impairment equivalent to .05 blood alcohol concentration level.

Working long, multiple days in a row by yourself can be part of the job but consider the cost to you and your family.

Check in with yourself and others around you.

Know the signs of fatigue, visit worksafe.vic.gov.au/farmfatigue

It’s never you, until it is.

NEWS New look for YR Council

By Tanya Steele

Results are in for the future of Yarra Ranges Shire Council with five councillors re-elected and four new representatives at the table.

Announced officially at the Yarra Ranges Council building in Lilydale on Friday 8 November – the results were announced by representatives of the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) and there were some interesting outcomes in the final vote tally.

Nineteen-year-old Councillor Mitch Mazzarella has claimed victory in Melba Ward, bringing a younger voice to the table, while Councillor Fiona McAllister returns and was uncontested for her seat in Ryrie Ward and will now be the council’s only female representative.

Councillor Jim Child, Councillor Tim Heenan, Councillor Richard Higgins and Councillor Len Cox will also return, while fresh faces Councillor Peter McIllwain, Councillor Jeff Marriott and Councillor Gareth Ward round out the new team.

Yarra Ranges Council chief executive officer Tammi Rose said they welcome their new and returning councillors and look forward to building on the strong work of the previous term.

“The business of council can be complex and there will be plenty for our new councillors to learn over the coming weeks and months ahead with staff and experienced councillors on hand to help,” she said.

Following the count of first preference votes, candidate Tim Heenan achieved an absolute majority for Billanook Ward, and Cr Heenan said he wanted to take the opportunity to thank the people of Mount Evelyn and Lilydale for the great opportunity to come back and serve them as their councillor.

“I’m very grateful,” he said.

Cr Heenan garnered just over 56 per cent of the Billanook Ward votes against Wendy Wright.

Three candidates lined up for the job at Chandler Ward but VEC official Greg Shillabeer said

A

following the count of first preference votes, no candidate had achieved an absolute majority.

“A preference distribution was required – after the distribution of preferences, candidate Gareth Ward achieved an absolute majority of those,” he said.

Richard Higgins was declared councillor for Chirnside. At the close of nominations on 17 September, the number of nominations received was equal to the number of agencies.

“It’s a great honour to be put back in with anybody opposing I don’t know how that happened. Never happened before, but it was a nice feeling,” Cr Higgins said.

“I look forward to working with everybody –new and the old.”

Peter McIlwain was elected to step forward to represent Lyster Wards – running against two other candidates Divesh Sareen and Mick Spruhn.

Melba Ward will see a fresh face this term as Mitch Mazzarella takes the mantle, he is possibly

the youngest councillor to serve in local government at 19 years of age.

The final votes were very close between former Mayor Sophie Todorov and Cr Mazzarella.

“Yes, I am 19, but that’s OK,” Cr Mazzarella said.

Cr Mazzarella pulled out on top with 50.48 per cent to former Mayor Todorov’s 49.58 per cent.

”I want to say thank you to Sophie Todorov, the predecessor, our mayor, for her service. I look forward to carrying on the fantastic work for her, and I look forward to working with all councillors as we move forward,” he said.

O’Shannassy Ward will see Jim Child return once more after coming out in front of the other candidates with 50.3 per cent of the votes. Cr Child said he takes his hat off to the other six candidates for putting their hands up to run.

“I think that it really shows that democracy is alive and well,” he said.

Fiona McAllister was declared elected councillor for Ryrie Ward, returning uncontested for her

ward. “I think it has been an incredible journey being part of local government, and every time I step back in, I do still get anxious and nervous. And I said to some of my fellow new councillors, again, it’s a bit like your first day at school, settling in with a new team,” Cr McAllister said.

“Ultimately, I’m really optimistic and look forward to four years where we deliver with the organization great outcomes for the community – investment in things that matter most.”

Councillor Jeff Marriott landed the role in Streeton Ward after running against Sigrid Peterson and said he thought Streeton is probably one of the most iconic wards outside of the Melbourne CBD.

“I look forward to working with all the new councillors and all the previous councillors as well,” he said.

Forty-year-veteran Len Cox will return once more to serve the Yarra Ranges and the council, representing Walling Ward.

“I’m very pleased to be here again, and I am really very grateful to the voters of Walling Ward for putting me there,” he said.

“I’d also like to congratulate all the councillors that were elected at this in this election.”

The new councillors were sworn into office in an official ceremony on Saturday 9 November 2024 in the Karwarra Botanic Gardens in Kalorama.

The new group of councillors for 2024 - some familiar faces and other new ones have committed to serve in local government. (Supplied)

Yarra Ranges has a new team for 2024. (Tanya Steele: 442748)

Ambulance Victoria data shows improved responses

Paramedics and first responders across Victoria responded to close to 100,000 Code 1 patients between July and September this year.

Ambulance Victoria (AV) Executive Director Regional Operations Danielle North said this was a 2.7 per cent drop in demand compared to the previous three months, which was the busiest quarter on record for Code 1 cases.

As a result, ambulance response times to the most time-critical patients was 16 seconds faster on average across Victoria.

“Our dedicated paramedics and first responders do an incredible job working under pressure to provide the best care to communities across the state every day,” Ms North said.

“Between July and September, we attended over 3,000 more ‘lights and sirens’ cases compared to a year ago and 27.6 per cent extra Code 1 cases than before the pandemic five years ago.”

From July to September 2024, AV crews across Victoria responded to 65.4 per cent of Code 1 cases within the state-wide target of 15 minutes – an improvement from 64.2 per cent in the previous quarter. The state-wide average response time to Code 1 emergencies was 15 minutes and 21 seconds.

Performance against the 15-minute target for Code 1 cases improved in 59 of Victoria’s 79 Local Government Areas (LGAs) compared with the previous quarter.

In the Metropolitan Region crews responded to 69,958 Code 1 cases between July and September and two of the biggest improvements were

the Outer East LGAs of Cardinia and Knox, the Yarra Ranges also improved and Maroondah dropped away but remained under the target time of 15 minutes. Compared with the previous quarter, the average response time to Code 1 patients were:

• One minute and 17 seconds faster in the Car-

dinia LGA (to 17 minutes and four seconds)

• 49 seconds faster in the Knox LGA (to 14 minutes and eight seconds)

• 56 seconds faster in the Yarra Ranges (to 17 minutes and 10 seconds)

• 20 seconds slower in Maroondah (to 14 mins 27 seconds)

Metropolitan Regional Director Vanessa Gorman said they know there is more work to do and Ambulance Victoria continues to work with hospitals to transfer patients as quickly as possible and ensure all Victorians receive the right care at the right time.

“Our expert Secondary Triage team of nurses and paramedics also make a real difference by connecting patients with the care they need while helping free up crews for patients in timecritical emergencies,” Ms Gorman said.

“From July to September, 41,142 people who did not need an emergency ambulance were instead connected to more appropriate care by paramedics and nurses in Secondary Triage.

“In 2023/24, paramedics referred nearly 43,000 patients to the Victorian Virtual Emergency Department (VVED), with over three quarters cared for without transport to a physical ED.”

Ms Gorman said it is also important that everyone does their part, if your matter is not an emergency, consider using alternative care options and keep our highly skilled paramedics available for patients most in need.

“In less urgent cases, there are many options people can access when they need timely medical care and health advice all day every day – but not an emergency ambulance or calling Triple Zero (000),” Ms Gorman said.

“This includes the Victorian Virtual Emergency Department (VVED), Urgent Care Clinics and other options such as your GP or pharmacist, or Nurse-On-Call on 1300 60 60 24.”

Tobacco violence targeted

By Callum Ludwig

As Victoria Police continue to work to combat the illicit tobacco trade rampant in Victoria, state politicians are milling about how to legislate change that cracks down on both the trade and associated violence such as firebombing.

The Victorian Liberals and Nationals recently attempted to introduce a bill, which the Labor Government did not support, in an effort to crack down on firebombing, calling out the average of two firebombings of tobacco shops each week for the past 18 months.

Evelyn MP Bridget Vallence and Eildon MP Cindy McLeish both argued for the Tobacco Amendment (Stamping Out Fire Bombings) Bill 2024 in Parliament on Tuesday 29 October and Ms McLeish said with tobacco stores opening across the Yarra Ranges, locals and business owners want to ensure they and their businesses are safe as firebombing incidents escalate.

“Firebombing is very widespread across Victoria, surging well past 100 attacks, making it harder for surrounding businesses to secure insurance. It is not in just one spot; it is a big issue that also relates to organised crime,” she said.

“The Government needs to tackle organised crime and look after the small businesses surrounding tobacco shops and those that own the premises that are firebombed. All of those businesses could have been saved by having a licensing scheme.”

The Liberals and Nationals support a number of measures to combat the illicit tobacco trade, namely; The introduction of a licensing scheme for the sale of tobacco products.

The implementation of a fit and proper person test to ensure suitability to hold a tobacco retail licence.

Creating search and seizure laws for Victorian Police relating to tobacco products.

Penalties for first-time offenders of up to 5000 penalty units – the equivalent of $1 million.

Penalties for second and subsequent offences of up to two years in prison.

A Victorian Government spokesperson said they have been very clear — they will introduce a tobacco licensing scheme to Parliament by the end of the year.

“We will get this right and we will ensure this criminal behaviour is dealt with,” they said.

“We will have more to say on what our scheme looks like very soon. In the meantime, Victoria Police is taking targeted action against the illicit tobacco trade through Taskforce Lunar - making arrests and seizing large quantities of illicit items.”

In the Yarra Ranges, the Seville tobacconist was the target of a firebombing incident in February this year, and a 19-year-old Officer man was arrested in June in relation to the incident. He was interviewed and released pending further enquiries.

Dr James Martin is a Senior Lecturer in Criminology and Director of the Bachelor of Criminology, leading research into the field of black markets, cybercrime, and the dark web trade in illicit drugs and said what we’re seeing is frankly a rampant and out of control black market that’s being accompanied by serious levels of criminal violence.

“This is systemic market violence, these are sophisticated criminal groups that are battling for control of the trade and is something that we’ve seen really kick off since the beginning of last year is when it seemed to jump up a notch,” he said.

“In terms of what’s behind it, there are two main factors; one is the extraordinary levels of

taxation that were levied on tobacco products, Australia now the most expensive cigarettes in the world by pretty significant margins, for your average pack of days smoker the financial impact is something in the order of $18,000 a year you’d need to spend on legal cigarettes to meet a packa-day habit,”

“In Australia, we’ve got a very restrictive approach to vapes, we’ve got this pharmacy-only model, but most pharmacies have said that they’re not going to stock vapes, the process of getting a vape for pharmacy is convoluted, devices and flavours that they sell are not popular amongst people who vape, and it’s not only propping up support for tobacco by making it harder for people to switch to a substitute but also the black market vapes themselves are very valuable black market commodities because we make it so hard to get legal ones.”

Australia moved to the prescription model from 1 June this year, but this was later altered so

that as of 1 October this year, people could access legal vapes following a consultation with a pharmacist as well.

Dr Martin said some of the proposals, including the licensing scheme and fit and proper persons test, are good common-sense regulations, but his concern is more around the penalties.

“The high taxation trying to price people out of smoking and the ban on consumer vapes, is what’s fueling the black market, any of these other regulations, while they might be useful in a marginal sense, don’t really get to the heart of the problem, which is that demand for nicotine is ongoing and people are gonna have that demand met one way or another, whether that’s through a legal channel or an illegal channel,” he said.

“We know from the illicit drugs trade that you can have whatever penalties you want, you’re still going to get participants in the black market, there are people who think that they’re not going to get caught and chances are they probably won’t get caught,”

“We’ve got record numbers of arrests, we’ve got record numbers of seizures and despite all that, illicit drugs are just as easily available and are in many cases cheaper than they were 15 years ago, so I think that really highlights the problem we’ve got here is we’re increasingly treating nicotine like it’s part of the war on drugs and I don’t know why we do that when the war on drugs is so demonstrably failing in its objectives.”

The Tobacco Amendment (Stamping Out Fire Bombings) Bill 2024 was shut down by a vote of 29 in favour to 50 in opposition in the Victorian Parliament.

Dr Martin said he really feels for the legal tobacco retailers, as he did for the legal vape retailers, who have been affected by this.

“The people who are actually obeying the law, only selling to over 18s, weren’t selling nicotine, those vape shops have shut down and the people playing by the rules have exited the market, which has given the whole market to the black market operators and we’re starting to see the same thing now with tobacco,” he said.

“These small business owners are facing a really difficult choice in this cost of living crisis, and in some cases, those people will make a calculated decision and say ‘Right, well everyone else is doing it, I’m going to sell black market products as well to keep my business afloat’,”

“In other cases, which we’ve heard about before with earn and burn threats and so on, they will be approached by a criminal organisation and they will face very credible threats to their safety if they don’t enter the black market.”

The latest Ambulance Victoria response times are in. (Stewart Chambers: 303384)

The Seville tobacconist was targeted in a ram-raid firebombing in February this year. (File)

Brigades get grants boost

By Mikayla van Loon

Two urban CFA brigades have been successful in this year’s round of a Victorian Government grant program, enabling them to undertake facility upgrades or purchase new vehicles.

The Volunteer Emergency Services Equipment Program (VESEP) for 2024-25 will see Chirnside Park CFA receive $71,000 for a field command vehicle (FCV) and Mount Evelyn CFA receive $20,000 for minor improvement works at its home base.

Mount Evelyn CFA captain Rick Ventrella said the brigade would be using the funds to install new electric and fob-operated gates at the side of the station.

“The current gates have been there before I started some 21 years ago and are well overdue for an upgrade,” he said.

“Not only will it improve the security to the station but the members will be able to activate the gates with their allocated fobs that they already have. They will no longer have to physically get out of their car, use the assigned code and open them manually.”

The new FVC heading to Chirnside Park will replace the existing vehicle which is reaching the end of its life.

“Our current field command vehicle was sent to us on becoming a brigade [nine years ago], which we set up as best we could,” Chirnside Park CFA captain Ben Cash said.

“We’ve had a few mechanical issues with the car, so we jumped at the opportunity to apply for the funding and we’re very fortunate that we’ve been successful in that.”

An FCV has a multi-dimensional use for large scale events both locally and across the state, for traffic management, as well as being an easily accessible vehicle for all brigade members to use if needed.

“It’s used for operational incidents. So it can be deployed to large bush fires anywhere in the

state as part of a strike team or we can use it locally if we need to get more members onto a fire ground,” Mr Cash said.

“You can run large jobs from this car, because it’s fitted with communications, tables to do mapping, it has a lot of support equipment on it that crews will use for both structured fires and grass and scrub fires.”

Being a more modern vehicle and featuring a “standard layout”, Mr Cash said it would be “built the same as most of the field command vehicles out there in Victoria at the moment”.

“That gives us flexibility, that if one of our members needs to jump on a FCV from another brigade, the layout should be very similar, if not the same,” he said.

“So it allows for great cooperation between brigades and ensures when members are sent away, there’s guild on all bits of equipment.”

VESEP funding sees a contribution from the State Government of $2 for every $1 of funding raised by the local volunteer group.

Mr Ventrella and Mr Cash said without the VESEP funding and the support their brigades receive from the community, these projects and purchases would not be possible.

“The VESEP funding has definitely assisted with the gate project with the brigade not having to fund them entirely. This allows us to look at other items that enhance the members skills along with their safety which we then use on the fire ground or where it is needed,” Mr Ventrella said.

“Mt Evelyn and surrounding communities have always supported us and all of our fundraising events that we hold throughout different times of the year whether it’s our Garage Sale, Australia Day carwash, Coffee N Cars or just a good old sausage sizzle out the front of IGA. It’s through these

event’s and the money raised that we are able to look at projects like the current one.”

“Thanks to the contribution of our local community over a number of years, through fundraisers and direct donations, the brigade’s in a position where we’re able to afford that extra contribution required. So it’s in large part it’s thanks to our community that we’re able to afford this,” Mr Cash said of the Chirnside Park community.

As with all projects, there is a wait in the lead time, with Mr Cash expecting the new vehicle to take between nine and 12 months to complete meaning it should arrive before next year’s fire season, while Mr Ventrella is working through all the necessary requirements but hopes for a timely completion date.

Mr Ventrella wanted to reassure the Mount Evelyn community that installation of the new gates would not impact the brigade’s ability to respond to callouts or operations.

To learn more about volunteering, visit cfa. vic.gov.au/volunteers-careers/volunteer-withcfa and to donate, go to cfa.vic.gov.au/about-us/ fundraising-and-partnerships/donate-to-cfa

Mount Evelyn CFA was successful in receiving $20,000 for improvements to the station. (Stewart Chambers: 269079)

Chirnside Park CFA captain Ben Cash said the brigade was very thankful for the community contribution in making the new vehicle possible. (403527)

Six new renter’s rights reforms announced for Victorians

By Callum Ludwig

The Victorian Government announced several renter’s rights reforms on Wednesday 30 October, set to be implemented over the next 12 months.

Some of the six new reforms are planned to be in place before the end of the year and the Victorian Government hasn’t ruled out more in their bid to make renting fairer.

Leading organisations in the renting space, including Ringwood based Uniting VicTas, have embraced the planned reforms because of the high percentage of people being pushed into renting.

Minister for Consumer Affairs Gabrielle Williams said renters’ rights are all about respect.

“That’s the principle that we are trying to bring to the rental market through more than 130 reforms, and that’s why we are leading the nation on it,” she said.

“By banning fees and charges on rental payments and applications, and cracking down on unfair bond claims, we’re putting more money back in the pockets of renters.”

The six reforms are as follows;

Landlords will have to provide evidence to withhold bonds and face financial penalties for claims that can’t be substantiated or are proven false

‘No fault’ evictions for fixed-term agreements will no longer be permitted, with valid reasons such as damage, failure to pay rent or the owner moving back into the property to remain

Banning hidden fees or charges for paying rent in-person or digitally, with these fees often found on third-party rent tech apps meant to be more convenient for renters than options like having to pay at a post office

Banning rental providers, their agents or a third-party app from passing the cost of a background check on renters to the renter

Legislate a cap on lease break fees for fixedterm agreements of five years or less with the limit to be decided following consultation

Prevent agents from unreasonably denying requests for an additional electronic key or security fob and make it an offence for them to be terminated unless it’s part of the rental agreement termination process.

Tenants Victoria chief executive officer Jennifer Beveridge said the organisation welcomes these measures to better protect the rights of renters – who make up almost 30 per cent of Victorians – in their homes.

“After all, housing is an essential service and a human right,” she said.

“Extending the ban on no-reason evictions gives renters more security. It puts them on a more even footing to request repairs, for example, in the knowledge that rental providers

cannot ask them to leave without a reason under the law.”

Community services organisation Uniting VicTas has a Tenancy Rights service which operates out of Ringwood and services large parts of the East and Outer East of Melbourne.

Senior Manager of Homelessness for Uniting VicTas Maidie Graham said decades of underinvestment in social and affordable housing and rising housing prices have resulted in more people renting and renting for longer, so they welcome any reforms which improve fairness and provide further protections for renters.

“Rental affordability is just one of the challenges facing households, particularly for those on low incomes, and for many years there has been a significant power imbalance between rental providers, property managers and renters creating myriad of issues that almost always places renters at a disadvantage,” she said.

“Banning ‘no fault’ evictions, ensuring landlords are unable to make bond claims without evidence and capping fees for breaking a lease, will undoubtedly make the system fairer for renters.”

Uniting’s Tenancy Rights support service can assist people who:

• Live in public or community housing that’s part of the Victorian Housing Register (including room or boarding housing)

• Have a private tenancy issue

• Are facing possible eviction

• Are low income

• Are experiencing family violence

• Are keen to access free support through the voluntary programs.

Ms Graham said legislating minimum standards for properties will also be critically important.

“We’ve seen countless examples of renters

over the years of renters being forced to live in substandard conditions, which we know can have a significantly detrimental impact on their health, safety and quality of life,” she said.

“We look forward to hearing more details about the reforms, particularly on how these changes will be enforced.”

Tenancy advocates can help renters know their rights as a private or public/community housing tenant, help prevent rental discrimination or unfair rental increases, help break a lease in a situation where a tenant feels unsafe, help renters claim back their bond or help prepare renters for any cases with the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) regarding their rental rights.

To get in touch with Uniting’s Tenancy Rights support service call 03 8870 4030. You can also find more resources on the Tenants Victoria website.

Inflation keeps rates on hold

By Poppy Johnston, AAP

Mortgage holders still have longer to wait for interest rate relief as the Reserve Bank of Australia warns underlying inflation remains “too high”.

All bets were on no change when the central bank board announced its decision ahead of the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday.

The call follows welcome progress on inflation but not enough for the RBA to start cutting the cash rate just yet.

Price pressures have been ravaging households and businesses but are starting to ease, with annual headline inflation printing at 2.8 per cent in the September quarter, within the RBA’s two-three per cent target range.

Yet the focus has been on underlying inflation, which has been moderating but still above target at 3.5 per cent in September.

“While headline inflation has declined substantially and will remain lower for a time, underlying inflation is more indicative of inflation momentum, and it remains too high,” the board said in a statement.

“The November statement of monetary policy forecasts suggest that it will be some time yet before inflation is sustainably in the target range and approaching the midpoint.

“This reinforces the need to remain vigilant to

upside risks to inflation and the board is not ruling anything in or out.”

Fresh forecasts from the central bank suggest the economy is unfolding broadly as it expected back in August.

Underlying inflation is still elevated but the profile was slightly more optimistic, with the trimmed mean downgraded slightly to have it back within target six months earlier, hitting three per cent by June 2025.

Economic growth forecasts were trimmed, with GDP now peaking at 2.3 per cent next year.

The economy is on track for weaker growth in the near term due to softer private demand as well as slower expected growth in net overseas migration thanks to the federal government’s tighter student visa policy, the RBA said.

With weaker growth, unemployment is now anticipated to peak a little higher, at 4.5 per cent. The profile for wage growth was also downgraded modestly.

“Labour market conditions remain tight but are expected to return to balance by late 2025,” the RBA said in the statement of monetary policy.

“While this assessment is little changed from the August statement, the earlier easing in some labour market indicators has stalled recently and this presents some risk that labour market conditions ease by less than expected.”

Renters in Victorian will have six more rights under new reforms from the State Government.(Pexels).

Vintage class at Coombe

By Mikayla van Loon

Lady Pamela Vestey’s 21st birthday gift, a Sunbeam-Talbot Ten car, returned to its ancestral home in the Yarra Valley, making a special trip to meet and greet visiting Vestey family.

In September, Star Mail covered the official unveiling of the vehicle after being brought back to its original working condition.

Putting it to the test, restorers Terry Sully and Mal Clark travelled from Mitcham to Coldstream on Friday 8 November.

Flagging it off from Ringwood at 9am, Mr Clark had the honours of driving the 1939 vehicle, while Mr Sully followed closely behind in another rare 1970 Sunbeam car, packed with extra fuel and equipment just in case.

Describing the drive over as “interesting”, Mr Clark said it wasn’t so bumpy but a slow, cautious and nerve wracking drive.

“Actually the best part of the car is the suspension but it’s the brakes, you really have to plant your foot,” he said.

“Cars these days have what are called hydraulic brakes but this just has cables. And then the gearbox is what is called a crashbox, I don’t think there’s any synchromesh in any of the gears.”

But according to Mr Sully, “if you know what to do, you don’t have any issue”.

Allowing an hour and a half to travel from Ringwood to Coldstream, Mr Sully said “it’s very slow”.

“With modern traffic, it’s not good because if somebody pulls up in a hurry in front of you it is hard to stop,” he said.

“But it’s good to get the old thing out. This is the furthest it’s driven for many a year.”

In the seven weeks since the unveiling of the car, Mr Sully said he and Mr Clark have continued to repair and restore the historic motor vehicle, ready for its visit to Coombe Yarra Valley.

“We’ve spent five and a half weeks just going through it and we’ve pulled part of the engine apart because it hadn’t been used for 70 odd years,” Mr Sully said.

“We managed to get old stock from Mackay Rubber here in Australia. They had original stock for that car, so we put new radiator hoses on it, and we just cleaned it all up and did general work on it.”

Arriving at what is the ancestral home of Lady Pamela Vestey, as the granddaughter of Dame Nellie Melba, and what became her own home, the vehicle pulled into the driveway of Coombe Cottage, fitting the scenery entirely.

Visiting from the United Kingdom and staying at the family estate, Lady Vestey’s granddaughter, Saffron Foster, welcomed the visit and said she could see why her grandmother loved the car.

Commenting on the beauty of the vehicle, Ms Foster said it was such a pleasure to see it back at Coombe and in its former glory.

As custodians of the Coombe Estate, the descendants of Dame Nellie Melba visit the home at least once a year.

Coombe Cottage was built at the request of Melba in 1912 and was where she truly called home.

She travelled with a small painting of the ocean because it signified the journey home to

Coombe and always ended her shows with the song Home Sweet Home.

Wanting Coombe to remain exactly as it was when she lived there, the family have essentially kept it untouched, maintaining the 80 acre grounds and undergoing the difficult task of restoring the cottage.

Lady Vestey was the first to take guardian-

ship of the property, where she too lived until her death in 2011.

For Mr Sully, being able to be a small part of this and bring the family some joy in seeing the car, he said “it’s fantastic”.

“I think the family is very happy to see it come back to where it came from.”

Mr Sully and Mr Clark spent weeks getting the 1939 vehicle back to original condition to unveil it in September. (433316)

The Sunbeam-Talbot Ten was gifted to Lady Pamela Vestey on her 21st birthday. (442858)

R-L: Terry Sully, Saffron Foster, Mal Clark and historian Courtnay Lucas with Lady Vestey’s car at Coombe. (Mikayla van Loon: 442858)

IN THE SPOTLIGHT Heartwarming Alcott tale

By Mikayla van Loon

“If you like the books, you’ll like the show” is what Lilydale Athenaeum Theatre Company director said of the musical production of Little Women.

Heading to the Castella Street theatre between 14 and 30 November, the beloved Louisa May Alcott story adaptation by Allan Knee has already been staged in Malvern with the same cast and crew.

Director Alan Burrows said the heartwarming and well-known story is only enhanced by the musical talent of composer Jason Howland and lyricist Mindi Dickstein.

“The music adds to it, because it adds to the humour, it adds to the circumstance, and it certainly adds to the drama of the piece,” he said.

“The musical score is really great because it allows each of the characters to develop through the songs they sing. So you actually see a far more rounded character through the music.

“The story is basically the same story that we all know and we’ve read about, but the songs just add to the entertainment value and also to how the characters progress.”

From songs of strength and love, to those of reflection and sadness, the full range of emotion is conveyed through music and Burrows said it helps depict the major moments in each character’s life.

Playing the head-strong, passionate Jo March, actor Anna Bearsley said not only does the musical score “propel the story along”, it also propels the essence of the story.

“It just brings to life, in the most joyous fashion, the themes of sisterhood and familial love and just childhood joy,” she said.

Feeling her whole life like she was a Jo, playing the role, Bearsley said “I was essentially just being myself”.

“I was always a tomboy. I have never had an ounce of grace to me. And growing up, I always went after what I wanted with an insane fervour that people thought I was ridiculous and a lot and just not a very mild mannered, polite woman, that was never me,” she said.

But being able to perform as Jo who is “such a

Small sculpture exhibition returns to YAVA Gallery

By Dongyun Kwon

Now in its third year, YAVA Gallery and Arts Hub launched its small sculpture exhibition in association with Yering Station on Thursday 31 October once more.

INterior24 is exhibiting artworks from this year’s Yarra Valley Arts | Yering Station Sculpture Exhibition and Awards finalists and Yarra Valley Arts member artists.

The annual exhibition aims to allow visitors to experience these works in a more intimate setting, notice the small details, consider craftsmanship and imagine how the sculptors have used various materials to produce each piece.

Healesville-based artist Mim Kocher, who has participated in all three INterior exhibitions, put on her polycarbonate sphere artwork Ocean Love.

She said she recycled the old street light.

“I spray-painted it, then I used colourful paints and pens to do fish. I did a lot of research on types of fish I would love to do,” Kocher said.

“I thought ‘Will I have a person fishing, catching these beautiful fish?’ and then I thought ‘No. I’ll just have someone on a yacht, reading a book about fish and learning about fish.’

“The ocean has always captivated me with its beauty, mystery and the way waves come in and out.”

32 sculptures are on display now at the exhibition.

Unlike Kocher, this is the first time for Peter Revelman, a Croydon-based artist, to be part of INterior.

The artist said he started with the idea of how to give strength to fragile blocks for his sculpture Structurally Sound.

“The medium I used is glass. It’s only six mm thick. You have to buy special glass to colour it,” Revelman said.

“I built the clear layer first, then I put the colours on top and I made sure that it locks all of this up so that it is strong enough.”

The exhibition will be open until Sunday 24 November.

beautiful and complex character” felt even more special “because she’s based on a real person”.

“The story of Little Women is so beautiful to me, because it is essentially just a retelling of Louisa May Alcott’s life. When I was rereading the book recently, I heard every word that came out of Jo’s mouth as just Louisa and her commentary on life,” Bearsley said.

“It’s just so beautiful, the way she’s able to write female characters that aren’t defined by the men in their life and are following one’s dreams and pursuing one’s passions and familial love.”

The cast of 10 and 50 costumes makes for “a

very big show for us” Burrows said but ingenuity shines through to create each scene.

“We work with projections for each of the scenes and our set designer, Barry Pierce, has drawn them all,” he said.

“And not only drawn each scene, but as we go into a scene change, he’s drawn the scene being constructed so you see the scene actually develop before your eyes, before we get to it, which is really quite remarkable.

“Then we have just kept the rest of the stage with just simple bits of furniture which the cast all move so we keep the pace on the show and the amount of time between scenes is literally seconds.”

Transporting the entire show to Lilydale’s theatre for its second run, Burrows said, while minor adjustments had to be made to fit the stage, he believes it has only improved the show.

Bearsley concurred and said having already had three months of rehearsals and 14 shows at Malvern, the bond of the actors really helps deliver that sense of family.

“The more time we spend together, the closer we get,” she said.

“At Malvern, you keep getting better with each show but at Lilydale, we’re starting at that best point that we were at Malvern, and it’s only going to get better.

“I love everyone in this cast with all of my heart and they really do feel like family.”

Don’t miss seeing this heartwarming show. Find tickets by visiting lilydaleatc.com or call 9735 1777 Monday, Tuesday or Friday.

Having performed at Malvern, the cast have become like family making for a beautiful chemistry on stage. (Alexandra Carter, Wanderling Photography)

Peter Revelman (left) and Mim Kocher are inviting locals to INterior 24. (Dongyun Kwon: 441921)

Peter Revelman with his sculpture Structurally Sound. (441921)

Mim Kocher with her artwork Ocean Love. (441921)

Coldstream pilot flies high

By Dongyun Kwon

Coldstream resident travelled to London to attend a prestigious ceremony with his wife where his dedication to flying was honoured.

Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) pilot Marcus Grey was recognised by the Honourable Company of Air Pilots as a Master Air Pilot and presented with The Captain John Ashton Memorial Award for his exemplary professionalism, skill and contribution to pilot training and mentorship.

The pilot said he was very humbled that his colleagues in MAF applied to the Honourable Company for those awards.

“I trained most of these people to be qualified to work as pilots in MAF during my time teaching at the MAF Training Centre in Coldstream,” Mr Grey said.

“At the ceremony, it was very satisfying to be applauded by such a distinguished group.”

Mr Grey was always aware he wanted to be a pilot from a young age, but never wanted to fly airline-type operations.

All through his schooling and university, the pilot concentrated on subjects which helped him to get into flying.

Mr Grey said he wanted to do flying to help people who were disadvantaged by where they were born or the circumstances of their life.

“When I was 12 years old, I heard a talk by an experienced MAF pilot and realised that was the kind of flying I wanted to do,” he said.

“After I graduated as an aeronautical engineer, I started learning to fly at Essendon Airport and finished off my commercial pilot licence at the MAF Training Centre in Ballarat and joined MAF straight away.”

Mr Grey and his wife Julie with their three daughters joined the MAF in 1984.

“We left Preston, Melbourne and moved to Gove, Northern Territory to fly for MAF in the Aboriginal area of East Arnhem Land,” the award recipient said.

“In 1986 we moved to Papua New Guinea, where I flew in the MAF programs in Western Highlands, Eastern Highlands and Morobe Provinces, conducting community development, education system support, health system support, faith-based group support, medical patient transport, public transport and agricultural produce to market flights.”

In 1996, the pilot returned to the MAF Training Base in Ballarat to start his new journey as a flight instructor.

Mr Grey said since the early 70s, the MAF Training Centre has been a Civil Aviation Safety Authority approved flight school and it has trained hundreds of commercial pilots for MAF and the aviation industry.

“One of the reasons I relocated to the Training Centre at Ballarat was so I could pass on the knowledge and experience I had accumulated while flying in remote, demanding environments like Northern Territory and Papua New Guinea, to new, inexperienced pilots-in-training, so they could make their transition to operational flying well,” he said.

Mr Grey has served with MAF for 40 years, clocking up more than 17,000 flying hours to become one of MAF’s most experienced and highly qualified pilots.

When MAF moved the engineering department to Mareeba, Queensland in 2002, Mr Grey became the chief flying instructor of the Training Centre, which then moved to Coldstream to be closer to MAF’s biggest student pilot pool at the Bible College of Victoria.

The flying instructor said qualifications taught in the Training Centre are Industry-recognised, and the bulk of students now come through TAFE colleges and universities in Queensland.

“The Training Centre is also approved by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, Papua New Guinea to train and qualify Papua New Guinea commercial pilots and I have been training and testing Papua New Guinea nationals since 2015,” Mr Grey said.

“In 2014, MAF consolidated all its support departments in Mareeba, Queensland and I moved the Training Centre to Mareeba Airport, in Far North Queensland.

“Since 2019, Julie and I have been based back in Coldstream and I do flying tours to Mareeba, Northern Territory, Timor Leste and Papua New Guinea to teach and test pilots as required.”

In Papua New Guinea, Mr Grey went to Papua, Indonesia with a MAF team and Twin Otter aircraft, to assist with delivering disaster aid to remote airstrips during the famine in the early 2000s.

A few years ago, he also gained approval from CASA Australia to conduct proficiency checks for Australian flight examiners.

Mr Grey has served with MAF for 40 years, clocking up more than 17,000 flying hours to become one of MAF’s most experienced and highly qualified pilots.

He said he had the privilege of flying hundreds of medical evacuation flights in all the programs he has worked, many resulting in saving a life.

“I evacuated a 12-year-old girl, who had been bitten by a death adder, from a remote airstrip in Papua New Guinea to the hospital in Goroka,” the pilot said.

“This flight required a mercy flight because we had to land at Goroka in the dark, using the lights of dozens of car headlights because Goroka Airport was not equipped for Night Flying.

“Another one was an Aboriginal lady having birthing difficulty and I flew her to Gove hospital late in the day, only to have the baby born while we were en route.”

Welcome to the November 2024 fruit fly update. This week we will look at how the fruit fly season is shaping up. To date, we have had no confirmed QFF sightings in the Yarra Valley this season. However, we need to remain on alert.

QFF numbers in central Victoria are ‘present’ but not as high as typical for this time of year. They are expecting a late ‘surge’ in QFF numbers, similar only to last season. We also had a late start with QFF last season, but it soon became the worst season we have ever had in terms of QFF catches and infested fruit.

We all need to be prepared and catch that start! Acting early with prevention tools can help to prevent a major pest spread.

QFF like to mate at dusk, when the temperature is above 15 degrees C. In the Yarra Valley, we unusually experienced this in mid August, and we have had many warm evenings with ideal “mating” conditions since. This means, that any QFF present in the region could be reproducing and building a population in any fruit around (like citrus and new season fruits).

Photo credit A. Narendra.

See the fruitflyfreeyv.com.au website for more QFF lifecycle information, and Integrated Pest Management control solutions for QFF, based on our understanding of the insect lifecycle and environmental conditions.

We have also launched our independent e-learning tool. Everyone is welcome to register and learn about QFF area wide management, or use the tool to teach others.

November “In your garden….”

Peaches and Nectarines will be increasing in size, Strawberries are starting, Cherries and Apricots are not far off, loquats are ripening. Arrange fruit fly netting over each tree or garden patch and check your fruit fly traps at least weekly.

Harvest fruit regularly to reduce QFF risk. Only grow what you can harvest. Remove fruitlets from plants that you can’t protect or don’t intend to harvest later. Remove blackberry weeds.

Mr Grey with wife Julie (left) and MAF International chief finance officer Anna Beck (right) at the awards in London. (Supplied)

TAC boost for sport clubs

Football and netball clubs from across the outer east have joined over 200 clubs in funding for their dedication to encouraging safe driving behaviours.

The Labor Government and the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) have recognised grassroot football and netball clubs across the state for their work campaigning to prevent road trauma during the 2024 season.

Roads and Road Safety minister Melissa Horne announced 233 community clubs will share in $600,000 to promote road safety in their communities.

“Football and netball clubs are at the heart of our communities and we are fortunate to have so many people campaigning to prevent road trauma,” she said.

Among the Eastern Football Netball League were Croydon Junior Football Club, Ferntree Gully Eagles Football Netball Club - Juniors, Lilydale Junior Football Club, The Basin Football Club, Lysterfield Junior Football Club and Mooroolbark Football Netball Club.

The clubs will receive up to $10,000 through the program, which is delivered in partnership with AFL Victoria. The program encourages clubs to engage with players, members and their communities on key road safety issues and promote safe behaviours.

“The TAC Club Rewards Program is one of the most important initiatives for community football clubs across the state, providing a fantastic avenue for clubs to actively contribute to the safety of their community and generate valuable funding in the process,” Head of AFL Victoria Greg Madigan said.

Successful clubs are able to use the money for a range of initiatives including education programs, club transport initiatives, new equipment and uniforms and facility upgrades and improvements.

Around 40 per cent of successful applications have come from regional Victoria where serious road trauma risk is highest. Players, officials and supporters from regional clubs often travel long distances on high-speed roads to get to training and games, and their leadership is critical to preventing road trauma.

AFL Victoria-affiliated clubs from across the state were invited to apply for the program and show how they supported road safety throughout the year, including taking part in the TAC’s Road Safety Round.

As part of this year’s program, clubs were asked to start conversations and be part of the campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of speeding, with the tagline – ‘Show up for your team. Slow down on the road’.

The TAC Club Rewards Program is part of the TAC’s 32-year partnership with AFL Victoria, which aims to empower clubs to develop a culture where all players and members are expected to be safe on the roads.

“The power of peer-to-peer support, leadership and education cannot be underestimated –and I thank our local football and netball clubs for being road safety ambassadors and caring for their communities,” Transport Accident Commission chief executive officer Tracey Slatter said. To learn more and to see the full list of recipients, visit tac.vic.gov.au/about-the-tac/community/grants.

Victoria Police Inspector Dean Grande visited Croydon Junior Football Club in the lead up to 2023 TAC round pictured here with Ted. (Stewart Chambers: 346014)

OPINION

Spring is here and so are the weeds and long grass.

Roadside vegetation across the Yarra Ranges is flourishing, and with it an array of issues for road users.

Slashing is crucial affairs

Every year my office receives calls from concerned locals reporting the length of the roadside grass is in desperate need of maintenance.

It should not be left up to locals to raise the alarm, although I commend people for taking pride in and identifying ways to keep the Yarra Ranges tidy.

The Allan Labor Government must ramp up roadside slashing efforts to keep grass lengths under control and roads safe for all users.

Overgrown roadside grass can fast become a hazard for road users by blocking driver’s vision and obstructing the view of oncoming traffic through roundabouts.

Many of the major road speed limits across the Yarra Ranges sit at 80km/h or 100km/h, so it is imperative that drivers have full visibility at all times.

Drivers should not have to worry about grass length, especially while they’re trying to dodge

Woo returns to the well

The Killer Starring Nathalie Emmanuel, Omar Sy and Sam Worthington MA15+ 4/5

Directed by Hong Kong action legend John Woo (and a remake of Woo’s 1989 film of the same name), The Killer is a stylish, character-rich action-thriller.

An elite assassin named Zee (Nathalie Emmanuel) gets caught up in a far-reaching conspiracy after a hit goes wrong.

Emmanuel plays a sensitive but deadly action lead, and has electric chemistry with Omar Sy as Sey, a plucky, honourable cop on Zee’s trail.

During The Killer, I found myself thinking that Sy has the charisma and action chops to play James Bond (if only he wasn’t French).

Sam Worthington plays Zee’s handler Finn with sinister poise (and a slightly shaky Irish accent).

The Killer has strong forward momentum, but it’s refreshing to see a modern action film know when to calm down for compelling dialogue and character growth.

The riveting action features cool stunts and pyrotechnics (offset by some distracting CGI blood) and dashes of humour, and is full of Woo’s trademark balletic violence and religious imagery.

The gunfights and hand-to-hand combat are brutal but cleanly-shot and easy to follow, and the taut final showdown (set in a church, like so many Woo battles) is one of the most awesome action sequences of the year.

The Killer follows in the footsteps of other films remade by their own directors.

Alfred Hitchcock remade his 1934 film The Man Who Knew Too Much in 1956, Cecil B. Demille made two versions of The Ten Commandments – silent in 1923, and with sound and colour in 1956 – and Michael Mann remade his 1989 TV movie L.A. Takedown as Heat in 1995.

An enthralling and charming thriller, The Killer is available for streaming on Netflix, but it’s a travesty that this didn’t get a wider cinema release.

The state of

Cindy McLeish MP Member for Eildon

the never-ending potholes that plague our roads.

This can quickly become the cause of accidents.

We know long grass can also be a real hazard as the bushfire season fast approaches.

Grassfires are not uncommon in the area and can start quickly and spread easily, especially during dry, hot conditions, with plenty to fuel to burn.

Roadside slashing plays a crucial part in mitigating these fuel loads, and we cannot afford for it to be delayed.

In many situations, particularly after a storm,

CARTOON

fallen trees and branches are often pushed to the edge of the road, creating an additional fire hazard.

People are prohibited from cutting up or removing the fallen branches for firewood, adding to the issue of fuel loads as it will most likely be left.

Large debris buildup can block driver’s view and mowing access and prevents cars from pulling over if they need to.

I have often seen this while driving along Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Road and Dalry Road and it is a real hazard.

The major roads throughout the Yarra Ranges, extending to Ringwood via the Maroondah Highway, are the gateway to the Yarra Valley.

We all take pride living the Yarra Valley and want to see the crown land maintained.

It is upsetting to display this awful sight of weeds, debris and overgrowth to tourists during this busy time of year.

Regular roadside slashing is an effective way to tidy the area, decrease fuel loads and keep drivers, both locals and tourists alike, safe on our roads.

From TikTok to cookbook PASSION FOR PROSE

WITH CHRISTINE SUN

Book review of Tiffy Cooks by Tiffy Chen

Social media has changed how we read, write and publish.

Yet another example is Tiffy Chen, whose popular TikTok cooking and food sharing videos are now transformed into Tiffy Cooks, a cookbook featuring “88 easy Asian recipes from my family to yours”.

Chen was born and raised in Taiwan and relocated to Canada as a teenager.

Her recipes are for classic East Asian dishes, such as the tea eggs, daikon cake, stinky tofu, drunken chicken, three-cup chicken, and the famous “Taiwanese XXL fried chicken”.

These classics are turned into easy-to-make dishes using everyday ingredients yet retaining the original/traditional styles and tastes.

It is amazing that anyone at home can learn to make soy milk, chilli and garlic oils, steamed and pan-fried buns, sesame and peanut mochi, and

Live music, cabaret and bit of Bard Kemp’s curtain call

Burrinja Theatre

Nigel Wearne

Weaves blues, jazz, and American noir with a retro 60s vibe.

Backed by horns, Gretsch guitar, drums and double bass, he’s touring globally and played prestigious festivals.

His album The Reckoning earned a 2023 Music Victoria Award nomination and a 4-star review.

Season: Thursday 28 November at 8pm.

Venue: The Lyre.

The Round Theatre

Underground Cabaret –Belinda Hanne Reid

Described as the lovechild of Adele and Uta Lemper is coming to Underground Cabaret at The Round! A local powerhouse who will floor you with her stunning vocals, and make you giggle with delight at her daft humour. Belinda has been gracing stages in Australia and overseas for over two decades – she’s been a backing vocalist, a jazz singer, a leading lady and everything in between.

A mainstay of Melbourne’s cabaret circuit, she has written, directed and performed independent cabaret here and around the world, taking to the stage at Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Melbourne Comedy Festival, Midsumma Festival and many more.

Season: Friday 15 November at 8pm.

Melbourne Shakespeare Company Twelfth Night

This summer, Melbourne Shakespeare Company is presenting a dazzling musical reimagining of Shakespeare’s timeless comedy Twelfth Night.

Bringing new life to this classic tale, the production is infused with contemporary songs from pop icons including Bruno Mars, Backstreet Boys, Marvin Gaye, and many many more.

even the renowned “boba pearls” for milk tea.

The cookbook is divided into four parts, with Part One offering everyday recipes to be made in minimal time.

Part Two features dishes to be shared, while Part Three introduces a series of bulk-making, freezer-friendly recipes.

Part Four covers a variety of popular desserts and drinks.

Meanwhile, the author writes about the importance of food, through which we are connected to our roots and traditions.

It is thanks to our love of food that we recognise how similar we are and how our differences help enrich our lives.

The author further shares the stories and rich history behind each dish, including memories of family gathering and cooking with and for her parents and grandmother.

“Food is our love language. By cooking for each other, we are telling each other ‘I love you’.”

Without doubt, food unites generations and brings comfort to households and communities alike.

As Chen says, food “brings people together, regardless of language, background, and culture.

It can help you feel you’re a part of something, that you aren’t alone”.

This cookbook is for both home-based food lovers and those sojourning far away from home.

To borrow the author’s good words: “Let’s make some amazing meals together and say cheers to health and happiness.”

Melbourne Shakespeare Company has never been afraid to push the boundaries, challenging many of the stereotypes associated with traditional Shakespeare productions, making the work exciting and accessible for audiences for young and old.

This 90 minute production abridged production is no exception taking audiences on a whirlwind adventure of love and longing with plenty of laughter on the way. A note to parents: Twelfth Night is on the VCE English Text List for 2025 making it the perfect activity for students looking to get ahead. Guests are encouraged to pack a picnic and join the fun.

Seating is provided at the venue and protective sun wear is recommended for matinee performances.

Reserve your tickets now at melbourneshakespeare.com

Season: 6 – 22 December.

Venue: the Rose Garden St Kilda Botanical Gardens

Performance Times: 7pm daily with additional 3pm performances on Saturdays and Sundays.

Duration: 90 minutes, no interval.

REMEMBER:

• The 1912 Theatre Noises Off Season: 14 November – 7 December. Bookings: 9758 3964.

• The Lilydale Athenaeum theatre Little Women Season: 14 – 30 November. Bookings: 9735 1777.

• Eltham Little Theatre The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe Season: 15 – 30 November. Bookings: 0411 713 015

PUZZLES

To solve a Sudoku puzzle, every number from 1 to 9 must appear in: each of the nine vertical columns, each of the nine horizontal rows and each of the nine 3 x 3 boxes. Remember, no number can occur more than once in any row, column or box.

ACROSS

1 Roman numeral L (5)

4 Pain in a nerve pathway (9)

9 Recipe (7)

10 Emblematic of a clan or tribe (7)

11 Clean up (9)

12 Female name (5)

13 According to the style, – – mode (1,2)

14 Prioritising material possessions (11)

16 Unavoidably (11)

19 Scammed, 'I've been –' (coll) (3)

20 Before (5)

22 Evacuate (9)

25 Segment of prose book (7)

26 Gave away (7)

27 Dilapidation (9)

28 Opened (5) DOWN

1 Group who undermine from within, – column (5)

2 According to a known pattern rather than innovative (9)

3 Direct term of address to a group (coll) (5)

4 Tidiest (7)

5 Of sufficient quality (2,2,3)

6 Dictatorial rule (9)

7 Electromagnetic radiation, – rays (5)

8 Celebrated (9)

13 Declared (9)

14 Christmas plant (9)

15 Handed down (9)

17 Pyrenees country (7)

18 One with special knowledge (7)

21 Russian kings (5)

23 Vishnu worshipper (5)

24 Terminated (5)

No. 212

No. 211

DREAM COUNTRY LIVING IN KINGLAKE

DREAM COUNTRY LIVING IN KINGLAKE

ESCAPE to the scenic beauty of Kinglake with this fully renovated family home on a generous half-acre block. Perfectly positioned on a peaceful street, yet just a short stroll to local conveniences like the supermarket, cafe, pharmacy, and more. This home is ideal for those seeking a relaxed country lifestyle with modern comforts.

This stylish 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom home offers everything you need for comfortable living. The showpiece kitchen features highend appliances, including two dishwashers, a 900mm oven, stone benchtops, a spacious island bench, and exquisite piazza Italian tiles. The open-plan design flows seamlessly through the kitchen, living, and dining areas, complemented by a separate lounge for added flexibility. Enjoy the convenience of built-in

robes in all bedrooms, a European laundry, and luxurious details like a freestanding bath, wood heater, panel wall heaters, and energysaving double-glazed windows.

Step outside to an expansive deck perfect for entertaining, plus a range of sheds offering ample storage, including a studio with plumbing and a 7m x 9m machinery shed with insulation and power.

The remote-controlled front gate ensures security and privacy, while thoughtful upgrades such as concrete stumps, a drinkable spring water bore, and an aggregate driveway add to the home’s appeal.

Experience the serene, low-maintenance lifestyle you’ve been dreaming of.

Don’t miss out-schedule your inspection today at 10 The Ridge, Kinglake!

HOME FOCUS

EXQUISITE ACREAGE LIVING ON 16.8 ACRES

THIS picture-perfect property is set on a sprawling 16.8 acres, offering the ultimate blend of privacy, countryside tranquillity, and modern conveniences. The home is positioned at the top of a sweeping driveway, revealing sensational views of the rolling hills and pastures, stretching across the Great Dividing Range toward Kinglake. These postcard-perfect views and the beauty of regional living are unmatched.

The 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom brick veneer home has been cherished by only 2 owners over the last 25 years, and it’s easy to see why. Inside, the home features open plan living and meals with tall cathedral ceilings and freshly polished hardwood floors, creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere.

The country-style timber kitchen is perfect for the home chef, offering quality appliances, plenty of storage, and ample bench space. A wood heater and new reverse cycle split system ensure comfort throughout the year, no matter the season.

The spacious master bedroom is a true retreat with a walk-in robe and a private en suite. The two remaining bedrooms, located at the other end of the home for added privacy, both feature built-in robes and share access to the large family bathroom, which is conveniently located near the pool and verandah access.

Step outside to a beautifully maintained property with extensive improvements and features, including:

• Verandahs wrapping around the home, providing the perfect spot to enjoy the striking sunsets or just relax and take in the views.

• An in-ground swimming pool with new fencing, perfect for those warm summer days.

A newly constructed 8x15m shed with a concrete base and power, ideal for additional storage or a workshop.

• 4 dams, livestock shelters, and multiple paddocks, making this property perfect for horses or livestock.

• A 32-amp generator backup switch, ensuring power reliability, along with new LED lighting and a new oven.

• 90,000L water tank plus 2 additional water tanks for a reliable water supply, a widened driveway, and improved fencing for added security and functionality.

With the house freshly repainted, updated fixtures and fittings, and ample storage, this property is ready for you to move in and enjoy.

Whether you’re looking to explore nearby national parks, riding trails, or the Yarra Valley’s wineries, this idyllic rural setting offers the peace of the countryside without sacrificing proximity to conveniences

IMPECCABLE LIFESTYLE PROPERTY ON 5 ACRES

LOOKING for your dream lifestyle property?

Few homes offer the charm and quality of this stunning log cabin on 5 serene acres. Nestled on a private country road, this 4-bedroom, 2-bathroom gem is ready to welcome its next family.

With exposed brick walls, high ceilings, and stunning beams, the character of this home is truly unmatched. The expansive layout features two distinct living zones: a cozy living room with a fireplace and floor-to-ceiling windows, and an open-plan kitchen and dining area, perfect for gatherings. The heart of the home is the beautifully equipped kitchen with a large Smeg oven, Caesarstone countertops, and an island that is perfect for entertaining.

Wake up in the master bedroom retreat to breathtaking views of the Great Dividing Range and Mount St Leonard, complemented by a private ensuite with a double shower and a spacious walk-in robe. The additional bedrooms are complete with built-in robes, and the light-filled main bathroom features a freestanding bath and walk-in shower.

This property also boasts ample shedding, ideal for storage or hobbies, with a 6m x 12m shed, a 6m x 9m shed, a 7m x 9.5m shed, and a small workshop. The beautifully landscaped gardens provide the perfect setting for any avid gardener.

Located conveniently close to Yarra Glen and Kinglake, this home offers the perfect blend of rural charm and modern conveniences. Arrange your private inspection today and see why this home is truly one of a kind.

HOME FOCUS

YOUR PERFECT RETREAT: ELEGANT AND CONVENIENT

WELCOME to this beautifully designed, newly renovated 4-bedroom home, where wide inviting steps lead to a charming veranda and entry point, setting the tone for elegance and warmth throughout.

Inside, the home offers a private principal bedroom, complete with an en-suite, and spacious walk-in robe and external access. Each further bedroom is equipped with built in robes, large windows and plush carpets, while the full family bathroom enhances convenience and style. At the heart of the home, a thoughtfully renovated kitchen showcases premium features, including a 900mm ILVE oven, expansive stone benchtops, farmhouse sink, and a bifold servery window that opens seamlessly to the alfresco dining area—ideal for effortless entertaining. The open plan layout of this charming home enhances social interaction and maximises natural light, as it draws you from entry through the lounge, dining, second living and beautiful outside entertaining areas. A cozy wood fire, gas ducted heating, split systems throughout, and new plush carpeting

in every bedroom create a warm and inviting atmosphere.

Beyond the interiors, the property boasts an impressive array of external features.  A double extra-high carport accommodates caravans and floats with ease, while a single garage with internal access, plus additional off-street parking for another two vehicles adds convenience. In the backyard, a covered patio and powered pergola allow for all-year alfresco dining. Also to be enjoyed are an outdoor fireplace with seating, ample lawn space for the family to enjoy, a sandpit, veggie garden, and a low maintenance garden, making this the perfect yard to enjoy a relaxed and effortless lifestyle. There is also a powered garden shed for ample storage and tinkering, and a rainwater tank to service the garden. Adding character to the outdoor space, a charming aviary and chicken coop completes this home’s appeal, offering a tranquil retreat for relaxation and hobbies alike.

This property is not just a home; it’s a refined lifestyle, crafted with comfort, style, and versatility in mind

HOME FOCUS

ENCHANTING STORYBOOK HOME

THIS captivating 4.9Acre property offers a storybook timber home, surrounded by lush greenery and designed with a unique split-level layout that combines warmth, elegance and practicality. Enter via the horseshoe driveway and find yourself immersed by a welcoming 4-bedroom, 3-bathroom home.

The open plan kitchen, living and dining space is the heart of the home, equipped with a spacious walk-in butler’s pantry, timber benchtops, abundant storage, while a window above the sink frames a view of the deck, perfect for entertaining, and the lush, treed landscape beyond, a large gas oven also provides hydronic heating throughout the home. The sunken lounge invites relaxation, featuring an open fireplace and large windows that fill the space with natural light, creating an inviting ambiance for quiet evenings. A large study, complete with ample desk space and storage, provides an ideal environment for working from home or as a creative retreat.

Ascend the carpeted staircase to discover the serene master suite, where tall ceilings, walk in robe, and a private ensuite combine comfort and charm. Two additional bedrooms on this level are accompanied by a central bathroom. An open lounge area overlooks the lower lounge, adding to the airy and interconnected design of the home. A second staircase leads down to the lower level, with a spacious bedroom with ensuite that includes a luxurious spa bath, alongside a private lounge area that could serve as a guest retreat or a quiet hideaway. Two studio/workshop areas, each with outside access, provide ample space for hobbies, art, or practical uses.

Outside, this property transforms into a gardeners dream with a network of pathways and steps winding through. A potting shed and stocked woodshed add practical touches, while the surrounding landscape, mature trees and lush plantings provide a tranquil and secluded haven.

With its charming details, timeless exposed beams, and spaces designed for comfort, this property is more than a home – it’s a retreat into a serene, rustic lifestyle that celebrates both nature and craftmanship.

Call to arrange a private inspection today. Please note: All property details shown are correct at time of publishing. Some properties may have been sold in the preceding 24 hours and we recommend that you confirm open for inspection times with the listing agent direct or the listing office.

3SummitAvenueEmerald $1,150,000 -$1,250,000

ImmaculateCharacterHomewithScenicSurroundings! NestledinthesuburbofEmerald,isthis2,639sqmproperty.Youaregreetedby abrightentryway withpolishedfloorboards,leadingtotheopenplanlounge/diningarea,withwoodfire.The homealsohasGDH &evaporativecoolingthroughout.Frenchdoorsopenfromtheloungetoa sunnyverandah.Thekitchen,with adoublewalloven,gasstovetop, &largewalk-inpantry.The outstandingfeatureisthegenerousislandbenchfittedwithStonebenchtops.Theadjoininglounge areaopenstoa spaciousundercoverdeck.Themasterbedroomwithbaywindows,WIR &ensuite. 2additionalbedroomsbothwithBIR,centralbathroom,& study/4thbedroom.Outside,a double carport,underhousestoragewitha workshop,a 60,000Lwatertank.

SamanthaScott M 0438680032

DoubleStorey 3BedHome,EntertainersDream! ThisCharmingdoublestoreyhomeinOlinda,seton aspacious1124sqmblock,combinescomfort withelegance.Thepropertyfeaturesaninvitingundercoververandahthatleadstotheentryway. Inside,thereare3 carpetedbedroomswithBIR,themasterwithensuite.Themainleveloffersan expansiveopen-planlounge,dining,kitchenarea.Solidtimberflooring,largewindows&awood heater,complementedbyGDHthroughoutaswellasductedS/Stothebedrooms.Theentertainer’s kitchenincludesbeautifultimberbenchtops,abundanceofstorage &qualitystainlesssteeloven& dishwasher.Stepdirectlyfromthekitchenontothedeck.A staircaseleadsdownto alargerumpus/ theatreroomwithstylishfloatingtimberflooring,gaslogfire.Largebi-foldglassdoorsopenouttoan additionaloutdoorarea.Thehomealsoofferspracticalunder-housestorage.

Bright &Spacious,WalktoEverything! Situatedon aspaciouselevated1015sqmblockona peacefulnothroughroad.Witha full-length frontverandah,thissplit-levelhome,withhighcathedralceilings &largewindows.Thelowerlevel contains 2livingareas,theloungeroomwithwoodfire,s/s,aswellasGDHthroughout, &separate openplandiningroom,kitchen &familyroom.Thekitchenisequippedwithanintegratedoven, largepantry, &D/W.Upa fewsteps,thesecondlevelhas acarpetedhallwayleadingtothemaster bedroomwithdoubleBIR& accesstothetwo-waybathroomwithseparatetoilet.Attheotherend ofthehallway,2 carpetedbedrooms,eachwithBIR. Alaundrywith aseparatetoiletisalsolocated onthislevel.Outside,under-housestorage,gardensoutthefront.Therearyardisprivate,hasa gardenshed &plentyofspaceforkids& petstoplay &3kWsolar.

NeatLowMaintenance &ReadytoMovein!

$550,000-$600,000

Thisimmaculate 3bedroom,1 bathroomunithasplentytooffer& only ashortwalkintoGembrook. Thekitchenfeaturesplentyofbenchspace,2 goodsizedpantries& s/swallmountedelectricoven, gasstovetop& D/W.Openplanliving& dining,withtiledflooring,GDH& S/Scoolingthroughout. Theunitoffers alarge,carpetedmasterbedroomwithBIR& en-suiteeffecttomainbathroom,2 furthercarpetedbedroomsalsowithBIR &secondarypowderroom.Slidingdoorsfromthedining arealeadtotheoutdoorstoa lowmaintenancegarden &paved,fullyfencedcourtyard.Withrear externalaccesstothesinglelockupgarage,withremotedoor &internalaccess.Ifyouarelooking todownsize,thisover55’sunitistheperfectplacetocallhome.

BethanySullivan M 0438844968

3 A 1 B 1 C

1 ¼ ACRES OF FAMILY ENJOYMENT

TRAILING the beautiful Monbulk Creek as its boundary, this outstanding lifestyle property offers not only a 1 ¼ acres of tranquillity, but also an exceptional location that allows for convenience and an easy commute.

Within walking distance to the Belgrave Heights Christian School and only a stone’s throw from the popular walking paths of Birdsland Reserve, this three bedroom, family home offers something for everyone. Open plan in its design, the floorplan has been well designed for a spacious layout. A large lounge room with near new wood fire adjoins the relaxed meals area which is ideal for families of all sizes while an extra TV nook / music retreat can be found off the oversized kitchen and offers another living zone for those that are needing that bit more space. With gas ducted heating throughout along with multiple split systems and the cosy fireplace, there are certainly no concerns about being warm throughout the Winter months, and you will also enjoy the cool breeze of Spring as you sit out and take in the glorious rear yard from the beautiful timber verandah that boasts a builtin spa for year round enjoyment.

A separate home office will be a huge bonus for those that work from home: Located under the house, it is the ideal room to concentrate, create or construct – Whatever it is you wish to do!

Outside is just magic with the rear yard rolling gently towards the creek and with plenty of flat / useable area, making this property a dream come true for any child.

A double carport can be found at the front of the property whilst a double garage/shed at the rear is the perfect storage option or workshop.

Only minutes from both Belgrave and Tecoma train stations and with great access to Burwood Hwy, this property offers the lifestyle that you have been looking for.

LARGE ACREAGE BLISS WITH PEACE AND PRIVACY

ADMIRE and enjoy the amazing views all year round at this superb property, situated on just over 36 picturesque acres with a mix of undulating pasture and a bush setting it’s sure to impress.

If you’re looking for the relaxed rural lifestyle with peace, privacy and picturesque surrounds this could be the one.

The classic rustic mudbrick home is warm and inviting and has all the charm and ambience of a country escape offering 4 bedrooms plus an office/study area.

The spacious lounge/living areas offer great space for the whole family and it’s the perfect spot to sit back and enjoy the fantastic valley views.

A separate meals/dining area has ample space for the growing family plus a large kitchen area and a very impressive combustion style oven and hotplate.

Venture outside and you are spoilt for space and ideas with acres and acres to explore and enjoy.

Ample car, trailer, truck or caravan accommodation with a large barn and loads of extra room to move, a blank canvas ready and waiting to create the ideal country lifestyle. It’s a great place to call home.

Thiswillbe ajoytolivein!

Welcometoa spacious,lightfilledsanctuarynestledina quietspotwitha beautifulbabbling“ WalkersCreek”meanderingthrough.Thespaciouskitchenanddiningareaflowseamlesslyinto alargeundercoverdeck,makingitidealforentertainingwithfriendswhileenjoyingtheserenity. Thisversatilehomeboaststhreegenerousbedrooms,plus astudyornurseryorhomeoffice.Two stylishbathroomsandbeautifulwindowvistasthroughoutenhancethesenseofspaciousnessand tranquillity.Offstreetparking, alock-upgarage/workshoparea,there’sampleroomforvehicles. Whetheryou’reseekinga weekendgetawayor aforeverhome,thisstunningpropertypromisesa lifestyleofcomfort,beauty,andconnectiontonature.Don’tmissyourchancetomakethisunique homeyourreality!

SereneMountainRetreatwithStunningViewsandLushGardens Thischarminghomeoffers arareopportunityforsomeonetofallinlovewitha tranquilretreat, perfectasa weekendgetawayor apeacefulpermanentresidence.Thehomeboaststhree bedrooms,eachwithpicturesquewindowsthatcapturethebeautyofthesurroundings.The spaciouskitchenisperfectforcookingenthusiasts,featuring alargeoven,dishwasher,andplenty ofcounterspace.Anupdatedfamilybathroom,separatetoilet,anda laundrywithamplestorage completethemainlevel.Downstairs,you’llfind aversatilespace,idealfor ahomeoffice,studio,or hobbyroom,alongwith agenerousworkshopandadditionalstorage.Thestunninggardenswrap aroundthehome,offering apeacefulretreatthatfeelslikeyourownprivatesanctuary.Conveniently located,thisdelightfulhomeofferstheperfectblendofserenityandaccessibility. 54DonnaBuangRoad,Warburton$670,000 -$720,000 RebeccaDoolan M 0401832068 Inspection: Sat11 -11.30am

StunningHomewithBreathtakingMountainViews

Thisbeautifullypresentedhomeoffersbreathtakingmountainviews,mastersuiteboastsa walkinrobeandensuite,makingita perfectsanctuary.Invitingloungefeaturesa centralfireplace, newlyrenovatedwithmoderntonesandqualityflooringthroughout, Alargekitchenwithupdated appliances &adjacenttotheopendiningareaanda convenientstudynook.Thebedroomsoffer newcarpets,shutters &splitsystemairconditioningensuringyear-roundcomfort.Stepoutsideto discover alargeundercoverarea,including adoublegarage,lovelyareaoutsideforentertainingor simplyenjoyingtheoutdoors.Don’tmissthisopportunitytoown asliceofparadisewithspectacular viewsandallwithinaneasystrollofthepristineYarrariverandcharmoftheWarburtontownship.

VACANTLAND

17BrisbaneHillRd,Warburton -780sq.mbeautiful views,clearlevelspotidealforbuilding,shortstrollto theYarrariver.$360,000- $390,000

10HillviewSt,YarraJunction -477sq.mLandwith planningpermit,walkingdistancetoschools,transport &GladysdaleBakehouse.$275,000

1494WarburtonHwy,WooriYallock –1950sq.m,just under1/2acre,closetofacilities,railtrailandshops. $499,950

100WaresRd,Wesburn -17.78acres,mainlyclear, amazingYarraValleyviews, greataccesstorailtrail& sportsfacilities$885,000- $965,000

15LyrebirdAve,EastWarburton -4046sq.m,justover anacre,fullyfenced,closetotheRedwoodForest andpublictransport.$350,000

Seeourwebsiteformorelandlistings... bellrealestate.com.au

SPORT

Tough time for Mounters

A tough weekend for the Mt Evelyn Cricket Club as they could only convert two of their six senior games into victories.

The Community Bank - Mt Evelyn 1st XI hosted last season’s grand finalists, South Warrandyte, in a key clash after a run of outs. Mt Evelyn were asked to bowl first and a young opening bowling pair of Kynan Yates and Billie Laird kept things tight early but were unable to make early inroads into the Hawks batting line up. Gun pair, Fraser Day and Morgan Persson-Clark put together a patient 94 run partnership, but also ensured the scoreboard ticked over.

At 1/120 in the 25th over, the visitors were set for a late onslaught on a hefty total. Jamie Shaw would momentarily halt proceedings as he collected three wickets in a probing spell of bowling including the wickets of Day (48) and Persson-Clark (65) before the pair could put icing on their earlier work. Although Shaw’s breakthroughs provided a speed bump for the Hawks, the platform had been set and the visitors’ middle order cashed in. In the final ten overs of the innings, the middle order bats of Sean McMahon, Darcy Harris and Cayden Skien plundered the bowling for 97 runs, and blew the total out to an imposing 5/246. Shaw was the pick of the bowlers with 3/46, whilst Yates and Laird held their own in keeping things tight early.

Mt Evelyn openers Campbell Mole and Troy Hancock made a blistering start to the innings scoring 47 runs off the first five overs to shock the team into some action. Unfortunately for the home side, the pair would be dismissed within an over of each other with a lot to play out. The blistering start, however, had put the Hawks on the back foot, and it allowed the Mounters top order to con-

tinue to move the score forward, and at 3/122 at the halfway mark of their innings, the Mounters would’ve been satisfied with how the innings had progressed. Daniel Giblin and Jesse Fraser were the mainstays at the crease, and if either of them could kick on, the Mounters had victory at their beckoning.

As has been the case for the Mounters this season, they couldn’t capitalise on another key moment. Giblin would fall in the over after the break, and the innings would stall disastrously. Inexplicably, the home side would lose 4/24, whilst the run rate was dulled, leaving the Mounters a monumental task over the closing overs. Jett Hartman would blast his way to a brisk half century, giving a glimmer of hope, but the task become all too grand as the innings would be wrapped up with the fall of Hartman with the score at 207.

The Professionals Outer East 2nd XI slipped to a close loss to Seville last round and were keen to atone as they travelled to Bayswater Park. Mt Evelyn won the toss and elected to put a score on the board as they did last week. Openers Adam Smith and Brad Westaway looked to emulate their efforts from last round as they compiled an excellent century partnership. Cautiously they approached the opening overs, but when it was time to gather some momentum, the pit lost their wickets and with the loss of Chris Morrow shortly after, the team was left in a little hole at 3/36 after 15 overs.

Entrusted with resurrecting the innings, and gathering some momentum, Luke Paterson and Mike Mawson would be able to do both as they would keep their wickets intact and push the score along with a little more freedom. The pair would put on a partnership of 72 runs before Paterson

would fall, just short of posting an excellent half century. Mawson would plough on at nearly a run a ball, leaving the team an opportunity to boost their total over the closing overs. Wickets would fall regularly in the pursuit of quick runs and when Mawson fell for 61, in the 36th over, the innings would be quickly wrapped up with the score on 163. This total looked a little light on at the change of innings, but with early wickets it could quickly become a challenging chase.

The Sharks’ innings took similar path to that of the Mt Evelyn innings. Gun opening bowlers Caleb Hrabe and Bohdie Jones would press the opposition bats with an extra yard of pace making runs hard to come by. With stout resistance, the top order would keep their wickets intact and they would successfully navigate the opening spell with the loss of just one wicket. As is so often the case, with the shackles released, and an opportunity to ramp up the run rate, Brad Westaway would chime in with a wicket to give the visitors some ascendency in this arm wrestle. Experienced paring of Brendan Trump and Michael DiManno would reset the chase and would grand their team back into the chase, as Paterson and Mawson did for their opponents.

The difference would be the closing overs of the innings. DiManno would stay at the crease until the total was reached, and he wouldn’t lose partners as rapidly as the visitors did over the closing overs. In the end, the total would be reached with five wickets in hand and a couple of overs in the bank. With Hrabe and Jones being the most economical of the bowlers, it would be captain Shane Laird who would be the wicket taker as he finished with figures of 3/31.

The Rhead Group 3rd XI finally found a home at Gruyere Reserve and they hosted Heathwood in their round five clash. Heathwood took the opportunity to put a score on the board, and in an even contribution, they batted out their overs to score 9/163. Sam Vanhoogstraten was the pick of the bowlers with 3/36, whilst Aussie Leonard was economical up front.

The required run rate of the chase provided few issues for the Mounters, however the ability to build partnerships and keep wickets intact proved more problematic. The home side always looked destined to reach the total in quick time, but the continuous fall of wickets left the chase in a hole in which the team never extracted themselves from. In the end, the Mounters would fall 26 runs short of their target with nearly 13 overs still in the bank. A loss the Mounters might rue. Kadyn Newport (31) and Vanhoogstraten (26) would make useful contributions with the bat, but it just wasn’t enough.

In the lower grades, the Hop Hen Brewing 4th XI would clasp a victory from the jaws of defeat after looking like they would fall short in their pursuit of a target of 216. Jonathan Brew would be the pick of the bowlers taking 5/38. The 5th XI would come out on the better side of the ledger for their second tight finish in consecutive weeks. Mt Evelyn would post 4/187 on the back of unbeaten half centuries to Craig Kenins and Alastair Churchill, whilst a blistering 30 not out from captain Jason Dunstone added cream to the finish. The Flowtec 6th XI would find an experienced Warranwood outfit too tough to overcome and were subsequently soundly beaten.

Solomons smashes 85 off 59, dramatic tie for fourths

By Les Hutchings

Kilsyth’s First XI played Lilydale in Round 5 of the Trollope Shield competition. Kilsyth won the toss and sent Lilydale in to bat first in the one-day 40 overs per side fixture.

Lilydale lost their first wicket when left arm opening bowler Kamal Kuruppu had Mitch Ebeyer caught behind by Captain Marcus Adams for 16 off 24 balls (3 fours). The very next ball Adams took another catch behind the stumps and Kuruppu was on a hat-trick at the end of the 7th over and Lilydale were 2/23.

At the start of Kuruppu’s next over, a loud appeal for lbw was turned down on the hat-trick ball. However, Kuruppu picked up another wicket (lbw) at the end of the 9th over and Lilydale were 3/30. At drinks, Lilydale had progressed to 3/74 after 20 overs with opener Jarryd Gaskin 37 not out and Angus Adamson 10 not out. After drinks, they took the score to 114 in a steadying 84 run partnership when Gaskin, who had hit two sixes in the previous over, was caught by Mackenzie Scott-Thomas at mid-wicket off the third ball of leg spinner Jack Childs’ first over for 57 off 72 balls, including 7 fours and 2 sixes.

At that stage Adamson was on 30 not out. At the end of the 28th over, Lilydale were now 4/117 and looking to continue to increase the run rate. Lachlan Volpe made a quickfire 25 off 21 balls (2 fours and 1 six) before being caught by Scott Nicholson at deep square leg off the bowling of left arm spinner Uvindu Wimaladharma, which saw Lilydale 5/158 in the 34th over. Lilydale lost their sixth and seventh wickets on 184 when Andy Solomons took two wickets with the first three balls of the 37h over. Angus Adamson was the first of the two wickets, well caught by Pasan Ganegoda at mid-wicket for a top score of 60 off 82 balls (6 fours and 1 six). After 38 overs Lilydale had reached 7/190. Ten runs came from the second last over and 11 from the last over when Kamal Kuruppu took a brilliant catch off Wimaladharma to see Lilydale finish on 8/211cc off their allotted 40 overs. At the close of the innings, Edward Saunders was an enterprising 33 not out off 17 balls (2 fours and 1 six). For Kilsyth, Kamal Kuruppu was the outstanding bowler capturing 3/20 off 8 overs. Other wicket takers were Andy Solomons 2/42 off 8 overs, Uvindu Wimaladharma 2/58 from 8 overs and Jack Childs 1/13 off 2 overs. After the tea break, Kilsyth openers Kevin Baldsing and Jack Childs set about the run chase with an opening partnership of 59 in 16.3 overs when Jack was bowled by Lachlan Volpe for 29 off 56 balls (2 fours). This brought Andy Solomons to the crease and he cover drove the third ball he faced for four. At drinks Kilsyth were 1/79 off 20 overs with Baldsing on 33 not out and Solomons on 9 not out. The

match was evenly poised as Lilydale had been 3/74 at the same stage in their innings.

The second wicket partnership of 55 came to an end when Baldsing was caught on the boundary at deep square leg by Lachlan Volpe off the bowling of Shifran Muthaliph. He had made a solid 37 off 65 balls, including five boundaries. A run out from a throw by Karan Singh to Muthaliph at the bowler’s end in the same 27th over saw Kilsyth now 3/114 with Andy Solomons on 37 not out. Kilsyth needed around 7.5 runs per over off the last 13 overs.

The run rate increased with Solomons striking the ball with power and precision but wickets also fell: 4/160 and then 5/171 in the 34th over when Andy Solomons was caught on the boundary for a magnificent 85 off 59 balls, including 8 fours and 6 sixes, off the bowling of Daniel Thompson.

Kilsyth lost their sixth wicket (bowled by Volpe) on 176, and the seventh (run out) on 187 in the 36th over. After 37 overs it was 7/194 and then 12 runs came from the 38th over to see Kilsyth 7/206 with 2 overs remaining. Uvindu Wimaladharma 23 not out off 15 balls (3 fours) and Kamal Kuruppu 7 not out off 8 balls (1 four) got the Rebacks over the line in the 39th over when Uvindu struck a boundary with 8 balls to spare. For Lilydale, spinner Lachlan Volpe was the multiple wicket taker with 2/45 off 8 overs, whilst Shifran Muthaliph 1/22 off 8 overs and Daniel Thompson 1/36 off 7.4 overs, both bowled well. It was Kilsyth First XI’s second win in a row to lift them to fifth spot on the ladder. A special welcome to Sudhir Prabhu who played his first match for Kilsyth after coming out from England during the week.

The Second XI won the toss and elected to bat against Warrandyte at Alan Smith Oval, Pinks Reserve. After being 1/27, a second wicket partner-

ship of 89 between Daniel Caton and Will Beard ended when Caton, playing in his 200th senior game for Kilsyth CC, was caught off the bowling of Cohen Croft for an excellent 50 off 81 balls (4 fours).

Congratulations to Daniel Caton who passed his 5000 senior runs milestone for Kilsyth during this innings. Will Beard was the third wicket to fall with the score on 135, bowled by Croft for 42 off 90 balls (3 fours). Kilsyth finished on 4/158 cc with Hayden Plaming on 18 not out off 15 balls (2 fours) and Captain Matthew Coghlan 8 not out off 10 balls.

The best of Warrandyte’s bowlers were Cohen Croft, 3/41 off 7 overs, and Jayden Clay 1/10 off 8 overs (3 maidens). After the first wicket fell on 0, bowled by Daniel Caton, an unbroken second wicket partnership of 161 between Captain Luke Warren 88 not out off 94 balls (13 fours), and Jack Ellis 63 not out off 106 balls (5 fours and 1 six), enabled Warrandyte to achieve a comfortable victory in 33.1 overs. Daniel Caton, with 1/17 off 6 overs, was the sole wicket taker for Kilsyth.

The Third XI journeyed down to the picturesque Yarra Junction Oval, won the toss and elected to bowl. An opening partnership of 35 for Yarra Junction came to an end when Ryan Carter was bowled by Matthew Burgess for 28 off 28 balls (6 fours). A 76 run second wicket partnership between Jack Jenkinson and Cam Bell set the Junction up for a good score. Bell was the second wicket to fall, caught by Kilsyth Captain Robert Hutchings off the bowling of Kasun Ekanayake for 37 off 62 balls (5 fours).

At that stage, Yarra Junction were 2/111 off 24 overs. The third wicket fell in the next over, bowled by Trent Potter and the Junction were now 3/112. However, a 77 run fourth wicket partnership between Jack Jenkinson, 58 off 91 balls (4 fours), and Dillon Kerr, resulted in Yarra Junction progressing to 4/189 after 38 overs. They then added 18 off the last two overs to finish on 4/207cc with Kerr on 58 not out off 55 balls (7 fours). Wicket takers for Kilsyth were Matthew Burgess 2/42 off 8 overs, Trent Potter 1/21 off 3 overs and Kasun Ekanayake 1/27 off 5 overs.

After losing an early wicket on 15, Joel Harris and Kasun Ekanayake put on 58 for the second wicket when Ekanayake was unfortunately run out in the 16th over for 28 off 48 balls (3 fours). When Joel Harris was caught behind for 33 off 53 balls (4 fours), the score was now 3/82 off 21 overs. Then the Redbacks lost regular wickets: 4/100, 5/108 and 6/126 (after 29 overs). Mark Unternahrer and Matthew Burgess then lifted the score to 7/160 when Burgess was bowled by Blayden Steedman for a bright 20 off 16 balls (4 fours), with Unternahrer on 25 not out. Mark Unternahrer, who had batted well,

was the next wicket to fall, caught at deep midwicket for a dashing 41 off 33 balls (7 fours and 1 six). Kilsyth were now 8/183 after 35 overs.

Unfortunately, the last two wickets were run outs and KIlksyth was dismissed for 199 in 38.5 overs, 9 runs short of victory with still 7 balls unutilised. Yarra Junction’s best bowlers were Tyler Reed, 3/21 off 8 overs (2 maidens), Angus Gelly 2/45 off 8 overs and Blayden Steedman 1/20 off 6 overs.

The Fourth XI had an amazing game at home on Roy Baldwin Oval against St Andrews who won the toss and elected to bat. In his third over, Michael Sturt took two wickets in three balls to have St Andrews 2/14 after 5 overs. Wickets fell regularly at 3/56, 4/95, 5/110, and 6/117 in the 27th over. However, a 54 run seventh wicket partnership between opener Matthew Woodward and Brodie Rollings helped St Andrews get to a competitive score. Woodward was run out by Captain Anthony Sequeira for a top score of 74 (5 fours and 2 sixes). When Rollings was caught off the bowling of Sequeira for 26 (3 fours), St. Andrews had reached 8/176 off 35 overs. The last over saw an additional 8 runs added for the loss of one wicket with the Saints on 9/184cc and Cameron Riley 14 not out (2 fours). Chief wicket takers for Kilsyth were Michael Sturt 2/18 off 7 overs (1 maiden), and Kyle Galea 2/30 off 5 overs. Hayden Monds, 1/27 off 6 overs, Mark Rollings 1/29 off 5 overs and Tait Harper 1/29 off 3 overs, were the other wicket takers.

In the run chase, Kilsyth lost early wickets 1/27, 2/28, 3/29, 4/56, and 5/67 in the 18th over. However, a 75 run sixth wicket partnership between Michael Sturt and Matthew Harper gave the team hope. Sturt was caught off the bowling of Muhammad Ishtiaq for a well-made 45 (7 fours). Next ball Kilsyth lost another wicket and were now 7/142 in the 30th over with Matthew Harper 39 not out. When the eighth wicket fell on162 after 32.2 overs, Harper had progressed to 55 not out, and Kilsyth needed 23 runs to win with two wickets in hand, and 3.4 overs remaining. Thirteen more runs were added for the ninth wicket when Matthew Harper was caught for 64 (10 fours) in the second last over. With the last two batsmen at the crease, Kilsyth needed 10 to win off 9 balls. The over finished with a dot, then a two and a four to last man in Brett Woodward. Kilsyth now needed 4 runs to win with one over remaining. Two singles were scored off the first 5 balls of the last over leaving two runs needed off the last ball. However, Kilsyth could only manage to get a single, leaving scores tied at the end of the match. The interesting fact about this is that Kilsyth’s Hayden Monds, who played in the match, also played in a tie for Kilsyth U16-1’s in the morning on the same day! This is certainly a Club record!

Andy Solomons

Hard, but three from three

By John Thomson

On Monday 4 November the Lilydale Division 1 croquet team hosted the team from Kew.

Lilydale’s team this week was John Thomson and Murray Howlett.

In the doubles John and Murray got off to a good start and had the first four hoops before Kew won their first. Kew then started to work back into the game and then it was 5 all then 6 all, so the 13th hoop had to be played to decide the winner. This hoop was a battle then Kew placed their ball in the hoop only to have Lilydale do a nice jump shot to win the game, 7 hoops to Kew 6 hoops.

John played in the first singles. He struggled early which gave his opponent a head start. Eventually John ran a couple of hoops but he was no match for his better credentialled opponent. Kew 7 hoops to Lilydale 3 hoops.

Murray played in the next singles. Murray started well and was able to dictate most of the play and continually put his opponent under pressure. Lilydale 7 hoops to Kew 3 hoops.

At the lunch break the scores were Lilydale 2 games 17 hoops to Kew 1 game 16 hoops. This game was going to go down to the wire.

John played first up after lunch. This game was tight with both players failing to run hoops they would normally get. John just got his nose in front on the eleventh hoop and the Kew placed their ball in the 12th hoop only to have Lilydale do a jump to win the game, 7 hoops to Kew 5 hoops.

In the last game Murray played. Murray was playing well but his opponent ran a couple of nice long hoops to get a break and then go on and win 7 hoops to Lilydale 4 hoops.

The final score for the day was Lilydale 3 games 28 hoops to Kew 2 games 28 hoops. A very close hard fought game.

Lilydale’s Division 2 team this week travelled to Kew.

The team comprised Alan Jones, Mick Crawley and Kerri McCracken.

Alan and Mick played first in the doubles. Alan and Mick started well and were able to control most of the game by keeping their opponents away from the hoops. Lilydale 7 hoops to Kew 3 hoops.

Kerri played in the first singles. Both players were doing well, then the Kew player was able to run consecutive hoops and set up a break winning 7 hoops to Lilydale 4 hoops.

Mick played in the next singles. This game was almost a carbon copy of the previous singles game, with the Kew player able to set up a break and be able to hold it to win 7 hoops to Lilydale 4 hoops.

At the lunch break the scores were Kew 2 games 17 hoops to Lilydale 1 game 15 hoops. With two games to play after lunch Lilydale had the job in front of them.

Kerri played in the next game. Again, this was another tight game with neither player able to get the ascendancy. Then late in the game Kerri was able to run a nice long hoop and get a small break and go on to win 7 hoops to Kew 5 hoops.

This win evened up the score with 2 games a piece and 22 hoops a piece, so it was all down to the last game to see which team would win the day

Team captain Alan Jones played in the decider. No player was giving an inch in this game as players traded hoops and cleared their opponents balls trying to set up a break, eventually something had to give and it was the Kew player that faulted and let Alan in to take the win in a close one 7 hoops to Kew 5 hoops. A terrific captain’s win.

Final scores Lilydale 3 games 29 hoops Kew 2 games 27 hoops.

This win keeps the Lilydale Division 2 team firmly on top of the ladder. Lilydale are 2 tests, 10 games and 47 hoops in front of second place with one week to play.

On Thursday the Lilydale handicap team travelled down Maroondah Highway to play Ringwood.

This week the Lilydale team comprised

Murray Howlett, Kerri McCracken and Murray McLean. Murray McLean is a relatively new player and has been playing well at club level, so this week he has stepped up to play his first game of competition.

Kerri played the first singles game. Kerri’s opponent was starting with a 1 hoop disadvantage. Kerri got away to a blistering start and at no time did she allow her opponent to get a look in and went on to have a remarkable 7 hoops to 0 win.

In the first of the doubles the two Murray’s, Howlett and McLean, teamed up. Lilydale were starting with a 2 hoop disadvantage. This game was quite close, but Lilydale worked their way into the game making up their 2 hoop disadvantage and taking the lead and eventually winning 7 hoops to Ringwood 5 hoops.

Murray McLean played in the next singles.

Neither player had any advantage in this game. For his first singles game in competition Murray was doing very well and kept out positioning his opponent and went on to win 7 hoops to Ringwood 3 hoops. A great start to what I am sure will be a positive future playing competition.

In the next doubles Murray Howlett and Kerri teamed up. Ringwood were starting with a 1 hoop advantage while Lilydale had a 1 hoop disadvantage. Ringwood started the game well, while the Lilydale pair struggled to run hoops and make up ground with Ringwood going on to win 7 hoops to Lilydale 3 hoops.

At the Lunch break the scores were Lilydale 3 games 24 hoops to Ringwood 1 game 15 hoops. With two games to play either team could win. Kerri played in the last singles game for the day. Kerri was starting with a 1 hoop disadvantage. Kerri struggled to make up the disadvantage while the Ringwood player was playing well. Kerri started to come good late in the game but the Ringwood player held on to win 7 hoops to Lilydale 4 hoops.

With one game to play Lilydale still had their noses in front, just.

The last game was a doubles and the two Murray’s teamed up again. Ringwood had a 1 hoop advantage. Both teams got off to a good start. It took a while for Lilydale to catch up Ringwood’s advantage but they did and it was then hoop for hoop and after the 12th hoop it was 6 hoops each with the 13th hoop to decide the winner. Ringwood was able to set their balls up better than Lilydale and were then able to run the hoop winning 7 hoops to Lilydale 6 hoops.

The final scores for the day were Lilydale 3 games 34 hoops to Ringwood 3 games 29 hoops.

This win puts the Lilydale handicap team firmly in top spot. Lilydale are 3 tests, 16 games and a massive 84 hoops ahead of second place with one week to play.

Chirnside Park code convert Uhr-Henry becomes Hawk

A Chirnside Parkian is the newest Hawthorn Football Club rookie recruit, seeing him switch codes to potentially play at the professional level.

Jaime Uhr-Henry, 21, is known for his skill on the basketball court playing for both the Bulleen Boomers and the Dandenong Rangers in NBL One.

But the 209cm tall Uhr-Henry has been scouted by the Hawks as a potential ruck in a category B rookie pick up for the 2025 season.

“Standing at 209cm, Jaime clearly has some exciting physical traits, along with his professional basketball background we believe his progression will be one to watch,” Hawthorn national recruiting and list manager Mark McKenzie said.

“They don’t grow on trees, those types of guys.”

Heading back to his roots, the former East Ringwood junior footballer reportedly hasn’t played a game of football since under-17 level

but still attracted the attention of the Hawks.

Uhr-Henry has spent some time training with Sam Mitchell’s squad at Waverley Park

over the last couple of months, bringing him up to speed on the football conditioning.

“Jamie’s a super character. We were able to

get permission for him to train with us over the last couple of months,” McKenzie said.

“He’s showing his work ethic to get better, [to] learn the footy craft, learn the ruck craft especially and just getting his body into football condition.”

The category B rookie list allows football clubs to select players from outside the AFL code or international recruits.

Also selected alongside Uhr-Henry, Matt Hill, a 20-year-old from Katherine in the Northern Territory who had an AFL upbringing but switched to rugby with an opportunity to play with the Brisbane Broncos, is expected to bring speed and skill.

“While Jaime and Matt join the club as a relatively raw duo, they both possess enormous upside,” McKenzie said.

“Given time to develop, we’re confident both Jaime and Matt can make an impact in our program in the near future.”

Alan Jones captained the division 2 team and helped get a victory in the final match. (Stewart Chambers: 337352)

Murray McLean debuted against Ringwood in the handicap competition on Thursday. (411985)

Hawthorn list manager Mark McKenzie. (AAP Image/Morgan Hancock)

One from three for Lilydale Tennis Club in round four

By Joanna Campe

Round 4 results for Lilydale Tennis Club in the Eastern Region Tennis Competition. With no matches last weekend due to the public holiday long weekend, all the teams were all keen to get back on the courts.

Junior Open Singles Doubles 3 Lilydale v Nunawading

After round 3 Lilydale was in fourth place on the ladder with one win for the season.

Lilydale was represented by Ryan Taylor, Ari Marappan and Joshua Jamieson.

Lilydale played at home this week against Nunawading. The teams both played well but Lilydale proved too strong on the day taking 6 sets to 0 – winning 37 games to Nunawading 14. Result: 6-2, 6-2, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1, 6-3

Junior Open Singles Doubles 7 Lilydale v Koonung Park

After round 3 Lilydale was just outside the top four with no win yet this season.

Lilydale was represented by Haady Aziz, Brodie Manger and Ivy Peiper.

Lilydale played away this week against sec-

ond placed Koonung Park. Lilydale played well and fought hard, but Koonung proved too strong on the day taking 5 sets to 1 – winning 36 games to Lilydale 13.

Result: 6-3, 6-7, 6-0, 6-2, 6-0, 6-1

Open Rubbers 14 v Koonung Park

After round 3 Lilydale was in third place on the ladder with one win for the season.

Lilydale was represented by David Halkidis and Noah Burow.

Lilydale played at home this week against Koonung Park. It was a very competitive match with both teams winning 3 sets each, however, Koonung Park took the match points, winning 24 games to Lilydale 22.

Result: 6-3, 6-2, 5-7, 1-0 (super tiebreak), 4-6, 0-6

Lilydale Tennis club welcomes all players of any age and ability. For information on how to join Lilydale Tennis Club please visit play.tennis.com.au/lilydaletennisclub.

For all coaching enquiries (Juniors and Adults) please contact Andrew at Pro Touch Tennis Academy ptta.com.au/contact

Athletes score lots of PBs

By Jamie Strudley

A bright, sunny morning at Morrison Reserve, Mt Evelyn created the perfect conditions for some exciting Little Athletics action. Yarra Ranges Athletics athletes made the most of the competition to put in some exceptional performances throughout the morning. Countless PBs recorded as the athletes progress towards PB award medals.

Good luck to all relay teams competing at the EMR Region Relay Championships next weekend.

The senior team was back in action for round 4 of AVSL. Another dominant display from YRA’s Open Women to top the scoring ladder again. A new club record for Anne-Marie Ebbels, breaking her own 50+ Shot Put record with a mighty 7.90m put. Results are:

Women

• 100m: Camden Hewitson 13.69 (0.4); Hannah Collier 13.95 (1.7); Taryn Bourke 14.32 (1.7); Erin Taylor 15.15 (0.9); Lily Messom 15.88 (1.1);

• 200m: Karlie Van Zyl 32.43;

• 400m: Hannah Collier 66.59; Kristina Nackovski 69.68;

• 800m: Brienna Coffey 2:41.08;

• 1500m: Erica Purcell 7:52.00;

• 3000m Walk: Carolyn Rosenbrock 17:26.2h; Emilie Garside 19:31.4h;

• Discus: Hayley Wilkins 27.30m; Meg Sparkes 26.67m; Anne-Marie Ebbels 17.11m;

• Hammer: Sarah Ebbels 32.33m; Anne-Marie Ebbels 30.11m; Meg Sparkes 15.98m;

• Javelin: Hayley Wilkins 33.98m; Meg Sparkes 17.10m;

• Long Jump: Camden Hewitson 4.37m; Lauren Nankervis 4.02m; Erin Taylor 3.64m; Lily Messom 2.83m;

• Shot Put: Hayley Wilkins 8.37m; Anne-Marie Ebbels 7.90m; Sarah Ebbels 6.58m Meg Sparkes 6.21m;

• Men

• 100m: Liam Russell 11.92 (-0.7); Oliver Duncan 12.17 (+0.0); Ilikimi Tove 14.89 (0.6); Pete Willmott 15.92 (0.6);

• 200m: Joseph Johnston 27.95 (+0.0);

• 400m: Liam Russell 53.92; Oliver Duncan 57.64; Craig Hewitson 65.62; Pete Willmott 74.51;

• 800m: Daniel Gibbs 2:13.51;

• 1500m: Liam Russell 4:31.29; Ky Harris 4:41.65; Craig Hewitson 5:42.09; Pete Willmott 6:42.42;

• 110m Hurdles: Oliver Duncan 21.83 (-0.6);

• Discus: Dale Bullen 31.03m; Ash Almond 24.38m;

• Javelin: Ash Almond 52.04m; 46.35m; Dale Bullen 42.43m; Liam Russell 26.43m; Ilikimi Tove 26.81m;

• Long Jump: Ash Almond 4.82m; Oliver Duncan 4.00m; Craig Hewitson 3.91m; Ilikimi Tove 3.89m; Pete Willmott 3.17m;

• Shot Put: Ash Almond 9.62m; No Little Athletics competition this coming weekend as our teams are away competing at Re-

gion Relays. The seniors will continue with AVSL action as we continue our push for promotion.

Training for our little athletes five-12yo takes place on Tuesdays from 4-5pm. All registered and trial members are welcome. Please check our website for more training session details.

Yarra Ranges Athletics welcomes and encourages all athletes of any age or ability. New members and anyone interested in trialling are always welcome.

Go to www.lavic.com.au or www.athsvic.org. au or email info@yarrarangesathletics.org.au for information about membership, events and registration.

For information on training, how to join or trial, photos, results and updated news, visit the website at yarrarangesathletics.org.au or check us out on Facebook. Run, Jump, Throw…too easy!

The Yarra Ranges Athletics girls U12 squad. (Supplied)

Elena clearing her high jump. (Supplied)

Ryan Taylor, Ari Marappan and Joshua Jamieson had a great win against Nunawading. (Supplied)