Star Weekly - Sunbury Macedon Ranges - 3rd September 2024
A special Father’s Day
By Eddie Russell
A range of emotions – from excited and euphoric to bittersweet and sentimental –is what Sunbury dad Tim Racovalis felt on Father’s Day.
After son Lachie was stillborn two years ago, Mr Racovalis’ wife, Colleen, fell pregnant with triplets.
She lost one of them in the womb but gave birthtotwinsMackenzieandCodyat29weeks and four days.
Born at Monash Medical Centre, a minute apart – Mackenzie at 5.31pm and Cody at 5.32pm on July 24 – they have since been transferred to Joan Kirner Women’s and Children’s Centre in St Albans.
Father’s Day is particularly “meaningful” after the difficult few years with everything he and his wife have been through, said Mr Racovalis.
“ThiswasnotmyfirstFather’sDay.Obviously with the history that we had with Lachie, the previous years were a little bit numb because our little boy wasn’t with us,” he said.
‘‘ We are a pretty tight unit. After what we went through with Lachie, nothing can break us now ’’ - Tim Racovalis
“Butthisyearisspecial.Ithasbeenamagical ride – we are blessed to have these two little miracles.”
Mr Racovalis said he has been “visualising” returning home with his children.
“It’s definitely going to be a very overwhelming feeling because we haven’t had that experience yet,” he said.
“Being able to walk through that front door will be emotional and surreal but we can’t wait… as a dad, the best feeling you can have is knowing your family is safe.”
Despite having to overcome significant pain and loss, it has been worth it for the couple.
”All that fear during each pregnancy scan and every new ultrasound has paid off because we’ve got these two,” said Mr Racovalis.
“We are a pretty tight unit. After what we went through with Lachie, nothing can break us now.”
Mr Racovalis said it was an “honour” to bring up daughter Mackenzie and son Cody and follow in the footsteps of his own parents and father-in-law.
“I want to be the father my dad is to me and Colleen’s dad is to her. I’ll be happy to raise our
kids to be the best that they can.”
Due to the premature birth, the twins must stay in the newborn services unit at Joan Kirner Women’s and Children’s Hospital, which is located within Sunshine Hospital, but are “holding up really well”.
While it is hard to be separated from Mackenzie and Cody when the couple go home at night, Mr Racovalis can see the silver lining.
“People say it’s a tough journey having premature babies in neonatal intensive care unit, and it is, but the way we look at it is we get to spend an extra two months with our babies. We feel privileged.”
The family spent Father’s Day together in hospital and are expecting to take both babies home by the end of September.
Mrs Racovalis, whose pregnancy was
difficult and challenging, said she was over the moon and was soaking up every minute with her children.
Aside from being a new mother, she runs her own wedding invitation business and used to be a dance teacher.
“We are just so happy that they are here – we love being here with them and I never want to sleep,” she said.
Father Tim Racovalis with his new-born twins Mackenzie and Cody. (Robin Bristow)
Hume has its say on growth plan
By Oscar Parry
Hume has released its submission to the state’s Plan for Victoria, with the state government calling for input in regards to five ‘pillars’ of growth.
The Plan for Victoria will act as a blueprint for guiding how Victoria grows and develops.
The five pillars of growth referred to in the plan are affordable housing and choice, thriving and liveable suburbs and towns, equity and jobs, sustainable environments and climate action, and self determination
and caring for country.
In its submission, Hume suggested an additional pillar – implementation and governance, calling for increased and deeper collaboration between state and local governments.
In the introduction to the council’s submission, it said that this would assist with growth in established areas of Hume, and that “council remains willing to accept further growth in our established areas closer to transport and services but emphasises the importance of integrated planning,
investment and sequencing of growth to ensure a better standard of living for all.”
AttheAugust26councilmeeting,councillor Karen Sherry said that Hume suggests a new body to manage this additional element.
“We suggest that a new body to oversee infrastructure coordination and funding is necessary to ensure the implementation and governance of Plan Victoria,” Cr Sherry said.
CouncillorJosephHaweilsaidthathehopes thedetailsoftheplanforthefutureofVictoria eventuate into “tangible policies that change and improve people’s lives.”
Students wear pyjamas with purpose
Killara Primary School in Sunbury held a pyjama day and non-perishable item donation drive, providing support to a local crisis-relief centre.
Students and staff wore their pyjamas and donated non-perishable items including canned food, toiletries, and more to not-for-profit centre CareWorks Sunbury.
Killara Primary School principal Sue Muir said that the day saw plenty of involvement from both staff and students.
Some of the 27 recommendations made by Hume in the submission included updating the Melbourne Airport Environs Overlay to reflect the 2022 Master Plan to unlock increased densities and diverse housing options, creating a template for good design of townhouse and medium density products across all price points, and piloting inclusionary zoning or similar approach to enable inclusion of affordable housing in new developments.
The state’s new Plan for Victoria is set to be publicly released late this year.
Preparing for council elections
The Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) is urging candidates who are standing in the upcoming postal election for Hume and Macedon Ranges councils to use its ‘Candidate Helper’ assistance service.
Nominations open on Monday, September 9. VEC electoral commissioner Sven Bluemmel said that candidates need to complete a series of steps prior to nomination.
“If you want to represent your local community, make sure to confirm your eligibility and complete the mandatory online candidate training through Local Government Victoria before lodging your nomination. This rule applies to all candidates, including those who are currently or have previously been a councillor,“ Mr Bluemmel said.
In addition to this assistance tool, the VEC also provides resources on their website including videos on the nomination process and rules, and a candidate handbook. Prospective candidates are required to make an appointment to submit their nomination forms and pay the $250 fee in person. They must present evidence that they have completed the online candidate training, as this is required by law and will be shown on each candidate’s nomination form.
“This is our third year of doing this and we were hoping this year that we’ve raised a record amount of goods for CareWorks,” she said.
Ms Muir said student involvement in the non-perishable item drive has broad benefits.
“Part of what we want to do is try and put back into our local community, and for all of
“It was a huge success and all students and all staff were comfortable and cosy for the day wearing their pyjamas to school in return for a donation for CareWorks Sunbury,” Ms Muir said.
our students to have a sense of community and giving back – that … they’re able to have that sense of social awareness,” she said.
The donated items were presented to CareWorks at a school assembly on Monday, September 2.
Operating a facility on Elizabeth Drive, CareWorks Sunbury provides crisis relief to the local area through its food bank service and accepts money and non-perishable item donations.
Candidatesmustmakeanappointment to submit their nomination form in person at the election office by calling the Candidate Helpline until Monday, September 9.
Nominationscloseatnoon onTuesday, September 17, with late submissions not accepted.
Details: vec.vic.gov.au
Macedon Ranges councillors split on gambling policy
Macedon Ranges councillors voted to adopt a new Gambling Harm Minimisation Policy and revoke the previously adopted Electronic Gaming Machine (Pokies) Community Policy at last week’s meeting.
However, on Friday afternoon StarWeekly was notified that a notice of motion to recind that decision had been lodged and would be discussed at council’s next meeting on 16 September.
The Gambling Harm Minimisation Policy consisted of five sections - ‘lead’, ‘regulate’, ‘advocate and partner’, and ‘inform’.
A debate ensued around point five of the ‘regulate’ section, which said “Work with current EGM licence holders leasing Council
owned or managed land to relinquish their EGM licence and divest themselves of EGMs.”
Councillors debated the effects this would have on one particular organisation, the Kyneton Bowling Club, which operates electronic gambling machines as a source of revenue.
Councillor Jennifer Anderson said that the policy aims to unite the council against supporting gambling in the shire and protecting vulnerable community members from the harms of gambling.
“What we are doing with this policy is saying if a community group does want to take some funding from council, if for that sameactivityoreventorpublication,theyalso
want to take funding from gaming machines, then we are saying we cannot co-brand – that is not what we’re about,” Cr Anderson said.
“On the VCCC’s website, $24,903 was spent on poker machines per day in the Macedon Ranges in 2023. In the 23–24 year, $9.695 million was lost by players,” she said.
When put to a vote Cr Jennifer Anderson, Cr Rob Guthrie, and Mayor Cr Annette Death voted in favour of the motion, while Cr Janet Pearce, Cr Bill West, Cr Mark Ridgeway and Cr Geoff Neil were opposed and it was lost.
Instead, an alternate motion raised by Cr Mark Ridgeway was carried, which altered wording in point five of the regulate section to include discussing the implications of the
policy and providing guidance to venues with gambling machines to seek support in relinquishing their EGM licence and divesting themselves of EGMs over an agreed timeframe.
Cr Annette Death said that the alteration of wording to “encourage” created “zero obligation for action to be taken” and that there was “actually no teeth behind” the motion. All councillors in attendance voted in favour of the altered motion, except Cr Death, Cr Anderson, and Cr Guthrie. Oscar Parry
Killara Primary School students Holly, Molly, Santina, Noah, and Harry with some of the donated items. (Damjan Janevski) 426787_03
Maplestone dumping concerns
By Oscar Parry
Apetitioncallingforactiononillegaldumping on vacant blocks in Maplestone Estate, Sunbury, has been presented to Hume council.
During the August 26 council meeting, councillor Jack Medcraft said the 12-signatory petition was started by local resident, Dr Khaled Nazar.
Cr Medcraft said he saw large amounts of dumped material in the estate first-hand.
“I went down to look at the place … and I was staggered by the number of sites that just had incredible amounts of rubbish dumped on
them. There [are] cowboys in trucks going in thereandemptyingloadsonvacantblocks,”Cr Medcraft said.
He said while he supports the idea of encouraging fencing off the vacant properties as a deterrent, often this does not prevent those who use the sites as a dumping point.
“We’ll get them to put fences up, but there’s nothing to stop these clowns from hooking them up and running over them,” he said.
CrMedcraftsaidwhilehesupportedtheidea of security cameras being used by the estate to monitor illegal dumping, he alleged that Hume had asked developers to remove these cameras
due to disagreements around their placement.
He said the footage and pictures of these types of cameras are high resolution, meaning they can be effectively used for further prosecution purposes with the Environment Protection Authority after illegal dumping .
“It’s very clear – you can almost see the dentures on the driver in one of those trucks [and] the registration is there so you can pick up who it is.”
Cr Sam Misho said he felt the conversation around illegally dumped rubbish “sometimes becomes useless”, and instead would like councils to unite and write to the state and
Sunbury CFA calls for volunteers
Sunbury CFA Fire Brigade is calling for more volunteers, with both operational and support roles available.
Sunbury CFA captain Paul Brown said due to the multifaceted nature of fire stations, there are a wide range of roles available.
“There’s a place for everyone really, whether that be operational or a support role. We’ve also got a junior program … so we’re happy to take on kids and show them the basic ideas of firefighting and they get taught life skills … and can then move onto [senior firefighting] once they turn 16,” Mr Brown said.
Mr Brown said CFA stations are a friendly
and social environment.
“I’ve met some lifelong friends through the fire brigade. We have social nights and a presentation dinner once a year … a lot of us meet up outside of the brigade,” he said.
“All CFA stations are probably the same … in what we do and the people [it] attracts. I think fundamentally, you’ve got a group of people who are basically prepared to do pretty much anything for someone they’ve never met.”
TojointheSunburyCFABrigade,MrBrown said the first step is to submit an expression of interest on the CFA website which then gets
directed to the station.
From there, applicants are invited to an information night followed by a casual interview with an opportunity for questions and a tour of the station.
The foundational course for becoming a firefighter is the General Firefighter course (GFF), where there are then pathways to further qualifications and courses, such as truck driving and HAZMAT training.
federal governments regarding the matter, requesting firmer and heftier enforcement for illegally dumped rubbish.
“A lot of people try to do the right thing –they’re actually buying a vacant block of land so they can build their dream home for their families, and before you know it, you’ve got every Tom, Dick, and Harry filling the entire land with rubbish,” Cr Misho said.
Hesaiddumpedrubbishonlandbecomesthe landowners issue, as they are then responsible for paying for clean-up and fines, leaving them feeling “hopeless”.
A$400schoolsavingbonusannounced in May’s state budget will also be able to be spent on textbooks, the state government has announced.
The government introduced the bonus to help cover the cost of uniforms, camps, excursions and other extracurricular activities throughout the year for students at government schools and eligible students at non-government schools.
On August 28, Premier Jacinta Allan and Education Minister Ben Carroll announced the $400 could also be spent on textbooks.
“Getting a world-class public education in Victoria will always be free – but supplies and extracurricular activitiescanreallyaddupforfamilies,“ Mr Carroll said.
The government said schools and families will receive more information about the bonus this week, with the $400 able to to be accessed from November. Families will receive a code granting them access to the bonus. They will get to choose how much of the funds they want allocated to a uniform and textbook voucher, and how much they want to use on school activities – like camps, sports, excursions, graduations, and other eligible programs.
For families of students at a non-government school, the $400 will be provided directly to each school – to be managed in consultation with the family. Non-government school families who are eligible for the means-tested camps, sports and excursions fund are eligible for the school saving bonus.
and Darryl Van Rooy. (Damjan Janevski). 428161_04
Barkly is a top dog
Sunbury’s very own Barkly, the German Shepherd assistance dog, is be competing in Australia’s Top Dog finals.
He is one of the 20 finalists chosen from almost 300 entries in the Top Office Dog and Top Dog with a Job categories.
Nowfiveyearsold,Barklystartedtraining at eight weeks and continues learning every day. However, his owner Caroline Johns said it was her that had a lot to learn from him.
“I learn from him every day that life is worth living instead of stressing and being anxious all the time. Without him, I just don’t know where I’d be,” she said.
Barkly has been a source of comfort for Ms Johns’ anxiety and depression following a vehicle accident in 2016.
“There should be more service and companion dogs out there being offered to help people with mental health problems,“ she said.
“When I take Barkly with me when I go up the street, for a walk or my hospital visits, if he senses somebody needs a bit of a nudge, he’ll veer off from me and give them a bit of a nudge. It makes their day. Animals just bring out the best in people.”
For Ms Johns, this opportunity to share her and Barkly’s story offers a chance to raise awareness and destigmatise mental health.
“I think [sharing my experiences] can help everybody every day, especially if it brings a smile to someone’s face.”
Lara Prust
Sunbury German Shepherd assistance dog Barkly is one of 20 finalists in the 2024 OZ Top Dog awards. (Supplied).
Briefs
Hume clean days
The next Hume clean days will be held on Saturday, September 7 and Sunday, September 8. Hume clean days provide an opportunity for residents to take certain items to a Resource Recovery Centre without paying any disposal fees or using their annual waste vouchers. On Hume clean days, residents can drop off old and worn-out mattresses and couches, as well as car and truck tyres, at council’s Resource Recovery Centres in Campbellfield and Sunbury.
Fuel price apps recommended
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) latest petrol industry report on fuel price apps and websites has illustrated the benefits these can bring to consumers. According to the report, there are more than 40 fuel price apps and websites available from a range of providers. It found that in 2023, a motorist in the five largest cities in Australia could have made substantial savings from filling up at the lowest point of petrol price cycles and from looking around for lower priced outlets at other times. The ACCC has been monitoring retail fuel prices in capital cities and several regional locations since 2007, and it prepares petrol industry reports on aspects of consumer interest in the fuel market. FOR BREAKING NEWS, VISIT
starweekly.com.au Sunbury & Macedon Ranges Star Weekly @starweeklynews @star_weekly
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Cooking up healthy food
Participants of a Sunbury disability support groupheldafreecookingclass,demonstrating the skills learnt through ongoing educational sessions covering kitchen skills and preparing healthy lunch meals.
Healthy Lunchbox Snacks Cooking Classes are held on the last Tuesday of each month by Distinctive Options Sunbury, giving participants the opportunity to share the kitchen skills that they have learnt through the organisation’s cooking education sessions in the weeks prior.
Theeducationalprogramhasbeenprovided by Distinctive Options disability support worker and former chef Zak Obeid, who said that the end-of-month public cooking class initiative began as a way of the organisation findingnewwaystooffersupportandpromote connection within the local community.
For the recent class on Tuesday, August 27, participantsofferedaclassonpreparingsushi.
“It was vegetarian sushi … preparing all the ingredients for sushi, how to roll a nori roll. We do everything, so we practise and practise over again until our participants feelacomfortable and confident reading and working with that recipe,” Mr Obeid said. “It’s their choice – they choose what they want to learn and what recipe they would like to recreate or make.”
Mr Obeid said that the skills he has focused on include effective knife and kitchen safety skills.
“It has been really good because I can pass what I know and my [cooking] skills on,” Mr Obeid said.
The recipes presented in the public cooking classes so far have included vegetable and egg muffins and sushi, with a class on cooking quinoa and feta patties set for Tuesday, September 24.
Classes are free and are provided at the
Distinctive Options staff and participants at the recent Healthy Lunchbox Snacks Cooking Class.
(Damjan Janevski). 426040_01
Dulap Wilim Hub in Sunbury. Distinctive Options offers support services for people on the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
To attend the next cooking class in September, RSVP with the organisation due to limited places.
Contact: 0400 881 664
Celebrate men’s sheds
The Australian Men’s Shed Association (AMSA) is celebrating Men’s Shed Week September 1-7 with the theme, Send him down to the Shed.
From a humble idea in regional Australia, there are now more than 2500 sheds operating in 12 countries around world.
More than 50,000 Australians directly benefit from participation in the grassroots movement each year.
AMSA chief executive David Helmers said men’s sheds are a fantastic way of promoting men’s mental health.
“We know that when men retire, it’s a big change and they are at risk of social isolation which can lead to anxiety and depression, and that can affect physical health too. It often takes someone else to recognise this and suggest they do something about it. And many of them send them down to a Men’s Shed,” he said.
“For30yearsMen’sShedshavebeen improving the wellbeing and health of men, by building connections over a shared purpose.”
Many sheds are holding open days during this week, welcoming members and community to celebrate all things shedding.
Details: www.mensshed.org
SEC is back.
POWERING VICTORIAFOR VICTORIANS
Bladder leakage and what to do
Alex Lopes is a pelvic health physiotherapist, the director of Pelvic Health Melbourne in Altona North, and past national chair of the Australian Physiotherapy Association’s Women’s Men’s and Pelvic Health Group.
Up to 38 per cent of Australian women experience bladder leakage. Whilst bladder leakage for women is common there is help. As a pelvic health physiotherapist, the most commonquestionsIgetaskedare-whatisthe cause of my bladder leakage and how can I fix it?
The main causes of bladder leakage can vary depending on your stage of life. In young women the cause can often be high intensity training. In peripartum women increased loads above the bladder or weakness below is often to blame. In perimenopausal women hormonal change can affect connective tissue strength.
Why do I leak?
Bladder leakage can be caused from too much pressure above the bladder or not enough support below.
The best way to describe the first phenomenon is to imagine your bladder is like a balloon filled with water and held below with an elastic band.
Sometimes the pressure above the balloon is too great for the elastic band to hold. This could be due to constipation, high abdominal weight, a chronic cough or repeated heavy lifting.
Alternatively, you could have a problem with the elastic band below. It may have been stretched with childbirth or hormonal change with menopause where the connective tissue within the elastic band weakens.
Oryoumayhaveaproblemwiththebladder
itself otherwise known as bladder urgency.
Do you go to the toilet more than your friends, are you often ‘busting to go’ or rushing to the toilet and sometimes there is hardly anything there?
Youmayhavebladderurgencyoranoveractive bladder. This is not due to weak pelvic floor muscles but a problem with the bladder itself. An overactive bladder is normally a genetic condition where you have always had an issue with going to the toilet more often than normal (up to 7 times per day) and often with urgency.
Or you may have developed an urgency problem associated with triggers. Possible triggers that may be causing a problem for you could be caffeine, fizzy drinks, artificial sugars, or alcohol.
For some of you it is more what you do, possibly thinking about drinking, washing your hands or running water, walking to the toilet or even driving home or that key in the door.
So how can I fix my leakage?
Well of course it depends on the cause, so gettinghelptodiagnosethecausewilladdress all the factors that are contributing to your leakage.
Ifitisapressureimbalance,physiotherapists like myself work on the loads above the bladder and the support below. If you have an overactivebladderthereisstrongevidencethat Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) can calm the bladder and stop the sensation of urgency or the contraction of the bladder.
If you have triggers, then holding the urge whenever you feel urgency helps break the cycle on those triggers.
Your pelvic health physiotherapist, GP and/ or urologist will be your support team in assisting you to better bladder health.
Director of Pelvic Health Melbourne, Alex Lopes.
MY PLACE
Sunbury’s Garnet Jacob is a social worker with non-for-profit organisation Give Until it Hurts (GUIH) and is passionate about social work. Oscar Parry spoke with Garnet about his connection to Sunbury and his role.
What is your connection to Sunbury?
I am an Anglo-Indian who migrated from India. I arrived in Sydney in November 2002, lived in Sydney for two years, and moved to Sunbury in 2022. I am married to a beautiful lady Lorna who has mothered my two girls Jessica and Serena – who studied in St Annes, Salesian and now one is in university.
What do you like about where you live?
Ilovethegreenery,mountains,valleys,creeks, scenic views, township, and the country feeling that attracts thousands of people to Sunbury. Most of all, the warm connections from the locals have helped me to develop an attitude of sharing, growing, and living a harmonious life loving one another.
What, if anything, would you change about where you live?
It would be great if the cost of living does not rise and everyone has a permanent roof over their head, and we support each other to ensure no one is left alone – as loneliness is a big killer.
Tell us a bit about Give Until it Hurts and its objectives.
We are a registered public benevolent institute with DGR endorsed by ATO. We have ... social workers, disability support volunteers, and other experts in providing mentorship to people who need buddy support. We assist with general counselling, welfare assistance, and referrals. We receive referrals from local community agencies, the public, Centrelink, and self-referrals to assist vulnerable people who are distressed and in need of support for their day-to-day existence. Our volunteers
assess people’s needs, and strengths, identify resources, and connect them with services. GUIH conducts community events (like the soup kitchen in Winter and Father’s Day gatherings recently this year) regularly to engage with people who feel lonely to ensure that no one is left alone. As there is a demand for more help needed by our community members our new projects are in need of more volunteers to conduct weekly activities, and engage with vulnerable people through small support groups for women, men, families and young people. We rely on sponsors and grants to continue our work in making a difference to one person, one family, and one project at a time.
What do you enjoy most about your work?
As a social worker with GUIH, I meet fellow human beings who have talents and skills. Some find the time to share it and others are too busy. Listening to vulnerable people’s challenges and needs daily does not allow me to go to bed without taking the smallest action to make a difference and lessen the stress or challenges that a fellow human being is going through. At this time of engagement with any vulnerable people, I may be only listening and not have a solution but I give them some hope that they are not alone and we are on this journey together. This is what all our volunteers are striving to achieve. Our theme song goes like this: ”It’s not about me. It’s not about you. But it’s for us and the goodness of all”.
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Sunbury social worker Garnet Jacob. (Damjan Janevski). 428123_01
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Fathers in arms caring for kids
As children across Melbourne’s western and northern suburbs took time to celebrate their dads on Sunday, Max Westwood spoke to the organisers of two fathers’ groups about what it means to be a modern dad.
Nowadays, the role of fathers extend far beyond past expectations.
Modern dads try to be engaged in every facet of their children’s lives, from balancing work and parenting to sharing household responsibilities.
This shift reflects a redefinition of fatherhood, highlighting fathers as equal partners in raising their children, rather than just being the ‘breadwinner.’
As these changes become more accepted in society, support is needed to help fathers understand their role in fostering growth and empathy in their children.
Nick Burnett joined the recently formed Sunbury Dads Group as a way to share what he has learnt on his own journey to becoming the best parent he could be.
And that began by becoming sober.
“I have actually just celebrated three years of sobriety just last weekend. I’ve been through the ringer and one of my big drivers was, you know,startingthatfamilyandkindofknowing that I am going to have to live up to that expectation to be all I can be and then some,” he said. “And now I am studying primary education, so teaching and moulding young minds is something that’s very passionate to me, and then also mental health and substance abuse among men, especially fathers.
“Going through it myself it’s almost self-motivating for me because I know what it’s like to be in dark places and male suicide is very high in Australia, so breaking down that stigma that it is OK to talk about it and it actually makes you stronger to talk about it.”
Creating a safe space for dads to talk about their current struggles is something the Support For Fathers program does and why programs leader Dom Alford is so proud to help fathers find acceptance amongst all the chaos.
“It’s just that they don’t take the time to reach out to other dads,” he said.
“So our job is to sort of guide them to other dads and say ‘how you going?’ and maybe it will be just a little bit better easier with a bunch of strangers just connecting in a strange way.”
Alford said a lot of the work the group does is about letting dads know that they are not alone in their worries.
‘‘ They always have the drive of I’m going to be the best dad possible, I’m going to be the best partner ever ... then reality hits and we realise we actually have no clue ’’ - Blair Keeble
“We talk about becoming a dad and transitioning into that role, and then we also talked about dad’s mental health as well,” he said. “We focus a lot on mental health before and after birth, so you know the expectations and the pressures leading up to birth, and then maybe even what they’ve experienced during birth, if it’s a traumatic birth, that trauma can stick with you.
“In the first six to 12 months, their lives are completely changed and turned upside down
and no one’s getting any sleep. All those issues there contribute towards poor mental health. And so we focus a lot on dads and how they look after themselves and understanding the warning signs of poor mental health and just lots of education around that.”
Dads group program manager Blair Keeble is at the forefront of advocating for a more nuanced understanding of what it means to be a dad and how new fathers are not alone in their struggles.
“Every person I meet, they always have the drive of I’m going to be the best dad possible, I’m going to be the best partner ever, I’m going to be the best support. And then reality hits and we realise we actually have no clue what we’re talking about. We have no clue what’s actually happening,” he said.
“And that can lead to some pretty dark places. Research shows us that one in 10 dads struggle from post natal depression.
“Now, that’s not a very well known stat amongst dads.
“Through either paternal classes, digital programmes or our community events ... we
normalise feelings and we normal normalise situations. So one thing we realise is that actually our situations aren’t unique to us. There’s so many situations that actually other people relate to.”
By changing perceptions and expectations, dad’s group is empowering fathers to play a more active and involved roles in their children’s lives and embrace what it means to be a modern father.
“We’re trying to change the culture of of fatherhood, and we’re seeing that culture already change, which is awesome,” Keeble said. “So we’re joining in on that and really working towards that cultural change, so you’re seeing more stay at home dads than ever before, you’re seeing more involved dads even, and just that awareness that you know, dads have a huge part to play in, even the the early stages of of kids birth.
“A lot of research coming in out of the Australian Father of Research Symposium that’s happened earlier this year ... showed the importance of dads in those early days of a child’s life.”
Members of the Sunbury Dads Group and their children.
Left: Members of the dads group. Right: Sunbury Dads Group facilitator Nick Burnett and his wife and child (top); Sunbury Dads Group in action. (Supplied)
Discovering cardiac rehabilitation in the Macedon Ranges
Cardiac rehabilitation (cardiac rehab) plays a crucial role in helping individuals recover from heart-related events, such as heart attacks or surgeries, and in managing chronic heart conditions.
The Macedon Ranges Health (MRH) Cardiac Rehab program is designed to provide comprehensive support that empowers participants to lead healthier, more active lives while reducing the risk of future heart problems.
The program at MRH combines expert-led
exercise routines, personalised education, and ongoing support tailored to each individual’s needs. The focus is on fostering long-term lifestyle changes that not only enhance physical health but also improve overall well-being. Cardiac rehab helps to support individuals to lower their chances of hospital readmission and can also reduce their risk of death from heart conditions.
Cardiac Rehab at MRH typically begins during the transition to outpatient care, whether at home or within the community,
ensuring continuity in the rehabilitation process. MRH offers flexible options, including face-to-face sessions in a group setting or one-on-one appointments, based on the patient’s preference and comfort level.
A key component of the MRH program is the initial assessment with an exercise physiologist. This assessment ensures that each participant is ready to engage in group exercise sessions safely and effectively. The program is designed not just to restore heart
function but also to equip participants with the knowledge and skills to maintain a heart-healthy lifestyle.
For those seeking a structured and supportiveenvironmenttoaidtheirrecovery, the Heartsmart Cardiac Rehab Program at MRH is an excellent resource.
To learn more, call (03) 5428 0300 and ask for Louise Beer, the program coordinator. She can provide additional details and help you take the first step toward a healthier heart.
Council adopts heritage strategy
By Oscar Parry
Macedon Ranges council adopted its 10-year heritage strategy, which received input from several historical societies, three registered Aboriginal parties, and local museums.
The strategy contains 28 actions under five topics: knowing our heritage, protecting our heritage, supporting our heritage, communicating and promoting our heritage, and the new topic of preparing – in reference to future challenges to heritage assets relating to climate change and associated events.
Consultation involved asking people what they love about the heritage of the Macedon Ranges, where submitters sent in photos or written passages about their favourite heritage assets of the region.
Councillor Rob Guthrie said one action of the strategy he felt was particularly important was to begin planning scheme amendments in relation to heritage sites.
“It’s so important to protect our heritage assets. One of the actions in the protecting section is to commence a planning scheme amendment to correct heritage overlay
errors and anomalies. And unfortunately, while we have quite a few properties that are heritage-listed, some of the mapping is incorrect – and so, from my point of view, it’s an absolute priority to get that resolved,” Cr Guthrie said.
“When we look at some of the anomalies as an example … on the outskirts of Romsey, where there is a magnificent bluestone farm building, where the stone was mined on-site for that building. And the stone for the church in Romsey which is now the uniting church … that was also mined on that farm. The
New white rhino at Werribee zoo
Werribee Open Range Zoo is celebrating the birth of a southern white rhino.
The 60-kilogram male calf was born in the earlyhoursofSunday,August18to15-year-old father Kifaru and 11-year-old mother Kipenzi following a 16-month pregnancy.
The calf’s birth is a major milestone for the zoo and breeding efforts for the species in Australasia.
Native to southern Africa, it is estimated as few as 10,080 southern white rhino remain in the wild.
Kipenzi’s gave birth to a calf in March 2023 that unfortunately died hours after its birth.
Despite being hand-reared, Kipenzi’s is forming a strong bond with her calf in her second chance at motherhood.
WerribeeOpenRangeZoodirectorDrMark Pilgrim said staff were thrilled to see the calf thrive.
“Kipenzi is taking extremely well to motherhoodandhasbeenverygentle,attentive and calm. She also calls him back if he strays too far.”
MinisterforEnvironmentSteveDimopoulos welcomed the news.
“We’re delighted to celebrate the birth of a southern white rhino calf at Werribee Open
Range Zoo. I encourage families to take advantageoftheirfreeentryforkidsthisschool holidaysandlearnmoreaboutthecriticalwork being done to protect these treasured animals into the future,” he said.
Southern white rhinos are classified as near threatened, facing threats such as poaching, habitat destruction and fragmentation as human populations and infrastructure grows.
The calf will be named in coming weeks throughavotingcompetitionforZoosVictoria members and donors.
Details: https://www.zoo.org.au/werribee
church is heritage-listed, but that magnificent homestead is not,” he said.
Councillor Jennifer Anderson said compared to the council’s previous heritage strategy, which she believes was a more “scattered” approach, the new strategy has clearer directions.
“The heritage societies that we have in the Macedon Ranges – we are so lucky to have them. They do so much research, and I’d encourage anyone who uses their service to pay them for that service – they do a lot of it on a volunteer basis,” Cr Anderson said.
Police warn of MyGov scams
This Scams Awareness Week, detectives from the Cybercrime Squad are urging Victorians to be vigilant of scammers targeting myGov sign in details to commit tax fraud.
Scammers are attempting to fraudulently access linked government services during the annual rush to complete tax returns, before either generating fraudulent payments in the victim’sname,orredirectingtaxrefunds to be paid into their own accounts.
Since June 30 of this year, Victoria Police has received over 300 reports, with a total reported loss of at least $2million so far.
Scammers use a variety of methods to compromise their victims’ identities, including sending phishing email and SMS scams to impersonate government agencies.These scams can contain links to fake myGov websites. Victims will be prompted to enter their details, unknowingly giving criminals access to their genuine myGov accounts that are linked to their ATO accounts.
Common phrases currently being used by scammers include:
‘You are due to receive an ATO Direct refund’, ‘You have a new message in your myGov inbox – click here to view’ ‘You need to update your details to allow your Tax return to be processed’ ‘ATO Refund failed due to incorrect BSB/Account number’
Once the offenders have gained access to an account, they will often change phone and email contact details which can prevent the real user from receiving any notifications. They will then amend a tax return or other government payment, redirecting the funds to be paid into their own account.
Kipenzi and her calf. (Supplied)
Support is available to live your way in your own home
Those considering their options for remaining at home as they age are invited to an information session on the Home Care Package program.
A Home Care Package provides eligible people over the age of 65 years (or over 50 if you are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander) with personalised support to enable you to continue living independently and safely in your own home and ensure that you maintain your quality of life as you age.
Sunbury and Cobaw Community Health has been an approved Home Care Package provider for over three years and with nearly 40 years’ experience delivering health, wellbeing and support services to Sunbury andtheMacedonRanges,theorganisationhas a strong connection to the local community as well as an understanding of the importance of the individual making decisions about their care.
The information sessions will give you the opportunity to meet with the team and find out more about how a Home Care Package works.
“We help manage your Home Care Package funds, but you have the freedom to choose the services that best fit your needs and lifestyle,” said Sylvia Franzen, one of Sunbury and Cobaw’s care advisors.
“Every decision is made in consultation with you. Home Care Package recipients directusastowhotheywouldlikethesupport from, and we help them to find services that meet their individual goals, allowing them to maintain their independence, enjoy familiar surroundings, and stay connected to their local community.”
Sunbury and Cobaw Community Health’s HomeCarePackagesteamisbasedinSunbury and Kyneton and new Home Care Package recipients can be seen immediately.
The type of services that the government scheme provides include personal care, gardening, meal preparation, escorted transport services, and allied health services such as physiotherapy, osteopathy, occupational therapy, podiatry and nursing. There are also options to access social and exercise activities in the local community. The information sessions are being held on Tuesday 17 September at 1.30pm in Sunbury and on Wednesday 25 September at 1.30pm in Kyneton. Refreshments included.
To book your place, or to find out more, call 5421 6061 or email
COMMUNITY CALENDAR
WANT YOUR EVENT LISTED? Community Calendar is made available free of charge to not-for-profit organisations to keep the public informed of special events and activities. Send item details to Star Weekly Community Calendar, Corner Thomsons Road and Keilor Park Drive, Keilor Park, 3042, or email to westeditorial@starweekly.com.au by 9am Wednesday the week prior to publication
Family history
If you’ve got a hankering to learn more about Sunbury and your own family history, come along to meetings at 1.30pm on the third Thursday of each month at room five at the Global Learning Centre in Sunbury.
https://bit.ly/3jvM6oJ
WeightWatchers
Join like-minded community members wanting to achieve weight health. WeightWatchers meets every Wednesday at 5.30pm at Sunbury Neighbourhood House, 531 Elizabeth Drive Sunbury.
1800 958 288
Scone-A-Thon
Woodend CWA is holding a ’Sconezilla’ to raise money for the community. For $12, pre-order a half-dozen freshly baked scones beautifully presented in a clear lidded gift box. Perfect with homemade jam or lemon curd made by members from local fruit for $4. Gluten free scones also available. Pick up is 7 September from the Woodend Newsagency, 10am–1pm.
Order at HTTPS://trybooking.com/ CKMKV
Toastmasters
Sunbury & Macedon Ranges Toastmasters helps its members develop their public speaking, communication and leadership skills. The group meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month, from 7.20–9.30pm, at the Sunbury Community Centre, 531 Elizabeth Drive, Sunbury.
vpm-4185@toastmastersclubs.org
Sunbury Seniors
Sunbury Seniors (55 or older) meet on Mondays and Fridays from 10am–3pm. They are temporarily relocating to 531 Elizabeth Drive, Sunbury. A variety of activities are offered – indoor bowls, cards, snooker, guest speakers, day excursions, subsidised lunches or just a cup of coffee and a chat.
0434 400 754
Scout Jamboree fundraising
1st Sunbury Scouts are fundraising to send Scouts to a Jamboree in Maryborough, Queensland in January 2025. Fundraising activities are:
A Monster Raffle with $2 tickets and 140 prizes. Purchase tickets at: https://scoutsvic.raffletix.com.
au/1stsunburyscouts/ Miniature Train rides at Bulla Hill Railway on Sunday, September 29 from 11am–3pm. Tickets per ride will be $5. There will also be a sausage sizzle and a coffee van. Tickets and info at: https://shoutforgood.com/event-ticketings/ 1stSunburyJamboreeTrain Donations are also welcome.
scoutsjf@gmail.com
One Voice Sunbury
The WOV Sunbury community choir is changing the world one voice at a time by providing an opportunity for people to meet and experience the joy of singing, often making friends through the shared experiences of singing and performing; although performing is not required.
One Voice Sunbury community choir rehearses each Tuesday, from 6.30pm, at Goonawarra Neighbourhood House. A fun and welcoming choir, new members are welcome – just join in on the fun. ? sunbury@withonevoice.org.au
Sunbury Macedon Ranges Lodge
Meets monthly on the second Wednesday of the month at 7pm, 73 Main Street, Romsey. New members welcome.
Wayne, 0404 034 737, or Ian, 0438 240 402
This week’s photographer’s choice picture is of Roger Benns who is selling off a big collection of collectible cars and vehicles. (Damjan Janevski) 427321_01
Rotary club
The Sunbury Rotary Club meets every Tuesday at the Ball Court Hotel, 60 Macedon Street, Sunbury, from 7pm.
sunburyrotary@gmail.com
Ladies probus
The Woodlands Ladies Probus Club of Sunbury meets on the fourth Monday of each month at the Sunbury Bowling Club at 9.45am.
Leonie, 0401 764 182
Sunbury Ladies Probus Club
The Sunbury Ladies Probus Club meets at 9.30am on the fourth Wednesday of each month at the Sunbury Football Social Club rooms.
Pat, 0433 789 754, or Sylvia, 0417 170 142
Sunbury Combined Probus Club
The Sunbury Combined Probus Club meets every fourth Thursday of the month at the Sunbury Bowling Club at 10am.
Jo, 0410 834 272
Probus Club Of Sunbury
Join the Probus Club of Sunbury on the first Wednesday of the month at the Sunbury Bowling club at 9.30am. It’s a friendly men’s group open to visitors and new members, with a number of great events held each month.
Greg, 0417 593 035
Camera club
The Macedon Ranges Photographic Society is your local camera club for friendship, photographic outings, workshops, guest presenters, competitions and more. Meetings on the first Tuesday of the month, followed by the next Monday. Doors open at 7pm, meeting starts at 7.30pm at Dromkeen, 1012 Kilmore Road, Riddells Creek.
https://bit.ly/41j5BEw
Breast cancer support group
On the first and third Tuesday of the month breast cancer survivors are invited to head along to the Gisborne Golf Club at 10.30am to take part in a breast cancer support
group.
Lesley, 0484 691 226
Village connect
Enjoy free coffee and cake while connecting with fellow Macedon Ranges residents 55 years old and older. Happening on Tuesdays and Thursday at cafes across the municipality.
https://bit.ly/3AMUrxm, or 5422 0262
Arts and games night
Get creative at the Sunbury Youth Centre each Wednesday, from 3.30-5.30pm. The free program is for people aged 12 to 18 years old, at 51-53 Evans Street, Sunbury.
Carer connect chat
Connect with other carers in your local area, share a light lunch, have a chat at noon on the first Wednesday of the month. Head to Sunbury and Cobaw Community Health, 1 Caroline Chisholm Drive, Kyneton.
0491 174 550, or email rebecca.lees@ scchc.org.au
HarmoniX Vocal Company
All-male singing group happening on Thursday, 7-9.30pm, in Sunbury, with a mixed choir, DynamiX Vocal Company, rehearsing Tuesday, 7-9.30pm. Rehearse at Dulap Wilim Hub, Leichardt Street, Sunbury. No auditions required.
harmonixvcinc@gmail.com
Jacksons Creek Combined Probus
The club meets on the second Monday of each month at the Sunbury Bowling Club at 10am. This friendly group of men and women enjoy outings and meetings each month and twice yearly trips away staying in cabins and caravans. Visitors and new members are warmly welcomed
Doug, 5428 3317, or Teresa, 0417 373 006
Craft and conversation
Head down to the Sunbury Library on Mondays at noon for the craft and conversation group. The program is free and open to people aged 15 years and older.
https://bit.ly/39BIu2O
Chill Out Sunbury
Chill Out Sunbury is a free event for 12 and 18 years old to participate in activities such as trivia, games, and more. Happening every Wednesday, 3.30-5.30pm, at the Sunbury Youth Centre, 51-53 Evans Street.
https://bit.ly/3lmVgVhv
Sunbury Ladies Badminton Club
Come along and be part of Sunbury Ladies Badminton Club and enjoy the benefits of physical activity. Social games are on Mondays, 9.30am- noon, and team competitions are on Thursdays, 9.30am-12.30pm, at Eric Boardman Stadium, Wilsons Lane.
sunburylbc@gmail.com
Come have a chat
Delve into deeper topics and enjoy intriguing conversations by joining the Table 8 Discussion Group. Chats every Tuesday, from 10.30-11.30am, at Macedon Lounge, 40 Victoria Street, Macedon.
Carol, 0431 186 575
CWA Woodend Eves
The CWA Woodend Eves Branch is part of the Central Highlands group and meets every third Tuesday at 7pm at the Woodend Golf Club. All women are welcome.
cwawoodendeves@gmail.com
Sunbury Badminton Club
The Sunbury Badminton Club plays social games on Tuesdays and Wednesdays nights, from 7.30-9.30 pm, and on Wednesdays, 10am-noon. Monday night is a round robin competition from 7.30-9.30pm. All welcome to attend at Clarke Oval Stadium, 49 Riddell Road. sunburybc@gmail.com
Taize gathering of hope
Melbourne’s Taize community is conducting its first gathering, aligning with the global Taize movement.
Taize gathering will be held at the Uniting ChurchinSeddononSeptember29, from7pm.
In the spirit of unity, locals are invited for an evening of prayer, reflection, music and food.
Yarraville Taize co-ordinator Patricia Stewart is excited for the local community to experience Taize firs-thand.
“It’s so well known. Apparently more young people, than any other spiritual thing, come fromallovertheworldtosomewhereinFrance to do Taize gatherings,” she said.
“We encourage community and church connectionsothatpeoplecanexperiencethatin theirownuniqueway.Taizeiscompletelyopen toanybodyandeverybody,allnationalitiesand
religions.”
Taize lead singer from Wyndham Vale, Suse Korzendorfe, is encouraging people to engage more with their emotional, heart, soulful selves.
“Taize will offer room for peaceful reflection and connection with one self in a very calm and safe space. The intention is that people’s experience leaves them feeling lighter in their hearts and soul. The hope is that people can take away something very positively beautiful that they can share with the world,” she said.
“Thehopeisthatpeopleleavefeelingfulfilled emotionally and spiritually and want to come back.”
Afraa Koori
Melbourne Ganesh Utsav returns
Melbourne Ganesh Utsav will be returning for the ninth consecutive year at the Werribee Racecourse on Saturday, September 14.
The festival will celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi, a significant one-day festival in the Hindu community, where worshippers and community members come together to celebrate the birth of Lord Ganesh.
The free festival aims to unite people from diversebackgroundsinAustraliaandshowcase the rich traditions of one of Hinduism’s most celebrated festivals.
While Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated by Hindu communities all over across the world, Melbourne Ganesh Ustav takes pride in
makingthefestivalamulticulturalcelebration.
Running for eight hours, the event will feature food and market stalls, rides, and an entertainment stage.
Afive-footstatueofLordGaneshfromShree Dagadusheth Halwai Temple in the Indian state of Maharashtra will be prominently displayed for rituals.
Dance performances, traditional music, children’s games and the traditional “Laddu” auction in the evening will add to the occasion, while a fireworks display is set to dazzle.
Founder Vinyak Kolape has championed the event since its inception in 2016.
He spoke about the significance of the event.
“We organise multicultural festivals like Melbourne Ganesh Utsav to educate our children about Hindu traditions and to enhance community harmony,” he said.
To achieve this goal, Mr Kolape also establishedtheHinduCommunityFoundation Australia (HCFC Inc), an educational non-profit organisation that values all faiths and supports emerging communities.
The annual event is expecting 3000 people to attend and has plans on expanding the festival’s reach.
“Heart-stopping.Funny.Arippingyarn!” WoodendresidentMichaelDillon’slatest documentary, The Great White Whale, is an adventurous tale of courage and comradery.
After receiving praise and five awards at film festivals and screenings across the globe, the documentary is coming to Castlemaine’s Theatre Royale on September 15.
Dillon takes his audience on a 10-man expedition to Heard Island, where Australia’s highest peak, ‘Big Ben’, lies waiting among the vicious waves of the Southern Ocean.
Having visited the site himself while working with Australian Geographic in 2012, Dillon noted how “the sudden sight of a snowy volcano almost three thousand meters high, looming straight out of the sea was a sight I will never forget”.
Inspiredafterhelpingwiththeoriginal expedition preparation 60 years ago, Dillon has delicately strung together a colourful narrative from original 1960s footage of the trip, interviews with the crew and a moving soundtrack.
“I love filmmaking as it combines all thearts,mostpowerfullymusic. Because the epic story this film tells is partly sung by one of the expeditioners, and sung most beautifully, I knew I was off to a great start,” he said.
FromcontractingmalariaintheAndes tobreakingacollarboneinanIndonesian tomb,Dillon’s50yearsoftravelhastaken him on adventures worth a thousand stories. He said every pursuit was worth it, feeding a “Moby Dick like obsession” he has with his creative projects.
The Great White Whale will screen throughout Australia and New Zealand until the end of the year. Showing times and information are available online.
Plenty of choice at the Eynesbury Market
With the weather warming up, residents in the west are offered a relaxing day out at Eynesbury Market.
A short drive through the lovely green pastures will take attendees to the Eynesbury Homestead, where a wide range of stalls feature fresh produce, artisan crafts, and more.
Felicity Ashman runs Urban Markets, who operate the Eynesbury Market on the last Sunday of every month.
She said that the things on offer to attendees were countless.
“We have everything from classic farmers’ market stalls like fruit and veggies, baked goods, and honey to 3D printing and metal garden products,” said Ms Ashman.
“We have quite a number of community organisations like the Eynesbury Environmental Group and local Rotary Clubs… it is a really diverse crowd.”
In October, the Eynesbury Market will celebrate its 10th anniversary.
Ms Ashman said she was “rapt” that people had embraced it.
“I love the fact we’ve been able to establish
the market and have longevity,” she said. Frequenters of the market come from far and wide, including places like Ballarat, Box Hill, Ringwood, and Lilydale, said Ms Ashman.
“We have a surprising large number of visitors from well outside the area… on a fairly regular basis which is exciting.”
Anywhere between 2000 to 2500 people come through Eynesbury Market each day. It is open from 9am to 2pm and is dog friendly, with the next edition to be held on Sunday September 22.
Felicity Ashman at the site of the Eynesbury Market. (Damjan Janevski) 426951_04
Footage from the 1965 first ascent of Big Ben featuring crew members Warwick Deacock, John Crick, Colin Putt and Philip Temple. (Picture: Grahame Budd)
Lara Prust
Suse Korzendorfer will lead Taize music. (Supplied)
Filmmaker Michael Dillon.
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 Recording reproduction (8)
5 Expression (6) 10 Outdoor area adjoining a house (5) 11 Variety of nut (9) 12 Slanted font (6) 13 Southwest Pacific region (7) 14 Inflexible (8) 15 Art of dwarfing shrubs or trees (6)
Pale (5) 8 Pathological self-admirer (9) 9 Capital of Norway (4)
Banishment (9) 16 Moon (9) 17 Keep (8) 19 Gives (7) 22 One of the Ionian islands (5) 23 Book of the Bible (4) 25 Unit of length (5)
26 Unsightly (4)
four letters or more can you list? The centre letter must be included and each letter may only be used once. No colloquial or foreign words. No capitalised nouns, apostrophes or plural nouns ending in “s”.
Nellie Lovett, Johanna Barker and Judge Turpin are all characters from which musical?
2 What breed of dog is used as a piece on the Monopoly board?
3 In what century did the Wars of the Roses occur?
4 And which two royal houses did they involve?
5 Rooney Mara (pictured) starred as the titular character in which biblical drama film? 6 Who wrote Charlotte’s Web TheTrumpetoftheSwan
7 What did the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution legalise?
8 What type of fruit is a cara cara navel?
9 How many Celtic languages are still spoken today?
In which US city did the first Starbucks open?
No. 202
No. 201
Triton falls short of a podium finish
By Chris Riley, Marque Motoring
Watching the Olympics, it’s all about who gets the gold. No one remembers anyone beyond the top three placings and so it goes with utes and the Australian new car market.
Ranger is the gold medalist, with a clear lead, followed by Hilux with the silver and the D-Max with the bronze.
Also-rans include the Mitsubishi Triton, back for a sixth crack at the record but still sitting a fair way back in fourth position out of medal contention.
Although its redesigned front now carries the Mitsubishi name, it doesn’t look terribly different from the previous model and even bears a passing resemblance to the Hyundai Palisade.
Styling
They now want more than $90,000 for the top of the line Ranger Raptor, even though it’s powered by a thirsty petrol V6.
The good news is that you can get into a Triton for much less and it comes with a sensible diesel engine, which pretty much sums up the Mitsubishi ute - it’s always been value for money.
Having said that, we were a bit surprised to find our test vehicle, the second from the top GLS, doesn’t come with leather or power-adjust seats.
But at least satnav is standard – it wasn’t that long ago that even top spec Mitsus missed out on built-in navigation.
Standard equipment includes climate air with roof-mounted vents for the rear seat, auto high beam, adaptive cruise control, traffic sign recognition, auto lights and wipers and front and rear parking sensors.
GLS adds 18-inch alloys, road tyres, dual zone climate air, leather wheel, shifter and parking brake, LED head and daytime running lights, power-fold door mirrors, keyless entry and push-button start, an auto dimming rear view mirror, plus premium sound.
Infotainment
Infotainment includes a 9.0-inch touchscreen (up from 7.0 inches), built-in navigation, AM/FM and DAB+ digital radio, Bluetooth connectivity with voice and steering wheel controls, plus wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto along with a six-speaker audio system.
USB-A, USB-C ports and a 12-volt outlet are located in the front, with the same setup for rear-seat passengers and a wireless phone charger in GLS and GSR.
A physical control knob is provided to control audio volume.
Safety
New Triton scores a five-star safety rating, with eight airbags, a 360-degree overhead camera and a comprehensive safety suite that offers two class firsts: Front Cross Traffic Alert and Driver Monitoring System.
Blind Spot, Rear AEB, Forward Collision Mitigation with pedestrian detection, cyclist detection and junction assist add to the list. A centre airbag is offered for the first time.
Engines/transmissions
The ‘new’ 2.4-litre four cylinder diesel features two turbochargers, one small for faster response at low revs, and a larger one to boost the top end.
Itdevelops150kWofpowerat3500rpm,with a 470Nm peak torque figure that’s available from just 1500 to 2750 rpm.
Both 4 x 2 and 4 x 4 drivetrains are offered with an updated six-speed auto, while a six-speed manual will become available later with some variants.
Driving New Triton features a longer wheelbase and it is slightly longer and wider, providing more space, comfort and load capacity.
The tub itself measures 1555mm in length (+35mm), 1545mm in width (+25mm) and 526mm in depth (+51mm) and includes a tray
liner in this variant.
And for the first time, Triton earns a 3.5-tonne braked tow rating and can carry a one-tonne payload across the range.
A new three-dimensional door handle allows easy opening in any hand position while a new steering wheel features soft-touch materials with enhanced thumb-rests for added comfort.
The start button has been relocated inboard and the larger, but not that large touchscreen, is now freestanding. The instrument dials have been pushed further apart to make way for a larger information panel which now includes digital speed. But the dials themselves are still old-school analogue with no customisation available to play with. Guess the customer focus group didn’t express any interest in this?
On the road the new Triton certainly feels smoother and more refined, but is otherwise unexceptional.
Power is up from 133 to 150kW and torque from 430 to 470Nm, the latter available much earlier in the rev range.
The new engine and gearbox are designed to produce better response and more low-down power, with flat torque delivery throughout the rev range, along with better fuel economy.
Part-time high and low range 4×4 is offered in two forms, Easy Select and Super Select II for GLS and GSR, with selectable drive modes and a rear diff lock — the latter confined to GLX+, GLS and GSR.
Active yaw control automatically brakes the rear wheels to reduce over and understeer in corners.
Fuel consumption in the case of our GLS has dropped from 8.6 to a claimed 7.7L/100km. We trimmed a little bit off this, returning 7.6L/100km from the 75-litre tank after close to 400km of mixed driving.
Auto engine stop-start is fitted to enhance efficiency, with a 17-litre AdBlue tank to reduce NOx emissions.
However, the engine takes about half a second too slow to restart when the lights go green and it had other motorists beeping us for being a slowcoach. We’re told more than 100 front and rear suspension combinations were tested in Australia over several months.
After extensive benchmarking against competitors and the current model, a unique front shock absorber and spring combination was selected, along with a unique specification for the rear shocks.
Rear leaf springs are retained across the board, but the number and thickness of the leaves has been reduced, with both heavy duty and standard duty versions - the latter for GLS and GSR.
The rear brakes remain drums and it has a mechanical parking brake.
It all sounds promising and while the ride is generally smoother and more controlled, the suspension still produces an annoying staccato over across the low amplitude bumps common to our roads.
Upon reflection, it doesn’t bode well for equally common corrugated dirt roads. Maybe we should go with them next time?
The 4x4 benefits from a low-range ratio of 2.566, further enhancing low-speed response and pulling power.
GLX and GLX+ get 265/65 all terrain rubber, GLX 2WD, GLS and GSR get more road focused 265/60 profile highway terrain tyres. A full-size spare is provided (alloy for GLX+, GLS and GSR).
A class first driver monitoring system watches for fatigue and issues an alert if it detects distraction. It’s an absolute shocker and Mitsubishi has issued a fix which will be retrofitted to vehicles already on the road. If fatigue is detected by the steering wheel-mounted camera, Forward Collision Mitigation and Lane Departure Warning are calibratedtokickinearlier.Itresultsinsomany false alerts that we soon tried to turn it off, only todiscoverthatitreactivatedateachstart.Even picking your nose triggers the bloody thing.
Summing up
In a sea of 4×4 dual cab clones, only the distinctive grille sets the Mitsubishi Triton apart.
The latest model is definitely a step up, with a contemporary cabin, the requisite touchscreen and wireless charge pad. But so too is the price, with the review GLS now $10,000 more than it cost 12 months ago.
You get what you pay for as they say but the problem is there’s nothing that really screams ‘buy me’ from where we’re sitting. It’snotenoughtojustmatchthecompetition, you have to catch and pass them.
Sorry.
Ground clearance is 228mm and seven off road drive modes are offered with the GLS and GSR: Normal, Eco, Gravel, Snow, Mud, Sand and Rock.
Mitsubishi Triton is back for a sixth crack at the record but still sits a fair way back. (Pictures: Supplied)
SPORTS QUIZ
1. What is the name of the sudden death overtime system used to resolve drawn NRL matches?
2. Which current club captain has made tie-breaking, gamewinning scores in these circumstances more than anyone else in the league?
3. Which AFL team’s mascot was punched in the face
4. A recent Premier League match erupted into a brawl after one Newcastle defender did what to a Southhampton striker?
5. Due to Covid lockdown protocols, which swimmer trained for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics in the dam on his family’s farm in Echuca?
Which A-League team will play home matches at Ironbark Fields in season 2024/25?
In which year was Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena officially named in honour of the Australian tennis legend?
Where was the surfing competition held during the 2024 Summer Olympics?
Which sport is Australian athlete Jason Day renowned for?
10. Which AFL team holds the record for the most consecutive VFL/ AFL premierships won as of 2024?
11. Which Formula One driver won the Hungarian Grand Prix while suffering from a broken rib?
12. Which former Australian Test cricket captain has been appointed the new coach of the Adelaide Strikers BBL team?
13. Which racing venue is the Victorian Derby held at?
14. Coleman Medallist Jesse Hogan has played for how many AFL clubs in his career?
15. Which current world No.1 tennis player avoided a doping ban after arguing two positive tests?
16. Which country won the third-most medals at the Paris Olympics, but finished only seventh in the overall standings?
17. The Vuelta a España cycling road race was first held in which year?
18. Which NRL club boasts the highest number of members?
19. Which Australian women’s cricket player scored 229 not out in a one-day international in 1997?
20. Of Australia’s 53 medals at Paris 2024, 19 were achieved in which sport?
21. The ICC Women’s Twenty20 World Cup was recently relocated to the UAE from which country?
22. Including 2024, how many times have the Sydney Swans and GWS Giants met in an AFL final?
23. The '90s ARL competition had a team known as the South Queensland what?
24. Jack Doohan will race in what motor racing competition in 2025?
25. Which Melbourne player has reportedly requested to leave the club?
26. Where did Collingwood finish at the end of the 2024 AFL home and away season?
27. Danny Jansen recently became the first Major League baseballer in history to do what?
28. The Australian women’s cricket team will play a Test match against England in 2025 at what iconic venue?
29. Which nation won 14 gold medals in the athletics events at Paris 2024?
30. And which African nation was second in the athletics medal tally with four gold medals?
Rod Laver Arena
Jack Doohan
Finals fever is heating up across Melbourne’s north-west.StarWeeklyphotographer Ljubica Vrankovic was out shooting some of the action.
Finals excitement ramps up
Yarraville Seddon’s William Kliszewski is tackled by Cooper Pepi and Jamie Ristoski. 428570_04
Werribee Centrals’ Abuk Akec. 428526_26
Sam Paea, Kaelan Bradtke and Jesse Clark raffle a mark. 428574_03
Werribee Centrals coach Jade De La Rue and captain Lauren Basto. 428526_60
Yarraville Seddon’s Akol Deng tackles Jack Heron. 428570_02
A big Werribee crowd. 428574_19
Tarneit United’s Hassan Ahmed. 428575_01
Heartbreak for Caroline Springs. 428526_52
A rainbow above the action. 428526_01
Maidstone United’s Julian Vu. 428575_08
Last quarter fade ends season 2024 for Lions
The Sunbury Lions weren’t unable to stop a fast finishing Ballarat in a Ballarat Football League elimination final on Saturday.
For the first three quarters, the Lions seemed to be the side that would be headed to the next week of finals.
The Lions kept the Swans scoreless in the first quarter and were well in control of the match at three quarter time, leading by 36 points.
The Swans came home hard in the final quarter and were able to snatch the lead and the win with six seconds to go, winning 10.5 (65)-9.9 (63).
Lions coach Matt White said it was disappointing to go out like that.
“To keep a club to three goals in the first three quarters and let them get seven goals in the final quarter and run over the top of us is disappointing.
“We will get better from that.”
White said there was a swirly breeze and they were able to make the most of it in the first quarter before staying on top in the next two.
He said the Swans threw everything to the wind in the final quarter to try and keep their season alive.
The Lions couldn’t stop them.
“Being a final you can throw everything around and they did,” White said.
“They got three in a row and we were able to get one back and look like we had steadied the ship
“We just couldn’t shut them down properly and with six seconds to go they scored.”
Ben Cameron, Nathan Doyle and Jake Sutton kicked two goals each for the Lions.
White said captain Tyson Lever was their best in his best performance for the season.
Joel Muir, Cameron and Josh Guthrie were other standouts.
White said everyone played their role at times but just was not able to stop the Swans when needed.
While disappointed to go out in the first week of finals, White said this season was a good starting point to move forward.
“Wehadagoodyearandwe’rebackinfinals for the first time in five years,” he said. “We’ve only scratched the surface.
“I’ve been there for about 10 months and I want to keep building this club to where we want to be.”
While the seniors were knocked out, the reserves and under-19s are both still alive.
The reserves will play off for a grand final spot this weekend, while the under-19s will play a knockout semi final after losing on Saturday.
White said they would continue to get around those sides and the netballers.
Tara Murray
Lions earn a tough win
By Tara Murray
Tactics went out the window as the weather ruled the roost in the Sunbury Lions qualifying final against North Ballarat in the Ballarat Netball League on Saturday.
The two top teams did battle on Saturday in what was expected to be a strong match, but the wind had other ideas.
Scoring was hard to come by, with at times the ball coming back over the goalers head when they put shots up.
There was nothing between the two teams all day, with the Lions sneaking home 46-45.
Lions coach Kim Bailey said it was an interesting game of netball.
“The skill was sort of taken right out of the game because of the weather for both teams,” she said.
“It was just a slog and it was whoever had their noses in front at the end to be honest. It was hard for goalers, but North’s goalers shot exceptionally well.
“It was just a hard game. It was good to get the win, but it wasn’t how we wanted to play.”
Bailey said North Ballarat was in front for most of the first half before they were able to crawl their way back into the game.
She said they spent most of the last quarter in front, but couldn’t break their opposition.
“We couldn’t get our running game going because it was so windy, that is what happens when you play outside,” she said. “The most we got out to was four goals and they kept clawing back.
“Shannon Freeman was outstanding for them, she would have picked off 10 balls from us.
“Any win is a win and we’re happy to get away with it.”
Rebecca Hicks shot 26 goals for the Lions, whileTaraO’GradyandLaniFaunukurotated through the circle as well both playing well.
Bailey said they didn’t really have any standouts. She said the move of Sarah Croft into centre in the last quarter paid off with her taking the winning intercept.
“It was one of those games where you couldn’t put your finger on who played well and who didn’t,” Bailey said.
“There was no skill in the game.”
Thewinisthisgroup’sfirstfinalswinhaving come together last season.
The Lions are guaranteed to go at least two rounds further than last season when they were knocked out in a semi final.
They now have two shots at making the grand final.
“It would be nice to get that win and go straight into the granny,” Bailey said.
The Lions face Darley in a semi final this Saturday.
“Darley are a quality side,” Bailey said. “We’ll go to training on Thursday night and come up with a game plan and go from there.”
Sports shorts
Coates Talent League
The Calder Cannons season is still alive despite a loss in the wildcard round of the Coates Talent League boys wildcard round. Facing the Oakleigh Chargers, the Cannons led at the first two breaks before trailing by three points at the final break. The Chargers kicked six goals to two in the final quarter, sealing a 14.10 (94)-10.7 (67). Williem Hanegraaf kicked three goals for the Cannons. Gus Papal was named their best. As the highest ranked metro loser, the Cannons still progress to the quarter finals which are this weekend.
RDFL
Romsey will have a new coach for next year’s Riddell District Football League season, with Justin Sherman to coach elsewhere. East Keilor in the Essendon District Football League, has announced that Sherman would coach the side next season. Sherman spent two seasons at the Redbacks after coaching at Craigieburn and Laurimar previously. This season the Redbacks finished fourth before being knocked out in an elimination final.
NRL Vic
The Sunbury Tigers are through to the NRL Vic Storm Premiership men’s first grade grand final. The Tigers faced the Casey Warriors on Saturday night, winning 26-8. The Tigers, who finished third, will now face the Truganina Rabbitohs in the grand final on Saturday at Seabrook Reserve at 7.30pm.
Netball
Western Warriors’ Shaid Sasalu has been named in the Fiji team for the Netball World. Youth Cup Oceania Qualifiers in the Cook Islands later this month. The athletes are current members of the Fiji 21-and-under squad who recently competed in the Rising Stars tournament with the reigning world champions New Zealand, Australia, and Singapore 21-and-under teams. FOR MORE SPORT, VISIT Web: starweekly.com.au Sunbury & Macedon Ranges Star Weekly @starweeklynews @star_weekly
Tyson Lever. (Ljubica Vrankovic)
The Lions B-grade side also won through to a semi final with a shot at a grand final this week.
The Lions D and E grade sides both won elimination finals on Sunday to keep their seasons alive.
Rebecca Hicks. (Ljubica Vrankovic) 413382_15
Bombers bounce back with strong performance
AcompleteperformancehasRiddellconfident heading into the rest of the Riddell District Netball League finals.
After a disappointing loss to Wallan in the qualifying final, the Bombers bounced back against Melton Centrals on Sunday.
The Bombers jumped out to a 10 goal lead at quarter time and were able to build on that throughout, winning 56-32.
Bombers coach Emily Ktona said it was a much better performance than the week before.
“We jumped them a bit early and we had a 10 goal lead at quarter time,” she said.
“It set us up and we were hoping to get a good start. We didn’t have to chase and we wereabletoconservesomeenergyintheother three quarters.”
With the lead doubling by half time, the Bombers were able to throw their combinations around.
Everyplayergotaminimumoftwoquarters
of court.
Ktona said that the standard didn’t drop when they made all their chances.
“The lead got out to 20 and then it was 24 at three quarter time and a similar margin at the end of the game,” she said.
“We had different combinations and having Ruby Shannon back was massive.”
Shannon returned from the Australian under-21 tour of Fiji. Ktona said it was up to her if she played and she was happy to.
She was rested after half time.
Ktona said everyone contributed to what was a really strong team performance.
“Ruby gave us everything that she had,” she said. “Madi Browne was outstanding in the middle as well.
“Shelby [Holter], Sahara [Ball] and Ellen [Close]didwellwhentheyhadtheopportunity and Finn [McKeagney-Stubbs] and Georgia [Shattock] were good in defence.
“Everything clicked and I would have hated
to give votes today.”
Holter shot 29 goals for the Bombers.
The Bombers now face Wallan in the preliminary final. The Magpies lost the other semi final to Woodend-Hesket which awaits the winner of the preliminary final.
Ktona knows they have a big challenge.
“Wallan is the only team we have not beaten,” she said. “We’ve had a different team each time.
“We know what to expect and we will take confidence of how complete our performance was.
“A three goal loss last time was sad, but that’s nothing. We’ll play with full confidence that we can get the win.”
It was a good weekend for the Bombers, with their B-grade, C-grade and under-19s all winning through to the grand final.
TheD-gradesidewillplayinthepreliminary final next week.
Tara Murray
Bombers go into granny
By Tara Murray
It wasn’t pretty but Riddell is through to the Riddell District Football League grand final after a hard fought win against Wallan on Saturday.
It was tough conditions out at Romsey Park on Saturday meaning scoring was hard to come by.
Just four goals were scored in the first three quarters with it anyone’s game heading into the final quarter.
The Bombers finally got some reward on the scoreboard in the final quarter with six goals to one to run away with an 8.10 (58)-3.5 (23) win.
Bombers coach Arron Bray said the conditions made it difficult.
“Wind and rain,” he said. “It made for a really tight and contested game all day.
“I thought we always had the game in control but the weather didn’t let us move the ball as cleanly as we normally do.
“We played very well against the wind as well, we restricted their scoring. We always thought the game was going to break open
at some stage, just us staying defensively well structured.”
Bray said the lack of scoring was down to the conditions.
He said the wind was blowing 50-60 kilometres, while there was rain every 15 minutes and didn’t make for good spring finals footy.
Bray said it’s a win that you take and move on.
“You don’t complain too much especially in a qualifying final. I’d rather we be on this side of the ledger than the others.”
Bray said they always felt confident that if they could get a run on that their fitness and leg speed would allow them to get the job done.
Matthew Darby was the only multiple goalkicker for the Bombers with two goals.
Bray said Jacob Chahine was really good across centre half back, Ben Sonogan on half back, Luke Cannon and Josh Grabham were some of their standouts.
He said he felt Grabham won the big battle with Chris Stewart in the middle
French proud in defeat
Romsey’s Patrick French was brave in defeat in his first Paralympics.
Representing Australia in para-archery, French faced Indonesia’s KenSwagumilanginthe1-16elimination round on Saturday morning, Australian time. Swagumilang came into the match ranked 12th after the ranking round, with French in 21st.
In a closely contested match in gruelling conditions, which included torrential rain, French narrowly missed advancing, falling short 140-138.
French expressed satisfaction with his performance despite the narrow loss.
“I’m really happy with how I went, my shots were good,” he said to Paralympic Australia media.
“Itwasaclosematch,andaclosematch is always a good match. I’m happy to lose to Ken, someone I shoot with a lot on the international circuit.
“I’m pleased with how my shots went, the majority landed in the middle.” French also emphasised the importance of supporting his teammates as they continue their campaign, with several making it through to the next round.
“We’re all in this together, they need support behind them and that will be my focus” he said.
“There’s no better place to get this experience – it’s the only place like it in the world, you can’t emulate it.”
of the ground.
For Bray, it’ll be a different sort of feeling the next couple of weeks.
“I’ve never coached a grand final before,” he said. “I’ve made three prelims, the monkey is off the back you could say.”
The Bombers now have a week off before the grand final on September 15.
Theywillfacethewinnerofthepreliminary final between Wallan and Macedon.
Bray said they would happily take the break.
“We left one out today [Saturday] through a slight injury,” he said. “Should be good in two weeks and that should be us at full strength if everything goes right between now and grand final day.
“We’ll train next week and train next Saturday and build up to grand final week.”
Macedon upset Diggers Rest in the other semi final, 14.7 (91)-8.10 (58).
The Cats trailed by 13 points at half time before kicking eight goals to none in the second half to claim the win.
For more on that match, go to www. starweekly.com.au
Speaking before the Games, French told Star Weekly he could have never imagined making the Paralympics after aworkplaceaccidentin2015thatlefthim paralysed from waist down and with an acquired brain injury.
“I’m not amazed that much,” he said.
“When something happens like that you can sit around and be miserable or try and enjoy your life despite it.
“I got a bow and I thought I would try my luck with hunting. I never did that, I got the bow and got into target archery and it became full on.”
Patrick French. (Archery Australia)
Georgia Shattock. (Ljubica Vrankovic) 427091_09
Dylan Podolczak. (Ljubica Vrankovic) 414039_19
Sunbury United’s stunning first women’s title
Sunbury United has exceeded all expectations in the FV women’s state league 5 west this season, claiming the title.
Fielding a women’s side for the first time since 2019, Sunbury was one of the top two teams all season.
The championship came down to the final round, with Sunbury facing PEGS, which entered the match undefeated.
The match was played in tough conditions with the wind making it tricky.
Sylvia Stergiou put Sunbury in front after 15 minutes.
The side then defended hard for the rest of the game to hold on and win, 1-0.
Sunbury moved to the the top of the table and claimed the title, on goal difference ahead of PEGS, with both teams losing just one game.
Coach Steven Lee said it had been
a crazy season.
“It’s a whole new group, only one player has played before,” he said. “The group is a little older as well.
“We have five parents of kids so to be in that position is crazy. They have come together as a group of people enjoying playing football.”
Lee said when they started the season, they didn’t even think about winning the title.
He said they won their first three games and the confidence started to grow.
“We were taking it one game at a time,” he said. “We lost a game and we quickly regrouped and continued to win games.
“The whole group have made new friends and they’ve all bonded. They are training by themselves trying to improve”.
Lee said due to commitments they trained once a week, but many of the group were keen for extra sessions which they did.
He said everyone made sure to get to training each week.
For the club, to be in a position to win a title is something new.
“Looking at the stats, we’ve never had a women’s side being in a position to win a title.
“Our senior men’s team has won one title in 40 years.”
Sunburyissettobepromotedtostateleague 4 west next season.
Lee said while the results were outstanding, they were looking at the bigger picture.
There had been a lot of support for the side from across the club and Lee is hoping this is only the beginning.
“We’ve had young girls come and support us,” he said. “The juniors are looking up to the women’s team and aspiring to be them.
“The support has been amazing.”
Bulldogs see off Storm
Gisborne got some revenge against Strathfieldsaye in the opening round of the Bendigo Football League finals.
The Storm won the last meeting between the two teams, inflicting one of the just two losses of the season for the Bulldogs.
The qualifying final at Queen Elizabeth Oval on Saturday was a different story, with a dominant performance by the Bulldogs. While the Bulldogs trailed at quarter time, it would be the quarter that set up the match. From there the Bulldogs were able to put it on the scoreboard, winning 18.17 (125)-10.10 (70).
Bulldogs skipper Jack Reaper said they were happy with the result.
“It was good to respond after our last game against them,” he said. “Get a win and get some assendency in finals, it was a nice win.” Reaper said there was a heavy breeze towards one end, which was probably worth four or five goals.
They were able to keep the Storm to just two goals in the first quarter kicking against it.
Reaper said that was vital for them in the match.
“It sort of set us up,” he said.
“It really got us on the front foot and then wewereabletoputabitofscoreboardpressure on in the second quarter.
“We then took advantage of it and played the conditions a little bit better than them. If we could stop them from scoring in the third, we knew we would pretty much be home from there.
“It then opened up a little bit in the last quarter and we were able to kick away.”
Pat McKenna and Dylan Johnstone kicked five goals each for the Bulldogs.
Reaper said McKenna played a different role from what he had been this season, playing a bit deeper and he was able to make the most of it.
Brad Bernacki was named best on ground.
“He is incredible,” Reaper said. “Another good performance, which was good.
Morrice ready for challenge
New East Sunbury coach Dave Morrice knows he has a task ahead of him at the Essendon District Football League division 2 club.
The Thunder announced that Morrice would step up as coach replacing Travis Bishop, who has had to step back due to other commitments.
Morrice was an assistant coach this season.
“I’m up for the challenge,” the new coach said. “It was something that sort of came about and it’s something I jumped on.I’vealwayswantedtobeaheadcoach. I’ve been able to build a relationship with the playing group and the coaches.”
Bishop will remain at the club in a senior assistant role.
Morrice said it was a massive bonus for him to still have Bishop as part of the coaching team.
“He’s done a mountain of work,” he said. “Him staying on frees me up a bit to dootherthings.I’lllooktoputacoupleof other assistant coaches in place as well.”
Morrice said he would be a playing coach while his body still allowed him to play.
Hesaidheknowshehasamountainof work ahead of him. The Thunder is yet to win a match since coming back into the competition last year.
“I think I’m up for the challenge,” he said. “We want to develop the current playing list.
“Our midfield group worked a lot better and responded to probably being better in round 16.”
Johnstone, McKenna and Flynn Lakey were the other standouts.
The Bulldogs now face Sandhurst in semi final on Saturday with a grand final spot on the line.
Reaper said it was exciting.
“Sandhurst and us have been the best two teams all year, so it’s fitting that we play next week looking for the chance to be the first team in the grand final,” he said.
“Looking forward to the opportunity.”
The two teams have split the matches this season, with the Bulldogs winning last time.
Reaper said the conditions suited them better last time.
“Hopefully we can give them a good challenge and can get them a bit underdone after not playing this week,” he said.
The Bulldogs’ A-grade netball, which had the week off, will also face Sandhurst on Saturday for a grand final spot.
“We had a young inexperienced list and we want to blend in some more experience.
“They’ve had a taste of senior footy... Travis settled the club and hopefully there’s a fair bit of talent with what we already have.
“Hopefullywecanbesuccessfulonthe field.”
Morrice, who has played almost 250 games at Rupertswood, Macedon and Diggers Rest before coming to the Thunder, said he would look to some of his contacts to recruit some players.
He said was yet to do that with him only just taking on the coaching role.
“I want to try and sign up the current players to start things,” he said. “We’ve signedahandfulofthemandarelooking to sign most of them in the coming weeks.
“I should be able to bring some talent in”
Tara Murray
Sunbury United claimed the title against PEGS on Sunday. (Supplied)
