Church recess

Tough road for Hornets

BY MICHAEL SCALZO

Horsham Hornets basketball teams are set to start their finals campaigns on Saturday after playing their final home-and-away games of the season at the weekend.

The Country Basketball League results might be bittersweet, however.

Losses for both teams against Portland Chargers saw them finish fourth on the ladder and head into finals with a tougher path to the grand final match than they hoped.

The men’s team suffered a three-point loss to second-placed Portland Coasters at Horsham on Saturday night, going down 8285.

In the earlier timeslot, the women’s team got within touching distance of third-placed Portland, before losing 64-72.

In their second game of the weekend, the Lady Hornets showed up struggling Surfcoast Chargers on Sunday in Horsham, 96-33, to secure their finals spot.

The results leave the men and women with similar grand final routes.

Both teams finished the season in fourth place on the ladder and must play the minor premiers, away from home, in knockout semi-finals to proceed to grand finals – a daunting challenge for either side.

The women will meet Warrnambool Mermaids, who finished the season with an 8-2 win-loss record, in Warrnambool on Saturday.

The men must travel to Colac to take on top-spot Colac Kookas, which finished the season with only one loss after 10 games.

Men’s coach Scott Benbow said for 32 minutes the Hornets looked ‘amazing’, but for eight minutes, the Coasters were even better. BATTLE ON: Horsham Hornets’ Olivia Jones, above, tries to pass around Portland’s Heidi Jones, and below, Hornet Sam Breuer drives around Jackson Dunlop. Both Horsham teams went down to Portland Chargers at the weekend. Pictures: PAUL CARRACHER

“At one stage we were 17 points up and looking really solid. Suddenly, they hit every shot and more. They played really well, but it is heartbreaking,” he said.

“We really wanted a home final because we think we are very tough to beat at home.

“Losing the home advantage next week is most disappointing.”

Benbow said Portland’s fullcourt press caught the Hornets out, forcing them to not look after the ball as much as they would have liked.

“We didn’t expect Portland to come out in the end and play like that,” he said.

“But now we say to ourselves, ‘okay, we will have to get to the grand final the hard way’”.

Win at home

Concongella owner-trainer Ken Taylor celebrated a home-track victory at Laidlaw Park on Australia Day when his nine-year-old gelding Kempseys Delight led from go to whoa in a feature $7000 pace.

The evergreen pacer, having his 156th start, was driven hard out of the gate to claim the role of frontrunner but when in command driver Denbeigh Wade backed off the tempo through the middle stages of the 1785-metre trip.

The son of Bettors Delight USA found plenty over the final 400 metres and scored by two metres in a rate of 1:58.5 for a well-deserved eighth career victory.

Balmoral horsewoman Janet Exell also enjoyed Australia Day success at Stawell when her six-year-old son of Elsu NZ, Areyouohkay, saluted in a pace event.

Driver David Murphy was content to let $1.65 favourite Rocknroll Opal – Michael Bellman – take the lead from the start and from then on Areyouohkay enjoyed a sweet trip, hard on the back of the pacemaker.

With 250 metres remaining, Murphy eased the gelding off the pegs to eyeball the leader at the top of the home stretch. The nuggetty black gelding proved too strong and scored by five metres in a rate of 1:59.9.

Extreme stormy weather forced the last race at Stawell to be abandoned and the theme continued at Mildura that night when the last four events were unable to be staged.

Apsley owner Gary McGinty shared a winning double at Globe Derby on Saturday night with trainer and part-owner Heather Stevens when their former Kiwi pacers Maharaja and Bettor Beontoit.

Concession driver Tiana McMahon piloted five-yearold gelding Maharaja to an all the way victory in an $8000, 1800m sprint contest and Wayne Hill repeated the dose later in the night with seven-year-old gelding Bettor Beontoit.

Show Me The Moolah gave owner trainer Janet Exell her second winner in just five days when successful at Wedderburn on Sunday afternoon.

Stand-in driver John Justice found the coveted one-one spot for the gelded son of Allawart Ray for the first two laps then timed his run down the outside to perfection – snatching victory from the $2.20 favourite Glengarriff – Jackie Barker in the shadows of the post.

Exell’s home-bred squaregaiter took time to learn the caper but has become a generally consistent performer with seven wins and 13 minors on the board.

Horsham part-owner Tim Nihill enjoyed a win at nice odds early last week when six-year-old gelding Messerati captured a $9000 pace at Geelong for the Maree and John Caldow stable. The son of Art Major inished strongly up the home stretch to score narrowly from Ruby Wingate – Michael Bellman in a rate of 1:54.3.

Messerati is raced by the Caldow family in partnership with several ‘Ouyenites’ and has proved a wonderful bread and butter horse, with 11 wins, 22 minors and a bank of $96,500.

Stawell taekwondo instructor keen to mentor youth

Bendigo-born sixth-dan black-belt taekwondo instructor Dale Exon started taekwondo when he was about eight.

Mr Exon, 42, said his parents encouraged him to learn martial arts to build up fitness and self-defence.

“I was picked on at school, the practice built up my confidence, which was lacking,” Mr Exon said.

Since then, he has travelled throughout Australia and to Korea practicing taekwondo and is running classes at Stawell Senior Citizens Hall starting this month.

Mr Exon has coached for more than 14 years and competed in more than 10 state and national tournaments.

He now runs DD Taekwondo and Hapkido – Stawell.

He said teaching and being a mentor gave him a sense of fulfillment.

“Everyone needs a clear direction in life, especially kids,” he said.

“When kids see a black belt, you become a mentor because you are always guiding them.

“We try to create a family environment within the club. We’ve had families compete and train together. They have become fitter and more confident.”

Mr Exon said about 70 percent of his young students who participated, did so because their parents were looking for ways for them to learn discipline.

“I have had students who say it has helped with their schoolwork and concentration levels,” he said.

Mr Exon said he had seen development in how his students presented themselves in the community.

“I had two students, two boys, and when they first started they wouldn’t look at me or say a word. Progressively, they came out of their shells,” he said.

For more information on classes, people can visit www.facebook. com/stawelltkd.