Day: September 23, 2019

DIVISION TWO SEASON WRAP WINNERS: Red Hill THE Hillmen had a game plan in 2019. They worked hard in defence all season long, and it paid off handsomely. Although it may not be the most attractive brand of football, the Hillmen found success by keeping their opposition off the scoreboard. It worked wonders, as the finished top of the ladder with just two losses to their name and nearly half as many points conceded as their next best rivals. Their toughest task was facing Karingal in the grand final. The Bulls’ firepower in their forward line might have been enough…

SOCCER PENINSULA Strikers announced the lowest junior fees in NPL Victoria history last week and threw down the gauntlet to local rivals Langwarrin and Mornington. Strikers and Mornington recently were granted NPL junior licences and had to stump up $20,000 each for the privilege. Most NPL clubs charge the maximum junior player fee of $2200 for a season. That is the case with Langwarrin while Mornington has set its player fee at $1800. But Strikers have outdone their rivals by charging junior players $1090 to play for the club in the under-13, under-14, under-15 and under-16 elite NPL competition next…

HORSE RACING ASTUTE Mornington trackwork clocker Les Obriem passed away on Sunday 15 September after spending more than four decades applying his trade. The old-school clocker, who also wrote under the nom de plume Craftsman, passed away aged 74 due to health issues. Throughout his time Obriem worked for various media outlets including the Sportsman, the Sporting Globe, The Herald, The Truth and the Winning Post as well as being heard on radio stations, 3UZ with Bert Bryant and 3DB with Bill Collins. In recent years, Les had a passion for going to Sandown and then Werribee to clock and…

IT is with deep regret that we announce the death of an old and respected pioneer, in the person of Mr. Joseph Haddock of Forest Lodge, Hastings at the age of 75 years. Deceased was a man of indomitable will, and always accomplished, however difficult, anything he undertook to carry out. He was born at Mount Prospect, in New South Wales, in 1844. Losing his parents during childhood, he had to battle for himself at an early age. After working in parts of New South Wales for a few years, he finally settled in Victoria, coming to Hastings forty-eight years…

IN what is hoped to be the first of many games, years 8 and 9 boys from Mornington Secondary College hosted boys from the Clontarf Foundation at Alexandra Park last week. The Clontarf team is made up of Indigenous boys from across Victoria in Mornington for a sports camp. The foundation is set up to improve the education, discipline, self-esteem, life skills and employment prospects of young Indigenous men. “The game was played in fantastic spirit as the two groups combined together to create two very even and well-skilled teams,” the college’s sport and community engagement teacher Ben Hall said.…

MORNINGTON police say the 500 students, parents and grandparents who rallied at Mornington Park last Friday (20 September) demanding positive action on global warming were well behaved and got their message across in a constructive way. Theirs was one of more than 100 school strikes for climate occurring around Australia. The rallies were coordinated through the student-run School Strike 4 Climate website and followed strikes in March at which 150,000 people marched in Australia and 1.5 million took part worldwide. Students came from Rye, Mornington Park, Balnarring, St Macartans and Mornington primary schools; Balcombe and Dromana colleges and Woodleigh, Peninsula,…

THE driver of a Black Toyota Hilux being driven dangerously on the Mornington Peninsula Freeway later blew 0.249 per cent – or just under five times the legal limit, 1.15pm, Monday 16 September. Rosebud Police spotted the vehicle after it exited Mornington Peninsula Freeway onto Boneo Road. The car was being driven in an “atrocious manner” before being intercepted, police said. The painter, 46, from St Albans, who was on his way to work, had his licence suspended and his car impounded. He will be summonsed to appear at Dromana Magistrates’ Court at a later date. Police would like to…

BURGLARS stole two cars and a motorbike from a Dromana property, overnight, Friday 13 September. Detective Senior Sergeant Miro Majstorovic, of Somerville CIU, said a 47-year-old man was asleep at the Jamieson Street house when “at least three” offenders removed tiles from the garage roof and entered his house. They took car keys from inside before stealing the cars – a 2013 grey Mazda CX5 and a 2015 maroon Mazda Neo and a 2001 Yamaha motorbike. Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential crime report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au First published in…

SOMERVILLE Highway Patrol police relieved one confused driver of four bags of cannabis he had allegedly left on the passenger seat, overnight Tuesday 17 September. He was among 29 drivers issued with summonses to appear at court at a later date. Police also impounded seven vehicles. Among 24 drug drivers intercepted was one suspended female driver who police allege “quickly turned down a side street and did a quick switch-a-roo with their passenger”. The woman then allegedly refused to undergo a drug test stating she wasn’t the driver, despite number plate and video cameras showing her in the driver’s seat…

THE sale of the heritage listed Continental Hotel at Sorrento has fallen through. Despite believing he had sold the four-storey limestone hotel earlier this month vendor Julian Gerner told The News last week that contracted purchaser LBA Capital was “unable to meet their obligations under the contract of sale”. This is a blow to the experienced hotelier who had been thrilled to pass on the 1875 landmark with plans and permits for apartments and retail after a two-month sales campaign by Colliers International. (“‘Conti’ in new hands – again” The News 9/9/19). The sale price was rumoured to be about…

JOCKEY Michelle Payne weathered a few handicaps before winning the 2015 Melbourne Cup on Prince of Penzance. The film Ride Like a Girl, which traces the 24 year old’s life before the track as well as her victories, is being screened at Sorrento on Friday (27 September) to raise money for Sorrento/Portsea/Rye unit of the Red Cross. Former Australian of the Year, businessman and philanthropist Simon McKeon will open the screening which starts at 6pm with fish and chips and a glass of wine. Ride Like a Girl – directed by Rachel Griffiths and starring Sam Neill (Paddy Payne), Teresa…

THE executive chef at RACV Cape Schanck Resort, Joshua Pelham, will represent Australia in next year’s international Bocuse d’Or culinary contest. He will be joined in the Bocuse d’Or Asia Pacific qualifier by RACV City Club apprentice chef Harrison Caruana. The pair will be trained by head coach Scott Pickett and a panel of senior chefs. Pelham says he has has dreamed of competing in the elite event ever since he watched Pickett training for Bocuse d’Or 2005. “At the time I was an apprentice at Matteo’s with Scott’s commis chef Cate Robertson,” he said. “She invited me to watch…

THE amount of rental housing regarded as being “affordable” has dropped from 30 per cent of the total on offer to 7.6 per cent in a decade. “Affordable housing is generally defined as accommodation expenses that account for no more than 30 per cent of gross household income,” Peninsula Community Legal Centre CEO Jackie Galloway said. “With the Victorian housing crisis centred on the availability of affordable housing, the urgency to raise the rate of Newstart is becoming pressing.  We are seeing the impact of the crisis with 75 per cent of PCLC’s clients on no to low income. Low…

RESIDENTS of green wedge properties hit with 20 per cent rates increases say they are at a “dead end” after writing to councillors and politicians in protest. The rates increase affects 724 Mornington Peninsula Shire green wedge properties under two hectares. They are aimed at property owners said to be enjoying the benefits of a green wedge lifestyle while not participating in activities conducive to that zoning, such as farming. Paul Whitaker, of Red Hill, said residents hit by the jump in the Rural Living Rate were “shocked” . He said the rate introduced this year affected residents whose land…

SPRING can mean many things: flowers, lawn mowing, weather warming, going for walks and bike rides. It can also mean swooping birds. Magpies, much admired for their warbling, seem to be the most feared of the winged warriors, although outdoor eaters in Mornington would most likely nominate seagulls as the biggest threat. There are several other bird species that can become aggressive when nesting or protecting their young, but magpies and seagulls are the most common. “Bird swooping is part of life in Australia, as we share our environment with native wildlife,” environmental compliance manager at the Department of Environment,…