Day: February 18, 2019

PENINSULA MOOROODUC have held on by a thread to claim a thrilling victory in the first innings over Somerville. Chasing 168 to win, Moorooduc kept touch mainly thanks to an entertaining innings from Rashimal Mendis, who hit his half century by smacking 3 sixes over the boundary. Moorooduc passed their target with just one wicket in hand, and their numbers 11 and 9 batsmen at the crease. At Ballam Park East, Long Island surpassed their measly target of 70 despite a monumental batting collapse against Main RIdge. The winning side had passed their target and were flying comfortably at 3/96.…

SOCCER SOUTHERN United kicks off the 2019 season against one of the most cashed-up outfits in the NPLW when it hosts South Melbourne’s imposing women’s team at Monterey Reserve on Saturday. It is a massive challenge for a team that created records last season for all the wrong reasons finishing last in the elite competition with a solitary point having scored five goals and conceding 188. South Melbourne in stark contrast finished on top of the ladder and lost the Grand Final 3-1 to Bulleen. And Southern’s preparation has been far from ideal. “We go into the season with just…

SOME OF the best mountain bike racers from Victoria, interstate and overseas descended upon the Red Hill trail network on Saturday 2 February and Sunday 3 February. Red Hill has long been the preferred training ground for many state, national, and even world champions, but for the first time the trails were part of a tier one National Cross-Country Racing Series. Around 180 competitors lined up for rounds five and six of the Victorian Mountain Bike Championship Series with local shops and businesses also benefiting from the large numbers of hungry supporters and spectators flooding the race village. Members and…

GOLFERS from the Mornington Peninsula certainly aren’t lacking quality courses to choose from according to Golf Australia’s biennial top 100 rankings that were released on Wednesday 13 February. Golf courses on the Peninsula filled 10 per cent of the nation’s top 100 public access courses for 2019 with the list taking into account courses that are considered “pleasurable” for all golfers of every standard. The rankings were compiled over the past two years by Golf Australia editor Brendan James and a team of 32 other readers. It focussed on public access courses that offer tee times for visiting golfers, which…

MORNINGTON-based racehorse trainer Jason Warren couldn’t be any happier with his gun two-year-old Brooklyn Hustle’s return on Saturday 9 February despite finishing fifth in the Blue Diamond Prelude (Fillies) at Caulfield. Brooklyn Hustle was all the rage for the $1.5 million Group One Blue Diamond Stakes on Saturday 23 February following her barnstorming last to first debut victory in December last year, but her most recent run has left some people questioning her capabilities. But, not her trainer, Jason Warren. “I thought it was a great run,” Warren said. “She ran the second fastest last 600m, 400m and 200m of…

MR Brierley, manager of the Frankston Gas and Electric Supply Works, has had a long and varied experience in his profession, but it remained to Frankston to provide him with something altogether out of the ordinary. All Tuesday night he and his staff had been endeavoring to find the cause of the block in the electric light current serving Melbourne Road and part of Frankston. He was expecting to find that a stray branch or twig was causing the damage, but the search was fruitless. It was not until daylight next morning that he found the cause of the obstruction. …

Author Fran Henke is about to publish the final chapters in her novel trilogy, A Fair Wind. However, the historical narrative so far has proved so absorbing that “I can see a fourth – I want to know what happens to the child of this third story”. If she writes another book in the Wind series – making it a quartet – Henke will have authored 23 books. But all that research into the past is in the future as Henke prepares to launch An Imperfect Calendar during next Sunday’s Hastings Festival (24 February). Her first novel in the series,…

Family and friends of Jannetje Witte went to The Bays aged care home in Hastings to celebrate her 100th birthday. Also at the afternoon tea on Tuesday 12 February were Hastings MP Neale Burgess, The Bays Healthcare Group CEO Elena Allen and other residents. Ms Witte was born in Texel, Holland where she also met her husband Tony, who died more than 20 years ago. The couple had four children, Margaret, Elizabeth, Rose and Theo, with Ms Witte working on farms to support their family during the Depression and World War II. They migrated to Australia in 1951, living in…

Mornington Peninsula Shire has been told it must immediately adopt strategies to tackle climate change. Minter Ellison special counsel Sarah Barker has told shire councillors and senior officers that climate change action and mitigation is a serious financial consideration for industries and communities across the globe. Ms Barker said strategies must immediately be integrated into all council activities to address climate change risks. She spoke on the approaches being taken by organisations worldwide, including the World Economic Forum, global banks, ratings agencies and insurance agencies to cope with its impacts. The mayor Cr David Gill said the council wanted to…

THE invasive pest phylloxera hasn’t got a foothold in the Mornington Peninsula’s estimated 1000 hectares of grape vines – yet. And that’s why the Mornington Peninsula Vignerons’ Association and Agriculture Victoria have launched a campaign to prevent it gaining a foothold. Mornington Peninsula Shire is also in the fight seeking “insider knowledge” of the presence of the pest in every nook and cranny. The phylloxera insect can devastate a commercial vineyard and is easily transmitted between vines. This occurs when infected soil or plant material is carried from infected areas, possibly on shoes or clothing. Peninsula residents are being asked…

Peninsula Surfriders’ Club begins its 2019 season this weekend with a contest site to be determined depending on the surf. Since being formed in 1974, the club has won state team events and seen its members in national teams. “With ties to the inception of the surf industry, PSC has been an integral link in the Victorian surf landscape for more than 40 years,” club president Lachy McDonald said. The 140-member club has a clubhouse on a property it owns near Gunnamatta, and “enjoys a thriving social and community scene with fundraisers, events, development camps and training programs run throughout…

Mornington Peninsula Shire’s infrastructure services manager Jessica Wingad says recycled waste from the peninsula is still going to China and other global markets. She said extra processing here was ensuring “compliance with these markets”. New recycling markets are expected to open in Victoria in the future. “While the [Chinese] policy shift hasn’t banned recycling, it has limited the level of contaminated accepted in recycling sent to China,” Ms Wingad said. “Clean, sorted recycling is still being accepted, so it is extremely important we continue to separate our waste from recycling and place only accepted recyclable items into our recycling bins,”…

AT just seven years of age, Harrison Daley is a little boy with a passion. He helps clean-up Mornington beaches and is always keen to educate beachgoers about environmental dangers posed by litter. This dedication has been recognised with Harrison being named Mornington Peninsula Shire’s first and youngest recycling ambassador and unofficial recycling champion. It’s a job he can’t do alone and the shire wants more volunteers to become recycling champions. This team of champions will support the shire’s efforts to reduce the amount of waste being sent to landfill. The mayor Cr David Gill said it was “more important…

TWO young women who allegedly attempted to steal clothing and a $200 beach towel from a Sorrento boutique are being sought by police. The women, pictured, selected the items and allegedly removed the security tags in the change rooms. Soon after, one attempted to distract staff while the other began walking out of the store with the clothing stuffed into a bag. An alert staff member stopped her and demanded she return the items. Both women protested their innocence but handed over the items and left the store when the staff member began calling police. It is believed the women…

A MT ELIZA woman must have been in a rush to get to the city early Friday afternoon because she allegedly drove past an unmarked police car on Eastlink, near Thompsons Road, at about 160kph. The 23-year-old was intercepted and found to have a suspended licence due to 79 demerit points as well as outstanding arrest warrants for road-traffic offences. She was arrested and left the scene in handcuffs. Her car was impounded for 30 days at a cost of $979. Leading Senior Constable Greg Wolfe, of Somerville Highway Patrol, urges drivers to “slow down, drive according to the conditions…

POLICE have issued a picture of a man they believe may have smashed a car’s rear side window at McCrae and stolen a woman’s handbag possibly used her credit card to buy alcohol at a nearby supermarket, Monday 28 January. Somerville detectives said the woman parked her car on Point Nepean Road and walked to the beach at lunchtime. Later, she found her car’s window smashed and her handbag missing from the back seat. Police have released CCTV images of a man at the check-out who may be able to assist with their inquiries. Anyone recognising him is asked to…

A COUPLE arrested after a courier’s van was stolen in Mt Eliza while he was making a delivery faced Frankston Magistrates’ Court on Friday 15 February charged with more than 60 theft-related offences. The man, 28, and woman, 27, both from the Somerville area, were found asleep in a stolen car at Black Rock, 2am, Thursday 14 February, before they allegedly rammed a police car, injuring one officer. They were apprehended in Brighton soon after while attempting to flee on foot. The driver of the StarTrack van was at the front door of a house in Boxmoor Court, 1.30pm, when…

A NEW Zealand fur seal that had been resting on the beach at Dromana last week (Seal draws crowd and ‘unwelcome’ attention” The News 12/2/19) decided to move further down the bay and hit the high spots of Blairgowrie, Thursday afternoon. But, not content with sunning himself on the sand, the big fellow shuffled across Point Nepean Road, bringing the busy thoroughfare to a halt and prompting shoppers to call police to direct traffic.  Constable Garry Robinson, of Rosebud police, said he spent 45 minutes shepherding the seal across the road “with a bit of a rest in the middle”.…

Storm damage: The Jillian lies battered and broken on McCrae beach. Pictures: Supplied  ONE of Rye and Rosebud’s longest-serving fishing charter operators suffered a blow last week when The Jillian was wrecked in a fierce storm. Operators Jon and Steve Dart’s Pompei-built 32 footer was washed ashore in huge waves while moored at McCrae, Saturday 9 February. Its cabin and covered area was torn off and the hull split along one side. Last week the 20-passenger boat was sitting high and dry and roped off while the brothers decided what to do with her. In an open letter to friends…

A RED Hill boy was left fighting for life late last week after the car being driven by his mother crashed head-on into another car in Red Hill South. Paramedics rushed to the horror scene on the Point Leo Road just after 4.30pm, Wednesday 13 February. The Red Hill community is rallying around the family, with the Mornington Peninsula Shire, CFA, Consolidated school, scouts and residents helping them cope in their time of need. The 11-year-old was flown to The Royal Children’s Hospital by helicopter ambulance in a critical condition with head, chest and abdominal injuries. Police said the badly…

DON’T mention gas, coal or oil to the Brooks family of Dromana. They’ve made a conscious decision to distance themselves from those passe fossil fuels and, instead, are gearing for an all-electric future. Simon, the Mornington Peninsula Shire councillor, and his wife Allison are “keen to do their bit” to reduce their carbon footprint by buying an electric car, installing electric appliances, electric heating and cooling and roof-top solar panels. “As a councillor I’ve made it a focus to become even more informed about climate change and how practical steps can be taken by everyone to reduce our carbon footprint,”…