Month: April 2018

APPRENTICE jockey Jessica Eaton officially transferred to Mornington-based trainer Chris Meagher two weeks ago and has quickly claimed her first Melbourne city winner. Eaton, who has been on loan to Meagher for the past six months, continued her winning relationship with the in-form mare Famelist, for Mornington trainer Gary Carson, when saluting at Sandown on Wednesday 18 April. Eaton has been aboard the seven-year-old mare at all four of her starts this preparation and has racked up three victories since storming home first-up in a benchmark 64 at Sale at $51 to win on Tuesday 27 February. Eaton was full…

MORNINGTON Peninsula boxer Adam Kaoullas is lining up for the Victorian State Welterweight Title on Saturday 19 May against a familiar boxer in Dillon Bargero at the Malvern Town Hall. The professional welterweight boxer faced Bargero in November last year where he almost had the fight won in the opening round until Bargero picked himself up off the canvas to fight it out until the end. Kaoullas took out the fight by unanimous decision after the fourth round but he is confident that he can claim the victory a lot earlier in this match-up. “He made it interesting that night…

SOCCER MORNINGTON staged a remarkable comeback to snatch a point from Casey Comets in a controversial and spiteful State 1 South-East encounter at Comets Stadium on Friday night. Comets players trudged off the pitch at game’s end with their heads down after blowing a two-goal lead and having to settle for a 3-3 draw in a riveting contest. Comets struck first thanks to a superb Connor Belger through ball and a clinical low strike from the talented Robert Prescott in the 27th minute. Sammy Orritt was left dumfounded after a point-blank tip over from Comets keeper David Thomson in the…

DIVISION TWO IT was neck-and-neck between Karingal at Hastings, until the first bounce. Then it was all downhill for the Blues. They trailed all day and never really got a sniff. Karingal were up by 27 points at the main change and took the day by 33 points at the final siren. In doing so, they’ve grabbed Hastings’ third spot on the ladder and sent the Blues one further back to fourth. Dromana has maintained its place on the top of the Division Two table after charging back for the win against Rye. Rye couldn’t have started better with ten…

DIVISION ONE MORNINGTON’S position in the doghouse of division one wasn’t helped at all with a loss to Sorrento at Alexandra Park. Winless in 2018, the Dogs really needed to get some momentum. It was always going to be a big ask. Sorrento held Mornington goalless in the first quarter and kicked on from there. Mornington was never in it and ended up going down by 62 points. The chocolates for best spectacle would have to go to the Rosebud versus Seaford clash. A match with more swings than a kids playground, there was only two points in it at…

Deborah Conway is a significant and eloquent contributor to Australian music, singing songs that chronicle the essential elements of life, love, loss, memory, the mundane and the spiritual. Restless and confounding, her powerful voice and presence has fascinated audiences for the past 30 years. A rare female agitator in a time when the music industry was male dominated; Conway continues to be a role model for young women and a mentor to emerging artists. Her first band Do Re Mi topped the charts; her first solo album, String of Pearls achieved platinum sales. Conway met Willy Zygier in 1991 and…

STARRING COOKIN’ ON 3 BURNERS with Andrew De Silva, Clairy Brown & Stella Angelico Following their SOLD OUT show and rave reviews at Melbourne’s Arts Centre in November – don’t miss this special one-off Mornington performance as we take a deep dive into one of the greatest soundtracks of all time. Now the spirits of Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations and more will be channelled by some of Melbourne’s hottest musical maestros – Cookin On 3 Burners with Clairy Browne, Andrew De Silva and Stella Angelico – for a one-night only event to rekindle the fire of a soundtrack…

WORD has been received by Mr and Mrs Goodwin, of Frankston, from the Defence authorities, that their son, Private Goodwin, has succumed to wounds received in France on 8th April. The deceased soldier, who will not be 21 years old until August, enlisted in July 1915 and was previously wounded in France. He has two brothers still on active service. Great sympathy is expressed for Mr and Mrs Goodwin in their sad bereavement. A memorial service was held on Sunday evening last in the Richmond Presbyterian Church, of which Pte. Goodwin was a prominent member before he enlisted. *** IN…

NUDE bathers in undesignated areas at Moondah beach, Mt Eliza, risk being fined under the Summary Offence Act. The issue came to a head when a Mt Eliza resident contacted the council to complain about the “blatant” behaviour of some clothes-optional swimmers at Sunnyside North beach (“Cover up or clear out, parent’s call to nudists” The News 24/4/2018). He complained they were venturing onto the southern end of Moondah beach which is outside the designated area. The shire’s environment protection manager John Rankine said Sunnyside North was declared clothing optional under the Nudity (Prescribed Areas) Act 1983, allowing bathers to…

FOUR men were arrested following police investigations of an aggravated burglary in Flinders early on Monday 23 April. Detective Harry Simpson, of Somerville CIU, said two men forced entry to a house in the town where the elderly occupants woke to see torchlight. They then became aware of the men moving about and stealing electronic items which they later valued at $6000. Following information gleaned from the Find my Phone app detectives raided a house in Dromana the same day and allegedly found items matching the descriptions of those stolen. A 22-year-old man, of Dromana, was arrested and charged with…

WHILE most people know to slow down when they see an emergency vehicle ahead with red and blue lights flashing, or an alarm sounding, few know that it is actually breaking the law to pass at more than 40kph no matter which side of the road you are on (see illustration). The speed limit aims to set a standard for safe driving so that emergency workers can get on with their work without worrying about being run over by a speeding vehicle or hit by debris. Leading Senior Constable Darren Myers, of Mornington Peninsula traffic operations, said motorists must slow…

TWO men with their faces covered threatened staff at the Hungry Jacks restaurant in Nepean Highway, Mornington, last week before stealing cash from the till and safe. Detective Sergeant Peter Drake, of Somerville CIU, said one of the men jumped the counter and used a screwdriver to intimidate staff, 6.30am Friday 27 April. The men, described as Caucasian and in their 20s, ran from the store and drove off in a stolen silver Holden Commodore with registration number 1EP3FT. There were no injuries. Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers 1800 333 000. First published in the Mornington…

MORNINGTON MP David Morris says Ryman Healthcare’s plans for a multi-million dollar retirement village and nursing home at Moondah Estate, Mt Eliza, would be a “gross overdevelopment of the site, even if it was reduced by 50 per cent”. The $5 billion New Zealand-based public company has earmarked 60-70 Kunyung Road for the fourth of five villages it plans to build in Melbourne by 2020. Others are at Mt Martha, Wheelers Hill, Burwood East, Coburg and Geelong. Development manager Andrew Mitchell said it was a “great site” which fitted well with Ryman’s expansion plans in Victoria. Earlier this month the…

AN exhibition giving an insight into the powers of harnessing wartime public perception through advertising, graphics and information – whether true or false – is at the Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery until early July. Propaganda: A selection of posters from the Australian War Memorial, displays many of the key posters designed to inflame public opinion and fashion public thinking during the war and, in some cases, generate a wave of recruits. The artworks have come from the Australian War Memorial which has one of the world’s largest collections of historic propaganda posters. The exhibition also includes commissions from three contemporary…

CROWDS flocked to Anzac Day commemorations at Mornington Peninsula towns last week. Organisers were thrilled with the huge turn-out of young people which they hope will ensure the future of the national event. “The day went very well,” Mornington RSL sub-branch president Allan Paynter said. “The dawn service was extra large with not a spot left on the lawn at Memorial Park, and we had 300 back for the Gunfire breakfast. “Up to 4000 attended the march along Main Street from Queen Street. It was a packed house.” Rosebud RSL sub-branch had about 2500 people at the dawn service, while…

SCIENTISTS and health experts have joined forces in the battle to stop the spread of the debilitating Buruli ulcer. The federal government last week announced a $1.5 million two-year research study into ways of eradicating the fast spreading disease – which is especially prevalent on the Mornington Peninsula. Of the 275 infections recorded across Victoria last year, and the 35 reported so far this year, more than 80 per cent have occurred on the peninsula, according to study leader Professor Tim Stinear, from the University of Melbourne. Mosquitoes are suspected as being the key factor in the spread of the…

THE entry made by CEO Carl Cowie on Mornington Peninsula Shire’s gifts register is by far the most valuable yet recorded. Mr Cowie’s estimated value of a Mediterranean cruise undertaken by he and his wife at the invitation of businessman Lindsay Fox is recorded as being $8400. The next highest is $1202 for return airfares to Sydney, dinner and accommodation for the shire’s chief information officer to attend a Dell EMC forum in August 2017. The lowest amount recorded on 10 pages of the register from 4 September 2015 to 19 December 2017 is $2, for a cloth glasses case…

1st Tootgarook Scouts were last week awarded a mayoral commendation for their efforts on Clean Up Australia Day and in winning the Clean-Up Australia Day photograph competition. The 24 children in the group cleaned one kilometre of foreshore over three hours, collecting 32kg of rubbish. They chose 555 pieces to create a colourful map of Australia which won them a digital camera. Their efforts aimed to draw attention to the rubbish problem and discover how small pieces of mainly plastic can be stopped from degrading the environment. The mayor Cr Bryan Payne was made one of the pack aftre being…

HILLVIEW Quarries has restarted its efforts to reopen the old Pioneer quarry in Boundary Road, Dromana. It has asked the state Planning Minister Richard Wynne to give the go ahead for an environmental effects statement (EES) into the proposal as well as “doorknocking” neighbouring property owners. Hillview CEO Paul Nitas said on Thursday that the company’s existing quarry, in Hillview Quarry Drive, was likely to run out of rock within seven or eight years if current extraction levels (750,000 tonnes) were maintained. He estimates the former Pioneer quarry, which Hillview wants to reopen, could supply one million tonnes of rock…

LAWS to tame behaviour at rowdy party houses on the Mornington Peninsula may be a Victorian first. The clampdown comes after the shire last week adopted a Short Stay Rental Accommodation Local Law. The new law includes a registration system that identifies the owner of a property who must nominate an agent to respond within two hours of complaints by neighbours. A code of conduct aims to counter issues which have ruined neighbours’ nights, including rowdy drinking sessions, abusive guests, thumping music late into the night, car parking congestion and inadequate rubbish disposal. Penalties will apply for breaches of the…

A LEGAL showdown between the Australian Services Union and Mornington Peninsula shire was averted just hours before a scheduled dispute hearing in the Fair Work Commission. Despite having several weeks’ notice of the hearing date, the shire’s lawyers waited until midday on Monday 23 April to say it would not be pursuing its move to declare 13 jobs redundant in its rangers and animal team. ASU organiser Ty Lockwood said the shire “pulled the pin, in my view, because it would have locked them into moving forward”. “Everyone has still got their jobs and the shire spent 10 weeks causing…

Police are today continuing the search for missing 23-year-old camper Sebastian Orefors. Sebastian was camping with friends in Wonyip and was last seen on Friday night about 7.30pm walking south along an unamed track off Randalls Track. Police have concerns for the Mount Martha man given the time he has been missing. Local police along with Search and Rescue and SES searched the Wonyip area yesterday but were unable to locate Sebastian. The search is contionuing today. Sebastian is described as 178cm tall and a medium build with a fair completion and nose ring. He was last seen wearing black…

WITH development of new parts of Hastings in the 1960s and 1970s, the decision was made to name many of streets in honour of  Royal Australian Navy vessels. This was probably due to the towns proximity to and connection with HMAS Cerberus, the navy’s premier train­ing establishment where about 6000 personnel are trained annually, averaging 800 trainees at Cerberus at any one time. In following pages we look at Hastings’ “navy streets”, but first a bit of history. The Commonwealth Naval Forces were established on 1 March 1901, two months after the federation of Australia. On 10 July 1911, King…

WHILE not a great deal is known about the development of Bittern and Crib Point, it is obvious that the area was subdivided after the First World War. The developers sought to honour those who had served in the war by the names they gave the streets and troads. Many streets in the two towns are named after Victoria Cross recipients, which was done to honour their sacrifice in the “Great War”. The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration and is awarded for valour “in the face of the enemy” to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth…

ABOUT 300,000 Australians volunteered to serve their country between 1914 and 1918; this from a nation of fewer than five million people. Most saw service on the Western Front: in Belgium (Flanders) or along the River Somme in France. About 52,000 died and are buried there. In the postwar years in Australia, whenever a new area was being developed it was common, almost mandatory, to honour our war dead by naming the streets after famous Western Front battles in which Australians had participated. The trapezium-shaped area in Bittern bordered by South Beach Rd (to the west), Disney St (south), Trafalgar…

ANZAC Day 2018 will see a bluestone paver dedicated to VC recipient George Morby Ingram. But who was this man, and why is he being honoured? George Morby Ingram was born in Bendigo in 1889, but lived much of his life in Hastings. He died in 1961 and is buried in Frankston cemetery. On 4 October 1918, the 24th Battalion took part in the attack that captured the Beaurevoir sector in France, and was, therefore, expecting to have a rest the following day when the unit was unexpectedly ordered to take part in another attack. The assault was to starts…

CFA crews fought for an hour to save the house of Somerville horse trainer Kane Harris when it was engulfed by fire, Tuesday 17 April. A faulty clothes dryer is being blamed for starting the blaze at the Whitneys Road house at 11.10pm. Up to 10 appliances from Pearcedale, Somerville, Hastings and Tyabb, fought the blaze, however, the house could not be saved. CFA spokesman Dillon Foote said crews donned breathing apparatus to protect themselves against asbestos-laden smoke. None of the horses stabled at the property were harmed and Mr Harris was reportedly back on the training track only hours…

HASTINGS MP Neale Burgess sees the realisation of power company AGL’s plan for a floating gas terminal at Crib Point as the beginning of the “industrialisation” of the town. “Crib Point has waited decades to flourish without the weight of industrialisation and it is time that was allowed to happen,” Mr Burgess said yesterday (Monday). “If we let this in what might follow?” Mr Burgess intends holding public meetings in the next month to gauge public feeling on the gas terminal at Crib Point and a pilot plant at Hastings to convert hydrogen gas to liquid before being shipped to…

THE Victorian Netball League season gets underway on Sunday 29 April with the Peninsula Waves and Southern Saints both looking to improve on their mid-table finishes from last year’s VNL Championships. Both the Waves and the Saints will head into their season openers at the State Netball and Hockey Centre, Parkville with a relatively new look, with the Waves recruiting five new players to their side and the Saints missing a number of players due to injury. Peninsula Waves finished their 2017 season in seventh place but championship coach Jess Whitfort is confident they can rise up the ladder after…

FATHER and son skaters Kevin and Harry Geary strapped on the green and gold to represent Australia at the Oceania Speed Skating Championships on Saturday 31 March. Kevin and his 12-year-old son Harry reached speeds of up to 40kph to claim a total of 10 medals at the international competition in New Zealand. Harry was one of the youngest competitors for Australia and competed against boys of up to two years older than him in the Cadet Boys division (under-14s). Skating over distances ranging from 300m to 21km, Harry shined over the long trips and landed two bronze medals in…