Day: June 17, 2019

SOCCER FRANKSTON Pines recorded its biggest win of the season when it gave Middle Park a 6-1 hiding at Monterey Reserve on Friday night. Pines had just three players over the age of 21 in the starting line-up but got off to a flyer in this State 3 South contest. Not even a minute had been played when Travis Ernsdoerfer surged clear and hammered a low shot past Middle Park keeper Fadi Qunqar. In the fourth minute teenager Meron Negassi was brought down inside the box and Ernsdoerfer converted from the spot after initially striking a post. Eight minutes into…

DIVISION TWO CHELSEA have put themselves in the box seat for a finals spot this season, after they scored an important win over Seaford away from home. Both sides have enjoyed similar fortunes for the year and came into the contest with six wins to their name. With just four points separating third place from seventh place, every win is becoming crucial for sides battling for a finals spot. Chelsea ensured they would get the win with a stunning first term. They booted eight goals to Seaford’s one, putting the contest almost beyond doubt right from the get go. At…

DIVISION ONE PINES have put Sorrento through another day of misery at Frankston Park, taking all four points in a rematch of last year’s grand final. Both teams played off in one of the most thrilling grand finals in history last year, with Pines eventually claiming the win with a point after the siren. This is the first time the two sides have met since that day. Early on it looked as if things would end up close again, with the lead changing hands at each break of play. Neither side led by more than a kick at any break.…

THE return journey from Dromana on Saturday last was fraught with disaster for members of the Frankston football team. Then about half a mile on the Dromana side of Balcombe’s Creek, the first car, driven by Mr. J. McEntee, of Seaford, was overtaken by Mr. M. Goulding’s’ car. At this spot the road takes a distinct turn, but Goulding evidently overlooked this fact, with the result that in trying to pass McEntee the cars collided. McEntee kept wonderful control of his car, and successfully brought it to a standstill in the drain, but with a suddenness that precipitated the occupants…

THE heady days of the TV show Hey Hey It’s Saturday last week had a revival of sorts, and a round of applause, in Mornington. While it may not have been the entire program, one of the most bizarre and irreverent segments of the acclaimed show was performed before an appreciative live audience. Plucka Duck made a surprise entrance and took centre stage as Chris Pyke pedalled the wheels of a bike in time with 24 spinning Plucka Duck dolls. The mini show marked the handing over to Mr Pyke on Thursday (13 June) of an exercise bike, complete with…

MORNINGTON became the music capital of Melbourne over the Queen’s Birthday long weekend. The Mornington Winter Music Festival started on the Friday night (7 June) with musicians playing at nine venues, starting at 10am in the Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery. When the “Dissonant Rhythms” of Ross Manning ended at 5pm, the show moved on to wine bars, pubs and restaurants. The gallery again started the show on Saturday, which had a much bigger line up musicians playing to audiences in a longer list of venues (as well as on Main Street). this time including wineries and the Mornington Yacht Club…

KEEPING Mornington’s hotels, cafes, bars and restaurants compliant with the latest rules and regulations governing gaming and liquor sales is the aim of a visit by regulators next week. Staff from the state’s liquor regulator – the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation – will target the town’s licensed premises on Monday 24 June. Their aim will not be to check for breaches and issue fines but to educate licensees and help them to remain compliant. VCGLR manager education programs Veronica Goluza said the VCGLR’s Street Talk program aimed to keep licensees and their staff up to date with…

THE impact of road trauma – on yourself and others, will be one of the topics covered at road trauma presentations to thousands of students at Peninsula Community Theatre in two sessions: 24 and 25 June and 22 and 23 July. Other topics at the talks put on by Teenagers Road Accident Group (TRAG) include the aspects of life that can be affected by road trauma; safe driving practices and decision making, and a focus on making good choices with the message Drive4Life. About 3000 secondary school students from around the Mornington Peninsula will attend the presentations, in Wilsons Road,…

A VIOLENT explosion rocked the night calm in Mornington demolishing a backyard bungalow and injuring a female visitor, midnight, Saturday 8 June. The blast blew out the walls and brought down the ceiling of the pre-fab behind a house in Bungower Road, leaving the young woman with an eye injury, burns and deafness. One wall fell against the side of the house shattering a window near where a four-year-old boy was sleeping. A drawn blind may have prevented him being showered with glass. The occupants of the house helped the young woman out of the ruins and she was later…

FISHERMEN on the rocks at Mt Martha who “saw something odd” out at sea sent their drone to hover over a man in distress and pinpoint his position to rescuers. The fishermen called 000 and the Police Air Wing was able to spot the man about one kilometre off Hearn Road, 4.30pm, Friday 7 June. Volunteer Marine Rescue skipper Tim Warner said they received a call from the chopper to rescue the man, 49, who had been thrown out of his 14-foot tinny after “hitting an object” in the water. The incident was made more dangerous because the tinny with…

AN uneasy truce was in place over the Tyabb Airfield dispute last week in the lead-up to a meeting between the Mornington Peninsula Shire CEO John Baker and Peninsula Aero Club president Jack Vevers. The meeting, scheduled for yesterday (Monday 17 June), comes after the warring parties sought common ground in their row over missing or non-existent permits and contentious flying hours. The mayor Cr David Gill said on Friday that there could be issues such as workers’ compensation insurance if businesses were operating at the airfield without permits. The aero club was stunned when the council issued a stop-work…

A FINE issued to a boatie parked at Rye boat ramp was a mistake, Mornington Peninsula Shire mayor Cr David Gill has conceded. “The error was made by a local laws officer and it will be quickly sorted out,” Cr Gill said. The $81 fine for supposedly “failing to pay a fee and obey instructions on a sign” drew scorn from Futurefish Foundation director David Kramer. (“Fine adds to boat ramp confusion” The News 21/5/19). It followed a statement by Cr Gill that the shire had stopped processing boat ramp fees. Mr Kramer said “the left hand doesn’t know what…

A HOON driver allegedly doing late-night burnouts in Rye last week later blew over the legal blood alcohol limit and had his car impounded for 30 days at a cost of $1010. Rosebud police saw the man’s white Holden ute as they turned the corner into Johnson Avenue, 11.50pm, Saturday 8 June. They said the driver parked and started walking away before being stopped for the breath test: he blew 0.171 per cent. Leading Senior Constable Natalie Dean said the man’s P1 licence was suspended and he will be charged on summons with drink driving and traffic-related offences. First published…

A YOUNG speedster nabbed at 160kph in a 100kph zone at Dromana has had his car impounded for 30 days at a cost of $1280. The 18-year-old Capel Sound P1 licence-holder is also expected to be charged on summons with driving at a dangerous speed and exceeding the speed limit. A major collision investigation unit officer on his way home intercepted the man’s white Mazda ute on Mornington Peninsula Freeway, 8.20pm, Sunday 9 June. Leading Senior Constable Natalie Dean said impounding the car was part of Operation Regal, a four-day high visibility road policing operation over the Queen’s birthday long…

THREE men who allegedly bashed an older man walking near Bittern railway tracks are being sought by Hastings police. Senior Constable Lauren Coster said the men were skylarking on the tracks in a white Nissan Patrol when it became stuck near Moreton Crescent, midday, Thursday 30 May. As they tried to winch the vehicle free the older man approached and commented and an argument started. One of the younger men allegedly punched him to the head, knocking him down and causing pain, lacerations and swelling to his face. The alleged attacker is described as having fair skin, 183cm tall, stocky…

SORRENTO Sea Scouts leader Lynette Hipwell awarded an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) in last week’s Queen’s Birthday Honours says she was “just having lots of fun”. Sorrento Sea Scouts Group Leader David Burgess said the award paid tribute to Ms Hipwell’s “services to youth through scouts”. “It is a fitting recognition of Lynette’s commitment to the youth of the Mornington Peninsula and the scouting movement throughout Victoria,” he said. “She has been a leader at Sorrento Sea Scouts for over 35 years, a member of the Scout 4×4 team and the Scout sailing team. “Her tireless commitment to the…

TINY homes – or small, functional houses – are being assessed to provide affordable housing for the thousands of homeless and rough sleepers on the Mornington Peninsula. The homes, which could be set in small villages, are seen as ideal crisis accommodation, particularly for the 135 Capel Caravan Park residents soon to be seeking a roof over their heads after their planned eviction later this year. The tiny homes could be trucked onto small parcels of land in semi-rural locations or unused public land, such as disused road reserves. So great is their capacity to offer a practical solution to…