By MATT NICHOLLS LIFEGUARD Darren O’Rafferty was in hot form over the weekend, taking out his first Bird Rock Memorial Surf Classic. Somewhat of a local legend, O’Rafferty has been competing in the Bird Rock Classic for more than 10 years and etched his name in histroy with a stellar weekend on the waves. More [...]
CONSISTENCY paid off for Dimi Papadatos at the Port Macquarie Pro-Am this week. The Central Coast golfer was 10-under par after shooting 66 on both days of the tournament. Papadatos defeated reigning champion Leigh McKechnie (65, 68) by one stroke on Wednesday. Matt Millar was third on -8, while Anthony Summers (-7) and Lincoln Tighe [...]
SOME of the best young golfers in the country – particularly NSW – have praised the Port Macquarie Golf Club after the two-day pro-am held this week. One of the biggest pro-am tournaments in the state, Port Macquarie had put itself in contention for a tier two event in the future, the PGA said. “Certainly [...]
DARREN Williams claimed the prestigious Dawn Pardoe trophy at the Port Macquarie Blue Water Fishing Club competition on Sunday. The blustery south-westerly conditions didn’t deter six boats with 13 competitors on board. Williams took honours with 17.90 points from John Donlan on 16.96. The memorial trophy, named after club stalwart Dawn Pardoe, was presented by [...]
PORT Macquarie’s scenic course, the enthusiastic volunteers and the fantastic race conditions of Ironman Australia has been featured in a one-hour television special on ONE. Port Macquarie-Hastings mayor Peter Besseling said the program, shown to a national television audience on Sunday, was a major benefit of the Ironman event. “This program is a fantastic advertisement [...]
AFL North Coast’s dominance against the Tamworth competition continued on Saturday as it recorded a 31-point win at Port Macquarie. The margin didn’t do the game justice, though, as AFL North Coast had to fight doggedly to beat the visitors 18.7 (115) to 11.18 (84). North Coast coach Peter Chadwick said it was a tough [...]
PORT Macquarie trainer John Sprague went within inches of training his first treble on Monday. At his home track, Sprague bagged a race-to-race double before an agonising second later in the afternoon. “I’ve trained a double before – not for a long time, mind you – but I’ve never got three on the one day,” [...]
HASTINGS Valley Vikings avenged their first round drubbing against Port Macquarie on Saturday with a strong 24-17 victory over the Pirates. The Upper Mid North Coast rugby match was played in cold, blustery conditions and the Vikings put first points on the board with a penalty goal. Sam McNeil put the Pirates into the lead [...]
PORT City Breakers moved into third position on the Group 3 rugby league ladder after a bruising win against Port Macquarie on Saturday. There was no shortage of talking points to emerge from the match, the one Sharks player removed from the field, which led to a brawl in the crowd. Being a man up [...]
MID North Coast Girls Surfriders’ regional representatives Elly Muir and Chelsea Green are pumped and preparing to compete at the state surfing titles at Maroubra Beach in Sydney in July. At the recent regional titles at Rainbow Beach, Muir finished second in the under-18 shortboard division and was first in the under-18 school surfing. Green [...]