Sport
4 November, 2025
Highland rule over weekend pennants
Saturday proved to be very fruitful for the Maryborough Highland Society, currently leading all three weekend pennants at the conclusion of round five.
DIVISION ONE
The Maryborough Highland Society has cemented itself as the early favourites of the division one pennant with a statement win against Dunolly Blue, 62-39.
Garry Coburn headlined for Highland with a 20-7 victory against Peter Waters, with his teammates Gregory Shay and Greg McHugh completing the shutout in two tightly contested rinks.
Shay vanquished Tony Galofaro 19-14 and McHugh overcame Alan Weir 23-18, handing Blue back-to-back losses.
With Dunolly’s defeat, Talbot has moved into second place following an impressive showing against the reigning premiers, defeating Mary-borough Golf 62-50.
Despite every rink being decided by six shots or less, Talbot managed to take all three with Peter Fletcher holding on versus Anthony Chambers 19-15, Peter McLaughlan overpowering Gerry Carmody 24-18 and Chris Crossley taking a nail-biter over Kevin Prime 19-17.
Golf finds itself outside the top four, looking to chase down teams like the third-placed Carisbrook, who eventually overcame Avoca on Saturday, 67-48.
Daniel Giddings and Frank Shannon were close to taking a rink for Avoca. Still, Roy Pickering did enough to defeat Giddings 20-15 and Ron Baker held his nerve against Shannon to win 25-23.
Ross Gregory put the icing on the cake for Carisbrook, impressing in a 22-10 victory against Ian Proctor.
In the most enthralling game of the weekend’s play, Maldon overcame a two-rink deficit to defeat Newstead 55-54.
With David Cobden and Brian Daly making the most of clutch moments to win their rinks by the slimmest of margins, with Cobden denying Annette Gillham 19-18 and Daly overcoming Peter Sedgwick 17-16, it looked as though Newstead would be victorious.
However, Wesley Honeyman turned it around for Maldon with a 21-18 triumph against Andrew Theckston to give the newly-promoted side a vital 10 points, now sitting just outside the top four.
DIVISION TWO
Despite some strong resistance from Dunolly Gold, Highland Black maintain their grip atop division two with a 47-31 win at Dunolly.
Albert Spencer and Robert Bursill diminished the golden spark of their opponents, with Spencer besting Barry Cann 25-19 and Bursill overwhelming Keith Elliott 22-12.
Highland White is currently their sister team’s closest confidant on the ladder after White produced a commanding 61-20 victory over Bridgewater.
Dennis Prosser did the bulk of the damage for Highland White against Ian Clutton 38-12 in a high-scoring affair, while Frank Mifsud completed the result with a 23-8 win over Christopher Brooshooft.
Maryborough Golf has maintained its pressure on the top-two Highland teams by winning a back-and-forth affair against Talbot 39-30.
Despite Talbot’s David Reynolds 19-12 triumph versus Trevor Young, Young’s teammate Kort Gay gave Golf an advantage they didn’t relinquish, quelling Laurie Vernon 27-11.
In another close contest where the two rinks were split, Dunolly Green has placed itself on the precipice of the top four with a gutsy win over Avoca, 46-36.
Ann Loosmore’s 23-17 victory over Debbie Wintle wasn’t enough for Avoca to overcome Fabio Delconte’s terrific 29-13 triumph against Geoff Loosmore, which gave Dunolly Green the win.
DIVISION THREE
The Maryborough Highland Society has increased its advantage on top of the division three ladder with a dominant 59-24 victory against Maldon.
Tilleke Wadeson got the ball rolling for Highland with a 38-10 win against Glen Coy, with Allan Pike following in those footsteps versus Leonie Briggs, taking the rink 21-14.
In the battle pitting second against third, Carisbrook has generated a favourable gap over Dunolly with a tense battle that ended 38-33 in Carisbrook’s favour.
Patricia Stancombe put Carisbrook in the driver’s seat with a 26-11 triumph against Wayne Stephens, leading Carisbrook to the win despite Dunolly’s Paul Chase overcoming Kathleen Upson 22-12.
Newstead were given 14 points from their scheduled encounter with Avoca, with their opponents forced to forfeit.
ROUND SIX
In a clash between two teams narrowly inside the top four, Carisbrook looks to maintain its fast start in division one against a Dunolly Blue powerhouse looking to get back on track.
With either Carisbrook or Dunolly Blue dropping points, the winner of Maryborough’s Golf trip to Maldon will be poised to move themselves into the finals places.
Top-of-the-table Maryborough Highland Society is scheduled to play a Newstead team hoping to shake off two close defeats in their last three matches, while their closest adversary, Talbot, is set for a tricky away fixture versus Avoca.
In division two, Highland Black will attempt to replicate the strong performance of Highland White last weekend against White’s previous opponent in Bridgewater.
Speaking of Highland White, they are set to play one of the matches of the round versus a Maryborough Golf team determined to end Highland’s chokehold at the top of the division.
Dunolly’s Green and Gold teams will play for bragging rights this Saturday and Avoca looks to get off its season-opening losing streak away to Talbot.
Round six of division three sees Maldon host Dunolly, Highland play Newstead and Avoca take on Carisbrook.