50 years ago
A PUBLIC meeting in Hamilton on Monday night sunk the final nails into the coffin of the city’s Yulunga festival. Five members of the public officially pronounced the festival’s death sentence when they voted to discontinue the festival this year. They voted to discontinue the festival until an organisation was prepared to undertake the responsibility or until professional assistance could be obtained from resources of the city. The Hamilton District Tourist Association had asked the Mayor, Cr. Ron Peek, to call a public meeting to consider a 1974 Yulunga Festival. Last year’s festival, held in conjunction with the city’s spring show, was regarded as a failure. The association was not directly represented at the meeting although its secretary, Mrs. H. Bancroft, had tendered an apology.
HAMILTON Amateur Basketball Association is to recruit players in America who are interested in being brought here to help give Hamilton one of the top teams in Australia. Association president, Mr. Allan Windust, told the annual meeting last night that this was one of three projects aimed at helping Hamilton to become Australian champions in two or three years. “We have already made contact with several players at American colleges who are just below professional level, but who would be equal to the top players to be found in Australia,” he said. Mr. Windust said negotiations were continuing to bring these players to Hamilton where excellent employment prospects had already been promised.
25 years ago
COMMUNITY satisfaction with the Southern Grampians Shire Council has plummeted in the past 12 months. A survey encompassing all 78 Victorian municipalities showed the shire’s performance rating dropped by more than five per cent in 1998, the third largest decrease in the state. The fall can be almost solely attributed to one issue – waste management – which dropped from an indexed mean of 68 in 1998, to 46 this year. The shire’s residents also continue to be unimpressed on economic development, which also scored a low 46, the same as 1998. Southern Grampians placed 63rd on overall performance compared with all other shires, scoring a satisfaction rating of 57.
LEG speed will be Western Border Football League’s main weapon in tomorrow’s division one interleague match against Hampden Football League in Warrnambool. Selectors will pin the league’s hopes on fast running midfielders and attacking defenders in the Booze Less Country Championship match, which is being played at Warrnambool’s Reid Oval. Despite the withdrawal of several key players because of injury, interleague selector, Peter Dempsey, said the team representing the league tomorrow would be more than competitive. Dempsey said leg speed would be the team’s main strength and the side aimed to run Hampden ragged on the wide open spaces at Reid Oval. “The ground is very similar to Blue Lake Sports park and having a lot of fast and skilful running players was certainly one area we concentrated on when selecting the squad,” he said.
