1970
Kyabram’s Fenaughty St squash courts were only a month away from being complete.
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Owner Harry Castles said he was negotiating with world squash champion Geoff Hunt to perform the official opening.
The new facility included a meeting room that would double as a meeting room and nursery.
• Kyabram was sitting on top of the Goulburn Valley league ladder after four rounds, having scored a six goal win on the back of four goals from coach Fred Wooller.
Tongala was sixth on the eight-team ladder after scoring a three goal win against Stanhope, Paul Rowe kicking three goals in the win for the Blues.
Kyabram was, in fact, on top of all three competition ladders having not been beaten in the reserves or the thirds after four rounds.
1980
Lancaster centreman Terry Neapean had to be content with sharing Lancaster Football Club’s Player of the Month award with Algie Tonkin.
Rob Ferguson and John Hausler had also polled well in the award, along with Col Thompson.
• Kyabram Apex Club’s Sportstar of the Year field was finalised, cricketer John Wallis, swimming Trudi Laidlaw and tennis star Bill Stone earning the final three nominations.
Wallis was the Kyabram disrict association’s greatest ever run scorer at the time and had captained the KDCA side to Bendigo.
Laidlaw competed at the country swimming championships at Bendigo with great success and was also a finalist at the state school championships.
Stone won his 16th Kyabram Lawn Tennis Club singles championship and, despite being in his mid-40s, was still considered the best player in the town.
• Lancaster was third and Merrigum fourth on the Kyabram District Football League ladder after four rounds.
Merrigum had just beaten the Wombats by one point, with Barry Younger, gary Thomas and David Pettifer its stars. Peter Laws kicked seven goals and big men, Greg Pell and Col Robinson, were also stars.
Peter Edwards and Noel Reddrop were lancaster’s best players, along with Shane Backway and John Hausler.
Austin Maxwell, coach Kelly Hewitt and Wayne Kidbble were Girgarre’s best players in a match that they lost by 17 points to Nagambie.
Wayne Thorson was another good player for Girgarre in the defeat. Girgarre was sitting second from the bottom at the time
1990
Bette Spencer made history as a harness racing trainer when she produced Vicnoble for a win at Moonee Valley.
Driven to victory by Jim Schischka, she had only been handed her A-grade trainer’s licence a few days before the race and Vicnoble was her first starter as an official trainer.
Although she had never driven a winner, she did have several placings to her credit as a driver.
• Kyabram’s Mrs Netball, Pauline Laidlow, was awarded the Jack Arthur Memorial Award for the best contribution to local sport.
Pauline, who had a 30-year association with netball in the town, started playing in 1958 for the high school A-grade netball team and continued playing until 1973 when a knee injury cut her career short.
She maintained an involvement through her children, Trudi and Stewart, serving as president, secretary, treasurer and recorder for many years.
She was made a life member in 1972 and in recent times had thrown everything into the state league team to ensure they were competitive in the Victoria-wide competition.
• Star Kyabram recruit Brendan Ryan received a five match suspension from the Heathcote League Football League tribunal after an incident in a division two game at the Katandra Night Football Series.
Ryan was playing for Mount Pleasant at the time, awaiting a clearance to Kyabram for the remainder of the 1990 season.
A recommended eight game suspension was reduced when the legality of the case was challenged by Ryan’s advocate, John Davy. He successfully established the night competition was not affiliated with the Victorian Country Football League.
Elmore’s Anthony Taig was left with a broken jaw following the incident.
2000
• Merrigum was unbeaten and sitting on top of the Kyabram district league ladder after seven rounds.
Steve Pedretti, Brad Giri, Scott Greig and Travis Hocking (four goals) had been stars in a 27 point win against Tallygaroopna.
Stanhope was third on the ladder, having just beaten Nagambie by 39 points, with Gavin Exell kicking six and Jason Norman four. Scott Macknamara and Graeme Nurse were the best players.
Lancaster was sixth on the ladder at the time, while Girgarre had just registered its first win of the season against Avenel. Peter Vourgaslis kicked two goals and better players included Gino D’Angelo, Steve Joyce and Brett Scoble.
2010
Goulburn Valley and Kyabram district league football legend, Tony “Rusty” McDonnell was set to play his 500th game.
The veteran was playing with Lancaster reserves, having already been a one-time owner of the senior games record in the GVL, having played 337 games with Kyabram.
That record was beaten by Anthony “Tank” McPhee from Rochester, who played 400.
McDonnell first played senior football in 1983 and joined Lancaster in 2001 - leading that club to the flag in the first of three years in charge.
He had won the past two Wade Medals as the best player in the Kyabram district league’s reserve grade competition. The weekend before his 500th he had kicked six goals in a match - winning performance for his team.
Kyabram Free Press and Campaspe Valley News editor