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A lovely drive was had by the Bayside family as we headed west on Saturday for State League action Geelong-style. And here’s what Matt and Jussie had to say in the car on the way back:
First, Matt from the backseat commented on the women’s team thus:
Always nice to get out and see some good roadworks around Melbourne. After leaving home at 11am and getting to Geelong without a Stop/Slow man in sight, management had plenty of time to eat greasy food and throw around a few ideas.
Megan Peters, with puppy in tow, also had plenty of time to warm up, but it was all worth it as she led from start to finish to win the Women’s 3k walk. In a close race Megan was finally able to shake off the opposition with a lap and a half to go.
Karin Laidlaw hit the start line ready for action, but also managed to hit the fourth hurdle along the back straight and came tumbling to the ground. To her credit, Karin sought medical treatment and was up for a 4*400 leg later in the day, but we were unable to fill a team, due to a decidedly apathetic throwing contingent - shame Gabrielle, shame.
On the infield, plenty was happening as Jeanette Bowles continued her consistent form, leaping 5.85m, coming 2nd in the competition to Kim Burns, but taking the admiration of management after making the trip from the far southern suburbs just to be here. Making the big trip down in the throwers vehicle was Siobhan Taylor, making her season debut in the Javelin for Bayside. Accompanied by a not very pleasant head wind, Siobhan still managed to take a victory in the competition, throwing over forty-one metres.
The 200’s saw Kylie Reed step up to the longer distance in a quest to get some solid racing in before Christmas. Kylie showed good form into the straight and finished a close second to Anne Dellar. In the second sprint, Jeanette joined the queue after her Long Jump performance and ran well into a super strong headwind prior to losing form a little over the last 20 metres. She still managed a very commendable third in Heat 2. No third runner for Bayside was present, or if they were, they weren’t telling us.
Rebecca Neilsen returned to the circled square and took out a strong victory in the Shot Put, beating Clare Thompson, who threw by invitation and will hopefully be part of the Bayside mob very soon. The High Jump mat sat pretty much vacant for the day, unless you count three fatso commentators who were too lazy to call races whilst standing up.
In the sprint hurdles, Sarah Dosen probably wondered what the point was of coming 80 km’s down the Geelong Rd to run into a howling headwind. A few of us felt the same way, but sometimes you just do things that you don’t really want to. Katie Seibold was another who had to contend with torturous conditions whilst running unsheltered for twelve and a half laps of the windswept oval.
Things are hotting up in the Pole Vault where Vivian Potiris managed to come second in her competition, jumping 2.50m. Sarah Wiltshire made her debut this season, coming all the way down to compete by invitation and managed to cement her spot next Thursday with a leap of 3.10m.
The 800’s were possibly the biggest highlights on the women’s program with Doncaster bringing out a few guns for the early part of the season, including Sonia Brito who ensured that a steady pace was on in the Bayside heat. A big congratulations to Sue Gloster (nee Piper) recently back from honeymoon, who managed an extra special three second pb of 2.16.9 under very tough conditions. It was a run that reflects well on Sue’s character and shows great promise for the upcoming season.
So don’t ask how, but with a half filled team, we still managed to be only 1 point down in our five team competition with two events to go. Step up to the plate soon to be 21 year old Megan Boyes, who was strutting her stuff over at the Discus cage, peppering 40 metres again, whilst Gabrielle Neighbour had to wait until the completion of all other events before getting her chance in the hammer ring. With victories to both these athletes, Bayside managed to finish first and walk away with a much needed win and a lot of personal pride. A huge thanks to everyone who made the effort under difficult circumstances, and we can now look forward to Thursday. Ahhh, Olympic Park, how we love you.
Also, a personal apology to the Hungry Jacks corporation for not partaking in their product at any stage through the day. After venturing into difficult territory with the local fish and chip shop, I am prepared to state now that it will be the first and last time we travel through Geelong without having a go at a Bacon Double Cheeseburger.
Juss replied from the driver’s seat with his views of the men’s team:
A long trip down the Princes Fwy with Matt telling us all about the roadworks along the way: is there a better way to wipe out a developing hangover? Probably, but there were no other options at the time.
Saturday saw the Bayside men get beaten for the first time since January 2000. A great streak has come to an end but at full strength, we are still very hard to beat.
Unfortunately, this year's Geelong program saw a howling head wind for the sprinters after recent years offered a good tailwind. Such is life and you have to feel for the distance runners on these days - especially with the heat playing a role in the 5000m. Maybe the guys knew this was coming with this and the upcoming Zatopek and Olympic Dream races it is easy to understand why Tim found it hard to attract 5km runners.
No 400m hurdlers! Amazing, but true.
Arnold Pamphlis drew the hardest 200m heat by a mile and ran a creditable race behind Olympian Michael Hazel. Carl Morehouse too, ran a good race into the headwind, finishing third behind a quality pair while Matt Cooter stepped up and ran a controlled race to finish second in his heat.
Two 110m hurdlers, but no points. Disappointing, but it is up to the athletes to make sure they check in for their races each week, otherwise we get no points. Unfortunately for Tim and Liam, they were not able to get in the faster heat of the day and it was left for Tim to run impressively impressive out in front, while Liam showed he is coming into good form.
Paul Peulich made his hammer debut at State League and threw a very sound 51.48m. Still well and truly a junior, Paul has many years of throwing ahead of him. In the shot he threw by invitation as Aaron Neighbour easily won the competition with a series of 17m plus puts, with 17.74m his best performance.
Tom Farr, like all the jav throwers, found the head wind difficult to deal with but threw a solid 54m plus throw on a day when no one reached their best. The conditions were much better for the long jumpers who had a huge tailwind at their backs and Matt Woodruff lapped it up with a 7m plus leap to win the competition. Matt Cooter also jumped, ending up with a 6.99 leap by invitation.
Joel Graham debuted for Bayside in the high jump and managed a clearance of 1.85m to score some valuable points.
Brenno, Todd and Clint (stepping right down from 5k) ran well in the 800 in conditions that were less than ideal. Brenno lead until the 50 metre mark before finishing fourth, while Todd found the headwind hard work up the home straight. Clint showed great strength to come back and win his heat impressively.
No 4x400 relay team again…
Matt Brown finished off the day with a win in the disc, throwing 51.68. All the throwers were there to make the most of the great infield at Geelong, however the winds were not entirely suitable.
Thanks to all who came down, it is always appreciated. Thursday is back at OP before a week off for the Zatopek/Aust All Schools. Good luck to all preparing for these events.
Results are here.
Last week's Reports are here.