Sports

Smoking Barrels and Flying Clays

It has been another busy week for our Donald High School clay target shooters, with students representing our school at competitions across the region and one student taking his place on the State Championship stage.

Following Marty’s fantastic performance at the North West Zone Championship in Horsham, he was invited to compete at the Australian Clay Target Association (ACTA) State Championship School Shoot in Echuca on Monday 7 September. Marty and his mum, Susie, travelled down a day early to take advantage of the practice session before the competition.

Marty faced tough competition against 55 other students. He got off to a fantastic start, smashing 13/15 targets in the first round. The wind then picked up, making the targets considerably more challenging, but Marty still managed an impressive 10/15 in the second round. To reach this level of competition is a fantastic achievement, and we are incredibly proud of Marty and the way he represented our school.

While Marty was competing in Echuca, Miss O'Brien and Donald Field & Game member Peter Pendlebury headed to the North West Zone School Shoot at Swan Hill Field and Game with Charlie, Hayden, Lyric and our newest shooter, Xen.

With 42 students from eight different schools competing, the four Donald students had plenty of competition. The course looked quite different to what our students are accustomed to, with most of the shoot taking place out in the paddock rather than along the Merran Creek. At least four of the twelve stands provided a particularly challenging test, giving the boys plenty to think about as they adjusted to the conditions.

The first round was all about getting used to the new course, but the boys settled in and showed some great improvement in their second round. A special shout-out goes to Hayden, who smashed 13/24. And then there was Lyric, who certainly saved some excitement for the final stand! He absolutely smashed the final two rabbit targets in his second round, a performance that was definitely worthy of video! Charlie also handled the rabbits well, although perhaps with slightly less drama!

A huge well done to Charlie, Hayden, Lyric and Xen for their efforts and for proudly representing Donald High School. We are very proud of all four boys, particularly Xen, who is just beginning his journey as a new shooter.

A special thank you also goes to Peter Pendlebury from Donald Field & Game, who generously volunteered his time to support our students, provide advice and encourage them throughout the competition. The support of our local sporting community provides our students with opportunities to develop skills, confidence and friendships beyond the classroom.

With four of our six keen shooters currently in Year 11, we are now hoping to encourage some of our Junior students to give clay target shooting a go. We would love to see some new young shooters coming through the ranks and keeping Donald High School well represented at future school shoots.

Well done to all of our shooters – we are very proud of you!

Sarah O,Brien