The annual Coolah Veterans Touch Football Carnival was held at Bowen Oval on Saturday and Sunday, marking the 25-year anniversary of the event.
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36 teams traveled from an array of locations across the country, bringing their supporters along for the journey.
The carnival was split into nine divisions, opening the door for several teams to strike gold.
The Gunnedudes from Gunnedah lifted the division A trophy with a 4-0 win over the Castlereagh 38’s team from Dubbo.
Paul Brady from Gunnedah won the Bob O’Malley award for being the best on ground in the division A grand final.
A standout winner was the division C ‘4XXXX’ squad who finally broke their six-year hoodoo with a 7-3 win over the Patinack Farm team in their seventh consecutive grand final appearance.
Here are all the grand final results from the carnival:
- A division: Gunnedudes 4 defeated Castlereagh 38’s 0.
- B division: Come in Spinner 2 defeated Tradies from Moree 1.
- C division: 4XXXX 7 defeated Patinack Farm 3.
- D division: Portland Bears 3 defeated Bug Buster 2.
- E division: Hoof Hearted 4 defeated BB Magpies 1.
- F division: Can’t Score Wont Score 4 defeated Ramp Dogs 2.
- G division: Keepin In Touch 5 defeated Big Smoke 4.
- H division: Cowboys 5 defeated Dragons 3.
- I division: BellBird BushRats 5 defeated Bartons Newsagency 0
In addition, eight players were rewarded for their participation in every carnival, dating back to 1992.
The recipients were: Gary Watson from Patinack Farm, Dick Griffiths from the Portland Bears, Kayleen Burgess from the Ferals, Ian Wicks, Greg Bladewell, Bluey Neal from the Carlingford Pirates, Allan Hayne from the Premer team and Wayne Burgess from the BB Magpies.
Ernie Fetch and Chris McMaster were also acknowledged for 25 years of volunteer work at the event.
The carnival held a social gathering on Saturday night where many party-goers dressed to the theme of 70’s and 80’s attire. Coolah Pre-School operated the canteen over the weekend, while the Lions Club handled the barbecue.
Next year’s Coolah Veterans Touch Carnival will be held on the weekend of November 4-5, 2018. The event is always a huge weekend for the small town bringing around 1000 visitors.
