They saw, they went and they conquered.
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On October 20, eight Mudgee Martial Arts (MMA) students made their way to the National All Styles state titles.
Upon return, the successful squad walked away with a total of 14 medals shared respectively among the students.
Allen Drakeford placed first in point sparring and continuous sparring, and says it was a good feeling going against fellow MMA student, Arnab Ghosh, and pulling off the win.
"I versed Arnab and beat him 5-4. It felt pretty good beating him because he's bigger. It was a bit of a surprise since I'm pretty small," Allen said.
"This year has been pretty good because I've got more medals."
Ashley Maher admits her name getting called out for first place in kata was a shock, but says her confidence has grown as a result.
"It felt good because I didn't think I did that well, but kata is my strong suit. I do feel better going into nationals because I have the first place medal," she said.
As for Jessika Newman, receiving the second place medal in continuous sparring 'felt good' considering her competitor.
"I went up against a state champion to get second. It felt good to get it though and I think I did pretty well. I'm proud of myself," she said.
Two fourth places, team kata and point sparring, to Hayden Lowe was welcomed but he admits there's room to improve.
"I wanted to get first place but fourth is better than nothing. It was tough competition and I didn't go in aggressive enough, but other than that it was pretty dope," he said.
As for William Drakeford who was part of the team kata with Lowe and Jack Newman that placed fourth, says he's feeling mixed about heading to nationals.
I'm really nervous about it, there's a bit of confidence but I'm a bit more nervous. I'm just going to train a lot more and hopefully that will help my confidence.
- William Drakeford
Liam Standen took second place in point sparring and fourth in continuous sparring, and says he was stunned at the results.
"I felt very happy to get second and while I'm happy about the fourth place, I think I could have done better," he said.
A second in point sparring and continuous sparring to Arnab Ghosh was not entirely a shock due to his level of dedication to training.
"I'm training two days a week so I get the best out of the dojo as well as go home and do some drills and training," he said.
Jack Newman received first in point sparring and fourth in team kata.
Point sparring was pretty good with a lot of competition but I came out good. I'm pretty impressed with how we went actually in team kata.
- Jack Newman
As for Lochie Birchall, he got the first place medal in creative weapons with nunchakus.
The Mudgee Martial Arts students will head to the National All Styles nationals competition in Melbourne with Mudgee Tourist Bus and compete against all of Australia on November 30 to December 1.
Jay-Anna Sleeman
Reporter for the Western Advocate. First began as a sports journalist with ACM in 2018 before moving on to cover news and court.
Reporter for the Western Advocate. First began as a sports journalist with ACM in 2018 before moving on to cover news and court.
