30 KATHERINE TIMES, WEDNESDAY MARCH 20, 2013 www.katherinetimes.com.au A NUMBER of tennis pro- grams have started in Katherine this year, illustrating the popular- ity of the game, maybe in part due to the highly successful Australian Open, held in Melbourne every January. St Joseph’s Year 11 students are using Katherine Tennis Club courts for a school based program and School Sport NT Rivers’ Cluster tennis 12 and under team is practising hard in preparation for their competition in Alice Springs from 15 to 17 April. Junior tennis lessons have started under the guidance of MLC Hot Shots co-ordinator Lisa Alexander and the coaching team. School children can use their Sport Voucher for Club member- ship (compulsory to cover per- sonal accident insurance) and to purchase some lessons. Junior membership is $50 per year and family membership is $200. Membership application forms are available at the club and online at tennis.com.au/nt and payment can be made using direct debit. The club is working closely with Tennis NT to provide more player development opportunities to Katherine. Last Tuesday 14 players joined Social tennis. This was the largest number of players for quite a few months, notwithstanding the extended break during Deccember/January. Welcome back to Fiona U and Fiona W, who, rumour has it, were encouraged by Dave B to return to tennis after a break of about six years. We look forward to seeing you (and your fan squad) at the courts again on a regular basis. We hope there were not too many sore muscles or bruised egos after the fierce hitting and the sidelining which apparently kept everyone on their toes - no doubt all in good fun. We were sorry to hear John D, after a practice hit last weekend, pulled up with a sore shoulder again so was unable to make his return to Tuesday night tennis. Thanks Tig for doing net main- tenance and Peter for keeping the weeds/grass under control at the Clubhouse. Millie has been doing a great job keeping Tuesday night tennis rolling along (until she rolled her ankle). Hope you’re on the mend Mil- lie – see you back on court soon. There are plenty of players making use of the two public courts (5 and 6) and the hitting wall and members have been spot- ted frequenting the courts regu- larly. One member deserves special mention. Congratulations to Isaac B for winning the footy on Satur- day and still having the energy for tennis on Sunday. You’re amaz- ing. Tennis is a great social game and is suitable for the whole fam- ily, so grab your racquet and head down to the courts; you’ll quickly improve your game and as an added bonus, improve your fit- ness. LAST Sunday a good field of keen Katherine Golfers toiled under un- seasonable and uncomfortable condi- tions to play out an 18 hole stroke competition. Unfazed by the heat and the sti- fling lack of wind, the winner Dave Fidock was able to master the condi- tions to greet the clubhouse with a very meritorious nett 66. Right behind Dave was runner-up Mal Richter who carded a 67 nett. Course was excellent again, thanks to Phil and the team. If this weather continues, golfers will be queuing up for early tee off times for next Sunday’s stableford competition. A time sheet has been placed on the notice board. Due to the heat, last Saturday arvo’s Pennants teams end of season bash proved to be a bit of a fizzer. Too hot for some, particularly those of us who toiled with the Vets in the morning. Captain Bruce is planning an alter- native for later in the season. On Saturday last the Katherine Veterans Golf Club staged a nine hole stableford competition. On a day when nine holes were quite clearly enough, and dehydration management was at a premium, one Jeff Shields bobbed up with an excel- lent 22 points. However, the next day Jeff was able to easily reverse the “old rags to riches” scenario during Sunday’s KGC competition by ”missing the course” with six consecutive shots to record 16 strokes on the 15th hole. The consistent Steve Marcus came in second in the Vets. Next Saturday at 10.30 the Vets will once again line up for nine chal- lenging stableford holes of quality senior golf. Visitors most welcome. Meet in the club at 10am. The Men’s NT Golf Open is being held at the Darwin Golf Club on May 30 to June 2 this year. Players can now nominate on line using “MITournament”. I understand the NT Golf Veterans Open will be held at DGC the week before. Accommodation will be at a pre- mium, so get in early. >> sport Dave takes out stroke comp THE Katherine Junior Baseball competition will start on Saturday, April 6, at 9am at the Katherine Base- ball ground. This season of baseball is looking to be bigger than before, with the competition moving up to an under 17 level of competition. Because we have moved up an age division, we now will be playing on the senior sized infield and will play under the national under 17 rules. This will mean that stealing of bases is now allowed which should make Baseball even more exciting and entertaining for both players and spectators on Saturday mornings. The age category this season is for players between the ages of 13 to 17 years of age. There will also again this season be “T” ball for the junior players and that should be looking to start on April 24. More details will become available as we get a bit closer. The under 17 sides are still being put together so if there are any players interested in having a game let me know and we will slot you into a team. The team training nights and coaches are: Dodgers will train on Thursday nights under new Coach Ryan Hodg- son (0418825934) Cubs will train on Monday nights again with Coach Brett Dawson (0411236975) Braves will train on Tuesday nights with new Coach Tim Francis (0407854783) Angels will train on Wednesday nights under old Coach Peter Hopkins (0417806391) A big thank you to our new coaches who have offered to give up their time and take on a junior team it is much appreciated. All training nights are at the Katherine Baseball ground and train- ing is from 5pm to 6pm. First training nights begin next week, any problems ring the coach. We have new uniforms and equip- ment ordered for each side so the teams will be looking pretty sharp this season. Registration forms and fees will be sorted over the next weeks so basi- cally we just need to get the players out to training and begin the season. Any new players wanting to try baseball or requiring a bit more infor- mation give Hoppy a call on 0417806391. A big thank you to all those who assisted with the working bee, to en- sure the ground is ready. The bases are now looking fantas- tic and I am sure that the players will enjoy sliding into the base this season. So everything is gearing up for an- other exciting season of baseball. Junior baseball season starts soon Junior Baseball with Hoppy Golf with Richo Young tennis players gear up for comp in Alice Tennis by Michelle Kealy