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April 2, 2019

By Eden Hynninen

Twenty three workers will be cut at Broadford’s Nestlé factory after the global company announced a restructure.

Staff were told on Thursday that job cuts would come through a mix of voluntary redundancies and not filling existing vacancies.

The changes include the consolidation of shifts and changes to fixed rostered days off for some of the factory’s 230 employees.

The Broadford factory, one of the largest employers in the Mitchell Shire, produces lollies sold under the Allen’s brand.Nestlé general manager confectionary Chris O’Donnell said packing lines and laboratory operations would be adjusted, along with the closure of a packing line after the sale of Fruit Pastilles to Darrell Lea last year.

“Unfortunately, as a result of these changes, up to 23 roles will be made redundant from the factory,” Mr O’Donnell said.

“We hope to achieve this reduction through a mix of voluntary redundancies, and not filling existing vacancies.

“We will offer all affected staff a generous redundancy package and access to outplacement services, and have given all our staff time to consider whether they might wishto accept this offer.”

Mr O’Donnell reassured staff and the community that the cuts were not due to personal performance.

“This decision doesn’t reflect on the personal efforts of our staff – we know our Broadford team to be a hard-working and committed team who are dedicated to making Australia’s favourite lollies,” Mr O’Donnell said.

“However it’s important that we ensure that the Allens business runs efficiently and remains competitive in what we know is an increasingly challenging market, and have taken this decision after careful consideration of how to focus our activities and resources.”

Decisions by large supermarket chains on whether to stock certain products can have a flow-on effect on production, and therefore employment numbers.

The cuts follow an announcement in August last year to start a third shift and introduce 15 new roles at the Broadford factoryMember for Euroa Steph Ryan pushed the button on August 6, 2018 to start the third shift and announced that the factory woud operate 24 hours a day.

Since learning about the job losses at the factory, Ms Ryan said it was a very sad day for workers.“Whenever I drop in, I am always impressed by the factory team’s dedication to their work,” Ms Ryan said.

“They produce wonderful produce and they are passionate about what they do. I know this news will be devastating to them.

“It is vital that the government steps up to help those who are made redundant find new employment opportunities.”

Boxer wins state championship

The North Central Review

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April 2, 2019

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By Jackson Russell

Mickleham pugilist Bianca Milich has won the Victorian Light Flyweight Title less than 12 months after making her amateur boxing debut.

Milich, who trains at House of Stoush in Wallan, took home the 48kg title after winning two fights at the Boxing Victoria Championships at the Arnold Sports Festival at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre two weeks ago.

She fought her way into the championship bout with a win over two-time state champion Vivian Tran on March 15 and backed it up with a win over reigning champion Jen Thompson two days later

Milich said it was a challenge to face two vastly different opponents.

“Vivian was quite tall and she was long and experienced so that meant keeping distance,” she said.

“On the Sunday, Jen Thompson was extremely short which made it fun to try and get a body shot but that just changed the strategy and meant I had to use my height as an advantage.”

Milich said she didn’t expect to have so much success so quickly.

“I’m not sure how to describe it. It’s unreal. It’s something I never thought would happen so I’m just taking it all in and everyone has been really supportive and that’s the best part, coming home after a win like that,” she said.

Milich credited her trainer Bryce Poorter as being crucial to her rapid rise through the ranks.

“I was already humbled and grateful for the opportunities I was lucky enough to receive last year alone but to be able to do this so soon is a credit to Bryce who put in the work getting the matches because that’s not an easy feat either and it’s something people don’t see behind all the fights,” she said.

“People see me on the day but they don’t see all the hard work and hours we put in here. I was getting up at 3am running and he’s taking me for sprints on weekends and it cuts into family time, it cuts into personal time, it affects everything.”

Poorter said he knew as soon as Milich wanted her first fight that she would be state champion one day.

“I thought it would take a couple of years but to do it in 12 months is a credit to her and how hard she works. Nobody trains harder the Bianca and she deserves every pat on the back she’s got along the way,” he said.

Milich’s next fight is in Adelaide on April 13 before she turns her attention to the 2019 Elite Australian Championships in June.

The House of Stoush team has another big fight on the way with 193cm, 110kg 17-year-old Reuben Villegas fighting for the Victorian Junior Super Heavyweight Title in May.

Poorter said he had seen something special in Reuben, who also played basketball for Wallan Panthers.

“He’s really special. I’d rather get hit by a car than get hit by him,” he said.

“For a kid who just turned 17 to be so placid outside the ring, I love seeing him turn that switch on and get mean as soon as he steps inside the ring and turns it off as soon as he gets out. So hopefully he can get the job done too.”

Panthers men win second straight

The North Central Review

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April 2, 2019

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By Jackson Russell

Wallan Panthers’ men snagged its third win in four games with an 81-59 win over Maccabi Warriors at home on Saturday night.

Meanwhile, the depleted Panthers women went down 48-65 to Mornington Breakers on the road on Saturday night.

Maccabi started quickly, going out to a five point lead early but the Panthers quickly reined it in with a 21-6 run to take a 12-point lead into the first break.

It was more of the same in the second period with the Panthers stingy defence allowing just nine points to take a 43-20 lead into half-time.

Maccabi came back but wasn’t able to close the gap as the Panthers held onto the lead for the win.

Wallan got the job done inside, winning the rebound battle 69-41 and scoring 36 points in the paint.

The Panthers’ bench was big, outscoring the Warriors’ bench 24-0.

Import Trace Cureton led the Panthers with 22 points, 13 rebounds and three assists while Leigh Saffin was right up there with 22 points and 11 boards.

Coach Carey Papanicolaou said he was happy with the performance but was disappointed not to build on the half-time lead.

“We matched them all over the court. We shot the ball well when we needed to and our rebounding was pretty strong. The teamwork’s getting there now which is good,” he said.

“They were a bit undermanned but Brock Carter was good inside with 12 rebounds and a couple guys had double-doubles which was good.”

The Panthers’ women had a tough time in their wire-to-wire loss to Mornington.

A 24-9 first quarter set the tone for the game, with the lead blowing out to 24 in the second period.

The Panthers stepped up in the second half and took it to the Breakers with an 11-11 third quarter and winning the fourth quarter 12-11.

Wallan’s poor shooting hurt, as the Panthers went 18-64 (.281) from the field and 2-19 (.105) from deep.

Melissa Hewitt led the Breakers with 12 points and three rebounds while Rebecca Romeo led the Panthers with 15 points, five rebounds and two assists. Carly Simons chipped in with 12 points, eight rebounds and two assists for the Panthers.

Pacers 0-2 for weekend

The North Central Review

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April 2, 2019

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By Jackson Russell

Whittlesea Pacers’ Big V teams were unsuccessful at the weekend with the women going down 100-67 at the Casey Cavaliers and the men suffering an 81-63 loss to Bulleen Boomers.

The Pacers women were never in it on Sunday as Casey took the lead early in the first period and never gave it up.

The Cavs ball movement was crucial to the win, as the team racked up 29 assists and shot 53 per cent from the field and 42 per cent from three-point land.

The Pacers struggled to make shots, shooting 37 per cent from the field and 30 per cent from deep.

Turnovers also hurt Whittlesea as Casey scored 28 points from the Pacers’ 25 turnovers.

Sarah Halejian was hard to stop for Casey, scoring 27 points with eight rebound and nine assists.

Whittlesea was short, only suiting up six players which meant big minutes for everyone.

Rachel Bell led the side in scoring with 24 points, five rebounds and two assists in 38 minutes while Dani Reinwald again put in a monster effort with 20 point and 14 boards while playing all 40 minutes.

Whittlesea’s men didn’t have much luck either in their home-game loss to Bulleen on Saturday night.

It was neck and neck early, with both teams trading leads. The Boomers were one point in front at quarter time before the Pacers rallied to take a four-point lead in the second before going into half-time level at 34-34.

It was all Bulleen in the second half as the Boomers outscored Whittlesea 26-16 in the third period.

The Pacers weren’t able to stop the Boomers momentum as Bulleen ran away.

Both sides shot the ball well, but turnovers and free throws were the killer for Whittlesea.

The Pacers racked up 20 fouls and sent Bulleen to the line 19 times. They also had the ball stolen for 12 of their 19 turnovers from which the Boomers scored 21 points.

Injuries didn’t help with Dominic Bruno taken out of the game with a groin complaint and Tom Watson with a back soreness.

Chauncey Orr dropped 33 points for Bulleen while Jayce Beasley top scored for the Pacers with 16 points and seven rebounds.

Coach Brian Vaughns said it was a great start but a poor finish from his charges.

“We made some mental mistakes. We started well, it was a close first half but then we turned the ball over in three of our first four possessions after half-time and it snowballed from there,” he said.

“We didn’t make good decisions and we didn’t keep them out of the paint.”

Netballers ready for the new season

The North Central Review

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April 2, 2019

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Lancefield Football Netball Club is starting the netball season with 10 new additions and a jump up to A grade in Riddell District Football Netball League.

With 30 girls ready to play, the club is showcasing and focusing on local talent this season.

Coach Meaghan Keogh said the club was going through a rebuilding phase.

“Previously we’ve had a lot of players travelling here to play, this season the club would like to pay for local girls,” Ms Keogh said.

“We’ve got girls that have never played netball before who are playing C grade, they know it might be difficult but we are committed to making sure we have fun on and off the field.”

Lancefield will play in A, B and C grades in the RDFNL and are looking forward to building a greater sense of community among players and coaches.

Lancefield will be at home against Woodend Hesket and Macedon will host Riddell at Tony Clarke Reserve.

Broadford will kick off its season against Wallan on Saturday at Greenhill Reserve.

Northern Football Netball League

Kilmore Football Netball Club are starting the netball season with two new joint head coaches Kristie Bandy and Lisa Mananici.

Based on grading five teams will be entered this season in the Northern Football Netball League and the club has 40 players keen to kick off the next Friday.

“We’ve just finished the summer season of NFNL finished runner up in division 2,” Ms Mandanici said.

“We had a practice match on Sunday and the girls are very excited. The older, more mature players are looking forward to mentoring our youth coming through.

“I think Kilmore has come in refreshed, with a different direction and hopefully looking at being very competitive with promising expansion for the future.”

Grading matches will commence on Friday, April 5 with five Kilmore teams playing at Morang South Primary School and Parade College.

Riddell league kicks off Saturday

The North Central Review

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April 2, 2019

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By Jackson Russell

The Riddell District Football Netball League season is set to get underway on Saturday with Diggers Rest aiming to defend its premiership, while the rest of the league nips at its heels.

After finishing fourth on the ladder with a 12-4 record and ending the season with an elimination final loss to Macedon, Wallan is hoping to run deeper into the finals in 2019.

The Magpies have lost RDFNL Bowen Medallist and club best and fairest Jesse Davies to Craigieburn while Sam Rexhepi and Heath McKerchar have moved on to Lalor and Hadfield, respectively.

In their place, the club’s brought in Leitchville-Gunbower premiership full forward Matt Perri, utility Michael Tang from the Tasmanian State League and North Bendigo premiership forward-midfielder Sean Morris.

Wallan assistant coach Spencer Mathieson said the club’s had strong turnouts at training, with more than 70 players attending over 20 of the club’s training sessions over the summer.

“With these excellent numbers last season and this preseason, competition for spots has been at a premium across all sides, which is something we see as very healthy,” he said.

“The most exciting aspect about coaching at Wallan is the amount of quality young players coming through our system. Our Under 19s have played in the last two grand finals.”

Mathieson said head coach Daniel Nolan would continue to push the young players and give them opportunities in the seniors.

“Young players to watch are reigning RDFL Rising Star Nathan Fowler, Corey Grindlay, who was third in the best and fairest last year, and Patrick Mahoney, who we now get full time after he was committed to the Calder Cannons during the last two seasons,” he said.

Wallan kicks off the season at home against local rival Broadford on Saturday.

Romsey, too, is hoping to push further into the finals after the Redbacks also were eliminated in the first week of the finals in 2018.

Spots will be at a premium, with the club bringing in VFL players Nathan Blair from Coburg Lions, 2014 Footscray premiership player Mitch Jensen from Wangaratta and Joel Naylor from Northern Blues. Blake Henderson has also returned from Melton Centrals after playing in Romsey’s 2011 premiership side.

Romsey Football Netball Club president Eden Jedwab said the club recruited players that would fit into the club’s culture.

“That was one of the keys, not just good footballers but good people that would be a good fit for our group and we’ve been fortunate for those guys to jump on-board,” he said.

“The majority of our players played junior footy at Romsey and our focus has been to keep it local.”

The Redbacks brought in a strength and conditioning coach in the offseason, hoping the extra fitness will make a difference over the gruelling season.

“At the moment it’s made a difference but time will tell as the season goes on. At the moment, we’re fit and ready to go and looking forward to it,” Jedwab said.

“We’ve had a big preseason, bigger than we’ve had the last couple of years as far as workload is concerned and I guess we’ll see the benefits as time goes on.

“We think we’ll improve but it depends on the rest of the competition… We want to play deep into the finals. That’s our plan but that’s the plan for 12 of the clubs in the competition.”

The Redbacks start the season with a bye before travelling to Rupertswood in Round 2.

Lancefield will be looking to build through its local youngsters, with the club entering an Under 19s team in 2019.

Lancefield president Clark Todd said the club wanted to improve from within.

“The only way we can improve is to build from within. Now we’ve got 19s on board, we’re attempting to rebuild with the youth in the community,” he said.

“That experience will filter into the seniors. Instead of spending lots of money, we’re trying to build from within. There are some good Under 19s players that will be the future of the club going forward.

“We’re more community-based. We don’t want to import and pay lots of money. Building from within the community is our aim.”

The Tigers have had a decent showing in their preseason matches, with a loss to Northern Football Netball League side Hadfield and comfortable wins to both the Under 19s and seniors over Keilor Park.

Lancefield takes on Woodend Hesket at home on Saturday, hoping to start the season on the right foot.

Broadford have brought in Jamie Kelly to take over the coaching job from Skip Bray and are looking to improve its record from 1-15 last year.

The Kangaroos have brought in Jayden Welch from Yarra Junction and Jake Hall from Wallan, among others.

Northern clubs ready for the bounce

The North Central Review

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April 2, 2019

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By Jackson Russell

The Northern Football Netball League season kicks off this weekend, with Whittlesea hoping for success after being relegated to division two, and Kilmore, Laurimar and Mernda all aiming to improve in division three.

Whittlesea was relegated to division two after finishing 2018 with a 2-16 record and a wooden spoon in division one.

New coach Blair Harvey said there had been some changes behind the scenes with the way the club trained and recruited.

“A lot of things have changed. The way we’ve recruited has been a lot different than how we have in the past,” he said.

“We’ve recruited eight guys between 17 and 20, looking to build something that’s going to be sustainable for a long time to come.”

Lachlan Beattie and Harrison Jarvie have come to the club from Yea. Jarvie won Yea’s best and fairest as a 17-year-old while Beattie represented AFL Yarra Ranges in interleague competition.

Blake Fitzgerald and Sam Indian have come over from South Morang after coming first and second in the club’s Under 17s best and fairest. Jye Adamson has also joined the club from Berrigan in New South Wales.

“The club was very disappointed about going down but it’s going to be a hard challenge. It’s not easy to bounce straight back up,” Harvey said.

“The plan is to do that but there’s some good sides in division two that have recruited very well so the standard is a lot stronger than what it’s been in years gone by.”

Comfortable wins over Wangaratta Rovers and Grovedale have put the Eagles in good stead to start the season well on the road against Epping on Saturday.

Laurimar is hoping to improve on its semi-final appearance in 2018 with developing youth complementing new recruits.

The Power have added some experience in Kieran Sheehan from Watsonia and Joel Regan from Tongala, and some youth in Jordan Wilkins from Epping.

Coach Justin Sherman said he was looking for another finals appearance in 2019.

“We want to play finals again, there’s no doubt about that,” he said.

“We want to be a consistent finals performer but there’s a lot of hard work to be done and we’re under no illusions that we have to be at our best to play finals footy.

“We’re really excited to get into what I think’s going to be a great season for everyone, I think it’s going to be a really even competition this year.”

Laurimar hosts Reservoir on Saturday’s opener coming off a loss to Ballarat side Springbank and a win over Kinglake in the club’s two practice matches.

Kilmore is in a good place to improve on last year’s 7-9 season, with a solid recruiting class and no major losses over the off-season.

Shane Skidmore, Nick Zaharakis and Taylor Egan are committed to the Blues full time after fulfilling their school footy commitments.

Centre half-back Steven McIntyre has come across from Eltham, forward-midfielder Luke Chapman has made the move from Craigieburn and ex-Assumption student Chris Ryall has come in from Caulfield.

Coach Nathan Phillips said the lack of turnover was a good sign for the club.

“We’ve resigned the majority of the list from last year which we did prior to last season finishing, which is a good sign that everyone wants to stick around,” he said.

“We haven’t had to recruit too heavily but we’ve added some quality so we’re happy with where we’re at.

“Last year, we were a young side and we had maybe 13 or 14 guys playing their first year at the club but I think the fact we’ve all had a season together means we’ll be able to get a little more continuity in our game and guys are going to understand everyone’s strengths and weaknesses.”

Kilmore cruised to a win in its first practice match against depleted WRFL side Sunshine Heights and suffered a loss to rival Wallan in its second hit-out.

The Blues open the season at home against South Morang on Saturday.

FP (2019-04-02)

News

The North Central Review

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April 2, 2019

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Intersection works to improve safety

Roads & Transport

The North Central Review

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April 2, 2019

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One of the three notorious intersections in Gisborne is under redevelopment after several complaints on its safety and design.

A total of $1.3 million has been invested into the Saunders Road, Kilmore Road and Pierce Road intersection and works are underway for new turning lanes, street lighting and traffic islands to help improve traffic flow and visibility.

A school bus stop has also been relocated away from the intersection to minimise congestion and safety concerns for students and parents.

Roadworks will continue throughout the day and the speed is reduced to 40km/h until the project is finalised.

Member for Macedon Mary-Anne Thomas spoke on the importance of the project.

“For a long time we’ve received complaints from local residents about this intersection and it’s one Regional Roads Victoria have been working on for some time,” Ms Thomas said.

“There are a few of these in Victoria that are proving to be hazardous with visibility and safety.

“We’ve made an election commitment to also fix the other two intersections. Preliminary work has been done on the Saunders-Station road intersection and traffic lights will being installed – it’s the best and safest idea for traffic with childcare and aged care residents on either side.”

Regional Roads Victoria northern engagement manager Seamus Haugh said the project would help all travellers on the road.

“So this project will create much better visibility for all road users not just for motorists and trucks but a growing cycling community – people who are using different modes of transport,” Mr Haugh said.

“We have been working with the community and local residents here in redesigning and realigning the intersection.“We plan to deliver by the end of June.”

Honouring the Anzacs

The North Central Review

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April 2, 2019

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Clarkefield’s Jess Liston is fighting to preserve and honour Australia’s Anzac history through a diminishing Australian horse breed that was designed for war.

For the past 12 months she has been working with Walers, named because they were originally a New South ‘Wales’ breed.

Best known for their loyalty, strength and stamina, Walers were exported around the world in the 19th and 20th centuries as artillery and support to soldiers.

Walers are loyal animals and have temperaments close to a family dog than other types of horses – sadly they are close to extinction.

“A lot of them were bred out in stations for the First World War and when that ended a lot were shot or sent away,” Ms Liston said.

“When soldiers got told they were coming home, they were also told that their horses weren’t coming with them – wonderful and heartbreaking news at the same time.

“When some of the men sailed out on the ships their horses drowned swimming after them – it was their best mate.”

Ms Liston believes part of the reason the breed is not well known is because the soldiers were too heartbroken to talk about it.

“So many men, women and horses fought in this war and we need to honour them. If we honour the people before us it will honour the future generations,” Ms Liston said.

“And I think about how proud the men must be that we are going to try and save their horses.”

Ms Liston has learnt there is a small number of wild Walers still in the Northern Territory and is planning visit in the next few weeks.

“There is an elderly gentlemen in his 80s who is pumping water for them from a station’s bore because of the drought,” she said.

“We only have limited time to get them back before it starts raining and they disperse – we could lose them forever.

“My mum is coming with me, we are flying up and will hopefully bring them back and rehomed by Anzac Day.”

Ms Liston has set up a Go-Fund-Me campaign to raise money for the horses to be rehomed.

“It’s a large project that requires a lot of logistics, feed, handling and finding good homes for these animals,” she said.

“They saved us, now it’s our turn to save them.”

For more information on the campaign or if you are interested in re-homing a horse contact Jess on jess@innerrhythm.com.au or visit https://www.gofundme.com/save-the-waler.