The Deniliquin Blue Heelers were cheered on at Rotary Park on Saturday when the club played its first home game of rugby league since 1977.
A good crowd of spectators was there to witness the historic moment, including some from the Deniliquin Drovers Rugby Union Club.
The local side was welcomed on to the field through a guard of honour, formed by the Barellan and Hay women’s teams, who had just finished an exhibition match.
The Heelers’ match was the curtain closer on the day.
Unfortunately, they came up against a very strong Ivanhoe side and could not get a win, but they did manage a try on home soil to the delight of the crowd.
The day doubled as a fundraising round for the Heelers, who wore green socks with their blue jumpers as part of the Terry Socks it to Cancer initiative.
A report on the game will be included in Friday’s PT Sport.
Rams vs parents
The Deniliquin Rams’ pride as a family club was on show last week, when parents were invited to attend training with the under-13s netballers.
Mums and dads took to the court to help ensure they’re match fit for the coming weeks.
Adding to the fun of the evening, the parents all donned old school netball skirts and bibs.
“Plenty of laughs, a bit of friendly rivalry, and some surprising skills on display from the mums and dads,” the club reported on social media afterwards.
“Scoreboard said parents won, but they were scoring.”
Celebrating Minis
The Picola League’s youngest netballers were also in the spotlight at the weekend, with Minis Day being hosted across multiple clubs.
The Minis are those aged 11 or younger.
At Deniliquin’s Memorial Park, the Deniliquin Rovers had a jumping castle for the Deni and Strathy minis to enjoy once their matches were over.
As the day was also Ladies Day for the Rovers, this special treat made sure the mums could relax too while their youngsters were entertained.
At Blighty, where the Redeyes hosted Rennie, the minis were treated to morning tea in the netball clubrooms as part of the special morning.
Health scam warning
Deniliquin’s Ochre Health Medical Centre has issued a warning after learning of a scam imitating their online booking system HotDoc.
Staff have been made aware of patients receiving a text message alert suggesting they are owed a refund and asking them to click a link.
“These messages are not legitimate, and we advise people not click any links or provide any personal information,” Ochre Health said.
“If you receive a suspicious message like this relating to a refund, delete it and report it to help@hotdoc.com.au.
“If you are a patient, and you are ever unsure about a message you receive from us or HotDoc, please contact your clinic directly.”
It also pays to be extra cautious about tax related scams at this time of the year.
A Talkback correspondent received a scam text recently claiming to be from MyGov, which demanded action via clicking a link to prevent their MyGov account from being shut down.