Cobar Clay Target Club member Glen Castellaro (from Griffith) won the coveted Overall Golden Clay Championship at the 42nd annual Golden Clay & NSW Junior Masters Championship shoot in Cobar over the weekend,
Castellaro, who has competed in the sport of clay target shooting at national and international levels, said he’d been trying for 31 years to win the Cobar Golden Clay title.
He was very pleased to collect the Overall Highgun Golden Clay Trophy, sponsored by Peak Gold Mines, of a 9ct solid gold miniature clay.
The 42nd annual event attracted a great crowd, with the Cobar Club renowned for its hospitality.
Shooting commenced on Friday night with the Night Point Score, sponsored by Bryan’s Empire Hotel, and was contested in cold, strong winds.
However, 69 shooters braved the conditions with some local shooters being successful in their grades. Peter Hosie was 1st in C Grade; Tony Polack 2nd in A Grade; Robert Thompson 2nd in AA Grade, and Bryan Manns 1st Overall Night Point Score.
The skies were clear and sunny but it was still rather windy on Saturday morning which brought out 127 shooters to commence Saturday and Sundays Golden Clay & NSW Junior Masters programme.
Results for the locals in the 30 Target Point Score Championship were: Ben Tranter 2nd B Grade; Dick Tulloh 2nd A Grade; Sam Nardi 1st B Grade. Molly Barraclough received the Encouragement award for the Junior Masters.
In the 45 Target Hunt-Pro Medley Tranter was 1st in B Grade, Nardi was 2nd in B Grade and Tim Hawkins was 2nd in C Grade.
Saturday’s final event was the 30 Target Double Barrel Championship, with Nardi 1st in B Grade; Blake Dunne 2nd in B Grade; and James Mitchell received the Junior Masters Encouragement Award.
Sunday morning promised a beautiful day, but some competitors were reluctant to face the bright morning sunshine after a late night.
In the 30 Target Single Barrel Championship Christie Wheeler was 2nd in C Grade; Nardi 2nd in B Grade; and Kate Schiller won AA Grade.
The second event on Sunday was the 30 Target Bryan’s Empire Hotel Mafeesh Handicap, which is also sponsored by the Hawkins Family in memory of Frosty Singleton who was instrumental in commencement of Clay Target Shooting on Mafeesh Station in Cobar.
This event carries a reward of the Mafeesh Cup with placings from 1st to 5th. Additional enthusiasm is generated throughout the weekend with a Calcutta, being held in conjunction with this event. Three competitors shot a possible (perfect) score, who then were required to shoot-off until the final placements were achieved. Graeme Love from Goolma, was the eventual winner with a score of 42/42.
The final event of the weekend was the 15 Pair Double Rise Championship with Greg Brush 2nd in B Grade; Castellaro 2nd in AA Grade and Hosie 1st in C Grade.
Adrian Depaoli, from Griffith, was the Junior Masters Champion of Champions with a score of 143/150, dropping only seven targets over the entire three events.
Highgun winners for the weekend were: Ladies—Kate Schiller 254/285; Veterans— David Caccioppoli 271/285; Juniors—Jack Cullinan 266/285; C Grade—Brett Tindall 257/285; B Grade—Sam Nardi 261/285; A Grade—Peter Whitlock 263/285; AA Grade— Bryan Manns 276/285; and Overall—Glen Castellaro 277/285.—contributed
