Cobar Yabby Trevor Menadue made history on Saturday as the first Cobar Senior Men’s Club swimmer to ever win an AIF Nationals swimming title.
Menadue, who started the 2016/2017 season with the Yabbies before relocating to Melbourne at the beginning of the year, re-joined his Cobar Yabbies Senior Men’s Swimming Club team mates at the National carnival in Grafton over the weekend.
He won the 30m handicap event, which was a first for a Cobar swimmer since the carnival started in 1958.
A number of other former Yabbies also joined the Cobar contingent (once a Yabby always a Yabby) with the Cobar club finishing with the title of Most Outstanding Country Team.
Past member Stuart Small finished 3rd in 50m Breaststroke scratch event while brother Owen Small was 3rd in the 50m Backstroke scratch race.
In the 40-45 years Freestyle championship swim Stuart placed 2nd and Owen was 3rd.
Ben Plush finished second in his 30-35 years Freestyle swim.
Two Yabbies featured in the 25-29 years Freestyle event with Grant McDonald 2nd and Matt Harland was 3rd.
Another former Cobar Yabby, Wayne Rice, was a finalist in the 100m handicap Freestyle swim.
The Cobar teams had podium finishes in three relays.
They finished 3rd place in the 10 man handicap relay event and 2nd in the Tobruk Four Man handicap relay (Shane Josephson, Scott Toomey, Stephen Clark and Paul Swainston).
The Yabbies team of Murray Harland, Matt Harland, Stuart Small, Owen Small, Ben Plush and Grant McDonald claimed 2nd place in the Six Man Scratch event.
The Cobar club finished 2nd in the overall point score competition to Maroubra.
Meanwhile at last week’s competition swim at the Cobar Memorial Swimming Pool, Andrew Watts was in the spotlight after he swam spot on his nominated time to win the 30m handicap Freestyle event. (It was his first 0.00 time for the season and he left it until their last swim to do it!)
Stephen Clark was second with 0.37 seconds off his time while Chris Powell finished third with 0.75.
Powell took line honours in the 50m event with a time of 0.04 seconds off his time with John Carswell second on 0.13 and Scott Toomey was third with 0.15.
Carswell was out in front in the 100m swim finishing within 0.06 seconds of his nominated time. Watts placed second on 0.15 and Darren Ferguson finished third with 0.34.
Carswell and Clark had it all over their opposition in the Brace relay novelty event winning with a combined time of 0.31 seconds off their nominated time.
The Brace Relay championships last night heralded the Yabbies final swim of the season.
