SOFTBALL AUSTRALIA UMPIRING MAGAZINE

JULY 2016 EDITION

Blues News Online

The official Softball Australia National Umpiring Committee Publication.

Published Since 2001

Softball Australia Level 1, Suite 2, 273 Wellington Street,

Collingwood, Vic 3066

www.softball.org.au

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National Umpiring Committee NATIONAL UMPIRE IN CHIEF Operations Tricia Sibraa (QLD) UMPIRE IN CHIEF Communications Scott Rindfleish (NSW) UMPIRE IN CHIEF Development Debbie Grove (VIC) UMPIRE IN CHIEF Technical Leigh Evans (VIC)

Staff Members

COMMUNICATIONS Richard Barrow (VIC) Jesse Smith (NSW) DEVELOPMENT Kyira Cox (NSW) Ron Houison (NSW) OPERATIONS Krissi Travers (NSW) TECHNICAL Jason Carter (VIC) Darrell Shephard (NSW)

State Director’s of Umpiring Australian Capital Territory Mark Gallagher New South Wales Scott Rindfleish Queensland Darren Sibraa South Australia Neville Lawrance Tasmania Wayne Clarke Victoria Trevor Murphy Western Australia Roy Cox

Contents

National Umpiring Committee ........................................................................ 2

Staff Members ................................................................................................ 2

State Director’s of Umpiring ........................................................................... 2

Contents ......................................................................................................... 3

Calendar of Events ......................................................................................... 4

Click Here to Like the Softball Australia Umpires ........................................... 4

Celebrating Excellence ................................................................................... 5

Softball Australia Hall Of Fame – Leigh Evans ............................................... 5

Hall Of Fame Presentations ........................................................................... 5

Australia v Japan ............................................................................................ 7

Australia v Red Terriers .................................................................................. 7

Australia Cup – 2016 ...................................................................................... 8

World Championships .................................................................................. 10

Houison & Cox Succeed In Surrey ............................................................... 10

Barrow All The Way To USA ........................................................................ 10

International Events - Appointments ............................................................ 11

Softball in the APY Lands ............................................................................. 12

National Championship ................................................................................ 14

Open Men’s Nationals – John Reid Shield ................................................ 14

Schools Sport Australia ................................................................................ 15

School Sport: 17 and Under Softball, 30 April – 7 May 2016. ...................... 16

NSW: Raining Level 3s in NSW ................................................................... 18

The Under 17 Girls and Boys State Championships ................................... 20

The Open Women and Men Championships. .............................................. 22

The U15 Girls and Boys Championships ...................................................... 24

2016 Victorian Masters ................................................................................. 26

Victorian Under 19 Championships April 16-17 ............................................ 29

Calendar of Events

08 Oct 2016 - 15 Oct 2016 Alice Springs Masters Games

09 Oct 2016 - 09 Oct 2016 Softball Australia AGM

09 Oct 2016 – 11 Oct 2016 National Umpires Meeting / SDU Meeting

02 Dec 2016 – 04 Dec 2016 Canberra Skins

02 Jan 2017 - 08 Jan 2017 U17 Girls’ National Softball Championship, Blacktown, NSW

02 Jan 2017 - 08 Jan 2017 Open Women’s National Softball Championship, Blacktown, NSW

02 Jan 2017 - 07 Jan 2017 U17 Boys’ National Softball Championship, Hawker, ACT

09 Jan 2017 - 14 Jan 2017 Open Men’s National Softball Championship, Hawker, ACT

15 Jan 2017 - 21 Jan 2017 U15 Girls’ Regional Softball Championship, Mirrabooka, WA

15 Jan 2017 - 21 Jan 2017 U19 Women’s National Softball Championship, Mirrabooka, WA

15 Jan 2017 - 21 Jan 2017 U15 Boys’ Regional Softball Championship, Redlands, Qld

15 Jan 2017 - 21 Jan 2017 U19 Men’s National Softball Championship, Redlands, Qld

19 Jul 2017 - 22 Jul 2017 U23 Men’s National Softball Championship, Redlands, Qld

Click Here to Like the Softball Australia Umpires

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Celebrating Excellence Softball Australia Hall Of Fame – Leigh Evans by Mark Toft

We salute the achievements of one of Australia's umpires, following his induction into the Softball Australia Hall of Fame. Leigh Evans became involved in softball firstly as a spectator, watching his girlfriend (later to become his wife) Sandra at the Sunshine Association since the early 80's. He then went on to administrate at Club and Association level, scorer for local teams, play at club and State League level and of course umpire. Sandra's family were heavily involved in softball with her mother (Betty McGuire) being an ISF umpire. Leigh's family are also high achievers with son, Andrew winning the Junior Male Athlete of the year as a Pitcher, representing Australia. Daughter, Stacey becoming an ISF umpire in 2011, which made three ISF umpires in one family over three generations, and wife Sandra donning the Green and Gold as a coach with the Under 19 Men's team at the World Championships. Through many years of umpiring and dedication Leigh was awarded his ISF accreditation in 2004 in Brisbane. Leigh progressed through the Australian umpiring program and has achieved the highest international accreditation with a Level 8 along the way. Leigh has attended four ISF World championships as an umpire, Junior Men’s (2005), Open Men’s (2009),

and (2013) and Open Women (2014). His international career extends further with world qualifying series' in men and women's play as well as officiating at the Japan Cup (2002) and Canada Cup (2007). Leigh has had a passion for the rules of our sport at club, state and eventually National level when he took the reins from National Rules Interpreter, Alan McAuliffe in 2006. While still on diamond Leigh has put in a lot of long nights working on his rules portfolio. In 2010 Leigh presented a video for the International Softball Federation on the Pitching Points of Emphasis. Leigh is currently the Umpire-in -Chief Technical for the Australian Umpiring Program where he works with players, coaches and administrators as well as umpires throughout Australia, establishing a good rapport with the understanding of the rules. Leigh has the ability to work with various people within the sport of softball from the grass roots level to an international level. Being inducted into the Australian Hall of Fame is the ultimate accolade for a person in our sport. Leigh's hard work and dedication over many years has earned him this prestigious honor. Leigh has paved the way as a mentor and role model for umpires in our program for many years to come.

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Hall Of Fame Presentations Neville Lawrance – International Softball Federation

Congratulations to Neville Lawrance who has been officially inducted in the International Softball Hall of Fame by WBSC Softball Division Vice President, Darryl Clout. Neville is pictured here with fellow ISF Hall of Famers - John and Alan McAuliffe Photo credit: Our Sporting Life SA

Steve Suckling – Softball Western Australia Congratulations to Steve Suckling on his induction into the Softball Western Australia Hall Of Fame. This is great recognition of an outstanding contribution to Softball and to WA.

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Australia v Japan

Umpiring Crew Back Row: David Casey, Ron Houison, Richard Barrow, Scott Rindfleish Front Row: Rob McIntosh, Amanda Houison, Andrew Rindfleish (UIC), Leanne Gearside, Kyira Cox.

Australia v Red Terriers

Umpiring Crew

Scott Rindfleish (UIC) Andrew Rindfleish Amanda Houison

Ron Houison Richard Barrow

Leanne Gearside

Australia Cup – 2016 The inaugural Australia Cup was held 13-15 May 2016, with twenty-seven teams across four different age brackets - Open women, under 17s, under 15s and under 13s. The event was played across two venues: the Jacquie Osmond Softball Complex at Warwick Farm, and the International Softball Complex at Blacktown International Sportspark – home of the 2000 Sydney Olympics softball competition. The three-day tournament attracted 27 teams from New South Wales and the ACT and about

800 fans on the final day, who created a carnival atmosphere that made for a fun time for families and supporters of all ages. Andrew Rindfleish was the Umpire In Chief for the Australia Cup based at Blacktown Olympic Park, supported by Kyira Cox who was the UIC for the Warwick Farm venue. There were 30 umpires in total and according to Andrew “the Australia Cup provided a fantastic opportunity for umpires to officiate great teams, across a range of age groups, at Australia's best softball venue. Umpires worked games with a variety of crew members and this was really positive for their growth and development.” “I met some umpires for the first time, and I was excited to identify some new talent in the local NSW umpiring ranks. The Australia Cup has played a critical role in the recruitment of new umpires ready to take the next step in their umpiring career.”

Umpire Crew: Alan Cooper Andrew Birks Andrew Cooper Brian Higinbotham Claire Austring Corey Hall David Young Deborah Sanderson Duncan Lapsley Flora Van der Heide

James Townsend Jessica Rooke Joe Kellermerier Joel Grimes Joseph Myers Josh Wilde Katrina Bulmer Kim Green Kylie Diaz Margaret Partin Maryke Gyzon Randy Lawson

Rebekah Edwards Richard Jones Riley Deahm Shane McIntosh Thomas Green Thomas Sutomo Tony Beard Tony Moncaster Zachary Roberts

Thomas Sutomo (NSW) umpiring the Plate on

Diamond 1 at BISP.

Thomas Green (NSW) getting a close eye on

a play at second base at BISP.

Congratulations to the umpires selected to umpire the Grand Finals for the 2016 Australia Cup.

Open Grand Final Crew (L-R) Tony Beard (1st Base), Andrew Birks (Plate), Shane McIntosh (3rd).

U17 Grand Final Crew (L-R) Kim Green (3rd Base), James Townsend (Plate), Brian Higginbotham (1st Base).

U15 Grand Final Crew (L-R) Joe Kellermeier (1st Base), Joe Myers (Plate), Thomas Sutomo (3rd Base).

U13 Grand Final Crew (L-R) David Young (3rd Base) Andrew Cooper (Plate), Corey Hall (1st Base

World Championships

Houison & Cox Succeed In Surrey

Congratulation to both Kyira Cox (NSW) and Amanda Houison (NSW) who have recently returned from the 2016 World Cup XI and WBSC XV Women’s World Softball Championship. This is the second World Championship for both Amanda and Kyira, congratulations on your appointment. Special recognition for Kyira Cox who was appointed to the Gold Medal Game at both international events. Congratulations on this outstanding achievement.

Barrow All The Way To USA Congratulations to Richard Barrow (VIC) on great success attending his first World Championship. Richard travelled to Midland Michigan USA with the Junior Steelers to umpire at the 11th Junior Men’s World Championship. Congratulations on your appointment to third base on the nail biting Gold Medal Game!

International Events - Appointments Softball Australia is pleased to announce and congratulate the following umpires.

TREVOR MURPHY

European Championship Men Location: Montegranaro, Italy Dates: 11 - 16 July 2016

LEANNE GEARSIDE

European Premiere Cup Women Location: Ronchi, Cervignano del Friuli, Italy Dates: 15 - 20 Aug 2016

DAVID CASEY

European Super Cup Men Location: Azzano, Staranzano, Castions delle Mura, Italy Dates: 29 Aug 2016 - 03 Sep 2016

WARREN DUFF

Japan Cup Location: Takasaki, Japan Dates: 2 – 4 September

Softball in the APY Lands ANANGU PITJANTJATJARA YANKUNYTJATJARA LANDS Tjilpi Kevin (Kevin Tannebring) SANFL Softball Ambassador May 2016 saw the commencement of the 10th season of the Far North West Sports League Football (Aussie Rules) and Softball Competition. The League comprises nine football and softball teams who play a 14 round + finals season. The A.P.Y. Lands are in the North-West corner of South Australia and the teams represent the seven major Anangu Communities with the two larger Communities, Amata and Ernabella, both fielding two teams. Last season had 214 registered players. These Communities stretch along 470 Km of unsealed roads and an average travel time to a game is in the order of three hours. Quite often teams travel the day before games, camp overnight, play, then return home, whenever. This League is administered and funded by the South Australian National Football League with Commonwealth Government assistance. Each weekend there are four games played - two at a West venue and two at an East - now on excellent fully skinned diamonds, most with permanent backstops and even grandstands. All protective equipment (well almost all - shoes are a rarity) is now worn and each Community has designed their own uniform. The Competition has come a long way in 10 years and the skill level and competitiveness of the ladies is truly amazing. They play a modified rules comp - no infield fly, dropped third strike, batting out of order etc. mainly to ensure the umpires have as simple a set of rules to understand. For example if someone bats out of order - just correct it and play on (babies sometimes need feeding mid innings). In my 10 years as the SANFL Softball Ambassador and S.A. & S.S.A. representative on the Lands umpiring has progressed to the point where every game is umpired by Anangu women, usually players from the other game scheduled, at a very acceptable level. An APY Accreditation Level was set up approximately five years ago and the umpires really aspire to attain their accreditation. Last season 30 umpires officiated with 13 of them being first year. From these 30, five attained their Level 1, four attained Level 2 and three attained Level 3 certificates, which were presented along with the Umpire & Coach of the year awards function for both sports at season end. Plate umpires receive $40 per game while base umpires get $20 & both scorers $10 - these payments double if you are good enough to be appointed to finals games. The umpires do get questioned by coaches or players and are now confident to have a conference and generally get the decision correct. Rules clinics are conducted whenever possible for umpires, coaches & players and their interest and involvement in discussion is really rewarding.

Girls standing around a fire when it was pouring with rain and pretty cold - so they kept a fire burning throughout the game and used that as their warmup.

To service the APY Lands competition I would average five trips per season, with sometimes extra out of season trips for general admin requirements, with each visit being anything from four days to two weeks duration, and requiring travel from one end of the Lands to the other to visit every Community. A flight from Adelaide to Alice Springs then a 4-wheel drive vehicle trip of five hours to Pukatja will see you in the centre of this really beautiful area. To have been privileged to be part of the development of this Remote Softball Competition which plays such an important role in the physical & mental health of these Anangu women & kids is an indescribably rewarding experience.

The photo below of the young kids is typical of what happens - whenever I stop in a community kids come from everywhere to the car and ask if we have a bat and gloves etc., and they quickly get stuck into hitting the ball. I am amazed at how well girls of this age can pitch and use a glove let alone use a bat. They are just beautiful kids.

National Championship

Open Men’s Nationals – John Reid Shield West Beach, Adelaide Australia’s premier men’s competition and last National Championship on the 2016 calendar was a great week full of great softball, fun times, and even a few things out of the ordinary.

Congratulations to the umpire crew and many thanks for your work to help make this event a smooth and successful event. Thanks also to the local South Australia umpire supporters and hosts for your hospitality during the event.

Umpiring Crew Tricia Sibraa – TCU Leigh Evans – Assessor Darren Sibraa – Assessor Richard Barrow David Casey

Warren Duff Debbie Grove Graeme Love Damien McCauley Trevor Murphy

Scott Rindfleish Chris Trengove Stuart Tyler Haydyn Wood

Here’s something a little bit different… Click Here to view the Open Men’s Photo Gallery.

Schools Sport Australia School Sport: 17 and Under Softball, 30 April – 7 May 2016. Written by: Trevor Murphy As Director of Umpiring for Victoria, I was notified in November 2015 that Schools Sport Victoria (SSV) was to host the 2016 Schools Sport Australia (SSA) 17 and Under Softball Championships in May 16 at Waverley Softball Association; and then the 12 & Under age group in November 16 at the Werribee Softball Association. I was asked to consider appointing a TCU to the championship and to be the point of contact until that could occur. I agreed. I had never had anything to do with such championships in the past. In fact I had never had anything to do with Schools Softball at a local level either. However, as there was plenty of time until the May Championship, I decided to talk with a few people to gauge their interest and indeed find out more about these championships. It was ironic that I had been appointed as the TCU for the Softball Australia U15 Regional Boys Championships at Blacktown for January 2016. That introduction to such a tournament sparked in me the desire to take on the TCU role for the SSA 17s and I can say I am glad I did. The planning group from SSA and SSV were well organised and kept me well informed in the lead up to the championships. The level of competition was high for the age group and the teams played with the spirit of good sportsmanship expected. Teams competed from ACT, NSW, SA, QLD, VIC for both genders with the addition of WA only in the girls. QLD and NSW teams each provided two umpires and SSV requested that I identify sufficient umpires from within Victoria to service the games for the week. After completing the TCU role at the Regionals I made a determination to try to attract young umpires from around the same age as the students. I did my research and spoke to numerous young umpires who were either still in school, university or working part time. I gathered together seven such people and a couple of adults. All up with the QLD and NSW umpires I had a crew of 14. The crew included Georgia Kiel, Thomas Green, Kim Green, (NSW); Lailani Shepherd, Callum Turner, (QLD); Angela Broadbent, Talia McDonald, Keanu Tauiwi, Dane Sangalli, Loki Sangalli, Teraize Bonner, Meaghan Grah, Jason Irvine, Alex Chapman, (VIC). Some could not commit for the whole week but while there they all extended themselves and provided a great service to the championship. On day 1, after my brief introduction and providing ground rules for the week I left the crew to chat and introduce themselves. I was surprised how quickly the crew became buddies and that lasted all week. They listened and learned from each other and by day 3 I was confident that the crew could manage without much interjection from me. In fact I knew if they needed to check on anything they would come and ask me. Throughout the week, at exchange of team sheets and any time a team representative had an opportunity to speak with me, I continually received positive feedback from the team managers and statisticians. The team from SSV & SSA were on the ball all week and made sure that the program stayed on track. It was a pleasure to work with dual Olympian Natalie Titcume, the School Sports Technical delegate for the tournament.

During the week most girls games were played on the enclosed diamonds. However, all the boys games and a few girls games were on grounds with cones marking the home run distance which this achieved the requirement apart for one day when we had high winds that blew the cones away. That said I took the initiative and with so many competent umpires available I decides to appoint a 4-umpire crew for the grand final on the enclosed diamond and a 5-umpire crew on the open diamond with cones. The crews were ecstatic to be able to try something new and to their credit they all made it work. Girls Grand Final crew

Jason Irvine (P), Kim Green (U1), Thomas Green (U2), Callum Turner (U3).

Boys Grand Final crew

Keanu Tauiwi (P), Lailani Shepherd (U1), Georgia Kiel (U3), Teraize Bonner (U4-LF),

Alex Chapman (U5-RF)

New South Wales

NSW: Raining Level 3s in NSW The winter rain certainly disrupted the assessment schedule of four NSW umpires as they attempted to progress to their Level 3 accreditations at the 2016 U19 Women’s State Championship. After two false starts, the blues took to the diamond at a combined U19 State Championship on the weekend of 25-26 June at Blacktown International Sportspark. As the snow fell on the Blue Mountains, and the westerly winds blew fiercely, the umpires took to the diamond for their six assessment games. “All four umpires were recent graduates of the Intermediate Umpire Academy and they demonstrated to us their ability to put their skills to good use on the diamond,” TCU Andrew Rindfleish said. “For some of these umpires they’ve been at it for quite a while so it’s pleasing to see them reap the rewards of their hard work.” “It’s also pleasing to see umpires from right across the metropolitan area advance to the next level. We definitely look forward to seeing them at future state championships and State League events,” he said.

L-R: Tony Beard (Manly Warringah), Joel Grimes (Penrith City),

Alex Oberg (Sutherland), Jessica Rooke (Manly Warringah).

Congratulations to the umpires appointed to the Under 19’s State Championship Grand Finals

U19 Men’s Grand Final

Penrith defeated Macarthur: Plate – Jay Gibson

1st Base – Jesse Smith 2nd Base – Vicki Lansley 3rd Base – David Crowe

U19 Women’s Grand Final

Hornsby defeated Sutherland: Plate – Amanda Houison

1st Base – Leanne Gearside 2nd Base – Bruce McCahon

3rd Base – Ron Housion

Victoria

The Under 17 Girls and Boys State Championships UIC for the tournament was Rhonda Scammell, a stalwart of managing these Albury tournaments and once again Rhonda ran a tight ship and the tournament proceeded without a hitch. The weather was perfect and the atmosphere fantastic. Alex Turnbull has recently moved from Adelaide to Melbourne and it was also good to have Alex attend in an off-diamond management role for this tournament, returning to his old stomping ground at Albury and providing excellent support for the crew. Four candidates presented for assessment to their next level. Servicing 20 assessments over the 2 days presented a significant challenge while still being required to service the games with a further 86 allocations. I am happy to say that all candidates for Level 2 were successful. The new level 2 umpires are Christina Babinczky (Waverley); Carolyn Di Paola (Waverley); Helena Hapeta (Northern Districts) and Keanu Tauiwi (Werribee). Well done to all. We also had one umpire being pre-assessed for presentation to Level 3. Peter Samuels had been unable to be pre-assessed throughout the season as he had an extended visit to New Zealand to attend to some family matters. Peter took the bull by the horns and was determined to be at Albury to ensure his pre-assessment could be completed. He performed well for the two days. This tournament also saw a number of umpires return to the circuit after a few years off and a few newcomers who had not umpired at this level previously. To their credit they all performed well and from the feedback I received I know they enjoyed themselves. I hope they continue to umpire at their local association and I welcome them back to a similar championship in the future. Thank you to all who provided service to this championship and congratulations on your performance.

Grand Final Umpires for the tournament were:

Boys Cup: Mark Williams (P), Talia McDonald (U1), Peter Samuels (U3).

Boys Plate: Jenny Joynson (P), Kian Privitera (U1) Alex Clayton (U3).

Girls Cup: Jonathan Sassella (P), Rebecca Kent (B).

Girls Plate: Bernard Vella (P), Ken Evans (B).

The Open Women and Men Championships. Held 2–3 April at Werribee. UIC for this tournament was Trevor Murphy.

At this tournament there was only one candidate. Peter Samuels had completed his pre-assessment two weeks previously at U17s State Championships in Albury and was eager to present. While this assessment for level 3 would normally be conducted at U19 Championships, this has proven problematic in the recent past as this has been a single-day tournament. Peter performed to the requirement and when notified of his success became so overwhelmed he near hugged the life out of the chief assessor. Well done Peter. In this photo a few of the crew sit with Peter enjoying their moment in the shade. After attending the U17 Championships, Alex Turnbull returned and dusted off his uniform and polished the shoes to undertake some work on the diamond. Victorian Softball has also picked up an ex-NSW umpire in Georgia Hill who recently moved this way. Georgia has proved to be valuable addition to our Victorian crew and while currently only on a temporary visa, once citizenship is validated I am sure we will see Georgia become a regular contributor at similar tournaments over the next period. Welcome aboard Georgia. Dale Kiamoana, better known as the travelling Wilberry or wandering Bedouin found his way out of the wild Australian deserts and New Zealand Fiords to arrive in Melbourne just in time to grab a gig at this tournament. As always Dale brought his music and beaming smile with him and fitted in well with the crew.

It was great to see stalwart of the Werribee Association, life member and retired Level 7 umpire Kevin Broomhall dropped by and spend a couple of hours in the sun with the crew. Again the everlasting great Melbourne climate stayed true and the temperatures were great the whole weekend. The crew performed well and many compliments were passed on from coaches and players in that regard. I pass on my congratulations to the umpires and appreciation to the coaches and players for their continued support. Grand Finals Umpires for the tournament were:

Women Premier: David Addlem (P), Alex Turnbull (U1), Angela Broadbent (U3).

Women Pennant: Lucy James (P), Roy Arscott (U1), Georgia Hill (U3).

Men Plate: Debbie Grove (P), Richard Dodds (U1), Chris Trengove (U3).

Men Cup: Jason Carter (P), Leigh Evans (U1), Dale Kiamoana (U3).

Well done to all and thank you to the crew for making the weekend run as smoothly as it did.

The U15 Girls and Boys Championships Held 9-10 April at Sunshine. UIC for this tournament was Leigh Evans.

Rear: Ken Evans, David Addlem (training staff), Rob Dykstra, James Halley, Kian Privitera, Alex Clayton, Casey Cooke, Jason Irvine. Centre: Bernard Vella, Jessica Bowyer, Teraize Bonner, Shelby Scholes, Georgia Reynolds, Helena Hapeta, Angela Post, Matthew Kendall, Brayden Bernard, Tobias Sadler, Jonathan Wallis, Blaine Cooke, Chelsea Bartholomew Leigh Evans (TCU), Trevor Murphy (DTCU). Kneeling: Richard Dodds (training staff), Lucy James (training staff), Tiarna Church, Callie Wallace, Rebecca Kent, Claire White, and Benjamin Landt. Absent: Tazmin Dodds, Matt Packer.

Leigh started his umpiring at Sunshine far too many years ago to try to remember and this was a great tournament for him to manage and also for the highlight moment of his induction into the Softball Australian Hall of Fame to be recognised. Typically the U15 tournament is the venue for the Victorian Future Umpire Program (FUP) where trainee coloured (green) shirt umpires get the opportunity to attend theory lessons and then officiate in four games as both plate and base umpires with umpire coaches on hand to help them through the game if necessary. While some arrive with a little apprehension by the time they reach that fourth game most are well on their way to having the confidence to manage the game without any help from their coach who by this time is proud of the development and progress demonstrated. This year there were six attendees at the FUP: Chelsea Bartholomew (Albury-Wodonga); Casey Cooke (Northern District); Tiarna Church (Albury-Wodonga); Georgia Reynolds (Dandenong); Shelby Scholes (Frankston); and Callie Wallace (Sunbury). I know they all enjoyed the experience and learnt a lot. A couple have since completed all the requirements and been awarded level 1.

It was fantastic to see so many of our developing umpires attend this tournament and to do so well. Everyone was willing to listen, learn and put into practice the advice passed to them over the weekend. The photo shows two developing umpires in action, Alex Clayton on plate and Blaine Cooke on base. The ball is on its way. Tasmanian umpire, Angela Post attended this tournament and worked hard to get game time and soaked up not only the beautiful Melbourne climate but as much umpiring tuition as was available to her. Angela has been a regular in Melbourne at similar tournaments for a couple of seasons now and promised to return for the U19 Championships a week later where there would be plenty of opportunity for her to practice the 3-umpire system. Thanks must also go to our very proficient trainers at the championship, Richard Dodds, Lucy James and David Addlem. Dare I say it again the Melbourne weather was perfect for the tournament and the high tea and reception for the award of Leigh Evans. Congratulations to all. Grand Final Umpires for the tournament were: Girls Cup: Helena Hapeta (P), Teraize Bonner (B). Girls Plate: Rebecca Kent (P), Tobias Sadler (B). Boys Cup: Kian Privitera (P), Angela Post (B). Boys Plate: Jason Irvine (P), Blaine Cooke (B).

2016 Victorian Masters By Jenny Joynson & Trevor Murphy. Photos provided by Angela Broadbent. Shepparton was definitely the place to be on the June long weekend for the 2016 Victorian Masters and umpires and players came from all over to participate. Most of the diamonds held up well after the rain that fell the week beforehand, with only one or two being soggy during the tournament. After playing this tournament (for too many years to mention) I decided that this would be the year for me to turn my hand to umpiring instead. I had never fully realised the number of umpires it takes to run this tournament. Forty-five umpires made their way to Shepparton, including one successful level 2 candidate (Congrats Alex Clayton). Alex hails from Albury and worked hard to ensure he was ready for the challenge. To the right is a photo showing Alex with Mary Walkenshaw ready to go out on a game on the last day of the tournament.

Eight umpires attended a Future Umpire program at the tournament. Having officiated at association level for the required timeframe under the tutelage of their local UIC, completing the Play-by-the-rules requirements and passed the 2016 exam, five umpires completed all the additional requirements to progress to Level 1. Three other ‘Green Shirts’ who took the diamond in an umpiring capacity for the first time are now well on their way to achieving level 1 within the next season – well done. The photo to the right has Georgia Hill, who recently moved to Victoria from NSW, providing some advice to Jaxon Holliday and Australian Olympian Jenny Holliday before they took the diamond. I hope part of that advice was to tuck in the green shirt, comb the hair and wear a cap.

Angela Post again made the journey over from Tassie only to be nearly wiped out on the first day by one of Amigo’s (A Women’s gold medal winners) Roz Hendy’s famous 3rd base line drives that you don’t know if they are going to be fair or foul until they hit the ground – or in this case Ange’s foot. In the photo Angela can be seen with new level 1 Ian Wannan (left) and Keanu Tauiwi (right), recently successful level 2 umpire.

There was lots of catching up to be done with ‘new’, ‘old’ and ‘older’ umpires, all there willing and able. Deb Keogh must have heard I was umpiring and decided to make a comeback, it was great to see her back in her blues. Here she is with up and coming umpire Angela Broadbent just before the big challenge. Whatever that was, they both looked quite relaxed. Over the course of the 3-day tournament, 158 games of Softball were played with a total of 345 umpire allocations

made. A special mention needs to be made of one of our favourite adopted umpires Dale Kiamoana who made the trek south to be involved in this epic tournament. Kevin Offer and Stan Tolmie did a great job allocating umpires to all the games, making smooth changes when needed and making sure all the umpires were having a great time. A huge thanks to the grounds staff for trying their absolute best to give us good diamonds to play on and of course the catering team cannot be overlooked, although I do think each year they are surprised by how much food gets consumed over the weekend. The following are a few more of the crew photos before the many games over the three marvellous days in Shepparton.

Left, Talia MacDonald, Angela Broadbent and Aaron Wallace.

Below left, Georgia Hill, Talia MacDonald and Angela Broadbent. Below right, Georgia Hill, Deb Keogh and Kian Privitera.

Congratulations to all the winning teams but most of all congratulations to all of the umpires, without whom the game cannot go on. Now just to decide for next year … umpire … play … umpire … play … umpire … play oh well, I have 12 months to make that decision (maybe both!)

Victorian Under 19 Championships April 16-17 By Talia McDonald On the weekend of April 16-17, a healthy contingent of Victorian umpires headed out to Sunbury Softball Association for the final State Championships of the 2015-16 season. This year saw the Under 19’s return to a two-day format, after several years as a single-day tournament. 7am Saturday saw a group of bleary eyed but eager umpires assemble in the comfortable rooms that Sunbury had provided for us, many of us clutching our coffee cups as though they were the only thing keeping us upright. The crew for the weekend was to be led by TCU Jason Carter and Deputy TCU Richard Barrow, alongside assessors Trevor Murphy, Richard Dodds, Stuart Tyler, David Addlem and Leigh Evans. With candidates aplenty, it was going to be hard work for everyone involved, but once we were all properly awake, everyone was keen and excited to get started. Despite some very cold weather on the Saturday afternoon, games went off without a hitch. With the music pumping in the female change room before every round, everyone was pumped up and keen to work hard, despite this being the fourth State Championships in a six-week timespan. As the games got more and more competitive as we drew closer to finals, the umpires seemed to step things up a notch as well with some great calling, which was great to see. Before we knew it, it was Sunday afternoon and the finals were upon us. Umpires crowded around the whiteboard to see who had been allocated to games, with high fives and back-slapping all round. Congratulations to all those who were allocated finals. Six candidates underwent assessment for higher levels at this tournament, and by the end of the weekend, Victoria had three new Level 2 umpires and two new Level 3 umpires. Congratulations to Dane Sangalli (Waverley), Loki Sangalli (Waverley) and Helena Hapeta (Northern Districts) for achieving Level 2, and Angela Broadbent (Werribee) and Talia McDonald (Werribee) for their Level three. A huge thank you to Sunbury Association for the incredible spread of food they provided us for lunch and snacks each day. This definitely sets the benchmark for other associations and tournaments, and we all stuffed our faces with sandwiches and cakes quite happily. I know this was appreciated by all of the umpires, so thank you again to Sunbury and all of their volunteers who made this happen. It would be remiss of me not to mention the grounds crew and canteen staff as well as all of the other volunteers who assisted in any manner. Sunbury did a fabulous job with this tournament, especially when you consider it was their first time hosting a State Championships, so thank you again from all of us! Finally, I would like to thank TCU Jason Carter and his crew for a great job running this tournament, especially with all of the candidates being assessed. On a personal note, I would also like to thank all of the umpires for giving their full support to the candidates over the weekend. It would not have been possible without you guys giving it your all to make things easier for us, so thank you.

Boys Final Crew: Mark Williams, Georgia Hill &

Angela Post

Girls Final Crew: Pete Samuels, Stan Tolmie & Lucy James

Successful Candidates: L-R Trevor Murphy (State Director), Helena Hapeta, Angela Broadbent, Talia McDonald, Loki Sangalli, Dane Sangalli, Jason Carter (TCU)