Shoot day was an eye opener

THE penultimate competition for 2012 at the Woods Point Gun Club was the 40th President’s Trophy plus the inaugural Upper Yarra Community Enterprise Cup.
A sunny, warm but muggy day with the sweet smell of freshly cut grass met the shooters. It was also a day to put into good use the new referees’ stand that was built with the Upper Yarra Community Enterprise’s support.
The starting event, the Eye Opener, is held to clean the cobwebs out of the competitor’s gun’s barrels and prepare them for the main competition events.
Rob Kirley, Jim West and Richard Brown all returned perfect 30/30 scores to share the cash dividend
The competitions started with the 25 target Double Barrel UYCE Cup sponsored by the Warburton and Yarra Junction Community Branches of the Bendigo Bank.
Five shooters, Matt Woods, Rob Kirley, Peter West, Tom Apps and Mick Ward went into the shoot off after returning 25/25 scores.
Woods and West were early casualties and, after 18 targets, Apps dropped a target as well.
Kirley and Ward continued for another 11 targets before Kirley let one get away leaving Mick Ward as the first winner of the UYCE Cup and the winner of AA Grade with a final score of 54/54. Kirley was second in AA Grade 53/54. Apps took A Grade, 27/27 with junior shooter Matt Woods, second, 26/27.
B Grade saw a win for West, 25/25, and in C Grade, another junior competitor Jack Clark gathered an excellent 24/25 to take the Grade sash outright.
A great start to the UYCE Cup that is to become an annual event at Woods Point.
Event 3 was the 40th running of the 25 target Double Barrel Handicap President’s Trophy sponsored by John Wood and his wife Annette.
No one managed the perfect 25/25 but Robert Lay, Tom Apps and junior shooter, Tom Allen, all with 24/25, went into the shoot off.
After only nine targets, Allen was the 40th holder of the President’s Trophy, 33/34, Apps second, 32/34. Rob Lay won third place 29/30 while Wood managed to sneak into fourth place 23/25.
Allen also claimed the President’s Junior Trophy, 24/25, Jack Clark second, 28/31, and Matt Woods third, 27/31.
Jack’s Dad, Darren, and Matt’s Dad, Eddy, both on 22/25, were no match for their sons.
The final event was 25 targets Double Barrel Tower Championship also sponsored by John and Annette Wood. Only Mick Ward returned the perfect 25/25 to end a successful day with the Championship sash.
Bill Forrest, Tom Allen, Laurie Poile and Rob Kirley, all 24/25, contested a fairly quick shoot off for the minor places.
Forrest took second, 28/29, Kirley third, 27/29, and Poile fourth, 26/28.
Eddy Woods, Peter West, Jim West and Tom Apps, all excellent Tower shooters, could surprisingly only manage 23/25 each.
The shooting conditions were great but the targets were difficult.
Tom Allen and Tom Apps shot off for the UYCE Overall High Gun with Allen winning 78/81.
Allen also won the UYCE Junior High Gun, 72/75, with Matt Woods second, 67/75, Jack Clark third, 66/75.
The final shoot is the Christmas shoot on Sunday 9 December, starting at 10.30am and promises to be another fun end to 2012 at the Woods Point Gun Club.