Mid Canterbury Combined fullback Charlie Brown was the hero at the death with an injury time penalty.There is a sense of renewed belief among the Mid Canterbury Combined group after they gutsed their way to their first season win at the weekend.

A 14-man Combined pulled off a thrilling last-gasp 13-12 away win over Roncalli Combined in Timaru on Saturday, following a clutch penalty at the death by Charlie Brown.

Down by two, Combined were awarded an injury-time penalty, and Brown stepped up and slotted the kick five metres in from touch to seal a dramatic one-point win.

The moment was caught on video and shared on the Mount Hutt College Facebook page yesterday.

Combined were forced to play the majority of the encounter a man down after one of their players copped a red card after 10 minutes.

Despite this, Combined were full of running in the first half as a handful of chances went begging, and they had two five pointers disallowed in the second spell.

“We were a bit unlucky,” head coach Shane Enright said.

“I think we had a bit of white line fever in the first half.”

The Mid Cantabrians would eventually cross the chalk with loose forward Ben Middleton dotting down.

The team have had plenty of challenges thrust upon them throughout this campaign, including injuries and the side’s relative inexperience.

Enright hoped the squad’s confidence and belief had been replenished now they had tasted victory in the campaign.

“By getting that W, hopefully that’s going to give a bit more belief,” he said.

Combined have been bolstered by the return of some of its key players from injury-related layoffs, including Sam Ree and Christian Thompson.

Enright confirmed star recruit Michael Hennings was to make his long-awaited comeback this weekend for Combined from the bench.

He said his return to the field could be a significant turning point, with some daunting clashes ahead.

“It’s a huge boost from the Fijian boy,” he said.

“We just have to be smart over the next seven weeks by giving those players a chance who haven’t had a lot of game time.”

Mid Canterbury is on the road again this weekend where they face St Thomas’ in Christchurch, a team sitting ninth on the ladder.

Combined’s next home game is in three weeks time where they take on current pacemakers St Andrew’s on August 15.

By Adam Burns © The Ashburton Guardian - 27 July 2020

The Ashburton College basketball team put a confidence-boosting victory on the court last Tuesday night when they took on Christchurch Boys’ High School at the Oxford Street stadium.

After some tough battles in recent weeks, the College lads put an impressive performance together to claim the win with an 88-81 score line.

Defensively, they put the pressure on from the outset – but coupled that with a strong implementation of their offensive play. CBHS took their time to work into the game and by the end of the first quarter they trailed 24-18.

The second quarter was again intense with the visitors manning up in defence and putting the pressure on College. It wasn’t enough to get the lead at halftime though with College taking a 45-42 lead.

The match continued in intensity in the all-important third quarter and CBHS dropped to a zone defence which gave them advantage.

College however were up to the task and took a two point lead 64-62 going into the final quarter.

Early in the fourth, CBHS took the lead and the match threatened to get away from the College boys but they replied with a couple of important three pointers which allowed some breathing room, extending the lead to five.

With a couple of minutes to go College had a momentary lapse and managed to turn the ball over several times.

Luckily, they went relatively unpunished, so they were able to maintain their lead.

A timeout was needed to calm the nerves.

From here they played composed basketball which forced CBHS having to resort to fouling to put College to the line.

They were able to convert from the charity line to edge their way to a deserved 88 – 81 win.

For College Kambell Stills was outstanding.

He played the whole game and was a real handful on the offensive end as well as cleaning up numerous defensive rebounds for a man of the match display. He finished with 35 points.

Jamie Reid had a top game as well finishing with 19 points – he drove well to the basket as well as showing off his defensive skills.

Riley Sa continued to impress at both ends of the court and along with Reid, they hit three crucial three pointers to regain the lead halfway through the fourth quarter to take the game away from CBHS.

Jacob Tallentire was tireless on defence, however it was in the fourth that he showed his offensive rebounding skills pinching at least half a dozen bounds which allowed College to regain possession and work the clock.

This week College take on St Andrews’ College.

© The Ashburton Guardian - 27 July 2020

Doris Wakelin preparing to celebrate her 103rd birthday. Photo Sue NewmanDoris Wakelin lives by a pretty simple motto – get up, get on with it and never look back.

Today, she celebrates her 103rd birthday and said that, apart from good genes and good health, living to a ripe old age has plenty to do with your attitude to life.

“I’ve always believed that you have to forget the bad bits and remember the good and look forward to what’s coming.

“The good parts in life become your memories,” she said.

Doris is very much a child of the Ashburton District.

It’s been her home for all of those 103 years, it’s the place where she was raised, educated, married and raised a family and now it’s the place where she’s happily settled in a small flat, caring for herself, cooking her own meals and sharing time with her family.

Her family was part of an early Ashburton business, Moore’s drapery.

She attended Hampstead School (she’s proud of being the school’s oldest ex-pupil), and received her secondary education at Ashburton Technical College.

Like many girls of her time, she left school at 16 to take up housework positions with families with a new baby or where the mother had been hospitalised.

As one of a family of six and the oldest daughter, it was also her job to share the workload at home with her mother.

Unlike many of her friends, however, Doris had two homes, one with her family and one with her aunt.

“I’d been with Auntie Fan since I was born as we lived two streets apart and she’d often pick me up on a Friday night and take me back to Granny’s with her.

“I was her flower girl and when she married I moved in with her and her husband and her daughter was more like a sister to me,” she said.

That two home status also meant she came in for more than her fair share of spoiling, Doris admitted.

She met husband to be George Bishop through work.

“I didn’t normally work on Saturdays but this woman had just had a baby and asked if I’d go in and help out and her brother was there.”

The rest is history, but a history that shows the lengths a couple will go to for love.

“He used to ride 33 1/3rd miles every Saturday from the Ashburton Gorge down and back on Sunday night.

“If a nor’wester was blowing, he’d get off his bike and sleep under a gorse hedge,” Doris said.

“I’d be baking him a cake when he got here. He was fond of marshmallow square and I always made that for him.”

The cake clearly won George’s heart and the couple married and had six children.

Those child-raising years, living on farms around the district, were wonderful, Doris said and today she’s lost count of the number of great grandchildren and great great grandchildren that are part of her family.

George became ill and died in 1973 when Doris was in her early 50s.

“He was a great husband,” she said.

Lost without George by her side, Doris decided to get a job and started work at a supermarket in Ashburton’s Triangle.

Her job was to pack bags of flour.

Also working in the packing area was Wilfred Wakelin. His job was to prepare vegetables for sale.

Love bloomed and marriage followed.

Doris says she counts herself lucky to have had two ‘lovely’ men in her life.

Today, she’s still a member of Netherby Women’s Institute, first joining the organisation at Maronan in 1955.

She no longer knits and sews, but said in the past she enjoyed both crafts and was a dab hand at whipping up underwear for her grandchildren.

“I used to read a lot but gave that up because I’m not one to put a book down. I’d sit up until one or two in the morning reading, but today it’s television I enjoy, particularly The Chase.

“And I love doing puzzles.

“I buy a lot of magazines for the puzzles.”

Today she’s having an open home, welcoming visitors with cake and coffee and tonight she’ll head to the RSA for a celebratory shandy.

“That’s my only tipple and only on birthdays or at Christmas and it has to be a good one, a half and half.”

Staying true to her belief in looking to the future Doris is planning to celebrate her 105th birthday.

By Sue Newman © The Ashburton Guardian - 24 July 2020