Kevin Hogan (Page, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Glee Hockey Club was established in Lismore in 1928. This year the club is celebrating not only its 90th anniversary but also the retirement of veteran coach Rhonda Mathers, who has called time after three decades of coaching success. In 1989, Rhonda joined the club as a player and a coach. This was the first of many years where the Glee Hockey Club's A grade women's team would take out the far North Coast premiership.

Lauded by players as the heart and soul of the club, Rhonda's 30-year coaching tenure includes an impressive record of 21 minor and 22 major premierships, including the team's record 16 consecutive far North Coast major premierships from 2001 to 2016. While Rhonda and her teams have enjoyed these successes, what she cherishes the most is developing junior players and seeing them perform at high levels in A grade. Rhonda's love of hockey is a family affair, with her husband, Paul, and children Brad and Rachael involved in the sport also.

After 30 seasons and 650 games, Rhonda will not be lost to the sport she loves. Whether it is through her role on the board of Far North Coast Hockey, umpiring matches, working in the canteen or managing the New South Wales over 60s masters team, Rhonda's legacy is cemented within far North Coast hockey. Congratulations, Rhonda.

Every year Disneyland offers an opportunity for dance studios to perform during one of their shows. In early October, the Studio One Dance Academy from Grafton was lucky enough to have such an opportunity. After submitting an audition video, the studio was selected from the hundreds of applicants to perform at Disneyland in Hong Kong during Golden Week, China's seven-day national holiday. Twenty young performers—boys and girls, ranging from five to 18 years of age—flew out on 29 September for the eight-day tour. They were accompanied by 35 parents and supporters. The troupe performed their own choreographed piece during the parade at Disneyland and then performed a 30-minute routine at Ocean Park and K11, the world's first museum retail complex.

The dancers and their families also got to sample the local culture, which was a first for many of the young performers. I would like to congratulate the young dancers: Jessica Sear, Lucy Sear, Gypsy Rose Biggs, Ryder Biggs, Mikayla Lolic, Indi Parbery, Emmy Paterson, Amali Cone, Elle Cone, Havana McBeath, Abby McBeath, Aiden McBeath, Chantel Claydon, Tayla Graham, Halle Graham, Kayla Ellis, Alana Madden, Sasha Van de Boogard, Amber Van de Boogard and Lily Sanders, and principals Gail Harding and Alison McBeath. I'd like to congratulate the Studio One Dance Academy on this wonderful achievement.

The Coraki Public School celebrated its 150th anniversary on the October long weekend. I would like to congratulate the organising committee who put the celebrations together. They are Shesne Olive, Barb Gifford, current school principal Jane Cottee, Norma Thomas, Maureen Maleckar and Donna Scurr. They started organising the celebration 18 months ago.

Around 400 people turned up for the celebrations. The committee received a $3,000 grant from local business Quarry Solutions to help with the day. A museum was set up in one of the classrooms, displaying the history of Coraki. The hallway became a gallery of photos of past and current students. The success of the weekend is testimony to the strong community bonds that have been forged in Coraki over the last 150 years. Well done to Coraki Public School for quality education and community involvement.

I would like to congratulate St John's College Woodlawn under 15s rugby sevens team, who are now the 2018 state champions. The team played in Newcastle late last month, and went through the final series undefeated. The team included Jack Elmore, Kyle Maluta, Jye Davis, Harry Sivewright, Cooper Love, Riley Cox, Ryan Walton, Blake Davis, Gabe Taylor, Marco Andonov and Jake Coleman. The team was coached by Mick Melino. In the grand final match, Woodlawn beat Hills Sports High School 24-14. The teams played extremely well on the day and should feel very proud of their efforts, as we all are of them. Congratulations to the Woodlawn team.

The New South Wales state BMX championships took place on the long weekend, and 22 competitors from the Casino and Clarence Valley BMX clubs travelled to Sydney to take part in the two-day event. The Clarence Valley BMX Club, led by president Marnie Brighton, won a staggering 19 individual plates. A plate is representative of a rider's state ranking, and no other rider can hold that plate in the category for the calendar year. They are only awarded to the top eight in each division. Marnie herself won two plates. The other plate winners were Glen Swain, Tahlia Marsh, Taleah Robertson, Sharnii Bosbach, Kelly Brown, Stacey Brown, Britney Cole, Ben McDonald and Breanna Robertson. Also well done to those who competed at the championships: Darcy Fowler, Harley Fowler, David Landenberger, Riley Landenberger, William Chisholm, Alyssa Chisholm, Tyrhys Fowler-Robinson, Brendan Brown and Kai McGregor. It is a small club by most standards, but that didn't stop it from taking out the Loudest Club Award to cap off a great weekend. The Casino BMX Club also had three competitors at the championships, with Dana Jordan winning seventh in the state. Dean Sneesby also competed, making it to the quarter-finals, and his younger sister, Penny, competed in the Sprocket Rocket category, doing very well against the boys. I congratulate all those competitors and those who gained their top eight plates.

Grafton's wonderful Jacaranda Festival starts next week. As always, it will be a colourful, fun and friendly festival with an array of exciting activities for everyone to enjoy. I would like to extend my congratulations to all the Jacaranda Queen contestants: Jessie Dean, Jorga Turner, Ebonee Weavers, Bronte Cameron and Caitlin Leak. This year the candidates for the Junior Jacaranda Queen are Whitney Moon, Mia McGrath, Caitlin Granger, Saskia McGrath, Emily Paterson, Mikayla Chaffar and Hope Endean. I wish all the contestants all the best for this year's crown. We started off with a wonderful ball, held last Saturday night. This festival is about the local community, and there are many people who help shape and create this wonderful festival. I'd like to congratulate this year's organising committee, especially the Matron of Honour, Bernadette Basset, and the Jacaranda Ball Team, for all their ongoing efforts and enthusiasm. The team includes Jeff Smith, Dave Mackey and Wendy Gibbs. Your dedication makes this event a success. I encourage everyone to come along to the festivities from 27 October to 4 November. This is the 84th year of the Jacaranda Festival, the oldest of its kind in Australia.

At the end of term 3, Wooli Public School travelled to Sydney after qualifying for the state soccer finals in the Small Schools Knockout. In a very proud moment, they won the title. Forty-one teams from across the state started the knockout competition, with Wooli progressing to the finals after scoring 25 goals and only conceding four. The team played the grand final at Valentines Sports Park at Glenwood, which is the home of Football Federation Australia. Congratulations to the team: Regan Howard, Isaac Bibby, Ari Cave, Sienna Molloy, Hunter Armstrong, Ethan Skennar, Teak Turnbull, Samuel Plowman, Sava Dobra Garrett, Jasper Waern, Bailey Cochrane, Levi Skennar, Talyn McConnell, Rhada Blemmings-Turnbull, and Ash Blemmings. The team was supported by coach Jamie Trevillian and principal Robyn Parnell. For a small school of no more than 100 students, such an outstanding achievement requires a lot of work in the background. I'd like to thank the P&C for their efforts to raise the money needed to allow the students to travel and fulfil their goals. I thank the president, Annette Gill; the vice president, Melitta Marr; the treasurer James Bibby; and the uniform coordinator, Nicole Gall. I'd also like to thank Glennis Small and Kathy McAteer from the Wooli Hotel-Motel Social Club, which contributed to the cost of the trip. Congratulations to all involved.

Lawrence Public School will celebrate its 150th anniversary this Saturday. I'd like to thank the organising committee for their fantastic work in celebrating this wonderful milestone: principal Jackie Menzies, relieving principal Joe Cooper, Debbie Davis, Lorna Reeves, Wendy Squires, Dulcie Reeves and Roger Reeves. The students also had an active role in organising the celebrations. They've chosen to have games from yesteryear and have included local community groups in the activities. They've recorded online interviews with past students to be played during the celebrations. There will be a picnic lunch, a bagpiper and a rural fire brigade display. I want to thank the staff for the great job they do: Andrew Davison, Sharon Nelson, Lisa Smith, Anna Cooper and Erin Gallagher. Again, congratulations and happy birthday to Lawrence Public School.