1. Hockey India League – January 16
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HOCKEY’S answer to cricket’s lucrative Indian Premier League hits-off next Wednesday. And Goulburn’s Glenn Turner is set to be part of the action. Turner will pocket $25,000 while playing for the Mumbai Magicians in the month-long tournament. He will answer to his Australian mentor Ric Charlesworth, a man Turner describes as the best coach on the planet.
2. Trackpower – February 16
THE state’s best attended track racing carnival returns to Goulburn in February. This year’s event was moved from its usual early January timeslot to accommodate for junior sprint championships in Sydney, however the 2013 fixture promises to be equally successful despite its postponing.
Organisers hope riders avoid a smash akin to that of 2012, when four competitors required hospital treatment after a violent crash.
3. Raiders v Bulldogs – February 23
TWO of the NRL’s best attacking teams will finetune their preparations for the 2013 season with a trial match at Workers Arena. While the match isn’t a fully fledged showdown, neither team will take the occasion lightly. The match marks the final chance for coaches David Furner and Des Hasler to get some miles into their players’ legs before the season kicks-off on March 1.
4. NRL season kick-off – March 1
THERE’S every chance a Goulburn-raised footballer could win an NRL premiership this year. The Raiders, featuring homegrown players Jarrod Croker and Joe Picker, made a stunning run to the semi-finals last season, and are poised to make waves in 2013. The Sharks, meantime, are rated genuine contenders and will look to their pivot Todd Carney, a Stockmen junior, to lead the way.
5. Time for revenge – March 23
MIK Webber and his troops at Tully Park were denied a fourth consecutive BDCU Cup by a Dean Roxburgh-inspired Robertson. Now, 12 months on, the Goulburnians are determined to turn the tables. This time, however, they go by the name Hibo-Tully Park and feature some of the now-defunct Coolavin-Bowling Club’s leading players. One thing’s certain: the local will take some beating.
6. Carnival of Cups – March 31
THE biggest event on Goulburn’s harness racing calendar is fast approaching. The Goulburn-leg of the Carnival of Cups, a meet which features the $30,000 Frank and Edna Day Memorial Cup, takes place at the Paceway on March 31. The occasion attracts some of the state’s best pacers and shows-off Goulburn’s state-of-the-track to the nation.
7. New coach, new beginnings – April
THE Goulburn Strikers return to the pitch buoyed by a positive finish to the 2012 season and inspired by the signing of new coach Robin Caufield, a UEFA qualified mentor. Expect the lads from Goulburn to vie for the State League Two premiership in 2013.
8. Dirty Reds title defence – April
THAT was so last year! The Dirty Reds and their second grade counterparts the Twos return to the paddock determined to defend their titles.
The Reds clinched the Monaro Cup last year with a gritty 20-10 win over old sparring partners Yass. That win means little now, however. Boyd Newby and his team must start again.
9. Sporting Hall of Fame – May
CYCLING champion Michelle Crawford and hockey veteran Kevin Connor are set to join a list of esteemed athletes at this year’s Goulburn Sporting Hall of Fame induction. The bi-annual event is again likely to attract a sell-out crowd.
10. Day dawns on world stage – June
ONE of Goulburn’s leading trainer-drivers Neil Day pit his talents against some of the world’s best in France. Day will follow in the footsteps of legendary harnessmen Kevin Newman, Vic Frost, Tony Turnbull and Brian Hancock when he represents Australia at the World Driving Championships.
11. Goulburn to Sydney – September 15
THE nation’s oldest, and to the this day one of the most prestigious races, again returns this September. The Goulburn to Sydney Classic, an event contested since 1902, will again test the mettle of some of Australia’s best riders, who must negotiate a 170km course from Goulburn to Camden, via the Hume Highway, Southern Highlands and Razorback Mountain.
12. Australian Masters Cycling Championships – October 18-20
GOULBURN’S standing as a cycling city will be reaffirmed when it hosts the Australian Masters Cycling Championships for the second time in succession. Goulburn is well equipped to host the event, having held the national championships last October, as well as the NSW Championships in 2011 and 2012.