SSAA 5-Stand National Championships

East met west on the weekend of June 7 and 8 when a good contingent of New South Wales competitors joined a larger group of Western Australian locals at the Perth Field Rifle Club for the 2014 National 5-Stand Championships. At the extensive Waneroo Shooting Complex on the northern outskirts of Perth, four excellent and quite different 5-Stand layouts were prepared for the Championships by Neil Cobb, Adrian Ridgeway and other members of the club. Layout 4 was prepared by Peter and Tracey Grayer, who presented some challenging targets that tested everyone’s shooting skills. Overall, competitors faced a wide variety of different targets, as well as some devilish pairs, that needed a thoughtful approach to be successful.

The weather was fine but overcast, while some intermittent, gusty wind over the weekend presented a special challenge with some targets that were wind-effected. While the targets were of a standard commensurate for a National Championships, the prevailing weather conditions kept many competitor’s scores lower than expected. Some excellent scores were posted, but NSW competitor Grant Barton was the only one successful enough to record a perfect round of 25 on the scoreboard.

The Championships were generously sponsored by the SSAA, GUNAMMO Perth, INTOSHOOTING – GAMEBORE Cartridges, and Roy Alexander & Sons Perth. Q-LINE clay targets were used throughout the Championships and worked flawlessly in all traps.

Shoot administration was handled capably by Michelle and Wendy who kept the squads and scoring up to date, while Regina provided some very tasty catering from her kitchen, which was greatly appreciated by all.

At the Shotgun AGM held at the conclusion of competition on Saturday, Warren Brown and Jan Jacka were re-elected to their national chairman positions. Additionally, some proposed rule changes were discussed, and the 2015 National 5-Stand Championships were planned to be held in Queensland and the 2015 National Sporting Clays Championships in Western Australia.

As the final shots were fired and the scores tallied, Grant Barton emerged as the 2014 National 5-Stand Champion with a match-leading score of 166/200. Other winners were:
AA Grade: Jason Yozzi (163), Brett Inch (152), Michael McDonald (151)
A Grade: Ken Green (143), Simon Gee (140), Neil Cobb (126)
B Grade: Nick Malinko (131), Marcus Van Dalen (108)
C Grade: David Venter (104), Brendan Karow (102), Adrian Ridgeway (100)
Veterans: David Knight (152), Warren Brown (139), Andrew Robinson (97)
Ladies: Tracey Grayer (128), Jan Jacka (108)
Sub Juniors: Danon Randazzo (118), Mikayla Macartney (87)

The winner of the 5-Stand State Team Shield was the NSW Team of Grant Barton, Darren Macartney, Greg Allen, Brent Inch and Peter Jacka with a score of 752, followed very closely by the WA Team with 748.

At the conclusion of the presentation, it was announced that Grant Barton, Darren Macartney, Greg Allen, Peter Jacka and Brett Inch were the top five point scorers in the 2014 5-Stand competition, having achieved consistently higher scores in a series of State Selection Shoots, State Titles and the National Championships. They will comprise the SSAA Australian Shotgun Team to compete at the New Zealand COMPAK Championships next November.

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