Fans forced to double up

WARRNAMBOOL and Terang Mortlake supporters face a tough choice tomorrow with sides in senior football and netball grand finals. With the A grade netball beginning at 2pm and senior football at 2.15pm it won't be possible to experience both games in full. Depending on the time game breaks fall, spectators who don't want as much of both may want to opt for a Gwyneth Paltrow-like experience from the movie Sliding Doors. For maths and stats buffs, we consulted Rodney Carr, a senior lecturer in business and law at Deakin Business School, on the probability of the Blues and the Bloods reaching both grand finals. If you are terrified of complex mathematical equations, look away now. ``One in 784 is the probability of Warrnambool and Terang Mortlake playing in both grand finals. But there are 28 other possible combinations of teams like this. It could be Warrnambool versus Port Fairy, for example, or Port Fairy versus Koroit. So its back to 28/784 = 1/28.'' History suggests the probability is not that great, as having both teams in senior football and netball grand finals was previously achieved by Warrnambool and South Warrnambool (1989), Colac and Terang (1993), Warrnambool and Koroit (2001) and Warrnambool and Terang Mortlake (2002).ANIMAL welfare advocates will be relieved to know life is back to normal for the 400 cows who had their milking routine disrupted by Maskell Medal developments last Sunday. Their milker Liam Ryan was called away from his 4pm appointment with the herd at Grassmere to attend the medal count in Warrnambool, where he was pleasantly surprised to win with 23 votes. The North Warrnambool Eagles onballer didn't get back to the family farm until 6.30pm but he never had to milk a cow, as his clubmates fulfilled a pledge to help out if he made the rush trip in to City Memorial Bowls Club. Ryan said about 30 people turned up at the rotary dairy, including footballers, netballers and coaches. As Aaron Ross and brothers Thomas and Ben Smith took on milking duties, the other 27 in attendance launched into victory celebrations which from 8.30pm transferred to Ryan's Bretton Street home. Although the medal winner didn't put his head down until midnight, he was able to answer the 5.30am alarm call the following morning to put the bovine milking cycle back on track.LIAM Ryan's Maskell Medal win capped a remarkable run of award success for North Warrnambool Eagles. Coupled with the HFNL's under-age awards, held last week, Eagles swooped on four best and fairest trophies and two runner-up gongs. Mid-court dynamo Elisha Carter was joint winner of the A grade netball award with Cobden goal attack Emma Beks, Leah Kermeen shared the A1 award with Monique Lewis, of Warrnambool. Kermeen's teammate Sarah Madden was runner-up. Carlie Clingan was runner-up in A2, while sisters Annie and Laura Blackburn won the 13 and 17 and under awards respectively. Carter admitted this week her celebrations were cut short by tiredness. Mobile telephone companies were also big winners on Sunday, with Carter estimating she received 42 text messages in two hours.AMONG the many could haves and should haves to emerge from the Maskell Medal count, consider the fate of Camperdown playing coach Stephen Sinnott. Regarded by many HFNL followers as the league's best ruckman, Sinnott failed to attract a vote. One disbelieving Magpies fan vividly recalls the round nine upset win against Warrnambool in which he maintains Sinnott should have received the three, two and one vote. With similar disbelief we should ask how ball magnets Jarrod McCorkell, Sam Holloway and Isaac Templeton were limited to 13, nine and six votes respectively.COBDEN teenager Gary Rohan received double consolation for his team's preliminary final defeat, winning the league's rising star award and 3WAY FM's rookie of the year award.THE mighty Moroney sisters scooped the pool at Port Fairy junior netball best and fairest awards.Jessica won the Seagulls' 17 and under award, Rebecca the 15 and under trophy and Sarah the 13 and under gong. Another common theme is they are defenders.HAMPDEN Team of the Year judge Matt Stewart was chuffed by the Maskell Medal result. Stewart, Alan Blackburn, Greg Kelson and your column author had earlier settled on Liam Ryan as captain for the 3YB Team of the Year, announced at the medal count. The team is:B: Marcus Darmody (NWE), Michael Sargeant (TM), Gary Rohan (Cob); HB: Xavier Moloney (TM), Corey Baulch (Cob), Matthew McMahon (K);C: Josh Walters (PF), Jarrod McCorkell (W), Justin Eales (W);HF: Nick Couch (TM), Joshua Baxter (TM), Matt Sinnott (Cam);FF: Tom Crosby (SW), Jason Rowan (W), Joe McLaren (K);Foll: Leigh Niklaus (W), Jarrod Thompson (PF), Liam Ryan (NWE);Inter: Sam Holloway (Cob), Isaac Templeton (K), Danny Finn (SW), Nathan Jones (TM).Coach: Paul Irving (TM)Captain: Liam Ryan (NWE)Runner: Damien Sell (W). Umpire: Andrew FergusonFORMER Camperdown players Ben Harris, Luke Molan and Luke Sinnott were on the winning side in the Western Region Football League grand final at Chirnside Park. Harris, the 2006 Maskell medallist, earned the Herb Pascarl Medal for best-on-ground by leading Spotswood to a come-from-behind 13.15 (93) to 11.17 (83) victory against Port Melbourne Colts. Molan booted three goals, the last in the dying minutes of the game after a spectacular mark in the goal square. His conversion lifted Spotswood to a four-point lead after trailing 9.15 to 7.9 at the last change. Metropolitan grand final success was also achieved by former North Warrnambool Eagles player Hayden Lewis, who helped West Brunswick score a 49-point victory over Saint Francis Xavier in D4 amateurs. He played alongside former Merrivale player Chris Lehman at Vermont Reserve.