Under the Auld Pump: Don and others like him driving force of club

Wife: Pam. Children: Lucy, Deborah and Jane.

Parents: Tom and Marian. Sibling: Ian.

Education: Terang Primary School before going Terang High School.

Sporting highlight: Playing in two cricket premiership sides with Nirranda in the 1980s.

Don, where did your cricket career begin?

Junior cricket had only started around Terang back in that era. There were a couple of sides that played cricket on Saturdays.

I played in one side and Daryl Griffiths was one of my teammates.

Daryl was an exceptional sportsman. He was a champion athlete at school. Daryl and I were in the side which represented Terang High when they beat Warrnambool Technical School to win the Western District inter-school footy premiership in the early 1960s.

Daryl went on to play 129 games with St Kilda, which included playing for the Saints when they won their only flag in 1966.

Terang has been very lucky over the years to have produced some very talented sports people, including Charlie and Ian Payne.

They were both from my era. Charlie started his VFL/AFL career with Essendon as a 17-year-old after playing his early years with Terang before going on to play 184 games with the Bombers, while Ian, his brother, played 45 games with the Bombers.

My cricket career saw me go on and play for the St Kilda club XI in Melbourne before going up and playing in a premiership with St Andrews, which played in Hamilton, and then I came down and had the two flags with Nirranda.

I've still got fond memories of those cricket premiership wins at Nirranda.

We had a group of about 10 supporters who would go to each game and they ran out onto the ground once we'd won the flag.

The fans were more excited than the players.

There was a lot of celebrating after those two premiership wins. Mark Ludeman, who went on to be a very good footballer at Warrnambool, played in one of those cricket premiership wins as a very young boy.

His dad, Vic, mowed the ground for years and years.

It's volunteers like Vic that are the backbone of sporting clubs, or for that matter, any club, which make them tick.

Without volunteers, there would be no clubs.

Don, away from your sporting deeds with footy and cricket, you've also been heavily involved with golf and, in particular, the Peterborough Golf Club. When did you get involved with the Peterborough Golf Club?

It's been a long time - too far back to remember.

I don't like going back because it shows my age, but it's true; it's been a long time.

It's been an enjoyable time and I've been very lucky to have met some really lovely people through my time with the Peterborough Golf Club.

How many acres is the Peterborough golf course on?

We have 25 acres of land and it's a nine-hole course.

The Peterborough Golf Club was formally founded by a combination of local residents and those who holidayed there in 1958.

The club continued for several years basically as a holiday venue and it was not until 1972 that the opportunity arose to purchase a clubhouse and the club emerged as a genuine entity with that purchase.

The purchase of the clubhouse allowed a ladies' committee to be formed and they started having regular competitions, which helped raise funds to repay the loans.

Did the club win any pennants back in the 1970s?

I would have to say 1972 was a significant one for the club as we won the division one pennant in the GDCA after having won division two in 1969.

It was an amazing effort for a small fledgling club.

The ladies' team also started taking part in the local pennant competition in 1972.

What positions have you held at the Peterborough Golf Club?

I was the club captain for 30 years and was club president for four years and on the committee for 40 years before standing down two years ago.

On a personal note, I've been lucky to have won a few awards but one of my biggest thrills occurred in 2008 when I was made a life member of the club.

How many members does the club have now?

We've got just over 400 members and half of those would be visitors who have holiday houses in the town.

There are a lot of our members from around the Terang area.

Our fees are $200 a year, which is very cheap for a golf course which has magnificent views of the sea.

We have three men's pennant sides and two women's pennant sides.

We've found there are more younger people joining the club as they love to come and have a round of golf with their mates.

What are your favourite holes at the course?

I would probably say the fifth and ninth are special.

They have a great westerly aspect.

The sixth is also pretty special.

The biggest hazard we have is the wind blowing.

It's there most days and makes playing golf a bit more interesting.

We have the road going through the course on three occasions.

What are the green fees for the course?

It's $15 for nine holes or $20 for 18 holes or visitors can pay $50 for a weekly pass.

The club is in a pretty good financial position due to people like our secretary Bill Heskett.

Bill puts in lots of hours making sure the club ticks over.

He put in a lot of time trying to access grants while COVID and lockdowns were in place over the past two years.

The club is extremely lucky to have a great volunteer base, which is made up of qualified tradesmen who have worked hard to improve our facilities.

As I said previously, it's the volunteers who have put the club in the position it's in today.

We employ one greens-keeper to keep the course in top condition.

Don, finally, what's your golf handicap?

Let's just say it's blowing out with my age and showing no signs of stopping.