Newman has been named at centre half-forward and is the only Goulburn Valley League player in the team.
Newman kicked close to 1000 goals in his stellar career with Kyabram and also topped 100 goals in one season for Tongala in Murray Football League in 2015.
He holds the honour of coaching Kyabram to the longest winning streak in senior grade football in Victoria with a string of 62 successive GVL wins from 2016 to a grand final defeat by two points by Shepparton in the 2018 season decider.
Kyabram then won another 21 successive games after that loss.
While Newman was the only GVL player to make the All Victorian country team, he was one of five Kyabram players named in the best GVL team of the last quarter-of-a-century.
Three Kyabram defenders Lachie Smith (centre half-back), Ian Boyd (full-back) and Jason Morgan (back pocket) were selected along with Kaye Pettifer and Newman.
Pettifer was picked in a forward pocket and Newman at full-forward.
Steve Daniel, who coached Seymour and Tatura to premierships, was named coach of the team.
In the Murray league’s best team of the last 25 years, Tongala had only one player to get a mention, Jordan Souter, who was named on the interchange bench.
But Moama’s Rhys Archard, who played with Echuca and won a Morrison Medal, Brendon Parker, who played with Nathalia and Tongala, and Ashley Gemmill (Nathalia-Kyabram) were also named in the side.
Xxxxxxxxx
There’s new faces on the ONE FM football commentary match day team this season.
Sam Saracino, who has mainly kept an eye on the Kyabram District League scene and been the GVL’s publicity officer for the past 10 years, is a new face on the ONE FM team along with Trevor Byers and boundary rider Riley Shannon.
Saracino’s role with the GVL has now been taken over by four times Kyabram District League McNamara medallist Rohan Aldous.
In a new Saturday night segment in the run down of football and netball results from across the district on ONE FM, Father Jackson Saunders will now supply a coverage of Bendigo league results.
A priest at St Brendan’s in recent years Fr Saunders has moved back to Bendigo, his home town.
Xxxxxxxx
Only two rounds have been played, but it would be hard to find anyone who follows Kyabram District League closely who doesn’t believe Murchison-Toolamba will complete back-to-back flag wins this season.
The Grasshoppers have flogged Girgarre and Stanhope, teams unlikely to play finals in their opening two games, but it will take a brave tipster to name any side that could beat them.
My KDL spies tell me Shepparton East and Lancaster have the best chance of doing it, but will need to play well above themselves to be a chance to do it.
And fans only have to wait until Saturday week (April 26) to get this answer as the Grasshoppers are hosting Shepparton East in a rematch of last season's grand final.
xxxxxxx
Kyabram’s George Chamarous had a good week last week.
The Longwood footballer was named among the best players in a team which lost its first round game to Avenel in Kyabram District League.
But that disappointment disappeared at last week’s Kilmore trots meeting when Chamouras partnered the Corey Bell-trained pacer Northern Terror to an easy win — at the nice odds of 10/1.
Chamarous had the pacer ready to pounce in the run, sitting on the back of the pacemaker Rocket Me and then running away from his rivals along the sprint lane.
Chamouras has enjoyed success on other Bell-trained pacers in recent times.
xxxxxx
Former Shepparton United young gun Charlie Di Stefano has been named in the Western Football League’s initial squad to play Southern Football League in an interleague clash on May 17.
Di Stefano played with the GVL Demons up to and including 2022 when he switched to Airport West before making his way to Parkdale this season. He played one VFL game in 2023 with Northern Bullants
14°C