Roseville Rifle Club Australia

In late January, 4 Roseville members (Mark Buchanan, Angus Martin, Adam Beale and Pat Jacombs), supported by Mike and Phill Hodder, Janet Beale and Phil Jacombs, arrived in New Zealand to represent Australia over 18 days of a truly extraordinary World Championship adventure at Trentham. Mark was a member of the Veterans team, Angus a member of the U25 Team and Adam and Pat members of the U21 team.

Located about 30 km north of Wellington, Trentham is renowned as one of the most difficult ranges on which to shoot, due to the vast fluctuation in its wind conditions. Almost all the Australian U21 team members were experiencing Trentham for the very first time.

The first competition was the U21 Teams World Championship (this being the inaugural running of this competition). Pat was very proud to be selected as one of the 5 shooters and Adam was selected as Master Coach. The competition was shot over 4 distances: 300, 600, 900 and 1000 yds, with each shooter having 10 scoring shots. Australia came second behind a strong local team of junior Kiwis. Pat shot exceptionally well, recording the top score in the Aussie team and was the 4th highest scorer in the whole competition. Adam’s coaching was the key factor in the team’s performance and his dedication to the role was clearly demonstrated by his state of physical and emotional exhaustion that was visible for all to see at the end of the shoot.

In conjunction with the U21 Teams World Championship, there were U25 and Veterans International matches. The U25 teams competed for the Haddon Donald Trophy and the Veterans competed for the Tony Loughnan trophy. Angus and his team-mates won the Haddon Donald trophy from the Great Britain team and the Veterans won the Tony Loughnan trophy in the tightest of contest with the Great Britain team (1,895.138 to 1,895.133)! Mark made a strong contribution to the win, being the 3^rd highest scorer for the Aussie team.

The next competition was the New Zealand National Championships, which also doubled as the World Individual Championships for U21, U25 and Veterans shooters. Shot over 3 days, at 300, 500, 600, 900 and 1000 yds (each distance twice), this was another test of endurance. Mark performed brilliantly in this competition to be crowned Veterans World Champion. The Australian U25 team members really shone, taking 5 of the top 10 places in their Championships. Australian Chris Schwebel was crowned World Champion and Angus was placed 8^th. In the U21 Champioships, Pat was very pleased with his 8^th place. Adam also shot in this event and was placed 28^th.

The Veterans and U25 Teams World Championships were next on the agenda. The Aussies continued their winning ways in both contests. Mark and Angus and their team-mates brought home the trophies with wins over the Great Britain teams to retain their World Champions status. The Vets prevented another heart-stopping finish by winning by 8 points!

Another international U21 teams match followed, competing for the Haddon Donald Trophy. This time the Aussies prevailed over the Kiwis, with Pat again making a strong contribution to the team’s success, being the 2nd top scorer in the Aussie team, with the 3rd highest score in the overall competition.

From there, the competition moved onto the Long Range World Championships (another individual competition and recognised as the World Championship for Individual Target Rifle Shooting). Over the course of 3 days, competitors shot three times at 800, 900 and 1000 yds It was during this competition that the infamous Trentham winds made their presence felt. In the often-treacherous conditions, shooting at 1000 yds is not only a test of endurance, but of mental strength. Adam and Pat found the conditions incredibly challenging, as did so many of the other competitors and their scores reflected this. Angus showed great patience and determination to finish in 44^th place in a field of over 300, Mark was117^th, Pat was 136^th and Adam was 186^th. Steve Negus from Australia won the competition to be crowned World Individual Champion, with Mitch Bailey in a close second place, by one point.

The final event of the competition calendar was the Palma Match. This prestigious teams competition was inaugurated in 1878 and is one of the oldest international competitions in sport. Shot at long distances over 2 intense days, it is held every 4 years and to describe the rivalry between competing nations as fierce would be an understatement, especially as the Great Britain team had not been beaten for the last 28 years.

The “Roseville 4” were not members of the Palma team so had the chance to be spectators/supporters. This was not to last for long. During the 2^nd range of Day 1, two members of the Channel Islands team had to withdraw from the competition. As they had no reserves, the team could no longer officially compete. However, match officials made the generous decision to allow them to shoot on, if replacements could be found. Pat’s team manager grabbed him and another Aussie U21 team member and asked if they were willing to step in. Of course the immediate response was “yes” and suddenly Pat was recruited to unofficial Channel Islands citizenship. Thus Pat achieved a life-goal of shooting in the Palma Match (probably at least a decade before he thought he could ever be eligible). To top if off, he ended up being the Channel Islands top scorer for the match, earning not only the respect of his new “team” but their enduring friendship. The whole situation demonstrates why shooting is a wonderful sport, with a true sense of community.

By the way, the Aussie team delivered on their undoubted potential and romped away with the Palma Trophy, with the Great Britain team in second and the USA third.

Across the course of the various competitions, Australia won:

Veterans Teams World Championship

Veterans Individual World Championship

U25 Teams World Championship

U25 Individual World Championship

Long Range World Championship (Individual Open World Championship)

Palma Match (considered the Teams World Championship)

The “Roseville 4” achievements were:

Mark Buchanan – Veterans World Champion, member of the Veterans Team World Champions, member of the Tony Loughnan Trophy winning team

Angus Martin – member of the U25 Team World Champions, member of the Haddon Trophy winning team

Adam Beale – Master Coach of the U21 Team Silver Medal World Championships

Pat Jacombs – member of the U21 Team Silver Medal World Championships, member of the Haddon Trophy winning team, top shooter for Channel Islands Palma team

A great adventure and an opportunity of a lifetime.

Phil Jacombs