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Four new walks linking Maybole,
Kirkoswald and Dunure were officially opened on Saturday morning by
South Ayrshire Councillor Ian Fitzsimmons. Welcoming everyone to the
Greenside in Maybole, Councillor Fitzsimmons said, “I was delighted
to be asked to officially open the Maybole Paths network, and I am
glad that so many of you are here with me today. We are so lucky in
this part of the world to have such spectacular scenery and for it
to be so easily accessible. South Ayrshire Council is continually
working to provide greater outdoor access opportunities for local
people and for tourists. The new access provisions of the Land
Reform Act give the public the right of responsible access over most
land, so by providing suitably agreed and managed routes the Council
is helping people to get out and enjoy the countryside.
I feel that it is very appropriate that I am
launching this on the day that the Carrick Walking Festival Group is
holding their programme of guided walks along the Maybole Paths. The
information board marks the start of the walks and I hope it will be
seen by many people, both locals and visitors to the area, and
inspire them to put on their walking boots and try some of the
walks. The walks have been designed to take people over a mixture of
terrains, including public roads, farm tracks, new footpaths and
open hillside. With walks of different lengths and with different
landscapes and places of interest to see, there really is something
for everyone. It is important that we all take some form of regular
exercise, and walking is one of the best ways to do this. You can
walk at your own pace, take friends or family with you, enjoy a good
blether on the way, and get fit at the same time. It gives me great
pleasure to officially declare the Maybole Paths network officially
open.”
It’s
every young Scottish or English rugby player’s dream – to get his
hands on the Calcutta Cup and to be photographed with it. That dream
came true on Monday morning at Carrick Academy when the famous
trophy came to the school. The Calcutta Cup is a rugby union trophy
awarded to the winner of the annual Six Nations Championship match
between England and Scotland. It is currently held by Scotland, who
claimed the trophy by defeating the holders England 18-12 at Murrayfield in the 2006 Six Nations Championship on Saturday 25th
February 2006.
Over 100 pupils from Carrick
Academy went to the Scotland v England game at Murrayfield this year
and the SRU wanted to thank them for their support by bringing the
Cup to Maybole to get photographs of all three of the school’s
teams. The school is organising trips to Murrayfield this season to
watch Scotland v Australia, Ireland and Wales. Finely engraved, the
cup is approximately 18 inches high, has three handles in the form
of king cobras and has a handsome domed lid surmounted by an
elephant. The inscription on the Cup's wooden base reads:
THE CALCUTTA CUP
PRESENTED TO THE RUGBY FOOTBALL
UNION
BY THE CALCUTTA FOOTBALL CLUB
AS AN INTERNATIONAL CHALLENGE CUP
TO BE PLAYED FOR ANNUALLY BY
ENGLAND & SCOTLAND
1878
The base has attached to it
additional plates which record the date of each match played with
the name of the winning country and, bracketed together, the names
of the two captains.
There is, however, an anomaly in
the recording of the winning country on the base of the Cup. It was
first played for in 1879 but the plinth in fact shows records
extending back to the first international in 1871. The results from
1871 to 1878 are therefore of matches which were being played before
the Calcutta Cup came into being! Only fifteen Calcutta Cup games
have been cancelled, because of a dispute in the 1880s, and because
of the two World Wars.
The Calcutta Cricket & Football
Club is one of the oldest sports clubs in the world and has absorbed
several sporting clubs over the centuries. One of these clubs is the
Calcutta Football Club, which was initially only in existence for 5
years (1872 - 1877) but resurrected in 1884. The famous Calcutta Cup
is in fact a legacy of the original Calcutta Football Club which was
forced to close down due to lack of opposition and the growing
popularity of other sports.
Suggestions of what to do with the
Club's remaining funds included a gymkhana, a ball or a dinner, but
the Honorary Secretary and Treasurer of the Club, G A James Rothney,
argued that such suggestions would be quickly forgotten.With a great
sense of history, Rothney proposed that the funds be used to have a
trophy made of ornate Indian workmanship and that the trophy be
offered to the R.F.U. The proposal was considered and duly responded
to thus:
“The Committee accept with very
great pleasure your generous offer of the cup as an international
challenge cup to be played for annually by England and Scotland -
the cup remaining the property of the Rugby Football Union.” (A G
Guillemard, RFU President).
Once accepted, the Calcutta Club
officials withdrew the entire balance due in silver rupees, had them
melted down and then crafted into an original, elegant and
distinguished trophy now known worldwide as the Calcutta Cup.
Maybole marked the 150th
anniversary of the railway line coming to Maybole last Friday
morning. In what was described as a small start to improving the
station environment, the “MAYBOLE” sign opposite the platform was
once again revealed and flower tubs were installed. David Kiltie,
chairman of Maybole Community Council, welcomed John Yellowlees,
external relations manager at First ScotRail, Councillors Alan
Murray and Brian Connolly, Alex Kelly, Maybole Community Council,
Ellen Hawkes and Gillian Anderson of May-Tag Ltd. He thanked Gillian
for all her work in taking the project from scratch and getting to
this stage in time for the anniversary which also coincided with the
first anniversary of First ScotRail’s “Adopt a Station” project.
Gillian Anderson thanked everyone from the rail companies who had
assisted with the event including Mr Yellowlees, George Allan, Kevin
McLernon, and Gillian Arnott. She especially thanked Barry Hubbard,
of Carrick Cooperage and Garden Supplies Ltd, who had donated 12
large half barrel tubs which were tubs installed on the platform in
four clusters of three.
In addition Gillian thanked June Dunlop, Frances
Dryburgh and Alan Cunninghame for their help in planting the tubs.
Mr Yellowlees said he was delighted to be there for the occasion and
to have helped support this first step forward in improving the
station and making it more attractive for customers. He added, “As
we celebrate the first anniversary of our ‘Adopt a Station’ scheme,
we are delighted with how well it is going. We’ve formed several
strong and successful partnerships and we’re looking forward to
further improvements here at Maybole.” Both Councillor Murray and
Councillor Connolly were happy to see the change and wished the
project more success as it continued. A longer term project is being
planned and funding applications are away to funders to allow local
school children to design and create a mosaic on the embankment on
the far side of the station.
Ali Roy, of
Maybole, has been selected to play for Scotland U/12 girls at the
European Championships which will be held in Herceg Novi,
Montenegro. Scotland, England and Wales have all pulled out of the
World Championships which was to be held in Georgia Russia in
October, due to kidnapping and terrorist threats at the airport they
were to arrive at, so there has been a rush to get the team to
Montenegro. Ali has had quite a year and here is a list of her
achievements.
-Ayrshire U14 Boy/Girl champion,
-Scottish Girls Champion,
-The British Land Challenge is in
three sections and Ali was
1 Suprema at the Megafinals in
Dunfermline
2 1st equal in Manchester finals
sharing £100
3 Girls under 18 title = at
Sheffield ,sharing £100 with 17 year old Sophie Seeber from England
-Played in the British Chamionship
at Swansea Wales and missed the girls’ title by 1/2 point - although
she beat the girl who won, Maria Wang
-Runner up in the adult British
Yates weekender at Swansea sharing £100 again
-Won the Adult Scottish Weekender
under 1500 at Troon £150
-Walter Munn Grand Prix winner
2005/2006
-Awarded trophy for best league
player, not losing any of her 7 games, helping Carrick Chess Club
(along with the great captaincy of Dr Kenny Brooksbank ) move to
division 1 this season ,the first time for 30 years.
Ali is now at Queen Margaret
Academy although she was representing St Cuthbert’s when she won at
Manchester and Sheffield. Altogether over the last few months she’s
won about £325 along with some trophies and books. Her parents tried
to get a sub off her but she bought an Ipod Nano instead!!! Ali is
pictured above with her lucky mascot and she will be taking it with
she is taking with her. We wish her the best of luck.
49 pilgrims from Our Lady and St
Cuthbert’s Church travelled to the cave at Whithorn where St Ninian
is believed to have spent time during his 5th century mission in
Scotland. Ninian is believed to have landed on Scottish shores
around 397AD. He is the first bishop of the Diocese of Galloway and
every year people from all over the diocese gather at the cave for
Mass which is usually led by the current bishop. This year Bishop
Taylor presided at the Mass since Bishop Cunningham is unwell and
was unable to be at the event this year.
Former Maybole couple Lawrence
and Anne Malone came back home for a double celebration and had a
family get together last Saturday evening. Lawrence and Anne (nee
Cowan) moved to Canada 32 years ago and live in Winnipeg. Lawrence
turned 60 a few weeks ago and wanted to celebrate this landmark
birthday with the rest of his family here. Saturday was also their
39th wedding anniversary so they had an extra reason for a big
party. Not only that, but son Lawrence, who lives nearby in
Manitoba’s largest city, and was with them on the trip to Maybole
decided to get engaged to girlfriend Mel!
Lawrence and Anne Malone
also have 3 daughters.
Not many people know that Winnipeg was the name given
to the Black Bear cub that inspired the Winnie-the-Pooh stories by
A. A. Milne. Winnipeg, a real bear, was bought for $10 by Captain
Harry Colebourn during World War I and named after Colebourn's home
city of Winnipeg. The bear, also known as Winnie, was originally
from White River, Ontario, but was taken to England as his troop's
mascot. Before leaving for France, Captain Colebourn left Winnie at
London Zoo where she was seen by A. A. Milne's son Christopher
Robin, who named his own stuffed bear Winnie.
Proposed Knowside Windfarm
Last week Maybole Resource Centre hosted an exhibition by the Banks
Group on the proposed community benefit for the Knowside windfarm.
Cairn Primary’s Pupil Council went along to find out about the
environmental advantages in windfarms and how they help in the
reduction of CO2 emissions, and the reduction in the use of fossil
fuels for production of electricity. Many local voluntary community
groups also visited the exhibition to find out about the proposed
community benefit scheme, and to see what the Banks Group have done
for other communities across the UK. Several groups have already
written to South Ayrshire Council supporting the proposed windfarm.
Peter Walker of May-Tag said the proposed community benefit scheme
would benefit local groups for 25 years. With an estimated income of
£30-60,000 per year it would bring new and innovative projects to
North Carrick as well as assisting in the financial support of
current local groups. There would also be opportunities for local
companies to tender for part of the construction work, which could
bring additional employment for local people. The banks Group have
already offered £100.000 pounds towards a new community facility in
Dunure, and £35,000 towards sports facilities in Maybole.
Cairn Primary was alive with the sound of music on Thursday when
pupils and staff surprised teacher Mrs Maria Newlands on her 30th
anniversary as a teacher in the school. Pupils and staff sang some
of the songs from the hit film and musical "The Sound of Music" and
four of Maria's colleagues put on wimples as worn by the nuns in the
film and sang "How do you solve a problem like Maria?" with words
adapted by Mrs Kay Feldmann. Gifts were presented to Mrs Newlands by
the Parents Association, staff and pupils and she replied thanking
everyone and saying how much of a surprise it had been.
Save the Children (Maybole branch)
teed off their fund raising events this Autumn with a charity golf
competition, in glorious sunshine, at Brunston Castle Golf Club. The
overall winning team were Robin Crosthwaite, Alastair Crosthwaite &
Neil Angus. The runners-up were James Picken, Alan Ferguson & Ronald
Gow. The Charity Scott Memorial trophy was won by John Whiteford,
Ian Hannah & Elise Hannah. A hole in one by Peter McKay won the
nearest the pin prize. The longest drive (gents) was won by David
Thorburn & (ladies) Marion Andrews. John Scott MSP presented the
prizes. The committee would like to thank the many local businesses
for their generous sponsorship, those individuals & firms who
donated raffle prizes & Brunston Castle Golf Club for hosting the
event. Over £2000 was the amazing amount raised. Photographs of
teams include Susan Crosthwaite Event Organiser Save The Children
and John Scott MSP
South Ayrshire Council’s
Maybole golf course was the venue for a celebration to mark the
progress made by junior golfers who have been coached by dedicated
volunteers. Each junior golfer who completed the development
programme was invited to attend a celebration to mark the end of the
2006 Level One training programme. The Council’s Depute Provost Mary
Kilpatrick and Councillor Margaret Toner, Convener of the Council’s
Economic and Tourism Development Committee joined the young golfers
to congratulate them and to hear from them about the development
programme. As part of the Maybole junior golf development programme
children who live in and around Maybole were introduced to golf
through their primary schools using first club golf equipment.
Six weeks after they first used the equipment each
pupil was given a letter inviting them to the Council’s Maybole Golf
Club every Thursday evening for sixteen weeks to receive coaching.
The coaching scheme was only possible because six volunteer coaches
from Maybole Golf Club, who are continuing their own training to
become PGA Level 1 coaches donated their time and skills. In
addition to the coaches several club members, who act as assistant
coaches, helped to supervise the children and monitor their skills
practices. The junior golfers were able to borrow equipment each
week and paid a nominal sum of £1.00 for each session they attended
and this money will be used to meet expenses for training more
volunteer coaches. The Maybole junior golfers are proving to be very
talented and some of them played in the South Ayrshire Pre-Handicap
competition that was held over Troon Fullarton golf course.
Ali Roy, who is part of the Maybole golf development
programme won the girl’s 8 to 11 years age category. South Ayrshire
Council Depute Provost Mary Kilpatrick said: “More than fifty
children participated in this golf coaching programme over the last
sixteen weeks. “I would like to thank the volunteer coaches and the
assistant coaches who each week have given up their precious spare
time to help young people learn what fun golf can be. “I am a keen
golfer and know how important it is that young people are taught
correct methods and, very importantly, learn in a way that keeps
them excited and motivated and keen to keep playing.” Historically
Maybole Golf Club had a very strong junior section, but during the
last ten years the number of juniors has dropped dramatically. The
junior development programme will assist in rebuilding interest in
golf amongst young people and help Maybole Golf Club to rebuild its
junior golf section.
Enthusiastic volunteers are supporting the junior
golf development programme in various parts of South Ayrshire.
Currently junior coaching is being run at Craigie in Ayr by
volunteers from Dalmilling Ladies Golf Club and Belleisle Gents Golf
Club. Councillor Margaret Toner said: “In South Ayrshire we have
some of the best golf courses in the world and these attract golfers
from all corners of the globe. It is important that young people are
encouraged to try playing golf and that those who enjoy it are given
encouragement to carry on playing.” Anyone who would like further
information about junior golf in South Ayrshire should contact
Catherine Malcolm on telephone number 01292 616238 or e-mail
Catherine.Malcolm@south-ayrshire.gov.uk FROM: Cheryl Downie, Public
Communications Officer E-mail: Cheryl.Downie@south-ayrshire.gov.uk
Tel: 01292 612173 Mobile: 07977115607 Out of Hours Mobile:
07974174231
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