Ray White Rural Defeat Elders

Score, Ray White 12 Elders 6 – Football enthusiasts from Clermont to Georgetown gathered in Greenvale last week for the SU Queensland / Stock Up for Hope Football match and Charity Dinner. Former North Queensland Cowboys coach Graham Murray travelled from Townsville to provide pre-match coaching to a crowd of real ‘cowboys’ while NRL referee and SU Qld CEO Tim Mander refereed a nail biting game between Kevin Currie’s ‘Ray White Rural’ team and the ‘Elders Rural Services’ team.

Players turned out on the hard, scorched field in akubra hats, jeans, elastic side boots and even bare feet, treating the star Coach and Referee to the ‘genuine Outback article’ from start to gruelling finish. In the end the Ray White boys came up winners and the two physically shattered teams celebrated or commiserated at the Charity Dinner at Greenvale’s iconic Three Rivers Hotel.

The charity auction was another event highlight where, in scenes resembling a cattle sale, agents from Ray White Rural, Elders Rural Services and Queensland Rural lined up together to raise almost $9000 in less than an hour. The enthusiastic crowd of locals and sponsors were spurred on by even more enthusiastic auctioneers as they kept the bidding going on everything from potted Christmas trees to tonnes of stock feed.

SU Qld District Coordinator Min Jones said that she was overwhelmed by the generosity of sponsors and the success of the charity auction.

“The majority of the funds raised will go directly back into the local community to assist the Greenvale, Mount Surprise and Forsyth State Schools’ Chaplaincy Service and the upcoming SU Qld camp at Mt Surprise” she said.

“It was great to see so many supporters at the event considering that many of them, including Tim Mander and major sponsor George Booth, had to travel several hours to be here and then drive back to Townsville straight after the Dinner to catch a flight, this sort of support and enthusiasm has certainly encouraged us to consider making it an annual event”.

Team sponsor Kevin Currie of Ray White Rural Townsville said that he hoped for a whole weekend of country football next year.

“I believe we could eventually have teams from right across the region turning up to play for a good cause” he said.

Stock Up for Hope exists to see young people in the bush supported through school chaplaincy. It is a unique initiative of SU Qld, the fastest growing youth and children’s organisation in Australia. Anyone interested in more information on the event or upcoming camp can call SU Qld NQ District Coordinator Min Jones on 0437040161 or see www.suqld.org.au

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