Brooklyn were successful in winning both the Osmond Shield and the Wright Cup on Saturday night.  In the Osmond Shield match Mark Riley got the team off to a good start with a two-point lead over Wellington Central, at the halfway point this lead had increased to six points, and Bex Gibbs scored an impressive 100.7 in the final squad, which gave Brooklyn an 11-point win while Melrose finished 3^rd.  The Wright Cup match was very closely contested in the first few squads with only inners separating the three teams at the halfway point.  Casey Israelson’s 96.4 boosted our team score considerably and Stephen Thessman finished with a 94.4 giving the team a seven-point win.  Wellington Central were 2^nd and Melrose 3^rd. Thanks to Mark Baines for range officering throughout the evening, and to everyone else who assisted with helping to run the event.

It was a surprisingly busy night at the Club last night as a number of shooters completed their Closed Champs cards and it was the final round of the SSS Champs which meant 20-shot targets were the order of the day for the Secondary School shooters.  Our newly-introduced squad sheets were put to the test when two shooters on the same round started putting holes in other shooters’ targets.  Thankfully this was quickly noticed and was able to be recorded on the squad sheet at the time which made the markers’ jobs much easier by knowing what had happened on the range.

The highest 20-shot score this week was Erin Little (197.12) closely followed by Evan Little and Stephen Thessman who both scored 196.11.  Not content with coming second equal in the 20-shot, Stephen continued his great shooting streak posting the top 10-shot score of 98.7!  In the higher grades, Evan Little scored 97.5, with Casey Israelson leading C grade with 97.2.  Hot on Stephen’s heels in D Grade were Megan Brodie (who, at the Intercollegiate match earlier in the day, scored a PB of 93.3 and then followed it up with a new PB of 96.4), Ethan Haigh (95.3) and Cassie Truscott (95.2).

Brooklyn shooters made up half the Wellington Area Secondary School team to shoot against the Hutt Valley and the Manawatu yesterday.  While the team posted some good scores (over a 2x10-shot and 1x20-shot target), Wellington finished 39 points behind the Hutt Valley who were in turn 51 points behind the winners, Manawatu.  Special mention would have to go out to Meggy Reesby (Feilding High School) who shot an amazing 100.4, 100.8 and 200.12.

A date to add to your diaries: Brooklyn have booked the range for a training session at 2pm on Sunday 15 September.  The session will assess shooters’ position and set-up, followed by a number of shooting drills.  This is a great opportunity to train and analyse.  If you are using a scope, come along and have a go.

Brooklyn are responsible for cleaning the range and social area during September.  This will be undertaken on Sunday 22 September at 7pm.  Regular shooting will commence 30 minutes earlier at 6pm on this day to allow time for the clean.  Could all members please ensure they add this date to their calendars as the more hands available to do the work, the quicker it will be done.  Also please bring along cleaning equipment – vacuum cleaners, mops, buckets, cleaning cloths.

With only a few weeks to go of the grading season, please ensure your grading spreadsheet is up to date.  These will be collected, collated and forwarded to Target Shooting New Zealand in early October.

Please direct any queries during September to Inge Little.

Upcoming events:

• Wednesday 4 September, Wellington v Waikato D Grade, 7.45pm, 2x10.  Team: Ethan Haigh, Stephen Thessman, Cassie Truscott.  Emergency (does shoot): Maia Lapointe.
• Saturday 7 September, Wellington v Hutt Valley Open Grade, 2pm, 1x10 + 1x20.  Team: Mark Baines, Bex Gibbs, Erin Little, Evan Little, Stephen Thessman.  Emergencies (do shoot): Mark Riley, Craig Fair.
• Saturday 7 September, Wellington v Hutt Valley Women’s match, 2pm, 1x10 + 1x20.  Team: Erin Little.  Emergency: Inge Little.
• Monday 9 September, Wellington v Hertfordshire, 8.00pm + 8.30pm, 1x10 NZ + 1x10 UK.  Team: Meredith Ackrill, Bex Gibbs, Erin Little, Evan Little.  Emergency: Mark Baines.  On call: Mark Riley.
• Friday 13 September, Wellington v Hutt Valley C Grade, 7pm, 2x10, Keene Range, Petone.  Team: Hamish Guthrey, Ethan Haigh, Casey Israelson, Inge Little.  Emergencies (do shoot): Cassie Truscott, Maia Lapointe.
• Friday 13 September, Wellington v Hutt Valley interclub winners, 7pm, Keene Range, Petone.  C Grade, 2x10: Hamish Guthrey, Casey Israelson, Inge Little (captain), Ethan Haigh; emergencies: Cassie Truscott, Maia Lapointe; team manager: Craig Fair.  Open Grade, 1x20: Bex Gibbs, Meredith Ackrill, Evan Little (captain), Mark Baines; on call: Mark Riley.
• Sunday 15 September, 2pm training session.
• Tuesday 17 September, Wellington Closed Champs Final 10, 8.15pm, 1x20.
• Saturday 21 September, North Island Open Champs, Palmerston North.
• Sunday 22 September, 6pm start to allow cleaning at 7pm.  Please bring vacuum cleaners, mops, buckets, cleaning cloths.
• Saturday 27 / Sunday 28 September, interisland secondary schools match.
• Sunday 6 October, final club day.
• Wednesday 9 October, Champion of Champions match, 8.00pm C+D Grades 1x10, 8.20pm Open+A+B Grades 1x20.
• Saturday 12 October, 6pm, WSRA prizegiving dinner.
• Sunday 13 October, 4.30pm, BSRC prizegiving barbecue.