Ballina Information Blog

The equine flu virus which has halted the local racing industry and forced the postponement of the Ballina Cup has struck another victim — the Casino Show.
It’s another blow to local people who earn a living through horses, but help is at hand for them, and the NSW Farmers’ Association says Australian Government assistance for people [...]

Some weird and not-so-weird vehicles will parade through Ballina tomorrow, September 13, when The Great Escape car rally finishes.
The cystic fibrosis fund-raising event began in Tamworth on September 3 and travelled north to the Whitsundays.
Forty-eight vehicles make up the convoy.
The cars and drivers will gather at the Big Prawn about 11.30am and will remain there [...]

As the school holidays approach, beach users between South Ballina and Shark Bay are asked to be alert for the threatened pied oystercatchers and their chicks and to drive responsibly at all times.
National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) Pest Management Officer Lisa Wellman said that in an early start to the breeding season, two clutches [...]

Imagine sitting around a poker table at showdown time, feeling pretty good about the hand you are holding when someone calls out ‘lalapalooza!’ What has just happened? Or maybe a friend invites you to enter the local ‘cow-pat bingo’ competition.
Don’t fret if you don’t know what these terms mean because Southern Cross University says that [...]

Mullumbimby Giants set up a rematch with Ballina Seagulls in next Sunday’s Retravision Northern League rugby league grand final with a hard-fought 8-0 win over Marist Brothers in the preliminary final at Mullumbimby today.
The Giants, who finished minor premiers but were beaten 31-24 by Ballina last Sunday in the major semi-final, turned in a great [...]

Three young Indigenous men from the Ballina district who are on a training course on the training ship Tribal Warrior were involved in a dramatic rescue of a fisherman off the Gold Coast.
The Sunday Telegraph reported today that one of the men, Jermaine Bolt, jumped into the water off Broadwater last Sunday to save the [...]

NSW Fishing Monthly editor Tony Zann’s weekend fishing report …
Bruce at Dave’s Bait Shop says quite a few jew have come from the breakwalls on hard sand soft lures. These fish are also pushing through to around the RSL Club on the rising tide.
A few flatties and bream being caught but they’re not getting too [...]

The NSW Police Force is warning horse owners that any breaches of the currently enforced transportation standstill of horses will not be tolerated and will be dealt with the full force of the law.
Horses, ponies and donkeys cannot be moved anywhere in the State and restrictions are in place for horse floats and trucks which [...]

Strong onshore winds since Monday have left the seas resembling a washing machine, but there’s hope for the weekend.
The wind is forecast to swing around to the south and south-west on Saturday, so hopefully that will clean up the swell.
A low pressure system will travel down the coast from southern Queensland over the next few days, [...]

by Michael Claes
Ballina Rugby Union Club has 3 grades going in to the FNC Grand Final on Saturday at Oakes Oval in Lismore.
First Grade…
Under the guidance of coach Andrew Grant-Frost, Ballina has achieved Grand Final contention this year, although through the season Grafton first grade had been undefeated using a [...]