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x A look at the History of the Cairns Baseball League's Complex x  x Trinity Beach . Cairns . North Queensland x |
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x The Roneberg's of Cairns Web Site Return to The Cairns Baseball League Index Page Return to The Fields and Diamonds Index Page x |
Cairns Baseball League Official Web Site Return to CBL Home Page Return to Site Map and Index Page |
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x A look at the History of the Cairns Baseball League's Complex x x Trinity Beach . Cairns . North Queensland x |
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!!-the people in these photos do not matter-!! Not many photos were taken
of the fields during the twenty years from 1980 to 2000 |
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??-can you help-?? Do you have any similar sorts
of photos from during this period |
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Notes by
Anne Kippin The Cairns Baseball League began in about 1980 with four teams ... Dodgers, Cairns City Reds, Bears and Sharks Each team had their own home ground Dodgers and Reds at Sportsworld, Bears at the Cycledrome, and Sharks at Trinity Beach Sharks constructed the clubhouse, mostly with volunteer labour, which still stands today Dodgers also used the Martyn Street Reserve in Cairns The League continued to play 'home-and-away' games during the eighties However, the cost of maintaining separate home grounds to competition standard was a financial burden that clubs were finding increasingly difficult to bear The decision was made that the League would take over responsibility for the grounds at Trinity Beach with all clubs involved in its maintenance In 1993 the Cairns and Mulgrave Baseball League was incorporated, recognising the contribution made by Mulgrave Shire Council to the development of the sport In 1997, after the amalgamation of Cairns City and Mulgrave Shire Councils, the name was changed to Cairns Baseball League Inc The Cairns Baseball League has since made significant improvements to the fields and has significant plans for future development which will facilitate and encourage national and international visitors to the facility The Trinity Beach Complex has hosted international visiting teams from the United States and Japan since the mid 1980's A number of teams made Cairns their final port of call in their Australian tour and as well as experiencing many of the local tourist highlights, they enjoyed friendly games against the local Cairns Cyclones After a visit from the California Fresno All Stars team in 1985, organised by Vince Askey’s Sports Promotions International, the idea of a tournament involving visiting American teams and North Queensland teams was discussed and begun the next year The Barrier Reef Tournament, as it became known, was sponsored for many years by Sports Promotions International and in some years saw up to three American teams compete in the tournament Playing in the Barrier Reef Tournament was a highlight for these teams either at the start of their tour or as their final hit out before returning home In recent years the global financial situation has sometimes made visits from US teams unviable and the Cairns Baseball League assumed total responsibility for the tournament with teams paying a fee to participate in the tournament In the coming years the League plans to grow the tournament by encouraging teams from Australia’s southern regions, the Pacific region and Asia to take part in the tournament as well as continuing their association with Sports Promotions International |
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August 1984 Tanya was playing T-Ball for Shark's Baseball Club ... she is 8 years 9 months old This photo is of her at the fields ready to play a game on what is to become Diamond One |
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How the fields looked in the early 1980's and
here are a few points of interest #1 - the second diamond does not exist at this time ... I'm not sure when it was built #2 - there isn't a scorer's box for diamond one #3 - there haven't been any trees planted #4 - it looks like the clubhouse is still being built ... is that the slab being prepared on the left hand side ?? #5 - there are sugar cane fields out behind the future diamond two ... and we used to watch the cane fires during the harvesting season ... it's all houses out there now, in the suburb of Kewarra Beach |
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February
1990 Here is Geoff umpiring and that is Brett at bat During an Junior Exhibition Game held at the Trinity Beach grounds |
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#1 - on the top left hand corner of the backnet you
can see a light and there was a similar one on the opposite side
... these were installed as training lights on diamond one ... never really very successful though #2 - notice that there are no protection screens across the front of the dugouts #3 - when Geoff and Sharon started looking after the grounds, there was hardly a tree or shrub in the complex ... in the background you can see a number of small plants that were donated by some of the local nurseries ... they have all grown and done very well #4 - there wasn't a boundary fence and old telegraph / electricity poles were used to keep the vehicles out |
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March 1990 An article which was published in the Cairns Sun newspaper and it gives a few details on the lights |
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#1 - I am not sure of the exact date that the lights
were erected ... however, this article shows that they were completed sometime early in 1990 |
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August 1990 Geoff working on the fields and it's a self propelled BUT walk behind mower |
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#1 - this was the mower that Geoff used at the baseball
complex ... and that was two complete fields, a training and
warm up area almost as big as a normal field plus all the surrounding and public areas ... used it for around eighteen months #2 - a small cutting width ... and walked 'a thousand miles' a week !! ... and yes, I've got black togs on !! |
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#3 - I didn't do it all myself though ... here is Brett
helping out with the mowing of diamond two ... the trolley attachment was suitable when the driver was a twelve year old kid, but the mower did not have enough power to pull along an adult |
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During 1991
Season Here is the sign that was on the Clubhouse and Geoff is listed as the contact for the Heat Club |
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#1 - these signs looked terrific and were facing the
road on the toilet end of the clubhouse ... this was before the
amalgamation of the Cairns and Mulgrave Councils ... sponsored by that company, the Coca Cola sign was huge, going from the slab to the roof #2 - in the top right of the photo there is a white pole near the lights ... this was a flag pole and there was another one at the other end of the clubhouse ... and USA and Australian flags were flown during tournaments such as The Barrier Reef held in August each year ... the poles were not replaced after the new roof was erected #3 - and yes, there used to be a landline telephone connection in the clubhouse !! |
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September
1991 Geoff, the Founder of the Club, dressed in the inaugral Heat Baseball Club uniform |
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#1 - the poles behind Geoff and the scoreboard are explained
in a photo further below #2 - when Geoff and Sharon started looking after the grounds, there was hardly a tree or shrub in the complex ... trees were planted and a few gardens established ... one of the palms in the small garden behind the scoreboard is now a monster !! #3 - on the top right of this shot, you can see white posts with a rope running between them ... this was also on the other side (not shown) and marked the walkway from the gate to the clubhouse #4 - the scoreboard now had a sponsor ... this shop was owned by Eric and Alison Wagemaker |
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During 1992
Season Diamond Two and here is a grandstand built by Geoff and it is dedicated to Tanya and Brett |
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#1 - this photo, taken on Tuesday 19th
October 2004, shows the grandstand built by Geoff near diamond
two during 1992 ... over the years, the seating has had to be replaced but the main structure and roofing is still being used today #2 - Tanya and Brett are there for posterity !! |
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July 1992 The Cairns League were able to buy a new ride-on mower and here is Geoff with his new red machine |
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As well as Geoff posing and the new mower, there
are a few points of interest in this photo #1 - the mound was built from the soil resulting from the conversion from septic tanks to a sewerage hook up ... it was shaped, edged and landscaped by Geoff ... the turf was donated by Terry Hogan, a founding member of Sharks Baseball Club ... and see the white post next to the retaining wall on the right of the photo ... and can you guess what that was for ... well, there was a similar piece of plastic pipe at the other end of the mound and each Sunday Sharon and Geoff would put umbrellas in them and these were the only bits of shade in the entire complex ... the front retaining wall can be seen in the clubhouse sign photo above #2 - the trees planted in this spectator area are all still thriving ... and very big !! #3 - originally the backnet was only small, consisting of the section behind home plate and one section down each side ... each side was extended by another two sections and the photo shows the newer appearance of this work ... which was done by Peter Ives and a petrified Geoff who didn't like walking along a single plank trestle to tie off the top of the mesh !! #4 - the dugouts on diamond two were built using 'scrounging and donations' !! ... and they even include a window or two ... the seating in each was a couple of old benches from the Trinity Beach Primary School ... they were a bit small, but they were successful for a few seasons before being replaced by the present concrete block type #5 - near the backnet there is a shade area which was built by Geoff ... again using whatever materials could be found ... it had a shade cloth roof initially and though this has been replaced, the original poles are still used today #6 - a very dry year, as can be seen by the colour of the outfield ... the bore hoses could not reach out that far ... and notice that there isn't a home run fence though a row of trees and palms had been planted a couple of metres back from the marked line #7 - all the trees in the far background have gone ... replaced by houses in the suburb of Kewarra Beach |
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#8 - Brett on his bike, with a clearer shot of the diamond
two first base dugout in the background ... initially, the two dugouts were covered with blue plastic tarpaulins each Sunday morning before the games got underway ... cannot remember where the metal panels came from, but the windows were donated by a demolition company |
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#9 - opposite is a shot of the scorer's box on diamond
two, which Geoff built at the same time as the dugouts and shade area mentioned above ... if my memory is any good, it started to blow away and had to be attached to the backnet posts #10 - also, just to its right, you can see a picnic table that was built out of an old timber pallet #11 - the scoreboard was the one used by Dodgers Baseball Club when they had their home field at Martyn Street Reserve |
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July 1992 Tanya and Sharon with the trophies won by their Netball Team |
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#1 - here is the other side of the mound ... as mentioned
above, the top was levelled and edged ... a popular spot with
spectators #2 - hanging from the backnet is one of the training lights shown in an earlier photo #3 - look at all the signs on the home run fence ... must have been lots of sponsors in those days |
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August 1992 Geoff in his umpiring gear, and posing (again) for the camera ... always used the external protection |
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#1 - the top photo is a side shot of the scorer's box
on diamond one ... the scorers used to sit on the clubhouse slab
which you can just see on the right ... too far away and too many interuptions ... Geoff and Sharon spent days visiting lots of local building companies and suppliers in Cairns ... they were great !! ... and this was built from their donations ... and it looked terrific !! ... three sliding glass windows, louvres, roof beams, roofing iron, hardboard panel sheeting, lights, paint, etc, etc ... the window protectors, made by Peter Ives, were added soon after to try to stop vandalism ... initially just crusher dust, concrete pavers for the floor were donated by Warren Flanigan ... the original posts and roof supports and iron are still being used today !! #2 - through the windows you can see the entrance "poles-and-rope" mentioned above #3 - the second photo has Anne Kippin and Sharon scoring during the 1984 Barrier Reef Tournament ... some of the windows and louvres can be seen #4 - taken in April 1991, the third shot shows Phil McKinnon painting the grandstands ... the scorer's box is in the background |
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November
1992 Geoff was appointed Coach of the North Queensland Under 14 Team to contest the State Titles These were held in Cairns and here is Geoff in the Team uniform |
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#1 - the tree growing out of Geoff's head is now known
as 'Sharon's Tree' ... and it is huge !! ... the other two trees are still alive and well ... and again, very big #2 - I am unsure when the pitched roof was erected, but at this point the clubhouse still had the flat, and very leaky, sheet metal roof #3 - look carefully and you can also see the white flag pole mentioned in the clubhouse sign photo above |
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August 1994 Geoff has just finished base umpiring a game |
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#1 - diamond one training lights were mentioned earlier
and here you can see the other one installed on the right of
the backnet ... it is just hanging there and it was no longer connected as the field lights had been installed by this time #2 - hard to see in this photo, but protector screens had been put across the front of each dugout #3 - behind the dugout is the original garden shed used to house the mower and other equipment |
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During 1994
Season Geoff was the Coach of the Dodgers "A" Grade Team Here is Geoff and Chris Morton speaking to the team after a game ... Brett is in the jacket, second from the left |
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#1 - Geoff was the groundsman at the fields during this
time ... the six poles on the left were scrounged by him and
they are in position for his idea of ... a batting cage !! ... the two lower poles would be where the batter stood and the other four are a bit higher for the end of the cage ... nowhere near big or high enough ... but it's the thought that counts, isn't it !! and as a matter of interest, this is as far as the construction ever went |
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During 1999
/ 2000 Season These two shots were taken and used in the Cairns Baseball League's submission to host the 2001 Australian Provincial Championships |
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** the above two shots are important
photos being the only panoramas that have been found from this
period ** #1 - here is the infield as it looked before it was skinned during September and October 2009 #2 - the other notable point is the home run fence and this one metre high enclosure was replaced during November 2010 [ super-sized versions of the above photos can be seen by clicking HERE ] |
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