The mighty Ducks assembled last Sunday to get some good swimming under their belts in preparation for the upcoming and regionally-important Clive Roots Memorial Trophy and Legacy Cup events.

These meets will be held from 6pm on Thursday, November 12, at the Dubbo RSL indoor pool, with all swimmers from throughout the region and beyond invited to attend.

First test for the Sunday meet was a 50-metre freestyle against handicap with some hard-fought and close finishes in the heats. These, however, left Warren Williams and Tom Gray carrying too much steam into the final, which offered them plenty of time left over to watch Neil Harris touch home closest under his mark to take the gold, with Tim Gratton bagging silver, and Nicole Johnstone the bronze.

A 2x25-metre brace relay was up next with butterfly for the outbound leg and breaststroke for the return journey. The team of Katharine O'Rourke and Margaret Ross zoomed out of contention with all of four seconds to spare, which allowed Mark Scullard and Peter Hargreaves to take the prize, with Nichole Johnstone/Warren Williams second, Amy Barling/Mal Cavanagh third, and Jack Allen/Henry Wilcockson in fourth.

The third event was a 25-metre backstroke against handicap which was taken-out by Louise Poulain (in her last swim in the Duckpond) followed by Tim Gratton, then Neil Harris, and Nicole Johnstone in her third final for the day. A great effort and well-done, Louise and Nicole!

The “At Go” event to finish-off proceedings was a 25-metre freestyle race with everyone off and racing on the buzzer. Peter Hargreaves came in with the closest at 0.31 seconds, followed in by Katharine O'Rourke (0.54 seconds), Mark Scullard (0.94 seconds), Warren Williams (0.98 seconds), and Lydia Barling (1.13 seconds).

Lucky number winners were Warren Williams and Neil Harris.

With the racing finished, the mighty Ducks then retired to the Dubbo RSL Bistro to enjoy a sumptuous meal and for some to say their last farewells before Louise and Guenael set off on the next leg of their great Australian adventure.

A delegation of Ducks, including Louise (and Guenael!) are going on tour to compete in Harbord overlooking Freshwater Beach this coming weekend, but a significant troupe will remain to be poolside and ready to race on Sunday morning, so get your togs and come on down.

Our contact details can be found under Sunday in Diary section of the Dubbo Photo News.

That's this week’s tidings from the Duckpond!