TWO new categories have been added to the Manning Valley Sport Awards, to be presented at Club Taree on a date to be determined in April.
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The awards were introduced last year.
The Manning River Times (Ken McDonald Memorial) Sportstar of the Year has a history stretching back to 1960. This was incorporated into the 2023 award night.
Organisers also last year resurrected the Manning Valley Sporting Hall of Fame that had been in abeyance since 2010.
Two awards were inaugurated in 2023. They were the Hugh McCrindle Medal for services to sport and the junior sportstar of the year.
World endurance bike champion Wil Ruprecht from Mitchells Island was named the sportstar of the year, while hockey's Tony Lewis took out the McCrindle Medal. This was presented by Hugh McCrindle.
Athlete Ivy Hoadley was the junior sportstar while three-time Commonwealth Games squash representative Kasey Brown was inducted into the hall of fame. There are now more than 32 members of the hall of fame.
Kasey will be closely involved with this year's function. Organisers earlier decided to re-badge the junior sportstar to the Kasey Brown Perpetual Junior Sportstar of the Year.
Kasey started her stellar squash career as an 11-year-old in Taree. She moved back to this area after retiring from the world squash tour and works with juniors across numerous sports, including squash, rugby league and surf life saving.
The two new categories are the All Abilities Sportstar and the Team of the Year. As is the case with the other awards apart from the sportstar of the year and the hall of fame, the public will be asked to nominate candidates.
"We're looking to build this night into a major event on the area's sporting calendar by honouring our sportspeople across a variety of categories,'' sport award committee chair Garry Stephen said.
He said strong nominations were received last year and he expects this would be the case again.
No shortage of talent
"There's no shortage of talent,'' he said.
Mr Stephen said in the team of the year category alone the Old Bar Pirates first grade rugby league team, Sharks and Tigers men's and women's Mid Coast Hockey League champion sides and Taree Wildcats zone winning under 18 football side would be worthy contenders.
"And there'd be plenty more,'' he added.
Mr Stephen said the finalists for the Times sportstar of the year and the latest inductee into the hall of fame would be announced within the next fortnight.
Nomination details for the categories can be found soon on the Manning Sports Awards Facebook page.
