CRYPTIC CROSSWORD
Across
1. Liveliness and promptness (8)
4. Make a hole larger in a quantity of paper (4)
Initially returns to the department in Jamaica (3)
9. Goat Island? (5)
10. Dupe the prisoner ... (3)
11. ... removed from a grave situation (7)
Fetch oar downstream to store away inside (5)
13. A business where everyone arrives late (7,4)
17. Lure but permitted no ride (5)
18. State you can ID flora perhaps
20. He (or she) is 6 then 5 or 5 then 4 ... (3)
21. ... and jostled her in the river (5)
22. In favour of playing for money ... (3)
23. ... is return of French team (4)
24. Old cairn was armour plated (8)
Down
1. Got one’s back up (6)
2. Sailor remains to disconcert (5)
3. What the key worker did (5)
5. Protest strongly with former partner’s demand (7)
6. Stand on ceremony with no entrances for Greek tragedy (6)
7. Sung with a quaver? (6,4)
9. An explanation by Marcy Monte (10)
14. Was unimpressed by the mud oven (7)
15. Lines to read between and on (6)
16. An old king to keep an eye out for? (6)
18. Pamphlet about the pilot (5)
19. Force to give me lip, perhaps (5)
THE region’s best rising stars will be on show at the Townsville Showgrounds with two heats of the Young Guns Series over 498 metres.
An early favourite in the opening heat will be Diva Valentine for Michael Hickmott, which has drawn the rails run.
He is returning from a short let up after running unplaced over 520m at Albion Park in the Country Cup final. He will be fresh for this and with good box manners, should be up there with the frontrunners.
Miss Verity (7), for Robert Lound, has had six starts here for four wins, she has good box manners and should lead. Inconsequential (8) for Kerry Griffin has drawn wide here, she has good box speed and will need a clear run to the rails.
Riding Hood (6), for Justin Reid, won on Saturday from two and is backing up here, she has fair box manners, good acceleration and a strong finish She will be the main danger.
Country Cup champion Stratford is likely to be too hard to beat in the second heat after drawing box seven. The Rhonda Essery runner will be aiming for his fifth straight win, he has good box manners and a PB 28.48sec.
Zipping Coby (6), for Robert Lound, will be one of the dangers to the favourite. Having had one start over the journey, he had to fight hard for the win. He is a fair beginner with good acceleration and a strong run home will see a good race with the favourite.
A LACK of time on the velodrome has not deterred the confidence in twowheel speedster Briana Mcdonald.
The Townsville Cycle Club teenager will pull on the maroon of Queensland this month at the Under-19 National Track Championships.
Her call up to the state side came after she excelled at the Queensland championships last week, bringing home four silver medals and a first place finish alongside teammate Isabelle Carnes in the madison relay.
Mcdonald was not the only TCC cyclist to bring home a medal from the state titles, with teammate Euan Kerswell claiming silver in the keirin.
It has not been an easy run for Mcdonald, who came out of the road championships and straight into the track without a velodrome to train on in Townsville, with the Idalia venue under repairs.
It forced her to spend plenty of time on the indoor ergo bike, while also attempting sprint sessions on the road.
“I think coming out of the road nationals and road season was a bit of a setback,” she said. “I had the road endurance legs more than the sprinting track legs.
“I went down there knowing I wasn’t going to do my absolute best, but I knew a lot of other people were in a similar situation so I wasn’t alone.
“I am happy with the results, but I didn’t score a PB (personal best) so I know I have improvement to make.”
Mcdonald has little time to prepare for the national championships, with only three weeks on the bike before she flies out for the Anna Meares Velodrome in Brisbane.
“It is probably not ideal training time, but it should give me a chance to get the track legs back,” she said. “I am going a down a few days before the championships, so hopefully we will have some time on the track.”