Issue 4, 2026/2027 by Graham Edwards - 23rd October, 2026

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Whales Challenge & First Championship

This morning we have the first of our season’s Whales Challenges and Championship events (200m Individual Medley). All swimming members are placed into two teams and compete for their team in every race they enter. The Teams are named after two of the club's former State Champions (Maroon "Turner" Team and White "Emery" Team). Both Darren Turner and Mitchell Emery went on to represent Australia in their chosen water sport.

Can the White team gain ascendency this season after the Maroon team achieved a clean sweep last season?

Swimmers must wear their club cap in their team colour while competing to win points for their team.

Setup Help Needed – Next Week

We have the 100m Freestyle and 100m Breaststroke Championships next Saturday. We will be installing the touchpads for the morning’s races, so we ask for your help in arriving early (6.30am) next week to help us with the additional setup needed.

Club Captain Nominations

Nominations for the positions of Male and Female Club Captains close today at 9:30am. Financial first claim members aged 14 years and over as of the 1st of October are eligible to be nominated for these positions. Information about the duties and responsibilities of Club Captains can be found on the club website under the By-Laws section.

Submit your nomination here:

https://forms.office.com/r/qSuYfheZ6g

After nominations close, we’ll confirm acceptance from nominees and invite them to submit a bio and photo to be included in the online voting system. All financial first claim members can cast their vote in Week 6 (Saturday, 7th November).

Learn the timing system

With Johnson Chan’s limited availability on a Saturday morning, we're looking for a volunteer to learn and assist with operating the club's timing system and race computer on Saturday mornings. Thank you to Matt Vicic who stepped in to help last week.

The role requires regular attendance at club races, including setup and pack-up, attention to detail, and either a good understanding of swimming competition or a willingness to learn.

Training and support will be provided.

Interested? Please speak to Peter Johnston to learn more about the role and what's involved.

Guessing Competition

Has anyone guessed the answer? Has anyone gotten close? How many M&Ms are in there? So many questions from the excited Club community! Hang around on Saturday 31^st October after races to find out! We've had over 120 guesses so far! Thank you all for your fundraising efforts and the entertaining chitter chatter about the Jar 2.0.

Learn to Swim Assistants

A big thankyou to our eager assistants Grace, Coralie, Lisa, Scarlett, Leah & William who assisted last Saturday in the grading sessions. We welcome the addition of Gabriella, Noah, Patrick & Jay this week and encourage any other members (aged 12 years and over) who may also wish to participate as an Assistant to join us.

The Spring Learn to Swim program runs until Saturday 12 December 2026. Assistants would be required from 9:15am to 9:45am.

Assisting with Learn to Swim is a great way to develop leadership and communication skills, gain experience working with younger swimmers and support the next generation of swimmers.

If you are interested in assisting with the Spring Learn to Swim program, please speak with Kylee Murray, Learn to Swim Coordinator.

Become a Qualified Timekeeper

We are keen to encourage as many people as possible to obtain their technical accreditation. Starting with the Timekeeper role is a great way to enhance your knowledge and skills. Ages from secondary school up are able to become a technical official in NSW, so we encourage our younger members to also undertake this training.

We are holding a briefing session immediately after club races today where we will take you through the small-time investment to complete the Timekeeper online course and provide you with morning tea.

But don’t fret if you can’t make the session today, as you can access the training video and course test online. Use this link to visit the Swimming Australia course information:

https://totraining.swimming.org.au/courses/timekeeper

If you have any questions, please ask Denise (Chief Timekeeper) or Graham.

Merrylands Heritage Celebration

A big thankyou to Peter and Alison who have recently published articles on the club website celebrating the history and heritage of our club. These articles explore and explain the colours and symbol of our club. If you have not yet had the opportunity to read these, we encourage you to visit the website to learn about our club’s heritage. The articles can be found under Features at https://www.merrylandsasc.asn.au/news

Swimmer Spotlight – Sylvia Chan

This week we learn a bit more about one of our fantastic volunteers. Sylvia is always looking for ways to make club events fun and inclusive for all.

Tell us about your swimming journey

I remember I did Learn to Swim in primary school years and I wasn't too bad at it. I only learnt Freestyle and Backstroke and for some reason didn't continue on with the lessons. Now I just live by the pool watching my kids swim and I'm pretty sure I've developed my swimming ability purely through osmosis.

Favourite strokes

I remember being ok at Freestyle. Recently when I've tried, I can't get my breathing right and I either choke or my lungs give up. I've never given Butterfly a go. I am really good at tread water!

Favourite thing about the Club

I never thought we'd be a swim squad family, so being part of a Swim Club has been an unexpected surprise. It's been interesting to see how it all works behind the scenes and the enormous effort and contribution by the committee and parent volunteers. And it's all worth it when we see the excitement on swimmer's faces when they beat their PBs or receive ribbons, medals, trophies, win lolly jars or prizes and cheering on their friends during races or squad training. I also like the social side chatting to parents at Squads and race day, and having a laugh during timekeeping with the other timekeepers.

Tell us something interesting about yourself

I used to play competition netball - Johnson and I were on a mixed team, played since early dating days and only retired from it a year ago. I also like gardening and like to zone out in the yard doing something with my outdoor and indoor plants.

Club Uniforms

Need to purchase uniforms or equipment? They can be ordered and purchased through the club’s online shop, visit club shop.

If you have any questions about uniforms, please speak to Margaret Edwards (Property Officer).

Lions Club Award

Seen someone that deserves recognition for their efforts in helping? Nominate them for the Lions Club Award, our peak award to recognise our volunteers over the season.

Nominate a volunteer

P-Plate Award

As the season rolls along keep an eye out for someone making a silly mistake. We like to recognise and reward all efforts during the season, and the P-Plate award is the perfect way to do this.

Nominate a silly mistake

Swimming National Integrity Framework

We continue providing information about the Swimming Australia National Integrity Framework.

The 3^rd of the 6 policies is the Improper Use of Drugs and Medicine Policy.

There is an increasing concern about the improper use of drugs and medicine in sport. Swimming Australia is committed to the health, safety and wellbeing of everyone involved in swimming and to providing a safe and clean environment for Participants in Swimming.

The policy includes issues around:

(a) Sport science and sport medicine personnel;

(b) Medication;

(c) Injections;

(d) Supplements;

(e) Illegal Drugs.

Allegations of Prohibited Conduct under this Policy should be submitted to Swimming Australia.

Initial concerns and advice can be raised with our club’s MPIO (Graham Edwards).

For more detailed information about the Swimming National Integrity Framework and each of the individual policies you can visit the following sites: https://www.swimming.org.au/resources/swimming-national-integrity-framework  https://nsw.swimming.org.au/integrity/

Swimmer Spotlight

We like to spend time learning about our members, as everyone has interesting backgrounds and interests that we may have not heard about. If you haven’t been involved yet and would like to be part of our Swimmer Spotlight (also open to Members who do not swim!) let Sylvia Chan know, she would love to hear from you.

Walk to defeat MND

Following the success of last year’s walk, we are again participating in the Sydney Walk to Defeat MND.

When: Sunday, 8^th November 2026

Time: Walk starts 9:00 am

Distance: Approx 5 km

Location: Blaxland Riverside Park, Sydney Olympic Park

If you're interested in participating, we'd love for you and your family to register and join our team!

Join the MASC team here:

https://www.walktodefeatmnd.org.au/fundraisers/merrylandsamateurswimmingclub

Event details:

https://www.walktodefeatmnd.org.au/sydney26

Please note: You'll need to register your vehicle to access two hours of free parking.

Rescuing Ducks

Last week during squads, we had a bit of excitement with a family of ducks take a dip in the pool, only to realise the little ducklings couldn't get back out! The Merrylands Squad and lifeguards banded together with a variety of rescue method attempts - floating mat, large pool scoop and some not so gentle coaxing of 'go that way', 'go up the ladder'. In the end, it was the old 'reach in and grab' technique that worked! All the ducklings were delivered safely to their anxious parents. They've been seen waddling around the pool this week, safe and sound. And thankfully outside the pool!

See a problem? Get if fixed

If you see something that needs fixing at the swimming centre you can elevate this directly with Council by logging the issue here.

Upcoming Meet Calendar

Check the website for the full list of upcoming meets, closing dates, programs and qualifying times.