It began as a provost marshal military club. The soldiers drifted away, the civilians stayed, and what was left is the club you find today. In between there was a paddock at Denham Court with cable drums for benches, twelve months of weekend working bees, a good deal of amateur dynamite, and a trophy that has been shot for every February since 1969.
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Sixty years, so far
The early years
Richard Fenning’s 2006 recollection: the hut at Holsworthy, the paddock at Denham Court, building the Kentlyn range by hand, and the first Badcoe trophy.
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The first women licensed in NSW
In 1963 two club members were refused pistol licences by police. They appealed, argued their own case in court, and won — the first women in the State licensed to shoot target pistol.
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The club today
Five ranges on the ground the members built, the full ISSF programme from 10 metres to 50, an Olympic medallist among the club’s own, and the Badcoe every February.
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A short timeline
- Mid-1950s — formed as a provost marshal military club, largely by Mick Grey, then an Army captain.
- 1963 — two ranges: a hut inside Holsworthy Army Base, and a paddock off Denham Court Road. Grace Cadden and Val Banyer become the first women in New South Wales licensed to shoot target pistol.
- 1964 — three club women compete at the Australian championships in Melbourne.
- Mid-1960s — the move to Campbelltown. Twelve months of working bees, almost all of it donated labour.
- 1969 — the Peter Badcoe VC Memorial Match is instituted, the first graded club teams match held. It still runs every February.
- Early 1970s — combat pistol arrives, later renamed Service Pistol.
- 1984 — Pattie Dench, who took up shooting at the club at 42, wins Olympic bronze in Los Angeles at 52 — Australia’s first Olympic shooting medal.
- Today — five ranges, an air-conditioned indoor air pistol range with electronic targets, and members from beginners to national competitors.
The Badcoe still runs every February
More than fifty years on, the centrefire teams match instituted when the Kentlyn range opened is still on the calendar.