{"id":16645,"date":"2018-09-06T09:58:23","date_gmt":"2018-09-05T23:58:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/?p=16645"},"modified":"2018-09-06T09:58:23","modified_gmt":"2018-09-05T23:58:23","slug":"the-merger-competition-winners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/","title":{"rendered":"The Merger Competition Winners"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Congratulations to\u00a0Megan Mikac and\u00a0Vanessa Wight.\u00a0 You have each won a double pass to <a href=\"https:\/\/themergerfilm.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Merger<\/a> which opens in cinemas today.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-16646 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-300x183.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"183\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-300x183.png 300w, https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-610x372.png 610w, https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-585x357.png 585w, https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger.png 723w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #800080\"><strong>Synopsis<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><strong>In the tradition of\u00a0<em>The Castle<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0<em>Ali\u2019s Wedding<\/em>, one of Australia\u2019s most popular comedians, Damian\u00a0Callinan adapts his entertaining and topical stage play, The Merger for the big screen!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Bodgy Creek is a struggling town. The drought won\u2019t let up, jobs are scarce after the mill was shut down, and the\u00a0footy team looks like it will have to merge with anoher club or fold. Living a hermit-like existence on the town\u2019s\u00a0fringe, former football star turned \u2018Town Killer\u2019 Troy Carrington (<strong>Damian Callinan<\/strong>), is coaxed into rescuing the\u00a0team after striking up an unlikely friendship with young Neil (<strong>Raffety Grierson<\/strong>) who is struggling with the recent\u00a0loss of his father.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Teaming up with Neil\u2019s mum Angie (<strong>Kate Mulvany<\/strong>,\u00a0<em>The Great Gatsby<\/em>) who runs a nearby refugee support\u00a0centre, they unite to recruit the new arrivals to save the team and take the community on a journey of change.\u00a0But for some, like Neil\u2019s grandfather and Club President, Bull (fan-favourite,\u00a0<strong>John Howard<\/strong>,\u00a0<em>SeaChange<\/em>) and\u00a0\u2018star\u2019 player Carpet Burn (<strong>Angus McLaren<\/strong>,\u00a0<em>Hotel Mumbai)<\/em>, it\u2019s more change than they\u2019re willing to take.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">With a winning cast including\u00a0<strong>Penny Cook<\/strong>\u00a0(<em>A Country Practice<\/em>),\u00a0<strong>Nick Cody<\/strong>\u00a0(<em>Please Like Me<\/em>),\u00a0<strong>Zenia Starr<\/strong>\u00a0(<em>Hotel Mumbai<\/em>),\u00a0<strong>Aaron Gocs<\/strong>,\u00a0<strong>Sahil Saluja<\/strong>\u00a0(<em>Tomorrow, When the War Began<\/em>),\u00a0<strong>Ben Knight<\/strong>\u00a0(<em>The Warriors<\/em>),\u00a0<strong>Stephen Hunter<\/strong>\u00a0(<em>The Hobbit<\/em>) and\u00a0<strong>Fayssal Bazzi<\/strong>(<em>Peter Rabbit<\/em>),\u00a0<em><strong>The Merger<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0is a hilarious and heart-felt\u00a0comedy from the team who brought you\u00a0<em><strong>Backyard Ashes<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Congratulations to\u00a0Megan Mikac and\u00a0Vanessa Wight.\u00a0 You have each won a double pass to The Merger which opens in cinemas today. Synopsis In the tradition of\u00a0The Castle\u00a0and\u00a0Ali\u2019s Wedding, one of Australia\u2019s most popular comedians, Damian\u00a0Callinan adapts his entertaining and topical stage play, The Merger for the big screen! Bodgy Creek is a struggling town. The drought [&#8230;]<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-secondary understrap-read-more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/\">Read More&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":68,"featured_media":16647,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[33,26],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-16645","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-living"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The Merger Competition Winners - Surf Coast Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Merger Competition Winners - Surf Coast Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Congratulations to\u00a0Megan Mikac and\u00a0Vanessa Wight.\u00a0 You have each won a double pass to The Merger which opens in cinemas today. Synopsis In the tradition of\u00a0The Castle\u00a0and\u00a0Ali\u2019s Wedding, one of Australia\u2019s most popular comedians, Damian\u00a0Callinan adapts his entertaining and topical stage play, The Merger for the big screen! Bodgy Creek is a struggling town. The drought [...]Read More...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Surf Coast Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-09-05T23:58:23+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-logo.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"443\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"259\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Lynda Lister\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Lynda Lister\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Lynda Lister\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/91a9905009572ebeba180df852835de8\"},\"headline\":\"The Merger Competition Winners\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-09-05T23:58:23+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":272,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/merger-logo.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"Featured\",\"Living\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Merger Competition Winners - Surf Coast Times\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/merger-logo.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-09-05T23:58:23+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/merger-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/merger-logo.png\",\"width\":443,\"height\":259},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/the-merger-competition-winners\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Merger Competition Winners\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/\",\"name\":\"Surf Coast Times\",\"description\":\"Free local news\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Surf Coast Times\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2019\\\/08\\\/cropped-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2019\\\/08\\\/cropped-logo.png\",\"width\":350,\"height\":38,\"caption\":\"Surf Coast Times\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/91a9905009572ebeba180df852835de8\",\"name\":\"Lynda Lister\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/author\\\/lyndalister\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Merger Competition Winners - Surf Coast Times","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Merger Competition Winners - Surf Coast Times","og_description":"Congratulations to\u00a0Megan Mikac and\u00a0Vanessa Wight.\u00a0 You have each won a double pass to The Merger which opens in cinemas today. Synopsis In the tradition of\u00a0The Castle\u00a0and\u00a0Ali\u2019s Wedding, one of Australia\u2019s most popular comedians, Damian\u00a0Callinan adapts his entertaining and topical stage play, The Merger for the big screen! Bodgy Creek is a struggling town. The drought [...]Read More...","og_url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/","og_site_name":"Surf Coast Times","article_published_time":"2018-09-05T23:58:23+00:00","og_image":[{"width":443,"height":259,"url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-logo.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Lynda Lister","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Lynda Lister","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/"},"author":{"name":"Lynda Lister","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#\/schema\/person\/91a9905009572ebeba180df852835de8"},"headline":"The Merger Competition Winners","datePublished":"2018-09-05T23:58:23+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/"},"wordCount":272,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-logo.png","articleSection":["Featured","Living"],"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/","name":"The Merger Competition Winners - Surf Coast Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-logo.png","datePublished":"2018-09-05T23:58:23+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/09\/merger-logo.png","width":443,"height":259},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/the-merger-competition-winners\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Merger Competition Winners"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/","name":"Surf Coast Times","description":"Free local news","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#organization","name":"Surf Coast Times","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/08\/cropped-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/08\/cropped-logo.png","width":350,"height":38,"caption":"Surf Coast Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#\/schema\/person\/91a9905009572ebeba180df852835de8","name":"Lynda Lister","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/author\/lyndalister\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16645","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/68"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16645"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16645\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16647"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16645"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16645"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16645"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=16645"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}