The ANZAC Rifle Range is a rifle range located on the Malabar Headland, Malabar, in the City of Randwick local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It is headquarters to the New South Wales Rifle Association, and hosts the annual NSW Queen's Prize shooting competitions. The range is located on land owned by the Commonwealth of Australia.

Chronology of the ANZAC Rifle Range

attended by 1,300 competitors including teams from Great Britain, New Zealand and South Africa. 337,150 rounds fired.

Past and present users of the ANZAC Rifle Range

The following organisations are current or past users of the ANZAC Rifle Range located on the headland site:

Sydney Model Aero Club

Miniature aircraft have been flown on the Malabar headland since the 1920s. The Sydney Model Aero Club operated on the ANZAC Rifle Range from 1982 until their lease was terminated by the federal government in November 2011.

Former Malabar Riding School

The Malabar Riding School operated on the Malabar headland from 1993 until their lease was terminated by the federal government in November 2011. The riding school assisted local community groups, including seniors, at risk teens, local indigenous groups, people with disabilities, apprentice jockeys, Pony Club, TAFE and university students. They also participated in parades for the local RSL Clubs and other groups such as the Australian Light Horse Association and the Reserve Forces Day Parades attended by the NSW Governor and the Governor-General.

Australian Light Horse and the Reserve Forces Day Parade

In the latter part of 1884 the venerable citizens of Sydney came together to form a cavalry unit. Initially they met in the Oxford Hotel located in Queen's Square. They then went on to train at Moore Park and the Malabar Headland. The Australian Light Horse have a historical attachment to the Malabar Headland which dates back over 100 years. The training for the Australian Light Horse involvement in the Reserve Forces Day Parade has been conducted at the headland for almost a decade. The Australian Light Horse Association provide Mounted Vice-Regal Escorts in Sydney for the Governor of NSW, Professor Marie Bashir AC and for Her Excellency Ms Quentin Bryce, AC the Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia.

Great Public School Rifle Clubs

The Athletic Association of the Great Public Schools of New South Wales (AAGPS, also known as GPS or Great Public Schools) is an association of mostly private boys schools in New South Wales formed in 1892 currently comprising King's School, Sydney Grammar School, Newington College, Saint Ignatius' College, St Joseph's College, Sydney Boys High School, Sydney Church of England Grammar School (Shore), Scots College and Armidale School. Several GPS Rifle Clubs have used the Malabar rifle range since the 1920s competing for the Rawson Cup, the NRA Shield, the Buchanan Shield and the GPS Premiership. Sydney Boys High School started with cadet shooting in 1883, they were granted permission to shoot at Malabar in the 1920s. Sydney Grammar School was founded in 1854 and used the Malabar rifle range until 2011. Scots College Rifle Club was formed in 1922 and has a membership of 60-70 members. Scots College continue to use the ANZAC Rifle Range to this day.

Full Bore Rifle Range

The Full Bore range is used for the long distance, 300 metre to 800 metre, target shooting disciplines using precision target rifles fitted with aperture (peep) or telescopic sights. The term Full Bore refers to the military calibres including; .303 British, 7.62×51mm NATO / .308 Winchester and 5.56×45mm NATO / .223 Remington as sanctioned by the NRAA rules although other calibres are also used. This range is used for national and international target rifle competitions, the most notable of which was the Australian Bicentenary Celebrations attended by approximately 900 competitors from Australia, Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand, Channel Islands, Scotland, USA, Wales and Kenya in 1988. Two matches were held, The Australia Match (formerly The Empire Match) on 14 April 1988 and the US Palma Match on 16 April 1988 with a prize of $100,000 and the Palma Trophy. The range also hosts the annual NSW Queen's prize competition. The Queen's Prize was originally sponsored by Queen Victoria in 1860, the competition has been held annually (with the exception of the war years) by "The Empire" countries and all states in Australia since 1878.

Military Rifle Club Range

"The Military Rifle Clubs Association (previously known as the NSW Citizens Forces Rifle Association) are a group of rifle clubs who have been shooting Service Rifle competitions on the Malabar headland since 1923. The competitions are shot at 100, 200 and 300 metres in the standing, sitting, kneeling and prone positions. The firearms used were predominantly semi-automatic, such as the SLR, up to the ban by the federal government and bolt-action military rifles from WWI and WWII such as the Short Magazine Lee–Enfield (S.M.L.E.) No.1 and No. 5, The Rifle No. 4, various Mauser rifles and Springfields etc."

Former SSAA Rifle Range

The Sporting Shooters Association of Australia operated on the Malabar headland from 1975 until their lease was terminated by the federal government in November 2011. The SSAA range was located on the southern end of the ANZAC Rifle Range. This area provided facilities for shotgun clay target shooting, metallic silhouette and bench rest rifle shooting. The bench rest stands were used for sighting in rifles and for precision bench rest target shooting at 100 metres. The bench rest range facilities were demolished by the federal labor government in October 2012.

Former Smallbore Rifle Range

The Smallbore Range was used by clubs associated with the NSW Smallbore and Air Rifle Association until their lease was terminated by the federal government in November 2011. The term "smallbore" refers to the 5.56 / 0.22 and 4.5 / 0.177 calibres, with the latter being predominantly air rifle. This range was used by shooters competing in the 50-metre bench rest, prone and three-position (standing, kneeling, prone) rifle shooting disciplines. The Smallbore and Air Rifle Range facilities were demolished by the federal government in October 2012.

Pistol range

The pistol range is used for ISPC pistol and rimfire metallic silhouette competitions.

ANZAC Memorial Gates

The Long Bay Rifle Range at Malabar was renamed the "ANZAC Rifle Range" by the Army in 1970 to commemorate the Australian Rifle Club members who served during the two World Wars and the Korean Campaign. The National Rifle Association records show that as of 31 December 1916, 6486 members of the NSW Rifle Clubs had enlisted for active service during WWI. The total number of Australian Rifle Club members who enlisted for WWII is believed to be between 33,000 and 38,000. The "Memorial Gates" are dedicated to the "Fallen Riflemen" of these wars.

ANZAC Range Memorial Plaques

NSW Rifle Club Members Awarded the Victoria Cross

The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy". Private George Cartwright (VC) Near Peronne France 31 August 1918 4th Battalion Rifle Club Corporal Arthur Charles Hall (VC) Peronne France 1–2 September 1918 Coolabah Rifle Club Lieutenant Arthur Roden Cutler (VC) Merdjayoun-Damour, Lebanon 19 June – 6 July 1941 Manly Rifle Club Corporal John Hurst Edmondson (VC) Tobruk Libya 13 April 1941 Liverpool Cabravale Rifle Club Flight Lieutenant Rawdon Hume Middleton RAAF (VC) Italy 28–29 November 1942 Rocky Dam Rifle Club Captain Alfred Shout (VC) Lone Pine Gallipoli 9 August 1915 Australian Rifles Regiment

NSW Rifle Club Members Awarded the George Cross

The George Cross (GC) is an award for civilians; it is the second highest award of the United Kingdom honours system, ranking immediately after the Victoria Cross. Benjamin Gower Hardy (GC) Cowra NSW 4–5 August 1944 Rifle Club Chatswood Rifle Club

Military history

Details TBA

Clubs that no longer have access to the range