Soldier who beat Afghanistan odds denied lunch with kids

A VETERAN of the war in Afghanistan has been left angry and dismayed after being forced to miss traditional Anzac Day activities.

TWO-UP TRAVESTY: Anthony and Telsha Chaytor were banned from the Maroochydore RSL Club on Anzac Day. Picture: Nicola Brander

FORMER soldier Anthony Chaytor tried to take his wife and two children, aged two and nine months, into Maroochy RSL Club last Friday.

The family was stopped at the club's entrance and told they couldn't enter because liquor laws stipulated children under 18 were not allowed in gaming areas.

The club had turned what is normally its entertainment area into a two-up venue for the day, leaving nowhere for children to be catered for.

The Chaytors say they were only there to eat lunch and meet up with friends and other veterans on Mr Chaytor's first Anzac Day since he left the army after a five-year career which included a tour of Afghanistan.

Mr Chaytor's wife, Telsha, said she was shocked by the club's attitude.

"How can they expect our kids to appreciate and value what our soldiers have done if they can't be a part of something so important to my partner and his friends?" she asked.

The Buddina family attended the Maroochy RSL's dawn service at Cotton Tree and spent the morning at Kawana Surf Club before going to the Maroochydore club.

A spokeswoman for Maroochy RSL said they had advertised in the lead-up to Anzac Day that the club would be off limits to under-18s for most of the day.

"Two-up is a gambling activity and Queensland law doesn't allow you to host gambling in front of children," she said.

According to the Charitable and Non-Profit Gaming Act, two-up can only be conducted by an RSL or service club on its premises and only on designated days.

Two-up was only made legal in Queensland in 2012. Before then, police traditionally turned a blind eye to it.