Sport
29 November, 2024
All change at the top of the midweek ladder
There’s been plenty of changes to the midweek pennant ladder after round six.
Highland Tartan have vaulted to the top of the ladder after scoring a 74-40 win over Dunolly Gold.
Tartan took a clean sweep on Tuesday morning, with Greg Shay scoring a 19-15 win over Fabio Delconte, Michael Fryar dominant in a 32-11 win over Jim Haigh and Garry Coburn finishing off the job with a 23-14 win over Wayne Stephens.
Tartan’s ascension to the top of the tree was coupled with Talbot’s victory over Dunolly Blue, taking a tense 57-52 victory.
All three rinks were close right to the end. Ray Prentice took a 22-16 win for Talbot over Terry Long, while Barb Crossley took a 21-18 win over Alan Weir. While Dunolly Blue took back a rink with Tony Galofaro’s 18-14 win over Chris Crossley, it wasn’t enough to bridge the gap.
Talbot’s result ensured they would stay in the top four, which became more important after Highland Gold took a 65-46 win over Avoca.
The result moves Highland Gold into the top four at Maryborough Golf’s expense.
Highland Gold took two of the three rinks on offer, with Paul Gothard taking a 23-14 win over Noel Parratt and Roy Crawley taking a 25-14 win over Ian Proctor. Avoca prevented a clean sweep thanks to Daniel Giddings’ 18-17 win over Jeanette Oliver.
Maryborough Golf dropping out of the top four came after they were defeated by Carisbrook, 75-42, keeping their finals chances alive in the process.
Judy Cassidy’s dominant 30-7 win and Laurence Cassidy’s 32-14 win over Elizabeth Bucknall gave Carisbrook a dominant buffer, which meant they could afford to withstand Kort Gay’s 21-13 win over Ross Gregory to take 14 premiership points to move just over a game behind the top four.
Tuesday’s seventh round should see some interesting games which can again turn around the fortunes of clubs vying for a spot in the top four.
Of critical importance is the match between top-placed Highland Tartan and fourth-placed Highland Gold. While both teams are stablemates, expect both teams to give it everything as they look to continue their recent good form.
A critical match sees third-placed Talbot travel to fifth-placed Maryborough Golf, with just five points separating both teams on the ladder. A victory here will allow one of these teams some crucial breathing room on the ladder.
With fourth-placed Highland Gold and fifth-placed Maryborough Golf facing higher-ranked opponents, Carisbrook could be in a position to benefit and close the gap when they travel to the winless Dunolly Gold, who themselves will be hoping to get off the mark for the 2024/25 season.
Avoca will also be hoping to benefit, but they will face a tricky task in travelling to Dunolly Blue who are looking to respond after their close loss to Talbot.