Sport
26 January, 2023
Finals spots almost sorted as midweek nears its home-and-away conclusion
The top two continued to show they are a class above the rest in midweek lawn bowls on Tuesday. Highland Tartan dealt a significant blow to Dunolly Gold’s chances of playing finals thanks to a dominant 81-40 victory at Dunolly. The league leaders...
The top two continued to show they are a class above the rest in midweek lawn bowls on Tuesday.
Highland Tartan dealt a significant blow to Dunolly Gold’s chances of playing finals thanks to a dominant 81-40 victory at Dunolly.
The league leaders did not give Dunolly Gold a sniff, with Jan Turner defeating Jill Morse 24-17, Leanne Wallis defeating Jim Haigh 26-12 and Greg Shay defeating Barry Mortlock 31-11.
Similarly, Dunolly Blue had a tougher time of it against Carisbrook, but were still able to pull out a 59-50 victory.
However, they also lost two competition points to Highland Tartan in the process, with Denise Matic putting in a strong performance to defeat Margaret Davies 20-13. Heather Freemantle and Tony Galofaro helped pick up the pieces, with Freemantle winning 20-14 over Phillip Burt, and Galofaro winning 26-16 over Leonie Briggs to give them 14 points.
Both results meant that Avoca were able to take advantage — but only just. They moved 20 points clear of Carisbrook in fourth courtesy of a 65-63 victory over Highland Gold.
It was Highland Gold which took the first rink, with Lowen Clarke defeating Daniel Giddings 21-18, but in a tight contest throughout, Avoca were able to rebound on rinks two and three, with Christine Bearpark defeating Tony Lacey 24-22, before Ann Loosmore defeated Albert Spencer 23-20 to give them the points they needed.
In the tightest game of the round, it was perhaps surprising to see third-placed Talbot struggle against bottom-placed Maryborough Golf, but a 56-55 victory still gave them 14 competition points, and breathing space in third as a result.
It was a 31-17 victory on rink two to Golf by Marian Webb over Noreen Morris that forced Talbot to play catch-up, but wins on rink one to Robert Jackson, who won 20-15 over Donna Bauer, and Barb Crossley on rink three, winning 19-9 over Elizabeth Bucknall, ensured that Talbot would get the points by the barest of margins.
With three rounds to go, it appears that the finals race is almost done and dusted.
However, Carisbrook will be looking to knock Highland Tartan off its perch on top of the ladder in order to keep their season alive.
It will be a similar story for Avoca, who can move into third at Talbot’s expense if they are able to take all 16 competition points when they meet on Tuesday.
Dunolly Blue will look to take advantage of any Highland Tartan slip-up when they play their stablemates at Dunolly Gold, while Highland Gold’s meeting with Maryborough Golf will likely determine who takes the wooden spoon for 2022/23.