MICHAEL HOLROYD
BOWLS
By MICHAEL HOLROYD
THE Bowls Victoria Regional Sides Championship were played in Moama over the weekend.
Strzelecki represented the region, in what was a competitive outing across three days of
competition.
In the first match Strzelecki played Murray-Mallee and started the event with a sound win 43-25.
Mark Atkinson, Nathan Cook, James Scullin and Matt Ferrari (Skip) defeated Harrison Keely 19-10.
Shane O’Loughlin, Robert Aitken, Daryl Major and Wayne Parks (skip) defeated Joshua Thornton 20-3.
Ron Sherlock, Tommy Lodge, Vincent McIlwain and John Hall (skip) went down to former Strzelecki player Glenn Scott 4-12.
Not to be outdone the ladies also commenced their campaign against Murray-Mallee and came away with a good win 41-27.
Kirsty Van den Hoff, Polly Major, Pat Trewin and Samantha Atkinson (skip) defeated Lisa Critten 13-11.
Karren Sheers, Pat Fraser-Aurisch, Debbie Kennedy and Sheryl Atkinson (skip) defeated Roma Opie 14-11.
Janice Aubrey, Bev Tyers, Jenny Miller and Janis Parks (skip) defeated Jean Fairchild 14-5.
In Round 2, Strzelecki played West Coast 45-22.
Mark Atkinson, Nathan Cook, James Scullin and Matt Ferrari (Skip) defeated Scott Boschen 12-8.
Shane O’Loughlin, Robert Aitken, Daryl Major and Wayne Parks (skip) defeated William Collihole 13-11.
Ron Sherlock, Tommy Lodge, Vincent McIlwain and John Hall (skip) defeated Peter Cottier 20-3.
The win left Strzelecki one of three undefeated sides in Section A along with Metro West and Geelong. The other strong Melbourne teams Northern Gateway and Sandbelt both suffered defeats on day one.
The ladies found West Coast a formidable opponent 37-30.
Kirsty Van den Hoff, Polly Major, Pat Trewin and Samantha Atkinson (skip) defeated Gillian Pudney 14-10.
Karren Sheers, Pat Fraser-Aurisch, Debbie Kennedy and Sheryl Atkinson (skip) lost to Heather Burgess 11-12.
Janice Aubrey, Bev Tyers, Jenny Miller and Janis Parks (skip) lost to Kathy Leslie 5-15.
The result left Strzelecki second in Section A with Sandbelt the only undefeated region after two matches. Form was hard to follow in the ladies section with Strzelecki defeating Murray Mallee in round one and Geelong defeating West Coast, yet in round two West Coast defeated Strzelecki and Murray Mallee defeated Geelong.
On day two at a new venue, Echuca Bowls Club, Strzelecki played Metro West, but lost 40-27.
The ladies also played Metro West and lost 39-31.
Strzelecki came back well against a strong Geelong team to win 39-29.
The ladies also played Geelong and won 35-33.
The last game of the day was against Sandbelt, which Strzelecki lost 45-24.
The ladies also played Sandbelt who were the leading team in Section A.
On day three, Strzelecki lost its next game to Northern Gateway 43-21.
Mark Atkinson, Nathan Cook, James Scullin and Matt Ferrari (Skip) defeated Brad Willoughby 10-5.
Shane O’Loughlin, Robert Aitken, Daryl Major and Wayne Parks (skip) lost to Ben Winther 7-16.
Matt Eccles, Tommy Lodge, Vincent McIlwain and John Hall (skip) lost to Nathan Lynch 4-22.
The ladies had a tough battle with Northern Gateway, losing 38-35.
Both teams were aiming for top spot on the table. Kirsty Van den Hoff, Polly Major, Pat Trewin and Samantha Atkinson (skip) defeated Jennifer Salmon 14-9.
Karren Sheers, Pat Fraser-Aurisch, Debbie Kennedy and Sheryl Atkinson (skip) lost to Mikayla Long 12-15
Janice Aubrey, Bev Tyers, Jenny Miller and Janis Parks (skip) lost to Julie Fitt 9-14.
In Round 7, Strzelecki played Mornington Peninsula and lost 39-34.
The ladies also played Mornington Peninsula, and had a 43-26 win.
This left Strzelecki fourth on the ladder, however, if the side had of beaten Northern Gateway in the morning it could have been playing in the final in the afternoon as the ladies competition was very competitive.
Janice Aubrey, Bev Tyers, Jenny Miller and Janis Parks (skip) proved to be the highest ranked ladies rink in the section winning five games out of seven to have a better shots margin than the other four rinks with five wins.
Overall it was a solid result for Strzelecki, who were definitely compeitive and played some good bowls against top opposition.
