Star studded: Bendigo Campaspe Goldfields Bowls Region’s best 15 female bowlers before the opening round of the three-day tournament. Back, from left, are Jill Grimshaw, Lee Harris, Kerryn Evans, Helen Clough, Kaye Rowe, Kath Wastell, Leica Roney and Cass Millerick. Front, from left, are Marilyn Stephenson, Pat Schram, Sharon Koch, Maryann Spizer, Pam Limbrick, Judy Davies and Susan Howes.
Bendigo Campaspe Goldfields won a place in the women’s final of the region sides championship after a last round showdown with metropolitan powerhouse Yarra Bowls Region at Moama Bowling Club on Sunday.
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It was the final match of the seven rounds of sectional play and left the host region on top of the ladder with five wins and two defeats.
The final of the women’s event was contested between BCG and Northern Gateway and at the time of print the visiting region was a 13-shot leader on the home region — with only a handful of ends remaining.
Campaspe was strongly represented in the BCG women’s team, Moama star skip Mary-Anne Spizer bowling with Marilyn Stephenson and Kerryn Evans by her side.
Blue boys: A Bendigo Premier League dominated team represented the region in the men’s event, with just two Campaspe bowlers in the squad. Back, from left, are Brad Holland, Cam Keenan, Todd Matthews, Dean Carter, Brayden Byrne, Luke Hoskins and Cam Wilson. Front, from left are, Aaron Tomkins, Tom Lester, Darren Burgess, Brad Campbell (Moama), Max Rowley, Brad Tinning (Tongala) and Daryl Rowley.
Pam Limbrick and Leica Roney were on another rink and Cass Millerick was third on the remaining rink. An injured Pat Schram was forced to sit out the event, while Kath Wastell was also part of the regional team.
At the completion of the seven qualifying rounds the Yarra and Bendigo Campaspe Goldfields teams were first and second in both men’s and women’s competitions.
Yarra was clearly the most dominant men’s team in the 16-side competition, split into two eight-team sections, having a significant shot differential from its qualifying rounds.
At the completion of the round robin stage the top two teams from the respective men’s and women’s competitions met in the final.
Pencilled in: Leica Roney is quick to put four on the card, as indicated by her Wimmera opposition, during the Bendigo Goulburn Campaspe round three win on Saturday morning.
With only Brad Campbell and Brad Tinning from the Campaspe competition among the 15-member squad it was dominated by Bendigo Premier League bowlers.
Campbell led for Aaron Tomkins in the opening two rounds, while Tinning was lead for Brad Holland.
BCG won 42-21 against Gippsland in the opening round and was a five-shot winner, 37-32, in round two. On both occasions skips Aaron Tomkins and Brad Holland were winners, remaining skip Dean Carter returning a 50 per cent win/loss ratio.
It was a 35-29 winner against Wimmera, then lost all three rinks against Ovens and Murray, before recovering for wins against Goulburn Murray (33-27) and Eastern Ranges, its biggest win of the tournament 39-22.
Yarra beat the BCG team by four shots in a tight affair, leaving it third after qualifying — and out of contention.
The 5-2 record of the men’s BCG team at the end of seven rounds was the second best return, as both Yarra and Ovens and Murray finished 6-1.
BCG finished third after qualifying and the men’s final was contested between Yarra and the all-conquering Northern Gateway region.
Meet in the middle: Mary-Anne Spizer (left) with Marilyn Stephenson, Kerryn Evans and Kaye Rowe meet during their weekend’s representative duties.
The women’s team won 41-25, with three rink wins from Mary-Anne Spizer (bowling with Kerryn Evans and Marilyn Stephenson in second and third roles), Lee Harris (with Pam Limbrick as lead and Leica Roney as second) and Susan Howes, who had Cass Millerick as third.
In the second round they were beaten by five shots by Ballarat, Spizer drawing her rink, while Harris and Howes lost by two and three shots respectively.
In the women’s division three successive wins against Wimmera, Ovens and Murray and Goulburn Murray had the BCG team sitting on top — it and Yarra both having 4-1 records.
A round six loss to Eastern Ranges had it one game behind the ladder-leading Yarra team, until it beat Yarra by seven shots in the final qualifying round.
