All smiles: The Tallygaroopna weekend pennant side in Moama at the weekend. Photo: Tallygaroopna Bowls Club
Tallygaroopna and Tatura-Hill Top bowls clubs flew the flag for the Goulburn Murray Bowls Region with pride at the weekend, registering solid results at the Champion of State Pennant competitions at Moama Bowls Club.
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A tournament that sees the state’s best bowls clubs come together to battle for Victorian supremacy, Tally competed in the weekend pennant division after winning the Allan Matheson Shield over summer, while Hill Top was entered in the midweek section B-division after its Edna Harling Shield triumph.
Playing five matches across the two-day competition, the Redlegs finished fourth on the table with a record of two wins and three losses, as South Bendigo claimed the championship with a thrilling one-shot win over Ocean Grove in the grand final.
Tatura-Hill Top was gallant in its efforts in the midweek competition, finishing third on the table with a record of three wins and two losses, narrowly missing the grand final.
Doing the region proud: The Tatura-Hill Top weekend pennant side at the Champion of State Pennant competition. Photo: Tatura-Hill Top Bowls Club
The Champion of State Pennant competition marked the end of an era for the Tallygaroopna Bowls Club, with club stalwarts Matthew Robertson and Liam Crapper departing for Bendigo.
Taking to social media on Tuesday, the club thanked them for their efforts and wished them well for the future.
“Sunday we said goodbye to Matt Robertson and Liam Crapper, both players are departing for South Bendigo,” the statement read.
“Robbo has been a part of the build at Tally for a few years. His experience and leadership helped the club deliver results on and off the field. We will miss his character around the club.
Thanks for the memories: Matthew Robertson and Liam Crapper will depart Tallygaroopna for Bendigo. Photo: Tallygaroopna Bowls Club
“Liam has been at Tally only one year but what a year it was! Dougie you have left a mark on the club that no one will forget.
“We thank these high quality bowlers for their service to the club and wish them all the best in Bendigo. You’re always welcome back at Tally.”
In other news, Moama Steamers will be hoping to go one step further in the competition referred to as “T20 bowls” after kicking off their Bowls Premier League 15 campaign on Monday.
Moama, coming off a runner-up finish to Sydney Lions at BPL14 in Moama in February, is once again represented by Natasha Van Eldik and Ryan Bester, with four-time BPL MVP Aron Sherriff the only change, in place of Kevin Anderson.
Ryan Burnett has also returned as coach.
Moama holds a 7-4 record after eight rounds at Pine Rivers Bowls Club in Brisbane, with three Steamers victories heading to a tie-break end.
The Steamers’ opening-round encounter against Tasmania was a nail-biter, falling by a single shot in the tie-breaker against the Tridents (6-4, 3-12, 0-1).
A maiden win came against the Perth Suns, but again the Steamers needed a tie-break end to split the difference, notching a three-shot advantage in the 16-10 victory.
Moama ran into a rampant Brisbane Pirates outfit on day two, falling 4-17 to a side containing the mercurial Alex Marshall, a player widely considered to be the greatest of all time.
A thriller against Melbourne Pulse in round four also headed to a tie-break, with both sides notching one-shot wins in each of the two sets (3-4, 7-6).
Moama claimed the tie-break 2-0, and added a third win of the tournament over Tweed Heads (8-5, 6-3) before going to yet another tie-break end against Gold Coast, prevailing 14-13.
It then won its round seven clash against Adelaide, before dropping a pair of games on Wednesday to Sydney Lions and Tweed Heads.
Eighteen rounds of play will determine the top five to contest BPL15 finals on Friday, May 27.
