With a 15-year-old skipping one of its rinks, Bundoora RSL had a plan to make life difficult for finals-bound opponents in Bowls Victoria’s Premier Division.
And RSL – which will miss the finals after falling to seventh on the ladder – did just that for fourth-placed Melbourne on Saturday.
Bundoora started beautifully and despite a late Melbourne comeback held on for a two-rink, six-shot win.
Nick McIntyre and Damon DiFlorio’s rinks both went down narrowly, but Luke Aiello’s rink had a comfortable 22-14 win and Josh Corless, 15, skipping a premier rink for the first time, recorded a 22-19 win.
“We started off fairly strongly across all rinks and were well in the lead for most of the game,” Corless said.
“Melbourne had a bit of a late fightback and brought things close but we managed to hold on for a good win.
“We knew before yesterday that we couldn’t make finals but we still wanted to have an impact on who did and didn’t make it and with that loss it now makes it a bit harder for Melbourne.”
As for his own performance, Corless said he had had an exciting day. “It was the first time I’ve skipped in premier and I had a lot of fun,” he said. “We got the rink too, which made it even better.”
The final round of the home-and-away season is on Saturday, with Bundoora RSL hosting top side Brighton.
In division 1 section 2 Lalor suffered its fourth loss of the season, going down by three rinks and 21 shots to third-ranked Moonee Valley. Lalor remains on top of the table with a round to play, 15 points clear of Fitzroy Victoria. Glenroy kept fourth spot with a two-rink, 11-shot win over Melton.
In the top-of-the-table clash in Division 2 section 3, Whittlesea scored an upset, delivering Hurstbridge only its third loss of the season. The three-rink, 28-shot win brings Whittlesea within two points of Hurstbridge with one game to play.
Craigieburn enjoyed a thrilling one-shot win over Rosanna, despite winning only one rink.
Gladstone Park was no match for Moonee Ponds in Division 3 section 2, going down by three rinks and 14 shots. Epping RSL fought hard in a two-point, three-rink loss in Division 3 Section 3.
DANIEL PAPROTH
