Round 12 Premier 1 Roundup

Premier One Roundup

Round 12 of the Premier One competition brought with it close games, a major surprise, a first defeat for Grange’s Wayne Ruediger and a tightening at both ends of the table.

The signs of relief from the Gawler club house were well earned. Having lost two home games by a shot earlier in the season the battlers from the north pulled off a major surprise beating Ascot Park by that elusive one shot. Winning six of the last seven ends was the key to the win.

In a heart breaking result Somerton without experienced skip Steve Bradbrook won on three rinks but still went down to top side Grange by two shots.

Adelaide once again proved that they are not out of the mix with a stunning 99-58 home win against Marion.

In what was arguably the most important result of the day Salisbury downed Hawthorn and with the win moved to eighth spot on the ladder. 16 points now covers the bottom four sides.

In Premier 2 the competition heated up. In the south Happy Valley recorded an 84-69 win over leading side Lockleys while in the north Modbury gained 14 points from a 103-66 win over Woodville but Hope Valley went better still picking up 16 points after a 109-50 defeat of Semaphore.

Modbury selector and skip Rhys Taylor made some interesting comments on the Premier 2 North competition after the game.

"The competition is at an interesting stage" he commented "we are looking forward to the game against Hope Valley in three weeks. Earlier in the season we were due to meet in a local derby but the game was cancelled due to heat so we haven’t met this year. There were some good signs for us on Saturday. Craig Mills and his rink went down but we still recorded a good win. While we’re talking we should mention Scott Wise who came from Two Wells this season and has won six games out of eight."

Taylor went on to mention the form of Payneham’s second side which he considers a major threat. "I really rate them they have some good players in the ranks."

Adelaide v Marion

Adelaide welcomed back club stalwart Adrian Green with a stunning 99-58 victory over Marion in Saturday’s Premier One bowls game at Adelaide Bowling Club. The win was emphatic and the 14 points gained took the side to third place on the ladder with six games of the minor rounds remaining.

To many supporters the size of the win, 41 shots would have been unexpected and Green and his rink had its say with a comprehensive 25-9 defeat of Marion’s Bradley Klose. Willie McPharlin continued his stellar season skipping his talented rink to a 32-10 win over Ian Huckle while Scott Thulborn continue to build on his good form with a 25-17 win over Col Saltmarsh.

This year’s Adelaide side has shaken of the inconsistencies of last year and now looks to be a genuine title contender. The form of McPharlin and his rink has been a bonus in what should be the central city side’s best season for some time. Next Saturday Adelaide is away to Ascot Park and a win against last season’s Premiers looks likely.

Marion continues to be the Jekyll and Hyde of the competition. Seemingly back on track and settled the side again took a backward step. To be beaten by 41 shots would have been a major disappointment to a playing group which was gaining in confidence and looking likely to push for a top four spot.

The only positive to come out of the game was a 22-17 victory to Ashley Klose over Mike Hocking. Klose picked up the only points on what proved to be a difficult day at the office.

Earlier in the season club spokesman Rex Whitehead made comment that Marion was a "bookmaker’s nightmare" and going on Saturday’s performance he wasn’t that wide of the mark.

Marion has the talent to beat any side in the competition and next week the club hosts a Payneham team which is struggling to record a win. This will be an opportunity for the playing group to gain some much needed confidence.

Marion 58 (2) Adelaide 99 (14) 

B Klose 9 was defeated by Green 25

A Klose 22 defeated Hocking 17

Huckel 10 was defeated by McPharlin 32

Saltmarsh 17 was defeated by Thulborn 25

Gawler v Ascot Park 

Club spokesman Lindsay Mortimer was more relieved than wildly happy after his Premier One bowls side’s 82-81 defeat of reigning Premiers Ascot Park on Saturday. His reticence is understandable. Twice this season his team has lost a home game by a single shot and it seemed that the playing group was destined to lose another of those close ones.

Gawler is one of those sides which will always keep supporters on the edge of their seats but the hierarchy had thought long and hard going into the second half of the season. Last week Mortimer explained that somehow his team needed to win one or two games at home as well as beating its nearest rivals in the final seven games of the season. The win against Ascot Park would have been satisfying.

Excellent wins to Mortimer whose rink defeated Gavin Pfeiffer 23-19 and Gary Meekcoms who skipped his four to a 24-16 defeat of John Wise set up the gutsy win. The 12 points gained should prove to be invaluable as the remainder of the season unfolds.

"We looked like we were going to lose another tight one" Mortimer explained after the game "but after a nail biting last three ends we finally got up by a shot. We are very happy!"

After what has transpired over the season one can understand his relief.

After Saturday’s defeat Ascot Park sits in fifth place on the ladder but still in touch with the top four sides. It was a game that went down to the wire and State representative Dave Stockham best described the final stages after the game.

"It was disappointing" he said "because we had put ourselves into a winning position. We were three shots up with two ends to play and dropped four shots over two rinks. In fact we lost six of the last 7 ends and you can’t do that and win. Had we taken 14 points from the game we would now be sitting in the top four on the ladder."

The carpet is a different surface and Stockham and his rink were 16-6 down at afternoon tea before recovering and going on to record a strong 23-18 win. Beau Schutz was the second of the visiting skips to record a win defeating Gawler’s Ian Fyfe 23-17.

It has been a season of upsets and we are sure that there are more to come. Next Saturday Ascot Park play Adelaide at home in another of those games which will be well worth watching.

Ascot Park 81 (4) Gawler 82 (12)

Pfeiffer 19 was defeated by Mortimer 23

Wise 16 was defeated by Meekcoms 24

Stockham 23 defeated Lipsys 18

Schutz 23 defeated Fyfe 17

Payneham v West Lakes 

Club selectors will be pondering their next move as Payneham continue to slip down the Premier One bowls ladder. On Saturday the side was soundly beaten 96-62 by a talented West Lakes combination and are now in great danger of slipping into the relegation zone. In seventh place on the ladder the Panthers are now only 16 points clear of bottom sides Gawler and Hawthorn and with only six minor round games to go desperately need a solid win.

On what was an otherwise disappointing day new skip Gary Miles and his rink scored an excellent 18-15 win over West Lake’s James Gregory while gaining a valuable two points for their efforts.

There is so much talent within the playing group and over the next three weeks the Panthers will need to lift to a new level if they are to avoid a shoot out at the bottom of the ladder. Payneham is a strong club and its Premier Two side is performing well so there are players who must be pushing for spots in the top side.

Next week the side travels to Marion for what will be another tough game but there is no better time to get back on the winner’s list.

The talented West Lakes Premier One bowls side continues to impress. The 14 point win sees the side comfortably in second place on the ladder and seemingly cruising towards the finals.

Steve Dennis again proved that he has talent to burn while skipping his rink to an impressive 27-13 victory over an in form Luke Pietersma. Selection decisions made just prior to Christmas have proven to be right on the mark and excellent wins to the rinks of both Kane Coulls and Mark Haines gives an indication of just how settled the Lakers are. 

After many years of development the pool of talented players within the club is impressive and the second side sits just out of the four in an exceptionally strong Premier 2 competition.

Next Saturday West Lakes hosts Grange in what will undoubtedly be one of the games of the season. First versus second always offers mouth watering possibilities and the trip to West Lakes is never easy.

West Lakes 96 (14) Payneham 62 (2) 

Dennis 27 defeated Pietersma 13

Coulls 27 defeated Prosser 17

Gregory 15 was defeated by Miles 18

Haines 27 defeated Dorr 14

Salisbury v Hawthorn 

Salisbury took a major step forward with an 89-78 win over Hawthorn in Saturday’s round 12 Premier One bowls match at Salisbury Bowling Club.

It was a game that the club just had to win to maintain contact with the other three sides battling to avoid relegation. The win was also doubly important as fellow bottom three side Gawler scored a surprise one shot victory over last year’s Premiers Ascot Park.

Club spokesman Brett Davis was justifiably buoyant after the win.

"We were happy with the whole side" he said "we pretty much dominated in the early stages and hung on well. It was great to get a win!"

Mark Schutz, Geoff Nethercott and Ian Pollock all skipped their rinks to impressive wins on a day which was important for the confidence of the playing group as a whole. 

At this stage of the season 14 points is a major pick up and moves the side to within 10 points of seventh placed Payneham which continues to struggle.

The loss of key players continues to hurt the Hawthorn and after Saturday’s loss the club seems to be fast running out of options. Gawler’s win has put the "cat among the pigeons" and leaves the bottom three sides locked in an almighty battle for the relative safety of eighth place. The Hawks now sit in tenth place on the ladder with 50 points and minus 198 shots.

With every rink win important from here on in Mark Evans and his four managed a 10 shot win gaining the only two points for the day. Alan Russell got to within one shot of Salisbury’s Ian Pollock but the 11 shot overall defeat in what was a winnable game will really hurt the side.

Russell and his fellow selectors will somehow need to pull a rabbit out of the hat over the next six weeks. 

"We were in a similar position last year" he said after the game "but it gets more difficult with both Perryman and Blake Fiebig out next week. We need to keep fighting."

Next Saturday Hawthorn comes up against Gawler at home in what is a must win game.

Hawthorn 78 (2) Salisbury 89 (14)

Evans 26 defeated Barr 16

Mickan 13 was defeated by Schutz 24

Russell 21 was defeated by Pollock 22

Starr 18 was defeated by Nethercott 27

Grange v Somerton

When it’s running for you things often fall into place. On Saturday Grange came up against Somerton in what was always going to be a great Premier One bowls encounter. At the end of the game Grange had been victorious on one rink out of four but had won the game 79-77.

While Wayne Ruediger and his four dropped their first game for the season Mike Cotton and his rink ended the day with a great 24-15 win securing 10 points for the competition leader. All other rinks were won or lost by three shots or less in a classic meeting of two of the sport’s heavy weights.

At afternoon tea Grange was down by three shots and during the second half the two teams were never more than four shots apart. It was in the words of Wayne Fox "a great game of bowls." He added that his club was happy with all rinks in the close encounter.

This season Grange has earned the right to win a couple of close games and in a match up between the two teams earlier in the season Somerton had prevailed by a single shot. Two encounters and the sides separated by one shot over 100 ends gives an indication of how tight it is at the top of the table.

Next Saturday Grange comes up against West Lakes in what will be a clash between first and second on the ladder.

Somerton did everything but beat the competition leader but in the final analysis the side had chalked up three rink wins out of the four contested and had gone down 79-77. Club spokesman Scott Taylor had previously mentioned that his team would not be at full strength until rounds 13 or 14 and the absence of experienced skip Steve Bradbrook for Saturday’s game may well have tipped the balance.

Wins to the rinks of Steve Foster, Steve Grant and Taylor himself would normally have done the job and the side can’t be too disappointed in what was an excellent performance. Foster continues to impress in his first season skipping in the top division while Grant is adding a competitive edge after being promoted to skip.

If this game was an example of what is to happen in the final series bring it on. Next Saturday Somerton play Salisbury at home and will be looking to cement its spot in the top four.

Somerton 77 (6) Grange 79 (10) 

Foster 19 defeated Edwards 16

Orr 15 defeated By Cotton 24

S Taylor 21 defeated Nicholls 19

Grant 22 defeated Ruediger 20