Our Grade 3 Open Gender Pennant side travelled to Forster to compete in the Bowls NSW State Pennant Playoffs. The Saints were drawn in Section 2 along with Waverley (Zone 13), Harbord (Zone 9) & Parkes B & SC (Zone 4).
Game 1 was against Waverley. The match was very even early on with scores locked at 39 all after 37 ends. After 45 ends Saints were 4 behind at 46-50. Waverley then kicked up a gear, taking an 11 shot lead with 10 ends to go, 49-60. Try as they might, our Saints couldn’t close the gap, going down 57-72 (1-9) In the other game, Harbord defeated Parkes B & SC 61-46 (9-1)
Game 2 was against Harbord who had just come off a 15 shot win vs Parkes B & SC. Some positional changes were made to our side for this must win game. Our Saints started brilliantly, leading 27-5 after 19 ends. Harbord were able to narrow the margin to 37-28 after 35 ends. Our side then went back on the offensive, leading 52-34 after 46 ends, & 63-37 after 55 ends. The final score ended at 76-40 (10-0). In the other game, Parkes & Waverley fought out a 56 all draw (5.5-4.5 in favor of Parkes)
After the 2 rounds, Waverley were in 1st place on 13.5 points, followed by Saints on 11, Harbord 9 & Parkes B & SC 6.5.
Game 3 was a must win game for us against Parkes B & SC who were also fighting hard for a spot in the Quarter Finals. The game was close early on, with our guys holding a 9 shot lead, 32-23 after 32 ends. The margin was still 9 shots, 39-30 after 41 ends. It was from then that the Saints stepped up a gear, leading 53-37 after 52 ends. Saints would go on to win the match 66-48 (9-1) In the other match, Waverley had a hard fought win against Harbord, winning 61-53 (9-1).
Final standings after sectional play saw Waverley finish on top with 22 points, followed by Saints on 20 points. Harbord finished 3rd with 10 points, followed by Parkes B & SC on 7.5 points.
It was on to the Quarter Finals Saturday afternoon with the Saints taking on Wisemans Park / Wollongong City (Zone 16) who finished top of Section 1 with 27 points. The Saints started well, leading 25-16 after 20 ends. WP/WC then narrowed the gap to only 3 shots, with Saints leading 42-39 after 40 ends. The game was well & truly up for grabs, & our crew were holding firm, leading 61-54 after 58 ends. Things took a turn for the worse then, with WP/WC picking up 8 shots in 2 ends to take the lead by 1 shot with 3 ends to play. It wasn’t to be though, as WP/WC took out the match 66-62, thus knocking the Saints out of the competition.
It was a great effort by all the players to get as far as they did, & the whole club is very proud of their achievement.
