Zone one goes all in at bowls competition

TALENTED locals represent the region at the inter-zone championships

The Zone One side who played in the inter-zone championships. Back (from left) Barry Sheppard (selector), Paul Earl, Jim Knight, Alf Boston, Stuart Hall, Kris Lehfeldt, Phillip Sharp, David Cranwell, Davis Crow, Boyd Kelly, Brian Moore (manager), (front, from left) Laurie Freeman, Troy Makin, Peter Taylor, Adam Hart.

NORTHERN Rivers bowlers were part of the Zone One side which took part in the Inter-Zone Sides Championships recently.

There were two teams featuring some of the region’s best bowlers including the likes of Kris Lehfeldt, Troy Makin and Peter Taylor.

With both sides drawn against Zone 2 – Newcastle (Round 1), Zone 13 Sydney Central/South (Round 2) and Zone 16 – Illawarra (Round 3) in their sectional games, statistics have revealed that, in nearly all games, the Zone One players kept up to their opposition in the count of ends won/lost with multiple shots against causing the damage on the scorecards.

Selected players in Team 1 – Steve Massey, Wayne Bartlett, John North, Geoff Mullen (S); Team 2 – Terry McFadden, David Crow, Terry Lee, Ian Parker (S); and Team 3 – Peter Ayres, John Ritchie, Peter Murphy, Jeff McDonald (S) carried the flag in the Seniors’ category for Zone One.

Round 1 against Newcastle produced a 65-46 score in favour of the Zone One teams.

Round 2 against Zone 13 resulted in the Zone One side being unlucky to be defeated by a mere two shots overall.

In Round 3 against Illawarra, the eventual winner of the event, certainly presented as a tough row to hoe.

While team Parker enjoyed a solid win against their tough opposition, teams skipped by Mullen and McDonald each suffered defeat.

The Opens’ Side, comprising of Team 1 – Adam Hart, Laurie Freeman, Boyd Kelly, Kris Lehfeldt (S); Team 2 – Jimmy Knight, Stuart Hall, Troy Makin, Alf Boston (S); and Team 3 – David Cranwell, Paul Earl, Phillip Sharp, Peter Taylor (S) had their work cut out in their outings on the greens.

Round 1 against Zone 2 resulted in the side trailing early and, while finding their rhythm half way through the games and scoring well, were not able to reel in their opposition.

Zone 13, their Round 2 opposition, proved to be tough nuts to crack.

Although the sides won 32 of the 63 ends played, a strong push to the finish line came too late to catch up on shots.

Round 3 against Illawarra resulted in the side firing on all cylinders in a super close encounter.

At the conclusion of play, Zone One claimed a win and a draw and conceded just the one rink loss following their success in winning a total of 32 ends in this final round.

Overall, it was a grand effort from both the Zone One squads and a special mention goes to Yamba’s Ian Parker (S), Yamba, who, combined with his Seniors’ team of Lismore Heights’ Terry McFadden, Cabarita’s David Crow and Kingscliff’s Terry Lee to win all three rounds in their section with an overall + 36 shots margin.

Thanks also to Boyd Kelly, Laurie Freeman and Adam Hart who stepped up to the mark to fill in the vacancies in the Opens, following last minute unavoidable withdrawals.