TOP SKIPPER LEADS GROVE TO A BIG GAP
OCEAN Grove enjoyed the Premier Division’s first season break leading the competition and skippers ladder with a clear jump.
Ocean Grove has developed a winning philosophy under coach and former Australian representative Matt Flapper.
The vision to recruit Flapper has returned significant dividends.
Leading the Geelong-Ballarat Premier Division competition by nine points, the team has been well served by the competition’s leading rink of Brett Irvine (lead), Shaun Myers (second), Chris Price (third) and Craig Hodges (skip). Under the leadership of Hodges, the rink is undefeated after six rounds and has a shot difference of plus 66, two points and 25 shots clear of nearest rival Rob Baker from Sebastopol.
Bareena’s investment in its future is paying dividends as it is a clear second on the ladder — 10 points ahead of third-placed Sebastopol.
The Bareena rinks have played positive bowls and have established the club as a premiership contender.
It is the only club to have all four skippers in the top 10 leading skips, with Ben Wilding, Brannon Shelton, Brandon Anderson and John O’Donnell playing competitively each week.
At the other end of the scale it looks like the six/four make-up of the Premier Division in Geelong’s favour may revert to five-all next season as Eastern Park and City of Geelong struggle in ninth and 10th place.
Eastern Park is 15 points behind the eighth-placed Webbcona while City of Geelong is a further 12 points back.
Matches to watch in the coming rounds include the clash between Ocean Grove and Sebastopol at the Grove and Lara versus Victoria at Lara on Saturday.
The Lara match-up will be important for the home side as it needs to break down the eight-point break between it and fourth-placed Victoria.
In Round 8 the highlight will be the top-of-the-table clash between Ocean Grove and Bareena on the Noble St green.
In Division 1, Highton dominates with its two sides sitting clear of the opposition with its No.2 team on top, losing only once, in Round 4, to St Leonards by 39 shots.
The feature of its success is mainly due to the continued efforts from its top three rinks, who have a presence in the top 10 skips ladder. Neil Jones and Ron Imanse sit second and third on the skips ladder, one point behind the evergreen Alan Sampson, from Torquay. Imanse, in particular, has been impressive in the opening rounds of this season, having been out of bowls for all of last season and moving across from Eastern Park to his new home at Highton.
Interestingly, the competition is very tough, with only Geelong Cement and Lara looking to be finding the challenges a little beyond them. Portarlington sits in eighth position on the ladder, only 13 points outside the top four.
Key fixture match-ups in the coming two rounds feature St Leonards playing Ocean Grove (2) at home in Round 7 and Torquay playing Highton (2) on the nice running Fisherman’s Beach green at Torquay. A must-win for the home sides against quality opposition. In Round 8, the clash between Highton (1) and Torquay will be the feature on the Highton green. Another must-win for Torquay in a pressure situation.