Lara on the rise
Locals flex their muscles
LARA made its move on the top four of Premier bowls with a 16shot win over finals contender Sebastopol on Saturday.
Lara now sits only four points outside the top four with an important test against Ocean Grove next Saturday on its home green. It was another important step forward for the Geelong-based teams to consolidate and make it an all Geelong final four.
The win was highlighted by the win of its third rink where Travis Kelly skipped his first division one win for the season with a 31-22 win over the Rob Baker rink from Sebastopol.
Eastern Park made a strong move in its bid to avoid rel- egation with a well-earned 11shot win over Webbcona.
The return of Stewart Williams to Eastern Park had instant success with the Williams rink taking a solid eight shot win over the Anthony Wood rink.
Bareena kept its winning run in order with another top 47shot clean sweep points win over City of Geelong.
The highlight of the afternoon came from the number three rink where John O’Donnell skipped a commanding 31shot win over the James Dahler rink. It was an awesome display of bowling from Tonia Doyle (lead), Rob Priddle (second) and Dan Priddle (third) with O’Donnell skipping in a competitive and controlled manner.
Reigning premier Queenscliff confirmed third position on the ladder with a 40-shot win over Victoria in a sign of its continued good form. All four rinks won comfortably on the day with the Steve Sullivan rink in top form with its 22-shot win over the Barry Clark rink.
The skill level was excellent from Ray Butler (lead), Kevin Coltish (second), Barrie Close (third) and Sullivan working his magic when needed.
Ocean Grove rounded off a top day for the Geelong-based clubs with a 50-shot win over BMS. Again, the rink of Brett Irvine (lead), Shaun Myers (second), Chris Price (third) and Craig Hodges (skip) held its form for its 9th win in 10 outings still sitting on top of the skips ladder by a clear two points and Ocean Grove in second place on the ladder 20 points ahead of Queenscliff in third and 20 points behind Bareena.