One round remains in Narrabri Touch comps ahead of finals

There is only one round remaining before Narrabri Touch’s 2024 season two competitions arrive at their finals series, and it is an important one for all 18 teams as minor premierships and places in the post-season are up for grabs.

Round four of the graded campaign was held at the Cooma Oval fields on Monday.

Many’s Contractors and Twisted Blisters won the two A-grade ladies’ matches, Grumley Builders won their A-grade men’s game after Lations and Gee Bangers had contested a draw, Hounddogs and Golfie Gobblers won the B-grade ladies’ contests, and The Pelicans were the only winners in the B-grade men’s division after DTA Lumberjacks and Cougars drew.

In the ladies’ A-grade comp, Many’s Contractors and Twisted Blisters were dominant as they secured their places in the major semi-final.

Twisted Blisters continued their run at the top of the table when they took down the Jarfumigation Redbacks 7-2 before Many’s Contractors remained in second place when they outscored Specialised Civil 7-1.

The two top-ranked sides are locked on 10 points with one game to go and will swap opponents in round five as they look to wrap up the minor premiership.

Regardless of the results this Monday, they are guaranteed to meet in the grand final qualifier a week later.

The Redbacks and Specialised Civil are ranked third and fourth and will meet in the elimination semi-final following this Monday’s final round.

In the A-grade men’s comp, three teams entered round four locked on seven points and only one of them was victorious as Grumley Builders downed Win Or Booze 7-2. The other match saw last-placed Gee Bangers find some form as they held defending champions Lations to a 5-all draw.

Those results saw Grumley Builders finish the round one point clear of Lations and two points clear of Win or Booze.

The Gee Bangers cannot finish any higher than fourth, but the final round this Monday will see the other three teams battle it out for top spot and the two major semi-final spots.

In the B-grade ladies’ comp, Golfie Gobblers lined up for the fourth and final time in the graded campaign and scored a 7-1 win over FAFs to end the evening on top of the table.

They have a bye in round five but are guaranteed to feature in the major semi-final a week later against fellow round four winners Hounddogs, who outscored CBRE 6-2 on Monday to cement their place in the top-two, and a round five victory or draw would see them win the minor premiership.

Touch n Go had the bye in round four and remained in third place, while Monday’s losing teams CBRE and FAFs are still ranked fourth and fifth heading into the final round.

The game of the round was played in the men’s B-grade competition as DTA Lumberjacks and Cougars had a 10-all draw in their top-of-the-table clash to end the night still ranked first and second, respectively.

The other round four match saw The Pelicans take down Ballbusters 9-5.

The final round is an intriguing one for the B-grade men’s teams.

Cougars and The Pelicans are locked on eight points, two points behind the Lumberjacks, who will not pick up any points due to the bye. Cougars and Pelicans both have a superior for and against difference over the ladder leaders, so if they contest a draw when they meet in round five they would join the Lumberjacks on 10 points but would both overtake them. If a team does win that game, they would move into outright first place and the loser would settle for third, but either way, the DTA Lumberjacks cannot finish on top of the table.

The other B-grade men’s game in round five will see JWG Livewires take on Ballbusters. They are ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, locked on three points, so their match is a battle to join one of the top three teams in the minor semi-final a week later.

This season, the B-grade teams that finish fifth will be eliminated.

The draw and referee appointments for round five on Monday, November 11, are as follows:

6pm: Field one – Cougars v The Pelicans (referees – Ballbusters and JWG Livewires); field two – Grumley Builders v Lations (referees – Win Or Booze and Gee Bangers); field three – FAFs v Hounddogs (referees- CBRE and Touch n Go); field four – Redbacks v Many’s Contractors (referees – Specialised Civil and Twisted Blisters).

6.35pm: Field one – Ballbusters v JWG Livewires (referees – Cougars and The Pelicans); field two – Win Or Booze v Gee Bangers (referees – Grumley Builders and Lations); field three – CBRE v Touch n Go (referees – FAFs and Hounddogs); field four – Specialised Civil v Twisted Blisters (referees – Many’s Contractors and Redbacks).

Byes – Golfie Gobblers and DTA Lumberjacks.