Ladies’ pairs champions crowned at Narrabri Bowling Club

Four of Narrabri Bowling Club’s best female bowlers combined to put on a spectacle in the club’s 2025/26 season women’s pairs grand final.

Long-time teammates Debbie Gleeson and Lorraine Scott added another championship to their growing tally as they defeated Eva Sadler and Lisa Pillar 21 shots to 16 in the 18-end game on Thursday afternoon.

Sadler and Pillar started strongly as they put two early points on the board after winning the first end, but Gleeson and Scott then fired back immediately as they scored four shots on the second end to take their first lead of the final.

That two-shot lead was reduced to one after Sadler and Pillar outscored their opponents three shots to two across the next four ends, but Gleeson and Scott then claimed three straight ends to lead 10 shots to five after nine ends of play.

Down but not out, Sadler and Pillar tied the match up at 10-all after scoring two shots on the 10th end and three more on the 11th, but Scott and Gleeson went on another three-end run to establish a dominant 18 shots to 10 lead with just five ends left to play.

Sadler and Pillar were not going to go down without a fight, and they won the next two ends to make the score 18 shots to 13.

However, a three on the 17th end all but sealed the win for Gleeson and Scott, and the two teams played out the final end as the score finished 21 shots to 16 in the champions’ favour.

All four local bowlers will be looking to play themselves into another final when the Narrabri Bowling Club’s women’s campaign continues on Saturday, November 8, with triples competition semi-finals from 9.30am.

Gleeson and Scott will team up with Janet Coleman to challenge Sadler, Glennis Godden and Di Chessells, while Pillar will team up with Janice Foxe and Rebecca Taylor to meet Ronnie Dewar, Marie Redman and Cindy Neil.

The final of that competition is expected to be held the following Saturday, November 15, and that is expected to be the last day of competition bowls in the calendar year for the local ladies.

There were only five teams in the triples competition this season, which got underway last Thursday as Dewar, Redman and Neil beat Trish Allison, Rhonda Fitzgerald and Lyn Tuckey 21 shots to 17.

Social bowls was also played at the club last Thursday. David Briggs and Stuart Coleman defeated Di Chessells and Keith Stoltenberg 21-10 in three-bowl pairs, and Dee Fletcher, Kay Carolan and Tony Redman downed Janet Coleman, Glennis Godden and Steve Daskey 25-9 in three-bowl triples.

There will be no local club games played this Saturday, November 1, as several Narrabri bowlers are travelling to Bingara to play in the Bowls NSW State Mixed Pairs qualifying event.

Cindy Neil will team up with Tony Redman, Eva Sadler will team up with Dave Dewar, Lisa Pillar will partner Lightning Ridge’s Adam Webb, and Rebecca Taylor will partner Wee Waa’s Kyne Allen.

There will also be two all-Wee Waa teams as Kay Dewson teams up with her grandson Dustyn Allen, and Dustyn’s brother Brock teams up with their mother Melissa.

Next up for Narrabri Bowling Club’s men’s bowlers will be the pairs competition semi-finals on Saturday. November 8.

Stuart Coleman and Scott Dewar will challenge Tony Redman and Dave Dewar from 9.30am, and Ian Macmillan and Keith Stoltenberg will take on Larry Scott and Kevin Baguley from 1pm.