Narrabri and Wee Waa bowlers qualify for semi-finals at state pennants playoffs

Eight bowlers from Narrabri Bowling Club and Wee Waa Bowling Club went within one game of playing for a state championship at the weekend after bowling their way into Bowls NSW’s 2022/23 Women’s State Pennant semi-finals in division four.

Wee Waa Bowling Club’s Kay and Dot Dewson and Melissa Allen joined up with five Narrabri Bowling Club ladies, including former Wee Waa bowler Lisa Pillar and her clubmates Lorraine Scott, Debbie Gleeson, Mary Wheeler and Kay Carolan.

They all played brilliant bowls from Friday to Sunday and were narrowly defeated in the semi-final stage by the eventual champions Austral.

The Narrabri and Wee Waa ladies qualified for the state playoffs when they were crowned the Region 3 champions of division four last month on Tuesday and Wednesday, October 11 and 12, in Narrabri.

They were one of 16 teams that went through to the playoffs at Valentine and Marks Point in Lake Macquarie, which were split into four sections.

The Narrabri/Wee Waa team was placed into section one alongside Engadine, Austral and Cabra Vale Diggers, who played their matches at Valentine Bowling Club on Friday and Saturday to determine who would go through to the quarter-finals.

The two top-ranked teams from each section progressed, and the Wee Waa and Narrabri ladies were one of those teams after winning all three of their sectional games.

They downed Engadine 49 shots to 32 on the overall scoreboard in round one on Friday morning after Wheeler, Carolan, Gleeson and Scott won their rink 24-15 and the Dewsons, Allen and Pillar won theirs 25-17.

Round two was played later that day, and Narrabri/Wee Waa prevailed by an even greater margin as they beat Austral 56 shots to 31 on the overall scoreboard.

Wheeler, Carolan, Gleeson and Scott won 24-17 on their rink in that fixture, while the Dewsons, Allen and Pillar won 32-14 on theirs.

The Narrabri/Wee Waa team was guaranteed a top-two position on the ladder going into the third and final section one game on Saturday, but it ensured it would finish on top when it downed Cabra Vale Diggers 48 shots to 45 on the overall scoreboard.

Wheeler, Carolan, Gleeson and Scott were narrowly defeated 27-25 on their rink, but the Dewsons, Allen and Pillar won 23-18 on theirs to earn the victory.

That result saw Narrabri/Wee Waa top the sectional ladder with 14 of a possible 15 points, and Austral placed second.

The Narrabri and Wee Waa ladies took on the section two runners-up Belmont Golf and Bowls in a quarter-final game on Saturday afternoon and scored another big win to progress to the semi-finals.

They downed the Belmont ladies 48 shots to 33 on the overall scoreboard after Wheeler, Carolan, Gleeson and Scott won their rink 22-18 and the Dewsons, Allen and Pillar won theirs 26-15.

The Narrabri/Wee Waa team met some familiar faces in the semi-final when it took on Austral, which it had already beaten in a section one game.

Austral downed section two winners Young 39 shots to 37 overall in their quarter-final to set up a rematch with the Narrabri/Wee Waa ladies and play for a spot in the decider.

In a tight semi-final, Austral won the contest 42 shots to 38 on the overall scoreboard to advance.

Wheeler, Carolan, Gleeson and Scott were edged out 18-17 on their rink, while the Dewsons, Allen and Pillar lost 24-21 on theirs.

Austral went on to demolish section three winners Bourke 50 shots to 26 in the final to be crowned the division four champions.

Meanwhile, the Region 3 champions in division three, Narrabri Bowling Club’s Marie Redman, Cecile, Cindy Neil, Lyn Wedesweiler, Di Chessells, Ronnie Dewar, Eva Sadler and Helen Woodward, were also in action in Bowls NSW’s 2022/23 women’s state pennant playoffs.

They played at Bomaderry Bowling Club and went down in all three of their sectional games, which meant they missed out on the quarter-final stage.

Narrabri was placed into section three in division three alongside The Rules Club Wagga, Matraville RSL and NSSC Dalmeny.

In round one on Friday morning, the Narrabri ladies took on The Rules Club Wagga.

Dewar, Chessells, Woodward and Sadler played out a 23-all draw on their rink, while Redman, Cecile, Neil and Wedesweiler went down 25-20 on theirs as the Wagga club won 48 shots to 43 on the overall scoreboard.

Narrabri then challenged the NSSC Dalmeny team that afternoon and went down 55 shots to 29 overall.

Redman, Cecile, Wedesweiler and Neil lost 22-14 on their rink and their teammates Dewar, Chessells, Woodward and Sadler lost 33-15 on theirs.

Narrabri then went head-to-head with Matraville in the third and final sectional match and was defeated 47 shots to 37 overall.

Dewar, Chessells, Woodward and Sadler won their rink 22 shots to 19, and Redman, Cecile, Wedesweiler and Neil went down 28-15.

Those results saw Narrabri finish at the bottom of its sectional ladder on one-and-a-half points.

That division was eventually won by Yamba, which finished on top of the ladder of section two and then won 35 shots to 34 against The Hills District in the quarter-final, 45 shots to 37 against St George Basin CC in the semi-final, and 42 shots to 36 against Parkes Bowling and Sport in the final.

The division one champions in Port Macquarie were Cabramatta, which downed Warilla 51 shots to 22 in the decider, and the division two winners in Taren Point were Kurri Kurri, which beat the hosts 43 shots to 23 in the final.