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And here we are..........everyone has had 714 chances to make a difference after R17 and some had many more ends after plenty of dead-ends but alas we are here, do or die, everything is on the line and across the entire table for 1 of the first time nearly every single position is on the line in some manner.
We could easily make a case for every game going to the home side & equally could make a very strong case for 4 of 5 away teams also winning (sorry North Beach, you have no chance) so tomorrow could swing either away across the majority of the games.
We go through it below but if certain games go the way we think they’ll go then there could be a chance for the first time ever that Finals possibly wouldn’t be needed but we’d need to check with the bosses at Bowls WA.
Our 2 best from last year in Kats & Safety Bay will come down better teams than they went up but not many can bounce back to get back up & that’s a perennial issue with the mindset.
Coming up is Kalamunda (not confirmed but let’s call it now) & North Perth, who are certainly locked in. The Cougars have been here before & we’re probably super unlucky to leave 1 White so we welcome them back with open arms. I don’t know much about the Pioneers but they have the guts of a side that could play 1 White but I would doubt they have the calibre to compete although in saying that momentum has been a massive factor over the last decade so this will help them but with 2 above coming down with ridiculously good home form & North Beach it really only leaves a handful of away games on the table.
Thank you to all our readers for the season. We loved the emails & challenges, it keeps us honest & we love the feedback. Good luck, stay healthy & take care of each other as it’s just a game at the end of the day but in R18 that might be a hard sell. We hope you enjoyed the commentary & we tried to keep it fun. Thank you and take care.
Osborne Park v Leeming
Osborne Park
Aaron Kriletich, Douglas Kelly, Bryan Hunter, Mark Rollings
George Smith, Ty Vandertogt, Pierre Geenacker, Neville Stevens
Richard Herbert, Matthew Orchard, Edan Manifis, Jeremy Thomas
Shaan Saunders, Graeme O'Neill, Helen Stevens, Pamela Chalmers INS: No changes OUTS:
The Saints not only have the faith of their own Finals in their own hands but also can decide on who wins 1 White. The 1 straight ticket to the big dance is 2.5pts in favour of the away side but the home side would love to play Finals even if they can’t go up.
The main reason I’m sticking with the home side is they won the 80-80 draw in R9 by 5-3 & probably had a few chances to really take the full Agg. Both sides are probably a little better than R9 but this will go to the wire. Cockburn have North Beach with probably the worst away record in bowls so you’d imagine they’ll be good for 8pts, meaning without 6pts here for Leeming then they’ll agonisingly stripped of their top spot on the 11th hour.
Osborne Park 6 - 2
Manning v Joondalup
Manning
Otto Dawson, Shane Adams, Allan Taylor, William Fraser
Jared Moulton, Philip Herbert, Slavko (Sam) Perica, Paul Smith
Mark Ellis, Michael Carey, Gregory Hogg, Lewis Grigg
Nigel Rees, Graham O'Brien, Joe Angel, Adam Macpherson INS: Dawson, Grigg OUTS: B Hogg, Lynch
Joondalup
Martin Cheesman, Eugene Dardengo, Jon Hunter, James Buchanan
Harry Teeuwissen, Shane Nelligan, Michael Korycin, Shane Ernest Rixom
Barry Crawford, Richard Wyatt, Roy Humfrey, Paul Kain
Brian McMurdo, Frank Tyson, Matt Sharrett, James Groves INS: Crawford OUTS: Vlahos
With 3rd v 4th this is surprisingly a massive game for both but there’s a real chance that the favourites to go up Dolphins may not even make Finals. Who would have thought that the side who dominated top spot & certainly the 2 top all season now could not make Finals & may finish in 5th, they’ll be gut wrenched if they miss Finals.
We did tip the Eagles to snatch Finals on last day & here we are, it’s time to see how good Manning are against the pressure. The Eagles deserve their 4th spot but it’s very close across mid table. Like the Saints, the Eagles would love to play Finals but what are they playing for if they can’t go up. If the Saints win & Joondalup lose, then the Dolphin’s are dramatically out of finals.
Manning 6 - 2
Cockburn v North Beach
Cockburn
Stephen West, Wayne Clegg, Jim Ricci, Marc Abonnel
Mundy Carroll, Ivan Mateljak, Josip (joe) Marevic, Tony Krajancic
Brian Blagaich, Mirko Musulin, Dinko Golem, Michael Simunovic
Ian Coyne, David Ravlich, Denis Bandy, William Tepania INS: No changes OUTS:
North Beach
Todd McMahon, Garry Booker, Steve Richards, Michael Sweeney
Tui J Niwa, Geoffrey Devenish, Richard Aitken, Steve Wood
Brent Fielding, Lee Bunney, Rhonda Prosser, Mark Douthie
Brent Palfrey, Geoffrey Watson, Jerome Clayton, Gavin Crosthwaite INS: Wood OUTS: Brown
The Titans have quietly gone about their business & even though they lived in the wrong half of the table to start the season they have watched other teams drop their bundle & they’ve chipped away grabbing a few massive away wins. It’s those away wins that’s given Cockburn a massive chance to relive the good auld days by heading back to 1 Red. How they’ll do in 1 Red is debatable but they won’t care & may get some recruits heading back to the cultural home.
North Beach have only 1 concern & that is Mossies who play away to Gosnells. There’s a good chance that Mossies may win & that puts North Beach in a Playoff to stay in 1 White when at one stage the Beach Boys looked like Finals material. Again so many things can happen but unless North Beach can get a massive Agg here they’ll roll the dice & desperately pray that the Kookaburras can do them a massive favour in knocking off Mossies 7-1. Even 2pts for Mossies would get them out of real trouble but they’ll then need Cockburn to beat North Beach 8-0, so there’s so much riding on not just teams direct results but those all around them.
Cockburn 8 - 0
Bassendean v Victoria Park Carlisle
Bassendean
David Snelgar, Brooke Chaney, Ian O'Neill, Jovan Krstic
Gregory Sadler, Alan Britton, Geoffrey Malaspina, Neil Strachan
Saffronne Alden, Nick Pleasance, Graeme Cash, John Holman
Phillip Hutchinson, Shane Colegate, Garry Atkinson, Butch Dinnison INS: Chaney OUTS: Zorich
Having nothing to play for is likely one of the most dangerous things in bowls & this is exactly where Basso sit. The opposite applies for the Reds as they are let’s say fairly desperate to grab this Agg just to stay in 1 White. Can they get to Safety, NO. Can they head to 1 Blue yes. So what do they need to do, simple, WIN.
Basso have churned out the odd solid game & had a little purple run mid-season but too little too late after a horrific start. They’ll be a real test for most 1 Blue sides next year but most of their non-PL sides are sliding the last few years & it’s unlikely to change unless there’s change & they have so much to offer as a club. Who doesn’t love to play at Basso?! I did fancy the Reds for Finals at the start of the season but they fell a long way short with only 6 wins. Some close games but just lacked that 4 strong rinks.
Bassendean 6 - 2
Gosnells v Mosman Park
Gosnells
Ian Quayle, David Bradbury, Trevor Close, Daniel Newton
Larry Paterson, Peter Gale, Mike Rickard, Eoghan Gahan
Ronald McKay, Jeff Watson, Maureen Cooney, Glenn Lynch
Michael Byrne, Stephen Lawrence, Mark Beauchamp, Rue Bishop INS: Newton, Beauchamp OUTS: Hodge, Sharpe
Mosman Park
Mario Van Bemmel, John Pallett, Damian Adams, Mitchell Cranswick
Mark Whiting, Kenneth Stower, Steven Swanson, Terry Cranswick
Aidan O'Sullivan, Robert Kershaw, Mark Robertson, Cameron Hoffman
Jason Kop, Jeffrey Adams, Christine Ace-Watson, Lisa Featherby INS: No changes OUTS:
The home side are a touch off proper screwed & even a massive 7-1 here doesn’t guarantee too much if the Reds win. They’ll need at least 7pts here hoping the Reds get max 1pt. Then they survive by 0.5pt. The problem is the Reds are playing a side already demoted with nothing to play for.
Should Mossies be playing for their survival in 1 White? Probably not but this is where they sit & there’s few else to blame other than themselves. Yes they’ve had some great games but their average has been, well, average.
Will Gosnells be playing 1 Blue next year? Likely but they have the ability to bounce back. A delicate balance for both teams as this one can tip either way. It will be very close in the end likely go to the last end in a nail biter.
