BPL Cup a winner in the Hunter
Another exciting story on the success so far of the 2019 BPL Cup below. For more infomation about the event, venue locations, draws/results and team registrations, click here!
Located in the Upper Hunter of New South Wales, Aberdeen Bowling Club recently hosted their first ever BPL Cup event, with eight teams from surrounding clubs.
The bowlers involved were a good mix of gender and experience, representing the highest number of teams of all BPL Cup rounds taking place that weekend across the country.
The event was played with two sections of four, with the section winners squaring off in the final.
As this was the clubs first introduction to BPL Cup, Regional Bowls Manager Mark Whiteman attended the event to ensure the club, players and spectators knew exactly what the event was all about.
Games started on time at 10am with teams playing two games before a break for lunch. The third game after lunch decided who the section winners were and in section one, the Scone Bowling Club team skipped by Elizabeth Hillier, bowled consistently and enjoyed three wins.
In section two there were 3 teams that finished with 2 wins so it came down to sets won and score difference to decide the winner, which was the local Aberdeen team, skipped by Graham Tickle.
Teams thoroughly enjoyed the short, fun format, though it took some getting used to not rolling jacks and using power plays for some!
In the final, the undefeated Scone team were narrowly beaten in the first set 7-5 but bounced back in the second set with a great power play conversion that took them to an 11-1 win.
The match tie-break end produced some good draw bowls with the shot bowl changing consistently, with Aberdeen holding shot and one bowl left for Scone to win the game, the home side came out on top.
Aberdeen team won the game and in the process, qualified for the Regional Final, one step closer to the National Finals in November at Club Pine Rivers!
Thanks also to Aberdeen Bowling Club, Gary and Pam Watson and club members for being great hosts. All other teams that played in this event still have the chance to qualify for a regional final as they are eligible to enter other events. Scone and Lorn Park teams indicated that they were not finished with this event just yet and we look forward to their involvement in another event.
Contribution by Mark Whiteman – Regional Bowls Manager (Newcastle/Central Coast/Hunter & Manning)
What is the BPL Cup?
Over the past five years, Bowls Australia has successfully staged nine Bowls Premier League (BPL) events.
In 2014, Bowls Australia also launched a new national participation initiative, Jack Attack, which is played at over 200 venues.
The BPL Cup marries the two products together to strengthen the correlation between the bowls that viewers see on television and the format of bowls offered at Clubs.
The BPL Cup provides an opportunity for Club based teams to progress through various rounds to National Finals, to be played in parallel with the BPL10 competition (at Club Pine Rivers, Queensland) from November 12-15, 2019.
