#BPL11: Day 1
Day 1 of #BPL11 at Moama Bowling Club has set up what will be an enthralling week of bowls ahead, with all four BPL10 finalists sitting outside the top four after four matches.
Alex Marshall showed his class to the Moama crowd throughout the day as his Brisbane Pirates finished with three wins and one loss and an impressive shot difference of 22, 14 more than the next best.
The two Melbourne sides had contrasting starts to the event, with the Melbourne Roys putting aside the disappointment of a last-place finish at BPL10 to sit atop the table with a 3-1 win-loss record after day one, including a win over rivals Melbourne Pulse.
Despite a positive shot difference of five, Pulse managed just one win on Day 1, with two of their three losses coming in tie-breakers.
Playing in front of their home fans, Murray Steamers enjoyed a strong start, picking up three wins to set themselves up well for a crack at their second title.
Reigning champions Tweed Heads Ospreys were one of three teams to finish the first day of competition with a 2-2 record.
One of those victories came against the Sydney Lions, with the three-time champions unable to get one back on the Ospreys after their grand final loss at BPL10.
The Lions also managed to finish the day at 2-2, as did the Adelaide Pioneers, losing both their matches in tiebreaks.
Perth Suns will have plenty of work to do in the next three days if they are to repeat their efforts of a finals appearance at BPL10, going through the first day of play without a victory to their name.
Play will resume from 11am AEDT at Moama on Wednesday.
Progress results from #BPL11 below:
Round 1 –
Murray Steamers def Melbourne Roys 8-4 4-4
Brisbane Pirates def Sydney Lions 5-5 4-3
Tweed Heads Ospreys def Perth Suns 5-2 3-3
Melbourne Pulse def by Adelaide Pioneers 4-7 10-0 0-1
Round 2 –
Tweed Heads Ospreys def by Adelaide Pioneers 4-5 5-6
Murray Steamers def Melbourne Pulse 7-3 5-4
Melbourne Roys def Brisbane Pirates 6-1 5-4
Sydney Lions def Perth Suns 6-3 5-5
Round 3 –
Melbourne Pulse def Perth Suns 3-9 8-1 1-0
Melbourne Roys def Tweed Heads Ospreys 8-2 7-5
Adelaide Pioneers def by Sydney Lions 6-8 10-2 0-1
Brisbane Pirates def Murray Steamers 16-3 8-3
Round 4 –
Tweed Heads Ospreys def Sydney Lions 4-2 6-4
Melbourne Roys def Melbourne Pulse 2-8 12-8 3-0
Brisbane Pirates def Adelaide Pioneers 5-6 11-2 1-0
Murray Steamers def Perth Suns 5-1 9-1
Bowls Premier League 11 – #BPL11
February 25-28, 2020
Moama Bowling Club, NSW
Day Sessions: From 11am AEDT (Stream via Bowls Australia Facebook)
Night Sessions: From 5pm AEDT (Watch live via Fox Sports, Kayo Sports & Sky Sport NZ)
Teams
Adelaide Pioneers: Wayne Ruediger, Scott Thulborn, Bec Van Asch (Coach – Les Carter)
Brisbane Pirates: Alex Marshall, Michael Breen, Kelsey Cottrell (Dave Edwards)
Melbourne Pulse: Gary Kelly, Barrie Lester, Natasha Scott (Rob Wilson)
Melbourne Roys: Aaron Wilson, Matt Flapper, Carla Krizanic (Ian Ewing)
Murray Steamers: Ryan Bester, Michael Walker*, Jo Edwards* (David Ferguson*)
Perth Suns: Lee Schraner, Cody Packer, Kristina Krstic (Ross Dempsey*)
Sydney Lions: Aron Sherriff, Ben Twist, Karen Murphy (Steve Glasson)
Tweed Heads Ospreys: Aaron Teys, Kurt Brown, Chloe Stewart (Wayne Turley)
