BPL17 teams announced
Following the recent conclusion to the 16th edition of the Bowls Premier League (BPL), the teams for BPL17 in Moama have been submitted with two playing and coaching changes respectively.
On the green, three-time champion and Right at Home Australian Jackaroo Chloe Stewart returns for the Tweed Heads Ospreys in place of Kira Bourke.
Stewart, a pivotal member of the Ospreys’ historic BPL10, 12 and 13 triumphs, missed BPL16 due to work commitments but the Club Tweed stalwart will rejoin coach Wayne Turley OAM and her MVP winning teammates in Aaron Teys and Corey Wedlock on the Murray come February 20 next year.
The other change on the green comes from the Tasmania Tridents, who will bring in Michael Sims for foundation franchise member Mark Nitz.
Sims will make Tridents history as the first player to be brought in to the team following the team’s inception into the BPL at the commencement of BPL14 earlier this year.
The 26-year-old brings a wealth of state experience to the tournament having been a state representative since 2013.
In addition, he is a multiple winner of Bowls Tasmania’s Male Bowler of the Year award and the 2014 the Bowls Australia Under-18 Male Bowler of the Year.
Sims will combine with Taelyn Male and two-time BPL All Star Rebecca Van Asch.
Following a runner-up showing at Club Pine Rivers last month, the Adelaide Pioneers have made a coaching change with John ‘Enry’ Higgins replacing an unavailable Les Carter.
The playing trio remains the same, with two-time MVP Scott Thulborn, Wayne Ruediger and Katelyn Inch all returning for the South Australian franchise.
Following an agonising defeat at the hands of the Pioneers in the preliminary final at BPL16, the Moreton Bay Pirates have swapped their coaching position with Ryan Burnett taking over from Michael Breen.
Burnett has previously coached in the tournament with two stints at the Moama Steamers, guiding them to the BPL14 decider where they fell in a tie-break to the Sydney Lions.
The Pirates retain the playing threesome of Alex Marshall, Jo Edwards and Chris Rosanes.
Two-time defending champions the Melbourne Pulse remain unchanged as Ellen Ryan, Barrie Lester and BPL All Star Gary Kelly looking to achieve the second three-peat in tournament history with Jeremy Henry at the helm.
The Steamers have retained the services of coach Kevin Anderson, five-time MVP Aron Sherriff, two-time MVP Ryan Bester and Cassandra Millerick, while the Lions remain unchanged as four-time champion Karen Murphy, Ben Twist and Aaron Wilson join their coach Steve Glasson OAM.
Carla Krizanic, Matt Flapper and Ali Forsyth return for the Melbourne eXtreme and will again be guided by Kelvin Kerkow OAM, while the Perth Suns keep the services of Kristina Krstic, Cody Packer, Blake Nairn and coach Pieter Harris.
The Gold Coast Hawks will also bring the same squad to Moama in February, with Kelsey Cottrell, Nathan Rice and Shannon McIlroy itching to get the franchise back into the finals with Anthony Kiepe at the helm.
BPL17 is scheduled for February 20-24, 2023, with 24 hours of live broadcast on Fox Sports, Kayo and Sky Sports NZ across Tuesday to Friday evenings from 4pm-10pm AEDT, 3pm-9pm AEST.
See below for the full ins and outs for each BPL franchise:
Adelaide Pioneers: Scott Thulborn, Wayne Ruediger, Katelyn Inch
Coach: John Higgins
In: Higgins (Coach)
Out: Les Carter (Coach)
Moreton Bay Pirates: Alex Marshall, Jo Edwards, Chris Rosanes
Coach: Ryan Burnett
In: Burnett (Coach)
Out: Breen (Coach)
Gold Coast Hawks: Shannon McIlroy, Kelsey Cottrell, Nathan Rice
Coach: Anthony Kiepe
No Change
Melbourne eXtreme: Carla Krizanic, Matthew Flapper, Ali Forsyth
Coach: Kelvin Kerkow
No Change
Melbourne Pulse: Barrie Lester, Gary Kelly, Ellen Ryan
Coach: Jeremy Henry
No Change
Moama Steamers: Ryan Bester, Cassandra Millerick, Aron Sherriff
Coach: Kevin Anderson
No Change
Perth Suns: Blake Nairn, Kristina Krstic, Cody Packer
Coach: Pieter Harris
No Change
Sydney Lions: Karen Murphy, Ben Twist, Aaron Wilson
Coach: Steve Glasson
No Change
Tasmania Tridents: Rebecca Van Asch, Taelyn Male, Michael Sims
Coach: Mark Strochnetter
In: Sims
Out: Mark Nitz
Tweed Heads Ospreys: Aaron Teys, Corey Wedlock, Chloe Stewart
Coach: Wayne Turley
In: Stewart
Out: Kira Bourke
