BPL18: Finals recap
The Tweed Heads Ospreys have claimed a record equalling fourth Bowls Premier League (BPL) crown after an epic victory over the Melbourne eXtreme in a final that was decided in a tense tiebreak.
Aaron Teys, Corey Wedlock, Chloe Stewart and coach Wayne Turley OAM concluded the home and away rounds in third position following an up and down morning that would see them enjoy a bye in the opening round of the finals.
Teys’ night was made even better by becoming the second player in tournament history to become a three-time MVP.
Their first opponents of the evening session would be the Adelaide Pioneers, who overcame the Gold Coast Hawks in the opening elimination final.
Tweed would enjoy a sensational display, conceding just three ends en route to the preliminary final, where they would await the victor of the eXtreme’s contest against the top of the table Moama Steamers.
After storming through the opening stanza, the Moama unnit looked on track to progress to a second successive grand final.
However, the Club Sunbury franchise of Matt Flapper, Kylie Whitehead and Ali Forsyth had other ideas, running away with the second to force a tiebreak that they would eventually claim to book passage through to the team’s second ever BPL decider.
It meant that the Steamers and Ospreys would lock horns for the honour of meeting the eXtreme in the final, and it would be Tweed who jumped out of the blocks thanks to a scintillating opening exchange.
The second saw Tweed run rampant, clinching it 10-1 to bundle the defending champions in straight sets.
Melbourne came out of the blocks firing after the bye, sealing the first set 6-4 thanks to a two on a powerplay to conclude the stanza.
Tweed would see themselves behind with an end to play in the second, but all the trio needed was a single on a powerplay to send the contest to a deciding tiebreak.
The two-bowl triples extravaganza was shot-for-shot, with Wedlock managing to send the jack to the ditch before Forsyth gained the ascendancy back.
Enter Teys, who would absolutely nail his length to force his opposing skip to use weight in an attempt to try and remove the Tweed bowl and seal the win.
A centimetre was all that separated Forsyth from glory, but it was the Ospreys who would equal the Sydney Lions with a record fourth crown.
Teys would also equal Aron Sherriff with the most titles at the event by claiming his fifth overall, while Stewart and Wedlock both earn a fourth gong at the competiton.
Sherriff and Whitehead joined the Warilla product in the BPL All Star team, with Turley anointed as the coach.
