bowls australia nationals 2023
National, The Mercury, Updates

Bowls Australia Nationals – Progress Report

A report for The Mercury by Peter Kirby

Bowls Australia’s Nationals, being held in Perth, Western Australia this year, is a two-week festival of bowls with the Australian Champion of Champions Singles, Para Nationals, Australian Under 18’s Championships, Australian Sides and Senior (Over 60’s) Sides Championships, and Australian Singles, Pairs, Mixed Pairs, Triples and Fours Championships being contested over two weeks, from 6 to 20 October.

Lee Shraner, a former member of the Glenorchy Rodman and Rosny Park Bowls Clubs and now a member of the Raymond Terrace Bowls Club, NSW, won his fourth Australian Men’s Champion of Champions Singles title, having previously won in 2017, 2018 (both when representing Tasmania), and 2021 (representing Victoria). The only other multiple winner is Scott Thulborn, who won back-to-back titles in 2014-15. Rae Simpson (Bowls North) finished a creditable fourth in the Women’s Champion of Champions Singles event.

Jacob Sheerin-Wall (Glenorchy Rodman), representing Tasmania in the Para Nations Men’s Singles B7/8, played exceptionally to win all three games in his section to progress to the knockout stage, losing his quarter final match to the eventual winner, Christopher Favel (SA). Unfortunately, Tasmania’s U/18 could not repeat their success from the 2022 Nationals when they won the Boys Overall title, with Victoria the Overall winners this year.

The Australian Seniors Sides Championships concluded on Wednesday 11 October with Tasmania’s Men’s and Women’s sides finishing in sixth place out of eight, just one point shy of fourth spot. The Men’s side won three of their seven matches, defeating the ACT, Northern Territory and South Australia. Tony Vince (Beltana) and his rink of Pat Saltmarsh (NW), Stephen Graf (Sandy Bay) and Shane Young (Beltana) had an excellent tournament, winning five of their seven matches, resulting in each member of the team being ranked third overall in their respective positions. Lyn Triffett (Brighton), and Jeanette Lane (Buckingham) were the best performed skips for our Senior Women, finishing 14th and 16th respectively, of the 24 skips in the competition.

Four of the seven rounds of the Australian Sides Championships have been completed, and the Tasmanian Men’s side is in fifth place, currently, and has the chance to move up the ladder, if the side can win its final three games, against South Australia (7th), ACT (4th) and Victoria (6th). The Tasmanian Women’s side is languishing in last position and any chance of advancing rests on the result of its Round 5 match against South Australia.

The Australian Championships, the Men’s and Women’s Singles, Pairs, Triples and Fours, and Mixed Pairs, 17-20 October, are the final events of Bowls Australia’s 2023 Nationals. The Tasmanian bowls community will have fingers crossed in the hope that Robert McMullen (Bowls North) can repeat his heroics from last year and defend his Australian Men’s Singles title.