MOULAMEIN almost caused the boilover of the 2022-23 Murray Valley Bowls Division on Saturday, losing 69-70 against powerhouse Murray Downs.
Moulamein won two of the three rinks but fell short in the contest on rink one, where Brian Lehmann’s team defeated Dennis Compton’s side 28-16.
Lake Boga just held on to third place from Swan Hill and the pair will face each other in an elimination final this weekend.
Premiership favourites Murray Downs finished top, with their bogey side Racecourse sitting second and setting up a blockbuster qualifying final.
Racecourse is peaking at the right time, having gone undefeated in their past seven matches.
This form was on full display on Saturday as they dismantled a tricky opponent in Lake Boga 93 shots to 48.
Top-of-the table Murray Downs will be nervous after losing their previous two contests against Racecourse – their only defeats of the season.
Racecourse Bowls Club president Norm Smith said the group’s confidence was sky high as they pressed for a grand final berth after just falling short in the previous few years.
“We’ve done very well since Christmas – beating Murray Downs on the way through was a good effort – so things are looking good,” he said.
Finals are different, but Smith is confident the form his side has shown since Christmas will stack up when it matters.
“We’re more than happy with how we’ve led into it,” he said.
“Hopefully, we’ve improved enough to take it up to Murray Downs in the finals like we did during the regular season and give them a run for it.”
After losing his rink a fortnight ago in the win over Moulamein, Smith and his side bounced back at the weekend, defeating Ken Hamill’s team 24 shots to 17.
Robert Hayes’ team of Graham Bennett, Dylan Weaver and Kaye Roberts were the most impressive, however, demolishing their opponents 41-10.
Nyah District ended their winless season with an 84-47 loss to Swan Hill.
