RACECOURSE Bowls Club will look to end 17 years of heartbreak on Saturday against rivals Murray Downs in the Murray Valley Bowls Division 1 grand final.
The long time between drinks for the green and white has reached drought proportions.
Forever the bridesmaid and never the bride, they’ll rarely get a better chance than this – on their home rink against a side they’ve troubled all season.
RBC president Norm Smith said the powerhouse club had been putting pieces in place for a premiership tilt over the previous few years, and this season showed the fruits of their labour.
“We’ve been trying to get a good enough team to be there and now that we have it, it’s just all about playing to our ability on the day,” Smith said.
“The club would be thrilled to bits if we can lift the cup – it’s what we’ve been striving for.”
It’s set to be a massive day at RBC, with all four grand finals at the venue, including another Racecourse v Murray Downs match-up in Division 2.
Smith was expecting a big crowd, but the class of his opponents should negate any home rink advantage they might have.
“There’ll be a lot of people there, and we’re hoping to finish off the year perfectly with three flags and then a couple more in Midweek Pennant,” he said.
“I don’t believe the rinks have a big bearing on the outcome – good bowlers can handle any greens, and that’s exactly what Murray Downs are.”
Murray Downs, the competition’s other powerhouse club, knows the feeling of falling at the final hurdle.
In 2020 and 2021, they lost to Swan Hill in the grand final on extra ends.
They avenged those defeats last season, beating the Swans to claim the cup.
While Murray Downs has had plenty of success over the past decade, a loss on Saturday would mean the dominant club over the previous four years will only have one flag to show for it.
MDBC president Garry McCaig said this, and a new batch of hungry players, are driving them to fulfil the dynasty.
“We’ve got four new players that haven’t got a flag with us,” he said.
“Last year, we had Kevin Rowe come over from Racecourse and it was a big drive for us to win a flag for him, like it is with Ray Wilson, Ray Halligan, Matt O’Bree and Peter Brook this year.
“The enthusiasm and excitement is still there – we feel we’re stronger than last season.”
The contest was set up perfectly, with the two sides holding an even 2-2 record against each other this season.
A fortnight ago, Murray Downs won a tight match in the second semi-final 69-60. That game gave confidence to both sides.
Smith said Murray Downs’ experience will be a point of difference but believed that if his side played their best bowls, they can usurp the defending champions.
“They won it last year and know all about it, whilst we haven’t been there for a while,” he said.
“If we play to our best, we believe we’re good enough to match them.
“We’ve got to win all three rinks – last time we won two and still went down – we’ve got to all be playing well.”
McCaig was calling on his players to be ready for the biggest game of all.
“It’s grand final day – you don’t need to be fired up for that by anybody, you should be able to get the adrenaline running yourself,” he said.
