Contested last week at Berry and Bomaderry bowling clubs The Merimbula ladies breezed through their section only to come up short in the final against Park Beach on Thursday.

The opening round of play saw a tough match up against local club and one of the event favourites Nowra. The Merimbula Dolphins opened up a sizable lead in the early part only for Nowra to cut the deficit back to a handful with several ends remaining.

Over the concluding ends it was the cool head of Glenda Savill along with her team of Joy Scott, Alison Hof and Marg Phillistin that steadied the ship to ensure the win.

With a bye in round two the Merimbula team continued battle on the second day of competition when they faced Forbes.

The Merimbula ladies were in devastating form from the outset with both rinks recording strong victories to put some well needed percentage in the bank.

Round four saw a showdown against pre tournament favourites Neutral Bay with the winner to take the box seat in the race to win the section.

With Cheryl Chase and her team of Gwen Schell, Felicity White and Kerrie Burns bursting out of the blocks Merimbula created early scoreboard pressure on their Sydney based opponents.

Over the ensuing ends Glenda Savill’s quartet started to join the party but whilst they opened up a sizable gap Chase’s opponent was trying every trick in the book to cut the margin.

Over the concluding stages Savill held sway however and despite Neutral Bays best efforts the Merimbula girls secured the section with a round remaining.

The final sectional game acted as somewhat of a practice run as the Merimbula squad faced Davistown RSL.

Cheryl Chase’s team hit the ground running displaying great skill as they demolished the opposition. Whilst Savill’s team had a tough game on their rink the solid 20 shot overall margin set the Merimbula girls up well for the grand final the following morning.

With Merimbula securing the bye through to the state final, Park Beach faced Commercial club Albury in the semi final on Wednesday afternoon.

In the early stages it was all Albury as they opened up a 21-6 lead across the green. In a remarkable come back however Park Beach managed to rally and across the period of a dozen ends reversed the lead to score an amazing 25 shots to one.

In the final ends Albury showed great heart managing to place themselves only two shots in arrears on the final end. With Park Beach holding one shot and only one Albury bowl remaining a well played running shot made contact with the shot bowl but with jack catching a back bowl was only good enough to secure a singe shot advancing Park Beach to the final against Merimbula by the barest of margins.

In the final it was Park Beach from the outset. As if the scare from the day prior had possessed the Coffs Harbour based bowlers, they were leaving nothing to chance.

The Merimbula girls toiled hard throughout the final but unfortunately Park Beach had the answers on the day securing the victory and the 2016 State Grade 2 pennant.

This year has seen a breakout season for Merimbula bowls with the men claiming the NSW grade 2 & 6 state flags along with the ladies Runners Up flag. With only 11 state pennants up for grabs, Merimbula’s performance places them as the most successful pennant club in the state for the 2016 season.

Anyone wishing to come down and try bowls at Club Sapphire Merimbula can contact their Bowls Development Officer Michael Wilks at mwilks@clubsapphire.com.au or can contact the club on 6495 5200. A variety of fun social activities are available throughout the year which cater for the most social of people to those who enjoy the competitive aspect.