Media Release – Tasmania Tridents finish national Bowls Premier League on a high
The Tasmania Tridents finished Bowls Australia’s Bowls Premier League on a high defeating two of the top three teams on the final day of the competition on Friday at Club Pine Rivers in Brisbane but it was not enough to grab a finals berth, finishing in a creditable eighth position and just one win out of the top five – just one win less that in the last edition of Bowls Premier League when they finished in fourth position. Of note, the Trident defeated every team in the top five except the eventual winner Melbourne Pulse.
The Bowls Premier League is the sport’s made-for-television, showpiece event. Staged biannually, at Queensland’s Club Pine Rivers in November and New South Wales/Victoria border club Moama in February, the event has been designed to change people’s perception of the sport. The Bowls Premier League is the Twenty20 of bowls – it is fast, it is loud, it attracts the world’s best bowlers, and it appeals to non-bowlers who once upon a time may have seen bowls in a different light.
The Tasmania Tridents had an all-Tasmanian line-up headlined by dual Commonwealth Games gold medallist and world champion Rebecca Van Asch, alongside the experienced hand of former Australian Indoor Championships runner-up and current Tasmanian Champion of Champions winner Mark Nitz and current Tasmanian Fours Championship winner Taelyn Male, with one-time Australian Jackaroo Mark Strochnetter assuming the coaching duties.
The grand final was taken out by Melbourne Pulse who are back-to-back champions after defeating Adelaide Pioneers in straight sets 6-3 and 10-1. Adelaide Pioneers finished in fourth place after the round-robin games but defeated Moama Steamers, Sydney Lions and top-side Moreton Bay Pirates to get into the grand final.
Star Tasmanian Trident player Rebecca Van Asch was named the best female bowler of the competition for the second event in a row – and a member of the coveted all-stars team alongside Gary Kelly from Melbourne Pulse and Corey Wedlock from Tweed Heads Osprey.
