Tasmania will take part in bowls’ showpiece television event, the Bowls Premier League (BPL), with the Tasmania Tridents once again competing in a ten-team competition for BPL#18.
The BPL 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 was designed to change people’s perception of our sport. The BPL is the Twenty20 of bowls – it’s fast, it’s 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.
It is Bowls Tasmania policy that Tasmania Tridents players must be resident and playing pennant in Tasmania. As part of its rotation policy to expose the top Tasmanian players to one of the highest profile competitions in Australia, Trevallyn’s Michael Sims joined dual Commonwealth Games gold medallist and world champion Rebecca Van Asch, alongside current Tasmanian Fours Championship winner Taelyn Male, with one-time Australian Jackaroo Mark Strochnetter assuming the coaching duties for BPL#17. Burnie’s Mark Nitz was the unlucky player to miss selection in BPL#18.
The three-pronged Tridents moniker was chosen to represent the three regions of Tasmania and the three Tasmanian players that will carry the state’s hopes on the national stage.
Tasmania has long wanted to be part of the BPL competition to promote ourselves on the sport’s biggest stage. The provision of a pathway for bowlers in the state to progress their bowls and aspire for greater rewards has been limited in the past; the Bowls Premier League now provides that vehicle for which we can now showcase the tremendous talent that we have in our state.
Teams for BPL#18 (NOT YET CONFIRMED):
Adelaide Pioneers: Scott Thulborn, Wayne Ruediger, Katelyn Inch (Coach – Les Carter)
Moreton Bay Pirates: Alex Marshall MBE, Chris Rosanes, Jo Edwards MNZM (Coach – Michael Breen)
Gold Coast Hawks: Shannon McIlroy, Nathan Rice, Kelsey Cottrell (Coach – Steven Tong)
Melbourne eXtreme: Ali Forsyth, Matt Flapper, Carla Krizanic (Coach – Kelvin Kerkow OAM)
Melbourne Pulse: Barrie Lester, Gary Kelly, Ellen Ryan (Coach – Jeremy Henry)
Moama Steamers: Ryan Bester, Aron Sherriff, Natasha Van Eldik (Coach – Ryan Burnett)
Perth Suns: Cody Packer, Dawn Hayman, Kristina Krstic (Coach – Pieter Harris)
Sydney Lions: Ben Twist, Aaron Wilson, Karen Murphy AM (Coach – Steve Glasson OAM)
Tasmania Tridents: Taelyn Male, Michael SIms, Rebecca Van Asch (Coach – Mark Strochnetter)
Tweed Heads Ospreys: Aaron Teys, Corey Wedlock, Chloe Stewart (Coach – Wayne Turley OAM)
The event will be shown live on Fox Sports, Kayo and Sky Sport NZ from 4pm-10pm AEST each night from 21 – 24 February 2023, with additional Rinkside Live live-streaming through Facebook during the daytime rounds.
BPL#18 SCHEDULE OF PLAY – COMING SOON
BPL#18 TASMANIA TRIDENTS TELEVISION SCHEDULE – COMING SOON
BPL#18 TASMANIA TRIDENTS LIVE STREAMING SCHEDULE – COMING SOON
TASMANIA TRIDENTS MERCHANDISE – Click HERE
BPL#18 RESULTS – COMING SOON
If you aren’t lucky enough to be at Moama to watch our very own Tasmania Tridents in action at BPL#18, you can follow every game they play and see how they are going, end by end, using the new Bowls Now app.
