Eight locals will contest the Bowls Queensland Junior State Championships in Bundaberg starting this Sunday.
Co-hosts Burnett Bowls Club will have eight representatives in the mix when the 2024 Bowls Queensland Junior State Championships are contested there and at Across The Waves (ATW) Bowls Club from this Sunday through to Friday.
Chaz Doherty will fly the local flag in Under-12, with Connor Doherty, Jamieson Morgan and Marley Peters in U15 Boys, Rebekah Blackley in U15 Girls, Phoebie Russell in U18 Girls and Christian McLellan and Zedd Peters in U18 Boys.
Phoebie claimed two bronze medals at last year’s championships, also in Bundaberg, in U15 Pairs with Mia Haylock (Roma) and Girls U15 Singles, and she and Christian were also part of the team which was beaten in the Fours bronze medal match.
Jamieson clinched a glorious gold in the U15 Pairs last year, together with Latrell Lawton, of Charleville.
Phoebie faces a tough task in U18 Girls Singles this time, up against the likes of defending champion Stella Palmer (Roma) and 2023 bronze medallist Sophie Allan, of Helensvale, and 2023 U15 Girls Singles victor Mia Haylock.
Riley Gerick, of Capalaba, who represented Belmont Services 12 months ago, will be hoping to improve on his U18 Boys Singles bronze medal behind his brother Cody, and also defend the Fours and Triples titles which he won with Cody and sister Lacey, with Travis Pearce, the other member of their Fours triumph.
The Official Welcome will take place at Burnett Bowls Club on Sunday at 8 am, followed by Fours Sectional Play from 8.30 am, then Semi-Finals.
Pairs Sectional Play will start at both Burnett and ATW at 8.30 am Monday, with Post-Sectional competition to follow at Burnett.
Tuesday will feature Pairs Semi-finals at Burnett from 8.30 am, leading into Finals, then in the afternoon, Triples Knockout Round 1 will take place, followed by Fours Finals.
On Wednesday, Triples Knockout Round 2 will take centre-stage at Burnett at 8.30 am, before Quarter and Semi-Finals are contested.
Singles will fire up on Thursday, with U18 Boys and U15 Boys Sectional at Burnett at 8.30 am, then Post Sectional and U18 Girls Sectional, U15 Girls Round Robin and U12 Sectional, all at ATW at 8.30am, prior to U18 Girls Semi-Finals.
Burnett will be the venue for all Friday’s fest starting at 8.30am, with U12, U18 Boys, and U15 Boys Semis, followed by Finals and U18 Girls Finals and U15 Girls Round Robin.
A total of 77 players from throughout the state will battle it out across the five divisions.
Spectators are welcome throughout the tournament, and admission is free.
If you cannot attend, you will be able to watch the action with games on designated greens live streamed daily on Bowls Qld YouTube, website and Facebook.
Cricket
With just six points separating first and third on the Rum City Foods Division 1 Premiership ladder, reigning champions Brothers must beat Easts Magpies in a one-day clash to retain first place when fixtures resume after the Christmas-New Year recess at Salter Oval tomorrow at 11 am.
Meanwhile Waves should again have too many guns for the beleaguered Norths.
Brothers retained top spot on 48 points despite a last-start outright loss to Waves in the second of three two-days rounds, with the Blue and Golds moving to 46 points to consolidate second place, while Easts Magpies are now on 42 points following successive outright victories over Waves and Norths respectively, with the winless Norths yet to open their account and already out of finals contention.
With just five one-day and one two-day rounds remaining, the battle looks set to go down to the wire for the Minor Premiership and direct passage to the Grand Final on 16 March, and second and third positions with those teams to battle it out in the Semi-Final one week earlier.
Brothers have beaten Easts in their three one-day clashes so far, but the Magpies have been very competitive in each, and they are going from strength to strength.
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