WA v QLD Test Series at Rossmoyne BC
First Test starts tonight at 6! The Rossmoyne Bowling Club will be the centre of attention on Friday the 26th July and Saturday 27th July when the Queensland Men’s and Women’s State teams arrive to take on the best of Western Australian Bowls in a three-game Test Series.
The Queensland Men have named a similar squad that took to the greens in the recent National Sides Championships. Brett Wilkie makes his return after being unavailable for the Championships and will take the place of Australian Selector Kelvin Kerkow. Wilkie will skip the experienced rink of Sean Baker, Anthony Kiepe and Dean McWhinney. As well as Wilkie, both Baker and Kiepe have represented Australia and have been the backbone of many of Queensland’s test series over the past decade. The second Queensland rink will be skipped by former Commonwealth Games Medalist and current Australian Squad member, Nathan Rice. Rice will have with him Australia A Squad member Anthony Fantini, recent Australian Development Trans Tasman team member Sean Ingham and the talented Helensvale player Mark Thatcher. The third Queensland rink may have the least recognised names but has just as much quality. Skip Alex Murtagh has been in the Australian High Performance system in the past and will mould his team of Robert Wild, Des Cann and Darren Mullens into a highly skilled and professional unit.
The three-test series shapes as the first step for the Western Australian Men to re-establish them selves as a power state. Stay tuned for the Western Australian Men’s playing rinks to be named in the coming weeks.
The Queensland Women have made four changes to the team that represented them at the National Sides Championships. Queensland will be looking to turn the tables on the Western Australian Women as the WA girls dominated the game between the states at the Championships by more than doubling the Queensland score.
Queensland will again be lead by Australian captain Lynsey Clarke née Armitage when she brings her rink of Charlie Harkness, Bolivia Millerick and Australia A Squad member Kristy Thatcher to the Rossmoyne Bowling Club. Queensland Skip Tracy Foster will hope her new look rink of Christina Pavlov, Yvonne Lovelock and Sue Brady can fire up and get the job done in her battle with the Western Australians. While Skip Louise Witton has kept her third Pamela Rowe from the Championships but has added Emma Brown and the talented Natasha Jones to the front end of her rink.
After a surprisingly poor National Sides Championship, the Western Australian Women will be looking to get things back on track in the upcoming series. Like the Western Australian Men, they will name their rinks in the coming weeks.
QLD Women:
Lynsey Clarke (s), Charlie Harkness, Bolivia Millerick, Kristy Thatcher;
Tracy Foster (s), Christina Pavlov, Yvonne Lovelock, Sue Brady;
Louise Witton (s), Pamela Rowe, Emma Brown, Natasha Jones
WA Women (from): Noelene Abe, Rinske Butcher, Pam Chalmers Rechelle Cole, Lisa Featherby, Kathy Gobbart, Therese Hastings, Shenayde Heldt, Robyn Jolly, Kristina Krstic, Laura Merz, Robyn O’Brien, Bianca-Rose Riseborough, Kelli Rogalski, Melissa Solly, Helen Stevens
Please click here for the nominated Women’s sides.
QLD Men: Brett Wilkie (s), Sean Baker, Anthony Kiepe, Dean McWhinney;
Nathan Rice (s), Anthony Fantini, Sean Ingham, Mark Thatcher;
Alex Murtagh (s), Robert Wild, Des Cann, Darren Mullens
WA Men (from): Clive Adams, Matthew Ayres, Bill Brandsma, John Goddard, Lewis Grigg, Shane Knott, Thomas Mitchell, Justin Opie, Daniel Patterson, Anthony Provost, David Rankin, Luke Richardson, Mark Simpson, Charlie Slavich, John Slavich, Travis Vallance
Please click here for the nominated Men’s sides.
