Jackaroos pair cross the ditch for world title

by admin on November 24, 2013

Fisher and Murphy to battle it out in World Champion of Champion Singles With the dust only just settling over the sport’s highly acclaimed new format of competition, two of the combatants have already commenced their bid for a world title on foreign soil.
After the game-changing Australian Premier League was rolled out to an immensely positive reaction at Brisbane’s Club Pine Rivers, and shown live and replayed on Fox Sports and Sky TV NZ, world number two Karen Murphy and her 19 year-old Jackaroos teammate Dylan Fisher have made the flight across the ditch to begin their assault on the 29-nation World Champion of Champions event in New Zealand. Murphy and Fisher, who were inaugural representatives of the APL Sydney Lions and Melbourne Roys franchises respectively, both earned the right to launch their world campaigns by virtue of claiming the National Champion of Champions singles titles more than 12 months ago at the ACT’s Queanbeyan.
Held at Christchurch’s Burnside Bowling Club from November 25 to December 1, both contenders took the green for the opening rubber in the 51 player sectional event this morning.
Fisher made light work of his Maltese opponent John Borg, 8–7, 11–3, and will next encounter or Norfolk Island’s Brent Pauling and then Scotland’s Alastair White to round out his first day of play.
Murphy also joined the winners’ list, accounting for the Netherlands’ Saskia Schaft 9-1, 6–7, 6–0 in the tie-break to open proceedings. Murphy faces Singapore’s Mary Lim and South Africa’s Esme Steyn later today.
The event features 13 rounds of sectional play, with both Australian Jackaroos members receiving a bye throughout the course of the competition. The top 3 placed from each side of the draw qualify for post-sectional rounds, with the section winner advancing directly to the semi-final. Australia has enjoyed a stellar run at the World Champion of Champions since its commencement in 2003, although none in recent years, after Leif Selby claimed the nation’s first crown in 2008, Kelsey Cottrell and Brett Wilkie made it an all-Australian double in 2009, and Aron Sherriff claimed the silverware in 2010. Bowls Australia wish Karen and Dylan the best of luck in the World Champion of Champions campaigns.
Click here to follow the results of the 2013 World Champion of Champions in Christchurch, New Zealand.