Stewart and Johns lead the way
After day one of the Stuart Buttar Burnside Pairs the Australian High Performance contingent are well place to press for the desired top of the table finishes and ultimately challenge for the title.
A consistent performance from Chloe Stewart and Anne Johns on day one sees the pair sitting on top of their section having not dropped a game all day.
Stewart and Johns were challenged in their opening game, narrowly getting over the line 11-10, however in the afternoon matches the Australian pair put their foot down winning 17-10 and 23-8, and they now sit one game clear of their nearest challengers.
The Australian men have shown their skills today adapting to the New Zealand greens quickly and after 12 matches they are 11 wins and one draw and are fast becoming tournament favourites.
The pairs skipped by Matthew Flapper, Nathan Rice and Mark Casey are undefeated whilst Brett Wilkie remains in striking distance sitting in outright second with a showdown brewing in the last round with New Zealand Blackjacks, Tony Grantham and Mike Nagy who lead their section.
Ray Pearse and Matthew Flapper overcame Sheldon Bagrie-Howley and Craig Merrilees by a mere shot to take the outright lead in section one.
Dylan Fisher and Mark Casey had another convincing win and will also lead their section going into day two.
Aaron Wilson and Nathan Rice remain undefeated on +7; however they will still need to chase down Ricky Cook and Lance Pascoe who are 15 shots ahead of the Australians; all is possible for the Aussies when they meet in the final round of the section.
It has been no easy task for the Australian women who have come up against New Zealand national champions and former New Zealand internationals; however Kristina Krstic and Carla Odgers have opened their account with a four shot victory over Bowls Canterbury representatives Craig Carter and Tony Andrews.
Samantha Shannahan and Lynsey Clarke can wreak havoc tomorrow morning when they come up against their section leader aiming for their first win of the event.
There are two games left before teams are divided into new sections based on their final standings.
All first place finishers in the original sections will be placed in division one to play off against each other for the title.
For more information including the conditions of play, a full list of teams competing and current standings, please follow the link to the Burnside Bowling Club website.
Here are the Australians results from Round 3-
Ray Pearse & Matthew Flapper won 12-11
Aaron Wilson & Nathan Rice won 18-15
Dylan Fisher & Mark Casey won 18-13
Andrew Howie & Brett Wilkie won 23-4
Kristina Krstic & Carla Odgers won 16-12
Sarah Boddington & Claire Turley lost 7-16
Chloe Stewart & Anne Johns won 23-8
Sam Shannahan & Lynsey Clarke lost 16-19
