Tara Murray
Melton’s strong run of form continued on Saturday as it claimed another win in the Bowls Victoria weekend pennant, division 2, section 2.
Having come off a grand final appearance last season, Melton picked up where it left off and sit on top of the ladder at the halfway mark of the season, with only one loss for the season.
Melton coach Todd Trewarne said there were a number of reasons for their strong start to the season.
“Obviously hard and training and stuff is paying off,” he said. “Camaraderie is a big thing for us.
“Everyone is getting along really well and we’ve got a couple of fly in players, who bring fresh faces and a fresh mindset.
“There’s depth at the club as well. Our second side is in the same division and not as strong as the first side but there’s a lot of good players more than capable of being in the top 16 at the club.
“They are certainly putting pressure on with their performances.”
After thinking that they might not get on the green on Saturday due to rain, Melton was able to come away with another strong win, beating Moonee Valley 2, 105 (16)-78 (2).
Trewarne’s rink won 28-17, Flynn O’Shaughnessy’s rink won 22-15 while Chris Barritt-Eyles’ rink was the big winner, winning 37-20.
Trewarne said they had hit a really good run of form, dropping just two rinks in the past five weeks.
Melton sits 26 points clear of second having played every team once.
Trewarne said while they believed they were better placed than last season, they weren’t looking too far ahead.
“We sort of had a couple of things go wrong last season and had a bit of inexperience in the group,” he said.
“Having the fly in players come down, there’s a different feel and they beef us up a bit at the back end.
“We’re not looking at finals. It’s just one game at a time.”
Trewarne said things were going really well off the green for the club as well.
Melton this week host Moonee Ponds on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Bacchus Marsh continued its strong form in division 2, section 1 with a big win against Melton 2.
Bacchus Marsh controlled three of the four rinks on the way to a 100 (17)-65 (1) win.
Glenn Sargent’s rink won 30-12, Justin Webber’s rink won 33-17 and Matthew Young’s rink won 20-19.
Phil Minniti had to share the points with David George after finishing 17-all.
Bacchus Marsh sits on top of the ladder 15 points clear of Deer Park 2, having won all their matches.
Melton 2 sits in eighth spot.