Melton produced a brilliant comeback to collect a vital win against Elsternwick in the Bowls Victoria metropolitan pennants on Saturday.
Going into the match at Melton, the two sides occupied third and fifth on the division 1 section 2 ladder, but lower-ranked Elsternwick made the better start.
The visitors led by as many as 16 shots throughout the afternoon before Melton mounted its challenge and stormed back to collect the 14-79 to 4-72 win.
Melton club secretary John Adams said it was a great result.
“It was a game we had to win and we were down and out,” he said. “We were five down at afternoon tea and then they got out to about a 16-shot lead. But we just kept encouraging each other and slowly but surely it turned and I think we hit the front with about five ends to go.
“The home ground advantage helped us and we were really playing percentage shots.
“Once we started to come back I think they tightened up a bit.
“They weren’t getting the shots they’d been getting and things just fell into place for us.”
The win gives Melton some all-important breathing space in what is a congested division 1 competition.
Melton retains third spot on the ladder on 87 points, behind Altona (2) on 124 and Werribee on 93.
The club is five points clear of fourth-placed Donvale and 18 points clear of Essendon in fifth.
With only the top four teams making finals, Adams said his club needed to win at least one of its next two away games to further strengthen its position.
“Now we will go out to Eltham and then to Berwick, so back-to-back away games,” he said.
“If we can win both those away games we should be nearly right for finals. We need to make sure we get at least one of them.
“We’ve never played Eltham. I think they have a carpet [green] . . . that’s about all we know.”
It was a tough round eight for Melton’s division 2 and 4 sides, which both lost.
Kelvin Templeton rolls for Melton on Saturday. Photo: Damian Visentini
