2020 Junior State Championships – Triples Finals

HOMETOWN VICTORY FOR JAKE RYNNE IN STATE JUNIOR BOWLS FINAL

North Toowoomba Bowls Club Champion Jake Rynne led his Triples side to victory in the Bowls Queensland Junior Championships at his home green in Toowoomba yesterday (Wednesday 22nd January 2020) in one of the most thrilling junior finals witnessed in recent years.

With the two teams containing the cream of Bowls Queensland junior players, it was always going to be a mighty battle over the 18-end contest. With Longreach youngster Ty Jesberg as lead and Tweed Heads prodigy Kira Bourke second, Rynne’s team took an early 3-0 lead over Kawana’s Nick Cahill’s team of fellow club mate Caysee Wilson as lead and Belmont’s Kane Nelson playing second. That lead very quickly evaporated on the 4th end, as Cahill capitalised on some great bowls from Wilson and then Nelson, to take four shots from the end and the lead.

It was then nip & tuck throughout as the lead swung from one team to the other, with never any more than 3 shots in it. In an unusual twist to this enthralling final, the scores were locked at 14-all after 14 ends, so the stage was set for an epic finish. First Cahill’s team edged ahead on the 15th end to lead 15-14 before Rynne’s team bounced back with two shots after sublime play by Bourke to grab a 16-15 lead. Rynne then produced the bowl of the match to dead draw to the jack for a 17-15 lead but you knew the game was far from over.

Caysee Wilson, who bowled superbly in the final, covered the jack with her two bowls while Jesberg covered the back to be only centimeters outside Wilson’s bowls. Bourke then produced her own bit of magic to almost match Wilson and the head saw Cahill’s team holding just the one shot. Nelson’s deft touch almost secured the second shot so it was now up to the skips. Rynne again edged into the head to have Nelson covered & Cahill put his first bowl only a centimetre outside Rynne. Now it was up to Rynne to ensure Cahill’s options were limited. He again produced a magic draw but Cahill still held shot and it was now up to Cahill and his final bowl. With 9 bowls within a meter of the jack, you could have covered the head with a bath towel. It was going to be difficult and with the big crowd on the edge of their seat, Cahill was up to the challenge and narrowly missed to come up one shot short for the Gold medal.

To steal a well known golf phrase, it was a victory for the ages and neither team deserved to lose. For the locals, though, it was jubilation and a sigh of relief as you’d go a long way to see a better contest.

It’s now down to the Singles section of the Junior State championships, with post-sectional and sectional play at Toowoomba & North Toowoomba Bowls Clubs to be played on Thursday 23rd January followed by the finals in Under 15 Boys & Girls and Under 18 Boys & Girls to be played on Friday (24th January).