October 21, 2011
The coming pennant season will be one of the most interesting we have had for quite sometime, bought about the high volume of players moving from club to club.
The premiership favourites Victoria Park Reds have retained all their playing list from last season and increased the strength of their list.
Osborne Park Saints the best performed club in W.A have lost three key players who were so important in their premiership win
Mosman Park Mozzies have lost four players who played a huge role in the Club making the preliminary final last season from their list and will find it hard to replace them.
Doubleview PowerHouse are another Club to have lost four key players from last seasons lineup
Stirling Rangers have not lost any players but have made a couple of important gains
which should help them improve on last season's 5th placing
Cambridge Knights lost some very good players from last season which had placed them in danger of relegation this season. However good news is they have gained new players with ability and it all adds up to Cambridge being right up there at seasons end.
Sth Perth Millers lost one player of note but have recruited four good players to keep them in the picture.
Wanneroo have been hit very hard by player loss or player unavailability, only one recruit of note that we are aware of has to come to the club for the new season.
Bassendean Lions won promotion and have stuck with the players that won that promotion, no new recruits of note
Kardinya Kats, last years One White Premiers are the other side to win promotion, they have recruited several players to their list
VICTORIA PARK
Victoria Park were runner up to Osborne Pk in last years grand final winning on 2½ rinks and losing the game by one shot. It would have been huge disappointment for the club who were on top of the table for the majority of the season.
In the off season there was talk of Darren Kellond and Cody Packer lining up for the Reds but this all came to nothing.
The Reds have recruited Paul Butler from Osborne Park and Martin Hinchcliffe from Wanneroo.
Paul Butler will add to the all ready strong VP side and increase their chances even further to win this years Premiership. Ex Wanneroo player Marty Hinchcliffe is a chance to break into the side first up.
Player losses are Blake Butler who played extremely well last season,
for job reasons is not available this season and Blake Heldt has joined Mosman Pk
History shows that the runner up in the Grand final can win the flag the following year.
OP were r/u 2007 won in 2008, DV were r/u in 2008 won in 2009, VP r/u in 2009 didn't make the Grand final in 2010 but did in 2011
I expect Vic Park to dominate the pennant competition this season and atone for their 2011 loss and win the Grand final
Finish 1st
OSBORNE PARK
Osborne Park have been the dominant Premier League pennant side since 2007
The Osborne Park Saints Club song tells us they have been "marchin in" and have done so for the past five seasons, as the Meatloaf song goes, three out of five ain't bad, then chuck in a National Premier League title for extra's .
Over the past five seasons the Saints have overcome player loss and poaching from other clubs clubs but it hasn't stopped them to keep marching in, they just keep shaking that tree and producing good players who, while not big names in the bowling world, can play a bit
What or why is it they have been so dominant ? pretty simple really, it all comes down to leadership, a set of values and a pretty good culture, chuck in a bit of skill, combined with players who know what it takes to be a winner.
It is hard to recognize the 2007 runner up side to the 2011 winning side, however In that period there has been about six familiar faces guiding the ship that has bought continued success
How will the Saints go this season? they have lost considerably with the departure of Gary Caffell who will play with Country side Tammin, Paul Butler who has left to play with VP and Dave Appleton who will not be available for family reasons. It all adds up to making the prospect of winning the 2012 flag ever more difficult. They are a skipper short so it will be interesting who is selected to fill those roles
New recruits are Mike Nilson, Marcus Sear, Mark Rosenburg, Ron Stockton, Blair Griffiths, Gary Lockett and John Irvine who hails from Qld.
Obviously not all players mentioned will get a game in the PL first up but there is certainly some talent and upside among those mentioned.
Finish 2nd
MOSMAN PARK
Mosman Park have been a sensational Club bringing life to the pennant competition with their genuine enthusiasm on the green, it was always good to watch this team play because of that.
It has been good fishing for the Mozzies since they were promoted in 2010 to play PL for the first time in many a year, they were magnificent when runner up to Osborne Pk.
The 2011 season had them as one of the big fancies with every chance to win the premiership with list they had, we saw them make it to a preliminary final only to be rolled out by the eventual Premiers, Osborne Pk.
Some very good recruiting in those two seasons bought success quickly and the future looking bright, this year we see the club losing key players who were pivotal to continued success. Skippers Matt Ellul off to Stirling and Daniel Brown off to Armadale while Mick McGann has returned to Cambridge, and in John Morgan's words jumped ship (before he was pushed) and will not be lining up for the Mozzies this season.
Players recruited to play for Mosman this season, Richard DiSousa and Merv Hughes, both accomplished leaders and also joining the Mozzies are Willy Tan an Blake Heldt who could get a start straight away
Can Rob Tiller, who has been a good find playing skip, Steve Withers and John Rainoldi keep the momentum ticking over for the Mozzies?
Who could be the other skip is the burning question? Perhaps it will be the winner of the Clubs best player award last season, Chris McKenna a player who has grabbed the opportunity to play 3rd with both hands playing skip might not be beyond him at all.
Finish 6th
CAMBRIDGE
Cambridge were looked upon as a likely candidate to press for a spot in the four last year had a disappointing season in 2010-11. Things looking decidedly worse during the off season, with the loss of the John and Matt Trewhella, David Opie, Trystan Smallacombe and Ashley Sharp.
However with the pall of gloom hanging over Cambridge and the prospect of losing so many good players players, it was time to take stock and do something about it.
Fortunately for them there was a gradual turn to the better for the Knights with the recruitment of Dalkeith player Luke Richardson, Kardinya's Brad Ball, Middleton Beach's Domenic Milbourne, the return of Mick McGann and Trystan Smallacombe who originally was not available for Sat Pennants, his circumstances have changed and will be available for most games, all of these new players will make the Knights a stronger side.
There was talk that Brian Calthorpe could be returning to play for the Knights, that has not eventuated.
Everything is up to date in Kansas City as the saying goes and looking good for Cambridge who will now have a very strong back end, led by skips Pieter Harris, The Jones Boy who at his best is one of the best, Jon Sharp and Chris Lander.
On paper this Cambridge side should be one of the power sides in the competition and challenge for a place in the four.
Finish 4th
The photo is of the Jones boy. he unleased a drive at pennant practice, the result was the kitty being broken into 5 pieces. The very resourceful Bev has sticky taped the kitty back together and is now on display at Cambridge
.......
WANNEROO
Boy oh Boy, there has been a massive change at the Wanneroo Express a side that never achieved its potential with the talent available at the club last season. They should have achieved better than 6th place, and finished the season a mere 5 points off relegation.
This season sees player losses which include Geoff Ellis, Darren Turra, Mike and Tim Murray, David Von Horn, Les Bryson, Ted Alden, Russell and Ron Bates.
These losses will be hard for the Wanneroo Express to overcome, history has shown many times in the past that players losses of that magnitude almost guarantees demotion.
Even tho the list has changed so markedly they still have good players such as Reg Humphreyson, Derek Griffin, Wayne Neilson, Clive Adams, Geoff Gunning, Phil Potts, Peter Flack and Stein Davies to build a side around and I am sure that players from the other two first division that are selected will give it their best shot but losing so many players in one hit will take it's toll.
Finish 10th
STIRLING
The Stirling Rangers would have been very happy with their first season back in the Premier League finishing in 5th place and only 4½ points out of the final four.
Stirling should be a stronger sixteen with the recruitment of Skip Matt Ellul and the great drawshot 3rd Frank Carbone. Stirling were a skipper short last season, history shows Matt Ellul who rarely is under 13 wins in a PL season will make a big difference,
Other than that Stirling showed at home they are close to unbeatable and do well in away games.
It will be interest in to see how the Stirling side lines up, it is essential they get the right mix and balance correct from the beginning of the season.
Tony Krajancic, Matt Ellul, Dinko Golem will be hard to crack on any given day, all had good stats last season.
Neville Stevens didn't have a flash stat sheet but is capable of doing better this season.
The other recruit to come to Stirling is Yokine player Peter Turpin who has something to offer and might get a start straight away
Finish 3rd
BASSENDEAN
Well done to the Bassendean Bowling Club to have finally made it back to the Premier League after a long absence. They have done well with the quality of recruits that have gained over the past couple of years to bring about their promotion.
They didn't win the One White Premiership flag and were favourites to do so, it was a tad disappointing for them to lose the Grand Final to Kardinya, but none the less the Lions were happy to win promotion
How will they go is the big question, they haven't built on their list and are quite happy to have a crack with the same players that enabled them to win the promotion.
Good skippers, Justin Opie has been there done that knows what PL is all about, Brian Axford has the experience and Jeff Mitchell is another with plenty of experience and the ever improving Daniel Patterson. We can expect the Bassendean Lions to be competitive and should be hard to beat at home.
Tho I have selected them to finish 9th it is quite possible for them to finish higher up than that,
Finish 9th
KARDINYA
Kardinya Kats played it cool last season when they overcame the odds to stop the Bassendean Lions in their tracks and win the Grand final and move into the PL for the first time in the Clubs history, this came about even after the loss of some pretty handy players last season, so that speaks volumes for their performance.
The Kats haven't stopped still and have built their list further, they have recruited heavily with Daniel Wood, MikeTrojack, Steve Ivory, Adam Hayward, Danny Slade and Dave Ivers coming into the fold, tho doubtful that all of these new players will go straight into the line up but could do so at a later stage in the season.
Last season the Kats made the most of home ground advantage by winning the majority of those games. It was the away games that was their main worry, they didn't win many away games and this will need to be addressed if they are to avoid possible demotion.
The Kardinya Kats do have quite a few solid players who know their way around a Bowling Green. Mike Yates was terrific last season and skippered the best performed rink in division One White which is a great accomplishment, while Danny Comrie's rink was second best and therein lies the answer as to why Kardinya won the One White flag.
Daryl Radford and Tony Cocodis have a lot going for them, both are ultra competitive and sure to make it hard for the opposition.
Gelignite Geoff Gould has done well in the past at this level and knows what it takes to be a winner in PL. Dave Wood proved his credentials in the State Triples win and Rob Foy is highly rated.
The Kardinya Kats could be up and about, the more we look at their list the more I think they will cause a headache or two for the opposition.
Finish 8th
Sth PERTH
The Miller are an enigma, they have often displayed they are a competitive and a very hard to beat side when they are on song. Problem is they are not on singing often enough as we saw last season and the season before that.
Player loss is minimal in terms of numbers, Frank Carbone who would be regarded as a huge loss, is to play with Stirling while Adrian Durrant is not available to play this season and Darren Lyons returned to Thornlie, other than that
all is well for the Millers.
New players are Kalamunda's Ross Pringle, and Scott Walker, Cambridges Ashley Sharp, and Geoff White has returned to the Club after thee seasons at Mt Pleasant who incidently won promotion to One White
The Miller have gained some handy players, at first glance they appear to have enhanced the playing strength of Club.
Once again the Millers will be relying heavily on Rosco Bresland who has been their mainstay for quite some time. Travis Vallance is next best skip with 10 wins last season. Glenn Pauling started out extremely well when given the reigns to call the shots will be a better player after last seasons experience, while Nick Reagan who has proved often enough he is a good player, he has to win more games if the Millers are to have an impact in the competition.
I think the Miller will have 5 night games, where they have proved to be difficult to beat, if that is the case, the advantage they hold playing at home at night should ensure them a few wins.
Finish 7th
DOULEVIEW
Doubleview PowerHouse is a name that has aptly described their Premier League side over the many years of success. They have had some awesome sides over the past 20 years or so. The likes of the Katunarich brothers Dennis and Brian, John Rainoldi, Ron Taylor, and Robbie Ball. They have since departed the scene, it is no wonder we named them the Doubleview PowerHouse.
There have been suggestions we call Doubleview PowerHouse, the Doubleview House leaving the Power out of the name but of course that won't happen
The PowerHouse will rely on the old guard as well as the new players who joined them last season, it was thought that the recruitment of Scott Edmonds, David Rankin, Rod Heaton and the return to the club of Kyle McIlroy would win them a Premiership but 4th place was all they could manage, she wrote.
They have lost another swag of good players.
A legend of the game, the great Kat Dennis Katunarich, Jamie O`Keefe, Scott Edmonds and Matt Mitchell.
That is one huge loss in anyones language, however the PowerHouse think tank hasn't stopped in their endeavors to keep the club ticking along as a major force in the PL.
Mandurah's highly regarded Greg Crisp will make the journey up to play for them this season, he is a quality player who will add some grunt. Robert Bell, a semi-finalist in the recent State Fours left the club to play for Manning in One White, has since had a change of heart and will remain at the Club.
Blake Nairn formerly a Stirling player has a lot of upside to come and will become a better player as he gains more experience and leader Otto Dawson is a new player.
David Rankin the newly crowned State Fours skipper will be looking to up the ante, while Daniel Trewhella remains to be the major trump card at Doubleview
John Slavich's rink started badly in the first 9 games of last season, then came home strongly will be after a better start this year.
Rod Heaton relinquished his skippers role because of work commitments, but should be a handy 3rd.
He has passed the baton onto Kyle McIroy who has once again been given a skippers role, it will be interesting to see how things pan out for Kyle who remarked he is looking forward to
the challenge of keeping the PowerHouse a force in the competition and making the four.
finish 5th