Hoppers Crossing is jousting with three western rivals for premium home final positions in Bowls Victoria’s division 3.
In an incredibly tight race, Hoppers, Melton, Altona and Werribee all have 11 wins, four losses and a draw.
The third-last round was supposed to offer an insight into which of these clubs would poke its head in front in the race for the top two, but matches were cancelled at the weekend because of the heatwave.
Hoppers president Daryl Marendaz was pragmatic about an unavoidable situation.
“I suppose that’s all right – we’ll share the points,” he said.
Hoppers Crossing had displayed great consistency this summer – until its shock home loss to Sunshine VRI in the last round.
Marendaz is confident it was just a blip, even if it did cost his side top spot.
“They’ve had a pretty good year,” he said of his outfit. “They’ll give a good account of themselves for the finals.”
Hoppers Crossing is keen to seal promotion this season.
Skips Dennis Hewitt, Keith Vanderpol, Bill Russell and Grant Baxter will leave no stone unturned in their bid to see the club achieve its goal of returning to division 2.
Marendaz says it’s important for his club to play at a higher level to attract younger players.
“We’ve got a pretty good loyal membership, but it would be nice to have a few more younger ones,” he said.
“If we can win that division, we might pick up another couple of players because success breeds success.
“The higher you go in the competition, the more that will come.”
Hoppers Crossing will face Melton on the road in a top-of-the-ladder showdown on Saturday.
The game will have a huge bearing on the finals make-up and provide one side a psychological edge.
“It would be nice to go up there and knock them off on their own turf,” Marendaz said.
