Once again, the weather was perfect for Round 4 of the SAPL Interclub competition – mild temperature, no rain, partly cloudy, partly sunny. We have indeed been very lucky this season, in that respect.
With the first three rounds having been dominated by the usual suspects, Round 4 started with an expectation that things might be a bit different this time. Some spice has been added to the mix with the introduction of a couple of experienced and very talented new recruits at the Prospect and Novar Gardens clubs, respectively, and it’s no coincidence that these were the two clubs that ended up advancing their position.
In particular, Van Nguyen has taken the local pétanque community by storm since joining the fold at Prospect earlier this year. His stellar debut at the State Singles Championship made it clear that here was a force to be reckoned with and the bar has been lifted for the rest of us.
In this round, Van was teamed with Melissa & Gavin Scott, who themselves have been in excellent form of late. Their bronze medals in the January Interclub were followed up in February with Melissa winning the State Women’s Singles title. So it should come as no surprise that the three of them together saw off allcomers and won the day as the only undefeated team. Their victory sees the gold medals heading in the Prospect direction for the first time in over three years. Having won bronze and silver in the past, this is the first time Gavin & Melissa have taken out the top honours.One suspects it won’t be the last. As for Van, his 100% record speaks for itself.
The silver medallists were Deb Rodda, Anna O’Connor & Selina Dally, from ESP, while the bronze went to Club d’Adelaide’s Ernie Palmer, Wayne Twigden & Adrian Clements.
These results have had an immediate impact on the premiership table. Rather than jostling for fourth position as they had been doing, Prospect have surged ahead to claim third and now have their sights firmly set on second-placed Adelaide. This relegates Adelaide Hills to fourth, followed by Novar Gardens who have jumped back ahead of FAB into fifth.
Thanks to the umpires and to the Eastern Suburbs club and volunteers for hosting and catering for the event.
