It was nerve-wracking and it was thrilling, but for Dubbo duo Jay Porter and Matt McIntyre it was supremely satisfying as they secured their second City of Orange Golden Eagle Classic Pairs title in the last three years on Thursday afternoon.
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They had to squash an almost-miraculous comeback from Molong’s Bob Hamilton and Gulgong’s John Mobbs in the decider to win it too.
Porter and McIntyre looked home and hosed through 15 ends, they were leading 21-12 and controlling the momentum at that point.
But that was when Hamilton and Mobbs lifted. They picked up a shot in the 16th and another in the 17th to trail 21-14. They picked up six more in the next three ends to trail by just one going into the final end.
To Bob and Mobbsy’s credit though, they fought back really hard, won five or six ends in a row and made it really tough.
- Jay Porter
With two bowls left in the decider, Hamilton and Mobbs held a definite three shots.
Enter Porter.
He produced the roll of the tournament to leave his bowl resting on the jack and put his side in a winning position. Mobbs sent the final shot wide, giving Porter and McIntyre a memorable victory.
“I just tried to calm my mind a little bit, more than anything,” Porter said, reflecting on the game-winning shot.
“It was pretty nervy toward the end and we’d started so well and given ourselves a really good buffer.
“To Bob and Mobbsy’s credit though, they fought back really hard, won five or six ends in a row and made it really tough.”
Ultimately though, Porter and McIntyre edged home, in one of the most memorable Golden Eagle finals in recent memory.
“We’re really pleased with the win, I’m really pleased to have been able to win again with Matty as well,” Porter said.
Porter confirmed he and McIntyre will be back in 2018 to defend their title, in the Golden Eagle’s 50th year.
The final victory came after Porter and McIntyre’s 32-10 victory over Bundoora’s Jack Woodhouse and Bob Watt in the semi-final.
McIntyre and Porter shot into favouritism on Wednesday afternoon when they comfortably took care of the defending champions in the quarter-final.
After running through their section six preliminary games undefeated and with a 44-shot advantage Porter and McIntyre produced a superb performance under pressure in the final eight, trumping 2016 title winners Jared and Warren Hamilton 24-7.
The title is the second for Porter and McIntyre, with the first coming when they were both bowling for Dubbo Railway Club.
Since then both have moved on but reunited for the prestigious tournament.