A larrikin rugby league legend and some of the biggest names in bowls will help ensure this weekend’s BCiB Open Triples Tournament is one of the biggest events on the sport’s calendar.
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Western Suburbs favourite and former NSW and Australian representative Tommy Raudonikis will be in attendance at Club Dubbo and is expected to delight the crowd during Saturday night’s fundraiser event.
That fundraiser, which like the whole tournament is run in conjunction with the West Dubbo Rotary, will help raise funds for the Dubbo Cancer Centre.
Former and current Australian bowls representatives, including World Singles champion and current Australian coach Steve Glasson, Commonwealth Games gold medallist Kelvin Kerkow and former world champion Karen Murphy will also attend the event again.
“It’s going to be a huge weekend,” Club Dubbo Bowls Manager Anthony Brown said.
“It’s probably one of our best and biggest days due to the three Australian players there and a field from all over the state.”
This is the third edition of the event, with $7000 in prizemoney up for grabs.
The free-entry tournament, which runs across Saturday and Sunday, is open to teams or men or women, or mixed sides, and all slots were filled well in advance.
As well as a number of Dubbo teams and others from the wider western region there will be sides from the likes of Cabramatta, Lawson, South Tweed, Mount Lewis, Wagga Rules and Canberra City.
The local teams come from Dubbo City, Dubbo Railway, Dubbo Macquarie and the hosts, West Dubbo.
Six West Dubbo juniors will also get to play with three international players.
Glasson, Kerkow and Murphy will help mentor them while also competing against each other and Brown stated there had been a lot of banter between the elite players leading in to this weekend’s competition.
There will be six games of 10 ends each, four on Saturday and then two on Sunday morning. This format should even up the competition, with no team building up huge scores over their opposition.
Brown and West Dubbo Rotary’s Don Stephens were also keen to thank all the volunteers who have already, and will continue, give their time to help.
The 12 corporate tables for Saturday’s nights fundraiser have been purchased but the public is still welcome to attend with a huge amount of sporting memorabilia set to be auctioned off.
“It’s more or less a two-in-one,” Brown said of the weekend.
“It’s a bowls tournament and also a charity night.”
With so many high profile names in attendance and the attraction of the charity fundraiser, it’s easy to forget some of the state’s best players will be in action on the greens.
The quality of competition plus the chance to help out the local community is Brown takes the most pride from.
“It’s great. This year is our third year and the previous two have been a great success,” Brown added.
The bowls start Saturday morning with the fundraiser evening to start from 6pm.
The action then returns to the greens on Sunday morning with the presentation expected to be after 12pm.
Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
