It was agreed that the summer season’s top six teams would be making up A-grade, with the remaining and any additional teams forming B-grade.
While three teams withdrew from the winter season, the club welcomed back the Renegades, whose last game in the SDDA was before the pandemic struck again in 2021 and saw them bag a C-grade premiership. They will be a welcome addition to B-grade and are sure to make some waves along with bringing some new blood with them into the comp.
The first game of round one saw an A-grade grand final replay, with Badass locking horns with its arch rivals, the Snipers.
Badass drew first blood in the quads game to put the Snipers on the back foot, but with the pain of grand final defeat still fresh in their minds, the Snipers rallied, refocused and won the next four games straight to take a 4-1 lead.
Some high scores and clean finishing saw Badass win the next two singles to start clawing its way back into the match, but the Snipers were out for blood as they put the home side to the sword, winning the next four singles on the trot to smack home a handy 8-3 win.
Badass captain Peter Myles tried hard to drag his side across the line, hammering in six tons, a 121, a 125 and two 180s.
Rick Wylie returned to the SDDA and did well in his Badass debut, finishing with a singles victory to go with a high score of 135, and Gary Power slipped in three tons, a 112 and a 140.
Mark Robinson was instrumental in setting up the win. The Snipers captain pounded in five pegs, a ton, two 125s, a 131, four 140s and a 180. Steve Ritchie was hot on his heels with six tons, a 123, 125 and a 134, Jason Masters joined the party with a 180 of his own to go with four tons and a 140 and Darren Withoos rounded out the game one highlights in style, banging in four tons, a 125 and two 140s.
The second A-grade match of the night saw the Pirates hosting the reigning B-grade premiers, the Golf Club Aces, at the Top Pub in Broadford.
Other than a late start to the night, the Aces showed no signs of a premiership hangover as they burst out of the starting gates to take a handy 3-1 lead. The Pirates fought their way back into the game, notching wins in four of the next six games and with the scores all tied up at five-apiece, it came down to the final game of the night.
While the home side held a lead in each leg, it failed to hit the peg when it mattered most, which left the door open for the Aces to snatch the victory, banking the hard-earned four points with a 6-5 win.
Young gun Zane Kilroy stole the show for the Pirates, firing in four tons, a 120, 125, 135 and a 180. Well done, Zane-O! Steve Kilroy battled hard, notching two singles wins to go with three tons, a 123 and a 134, Seth Kilroy started strong with two tons, two 140s and a high score of 160 and Andrew “Harry” Harrison chipped in with a high 119.
The Aces’ Mark Jones was back to his high-scoring best, hammering in three tons, a 125, 127, 135 and a 140. Dave Ring scored a ton, a 129 and a 134, Alan Sharp made his debut with the Aces and speared in a 117 and Steve Raynor capped off the night with a ton.
The final A-grade game of the round was held at the Pyalong Rec Reserve, with the summer comp B-grade runners-up, the Pyalong Tigers, toeing the line against the Kings.
The Kings got off to a perfect start, winning the first five games straight to pile the pressure on the home side. A sensational leg by Tigers captain Jack Stephens which included a 180 got the Tigers on the board, but it wasn’t enough to inspire a comeback as the Kings dropped the hammer, winning the final five games straight to claim a 10-1 victory that sees them sit atop the ladder after round one.
Along with his 180, Stephens also smacked in six tons and a 135 in a terrific captain’s game, while ex-Buccs captain Mitch Wittig slammed in a ton and a 140 and Joe Ryan chipped in with a ton.
Kings captain Terran Crispin had the highest check out for the round with a peg of 88. He also snagged four tons, a 114, two 123s and a 140. Adam Lynch scored two tons, a 123, 125 and two 140s to go with five pegs, including a high finish of 72, while Rob Welsh pounded in four tons and a 140 and Jarrod Duggin chimed in with a ton and a 120.
The Mangalore Rebuilders went head-to-head with the Royal Rascals at the Mangalore Pub in the first of the B-grade match-ups for the round. With a new-look side, the Rebuilders were out to make an impression early and there was no better side to do it against than the summer comp C-grade runner-up.
Both teams got off to a good start but doubling proved to be too big of a hurdle for both sides, with several games being decided on the double one. Despite both teams struggling to find the elusive doubles, the more experienced Rascals were able to weather the storm to snag a handy 9-2 victory.
Daniel Chandler was the lone shining light for the Rebuilders, finishing with four pegs and a ton to his name. Rascals captain Brendan Rogers nailed the maximum possible six pegs, as well as throwing a ton and a 114, Belinda Reid had no trouble finding the trebles, finishing with a 101, 117 and two 140s, and Aaron Peacock sneaked in a couple of tons for the visitors.
Game two saw the Royal Jacarandas throw down the gauntlet to the “old” new kids on the block, with the Renegades making their long-awaited comeback to the league at the Royal Hotel in Seymour.
Despite the Renegades missing their captain, they sent a warning out to the rest of the comp with emphatic fashion, dispatching the reigning C-grade premiers to the tune of 11-0, thanks in large part to the fast finishing of the Renegades’ Rosco Penny, who closed his account with the maximum six finishes, a ton and a 125.
Roger McCallum nailed a ton, a 101, a 120 and a 132 to go with a match-high peg of 56 and new recruit Denis Bortolo made a splash on his first outing for the ’Gades, nailing high pegs of 53 and 52, as well as registering a high score of 133 to put a full stop on the highlights for round one.
The Kilmore Cobras had the bye.
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