mmg.com.au

The gentle game of lawn bowls made plenty of noise at Euroa on Saturday.

And Shepparton Golf emerged the winner, claiming Goulburn Valley Bowls Division’s division one premiership by one shot on extra ends.

Golf skipper John Hallam twice produced heroics to break Mooroopna hearts and deny his rival back-to-back premierships.

Hallam missed Shepparton Golf’s semi-final defeat to Mooroopna to attend his niece’s wedding, but repaid his teammates with a show-stopping grand final display.

A single-digit margin separated the clubs for the entire second half of the match, with the lead regularly changing hands.

Golf was three shots clear through 88 ends. Mooroopna was a shot ahead an end later.

But it was Shepparton Golf three shots up with eight of the 100 ends remaining.

Then scores were level with four ends to go. It was that sort of contest.

Every bowl drew a gasp or a cheer from the crowd. Nervous smiles replaced players’ previously relaxed exteriors.

Light rain made their job even more difficult. The biggest drama was yet to come.

Brad Orr, on the end of a Hallam hiding all day, looked set to be the unlikely hero.

He picked up two shots on his third-last end to break the overall deadlock then excitedly bounded down the green the next end when his perfectly weighted bowl took a pinball-like deflection to nestle in for shot.

Orr’s second bowl of the end was a safety first back bowl. It proved a wise choice.

Hallam, unerringly accurate, managed to displace the jack, only for it to roll straight next to Orr’s back bowl.

Mooroopna coach Mark Ryan completed a 25-17 success over Graeme Myers with one shot on their final end in between Orr’s two ends.

Mooroopna led by four shots. One end left. Orr v Hallam. Mooroopna seemed in control, but slowly unravelled.

Hallam’s lead Rick Nichol placed two bowls near the jack. Russ Orchard added a third. John Foley made it four.

Meanwhile, most of Mooroopna’s bowls were too heavy.

Shepparton Golf suddenly had a heartbeat. There were lumps in the Mooroopna players’ throats. Most of their faces were white as a ghost.

Orr was too wide with his opener, whereas Hallam added a fifth shot.

The Golfers were in front. Only Orr could stop them and for all his bravado and youthful assuredness, he is a steely, competitive player made for these situations.

Orr was much tighter with his line this time and trailed the kitty, sparking raucous Mooroopna celebrations.

He high-fived everyone in sight. The pressure release must have been enormous.

But, in all the excitement, the jack jammed in among a horde of bowls and Shepparton Golf still held three shots — with one Hallam bowl remaining.

Hallam, putting aside the theatre of the moment, was quick to release his bowl and it soon sent his Golf teammates into raptures as it swelled his club’s end haul to four to level the scores.

The deadlock meant every player in each team had to return to the green for an extra end.

Myers took the honours by one shot in his rink battle against Ryan to reduce the latter’s edge to 25-18, but fellow Shepparton Golf skipper David Daws’ great final bowl could not remove Jeff Anselmi’s shot-holding bowl.

Daws beat Anselmi 20-17. It was level again.

Skipper of the Year Rick Orchard, of Golf, then had his big moment. John Stokes battered him all game, but all that mattered was the present.

Orchard, down in the head, collected the kitty to snatch two shots. Stokes stepped up again to draw shot on the ditch-length end.

Stokes’ 38-14 whipping of Orchard followed his 24-16 victory over the same opponent in the final home-and-away round.

He also had a 32-14 win over John Foley in the clubs’ semi-final clash two weeks earlier.

Stokes starred, but rinkmates Ryan Collins, Graeme Power and Jarryd Tinning were superb, too.

That left Orr and Hallam in the spotlight again. Hallam later said he deliberately slowed down to ensure he was in this position.

Hallam had the final say again. This time Orr held sway in the head. Shepparton Golf needed two shots to win and one to draw.

He went after the kitty. Proceedings seemed to go in slow motion. Hallam made contact with the jack and teammates watched helplessly as it rolled and rolled.

Foley initially stuck one finger up to signal one Golf shot, which would have meant more extra ends, but he leaped for the sky as that reward doubled.

Shepparton Golf had won.

Orr, like his clubmates, was shattered. He stood motionless. Most Mooroopna players scattered as Golf members stormed the green.

It was Shepparton Golf’s first division one premiership since it won three straight between 2008 and 2010.

This one won’t be forgotten for a long time and neither will Hallam’s part in it.