Tara Murray
Club Sunbury Xtreme is one of the newest teams to join the Victorian Bowls League.
After a successful launch of the competition with eight teams last year, Bowls Victoria is adding another eight teams to the competition for this year.
Club Sunbury Xtreme was the first of those new clubs to be announced and will feature some local players among their team.
Australian Pathways Jackaroos squad member Sophie Kurzman had been announced as one of the Xtreme’s first two players for the competition.
Marc Bullows, who was Club Sunbury’s leading skip in Bowls Victoria weekend pennant division 1 last season, is the other player to be announced. Bullows was part of the Melbourne eXtreme Ultimate Bowls Championship team late last year.
The club is hoping to announce other signings soon.
Club Sunbury bowls manager and Xtreme team manager Lee Wesley said this was the next step in the club trying to provide for all levels of bowlers.
“Club Sunbury is excited to join Bowls Victoria’s extremely popular VBL, and release our new brand Club Sunbury Xtreme,” he said.
“Our strong partnership with BV, being the home of under-18 bowls in Victoria, coupled with our Melbourne eXtreme brand, we believe we can kick off VBL2 with a bang.
“VBL provides Club Sunbury with a complete pathway from novice-junior to elite level and aligns perfectly with our club values.”
Wesley said the club is no stranger to success with 11 out of 14 sides making Bowls Victoria pennant finals and winning five premierships.
Club Sunbury also has one of two Victorian licenses for the Bowls Premier League.
The VBL is an easy-to-understand, fast-paced format with five-a-side teams with rotating formats (pairs and triples, then singles and fours).
Squads of six players are permitted, but of the five taking to the green, four must be Victorian registered bowlers.
Teams will be split into four sections, with the winners and runners up of each section progressing to finals weekend.
The winning team will receive $30,000. Deer Park won the first competition.
Xtreme joins the Sebastopol Burra’s, the Ocean Grove ‘Grovers’, the Whittlesea Eagles, Bundoora, Bendigo East Magpies and the cluBarham Suns as the new franchises to be announced so far.
The Dandenong Pulse, Traralgon Lyrebirds, Yarraville-Footscray Dogs, Moama Steamers, Deer Park Club, Brighton Blue Devils, Vic Storm and Warrnambool Bulls are the existing franchises.
