The New Zealand women came agonisingly close to a transtasman tournament victory but had to settle for second place on points differential.
The Kiwi women went into the final day of competition at NaeNae Bowling Club in Wellington with a two-game lead, but Australia were clinical in their morning matches, winning all four games to take a 9-7 lead with just two games remaining.
After a one-point loss in her morning match, Tayla Bruce came back with a vengeance in the singles, securing a commanding 7-2 first-set win before sealing the victory 11-2 in the second set against Dawn Hayman.
The New Zealand four of Briar Atkinson, Leeane Poulson, Selina Goddard and Skip Val Smith then delivered in a critical must-win match, edging out their Australian opponents 13-11 to level the series at 9-9.
However, Australia claimed the trophy by a slim three-point margin in the overall points differential.
"We put everything out there, and we’re proud that it went right down to the wire," Bruce said.
"It’s always an incredible opportunity to play Australia — they set a high benchmark in our sport. The rivalry is strong, and it was great to go head-to-head with them over the past three days."
The para competition also finished in a 9-9 draw, New Zealand taking the trophy thanks to a points differential of 11.
The mixed vision-impaired pair of Sue Curran with director Marg Davies and Kerrin Wheeler with director Colin Wheeler, were the pick of the bunch on the final day for the Kiwis. The pair held their composure to win a tiebreak in the morning match before dominating their afternoon match 6-4, 10-3.
It was a challenging final day for the men’s Black Jacks who were unable to keep up with an impressive Australian side.
Tony Grantham, Finbar McGuigan and Keanu Darby won their afternoon match in the triples 17-14, but it was the only win of the day for the Kiwi men as the Australians claimed an overall 12-6 victory.
New Zealand development women finished on a high, winning four of the day’s six games to end the tournament just four points behind Australia who took a 11-7 victory overall.
The New Zealand development men won their singles match but were outclassed in the day’s other matches, finishing with 4.5 game wins to Australia’s 13.5.
The series was contested across both indoor and outdoor greens as players prepare for the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games, which will be held indoors.
The event also served as an opportunity to simulate the set-play format for singles and pairs at the 2025 World Cup in Hong Kong, while triples and fours followed the traditional 18-end and 15-end formats, respectively. — APL
