DEAD DOGS DEATH-WALK – 4 February 2009

Injury again had taken its toll of the Dead Dogs plucky team. DDD had been advised to take a complete break in an effort to return to full health, and had taken the waters in WA. Andy Zee was also out of action, thus wiping out the junior elite members of the squad, and so it was with an air of trepidation that LOL fronted up to the Hawthorn Greens.

Another stinker of a day, in this long running heat spell experienced by Adelaide residents, and no sign of gully breezes to ease the anguish of the tattered remnant of the Dead Dogs team. Despair almost overtook the LOL when marching up to rink 11, she found the male duo from “Biased” carelessly sharpening up their bowls, displaying a confident touch in their preliminary warm up. (Boo, Hiss)

Fortuitously, she had earlier fell upon the mercies of George (no small act), and he delivered not one, but a brace of willing recruits to augment the Dead Dogs Lineup. LOL’s warm-up yielded no promise, and D-Mac was blissfully unaware of the building tension when he shimmied up to the rink as last man to throw his hat in.

Under such trying conditions LOL offered the 3rd and 4th place to the incoming recruits, trying to keep some stability in the team, and knowing that D-Mac and LOL were not sufficiently “blooded” to step into the shoes of previous luminary skippers in the DD line-up. Memories of Tickets Parkin, Ace VB, and even Andy Zee crowded her mind, as did the recent return to form of DDD.

Alongside us the leering forms of “Stuffed if I know” loomed large in the wilderness, an acute reminder of defeat and humiliation. There was honour at stake, and if we were going to go down, we would go down fighting!!

It was a revolution, a rout (rhymes with doubt), a rollover, a rollicking – and we won!!
The opposition was well and truly routed – and it felt gooooood!!

I have great delight in tabling for the pleasure of fellow Dead Doggers the score card for the night.

After winning the toss, and losing the first 2 ends, you may have thought if was all over, Red Rover, But Fee
playing at No 3 stared down the oppositions, and took the first point away from them. Surprise turned to alarm from the “Biased” team, when 3 of our number took the 4th end convincingly. Nothing they could throw at us stopped the steady inch forward – we were happy to win by 1’s and 2’s, holding them scoreless for 5 ends in the middle section. With the absence of the hockey mistress to stiffen their resolve, a chasm opened up before the opposition, while we stayed flint-hearted and relentless.

The lead player had an outstanding night with the kitty, placing it exactly where she wanted it – medium to short distance, allowing her fellows to capitalise on the consistent length. Those rare moments when the opposition scored the white ball, and played long, we were there to match them.

LOL had wisely chosen for D-Mac the ecologically sound Green Frog bowls, and this proved the right talisman for him on the night. A previous outing at Rink 11 had seen him unerringly find the Dead Man’s Grave on the western boundary, but no such demons haunted his outing on this occasion, resulting in his most consistent performance to date.

The new recruits to the Dead Dogs team were outstanding, but the significant factor of the night was the lack of form from the opposition. Obviously a week into the college school year had left them severely challenged – mere pussycats to the Dead Dogs Machine.

In defeat, Biased were gracious – either that or totally shattered, at their first loss for the season, however they managed to exchange pleasantries were over pizza. (Reference to AA notwithstanding)

We didn’t jig the raffle, but who cares – we won, we won, we won.

“This is the sweetest victory of them all”.