2023 Nationals: Day 14 recap
After an amazing fortnight of bowls across three clubs in Western Australia capital city Perth, the 2023 Nationals came to a close at Joondalup on Friday with the 2023 Australian Championships singles competition.
NSW’s dominant week at Joondalup continued, adding another gold medal to their tally, while it was a home-town hero that saluted in the men’s singles event.
Women’s singles
The Australian Championships domination from NSW continued on Friday, as Cabramatta’s Jessie Cottell triumphed to collect a fifth gold medal for the state for the week.
An emerging talent on the rise, Cottell faced off against South Australian Lea Modra in the women’s singles final.
Modra stormed out of the blocks against her emerging Jackaroo opponent, leading 6-1 after five ends to set herself in a good position.
Cottell showed no signs of letting the occasion get to her however, scoring eight of the next nine shots to move ahead 9-7. Modra levelled things back at 9-9, but it was one-way traffic after that.
Cottell was clinical as she surged to the finish line. She won nine consecutive ends to close out the game 25-9 and claim her first Australian Championships title.
It wasn’t all easy going for Cottell on her path to the final however, with two thrilling sectional contests from her three wins.
She played a 29-end thriller against the ACT’s Sharon Steele in the opening round of the day, winning the final two ends to hold on by one shot in a match that was timed out.
Queensland and New Zealand star Katelyn Inch awaited Cottell in the third and final round, with the winner to advance to the final.
It was another epic to find a winner, with neither player really able to make a meaningful break clear. With scores level at 22-22, just as she did in her first round win, Cottell took out the final two ends to secure her spot in the final.
Despite a narrow two-shot loss to start her day, Modra bounced back with two crucial wins in the afternoon sessions to top her group and set up the final against Cottell.
Inch went on to play Victoria’s Olivia Cartwright for bronze, with the young Victorian winning by just one-shot in a 33-end battle.
Gold: Jessie Cottell (New South Wales)
Silver: Lea Modra (South Australia)
Bronze: Olivia Cartwright (Victoria)
Men’s singles
It was fitting that the final gold medal of the 2023 Nationals was won by a home-state hero, with Cody Packer saluting in the men’s singles final.
Packer met pereniall Australian Championships contender Trystan Smallacombe (NT) in the final, with both players having advanced out of their sections unbeaten.
The Perth Suns star was nearly playing for bronze, with his final sectional match going down to the wire.
Facing off against NSW’s Jack Lewis, the duo went toe-to-toe in a thriller. Lewis led 22-17 before Packer worked his way back to within a shot of victory at 24-22. Lewis would level scores to force a final winner takes all end, which Packer won to book a spot in the final.
The Western Australian jumped out of the blocks to lead 6-1 in the final, and led by as much as seven at 17-10 before Smallacombe mounted his comeback.
Four consecutive ends helped the Darwin star to level scores at 17-17, but he was never able to re-take the lead after leading 1-0 after the very first end.
It was a tight finish, but Packer held on to win 25-19. He became the second Western Australian to claim Australian Championships singles gold, with Blake Nairn doing so in 2021.
Jack Lewis was triumphant over Victoria’s Matthew O’Brien to claim bronze, winning the third-place playoff 25-19.
Gold: Cody Packer (WA)
Silver: Trystan Smallacombe (NT)
Bronze: Jack Lewis (NSW)
The 2023 Nationals has now concluded. View live stream replays here.
The 2023 Nationals in Perth, Western Australia is proudly supported by Tourism Western Australia, City of Joondalup, and the State government through the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries and Lotterywest in Western Australia. Sport and recreation creates vibrant, inclusive and connected WA communities.
