Melbourne Pulse reign supreme in 2025 Junior BPL Challenge
Some of Australia’s most promising young stars had their chance to shine during the Junior BPL Challenge which was held in conjunction with BPL21 at the Moama Bowling Club.
After a successful first edition in 2024 where the Melbourne eXtreme ran out victors, the competition saw 11 of the 12 BPL franchises field teams with Bowls ACT sending a team in place of the Perth Suns.
Teams were placed in two sections with the ladder leaders of each section playing off in the final.
The final was an all-Melbourne affair between the Pulse and eXtreme with both teams putting on a scintillating display.
The Melbourne Pulse team of Cooper Sutton, Jack Wardrope and Marlie Malcolm were dominant in Section 1, qualifying for the final undefeated.
In Section 2, the Melbourne eXtreme team of Josh Leszcynski, 2024 Australian Open Under-18 Girl’s champion Akasha Fortune and Eridani Wheeler made it through to the final after only losing to the Gold Coast Hawks.
With the stars of the BPL watching on and live streamed on Bowls Australia’s YouTube channel, the young guns of the two Melbourne franchises put on a show.
In a high scoring first set, the Melbourne Pulse were able to hold off a determined eXtreme lineup by scoring a six on their powerplay to give them the set 9-7.
The reigning champions, although with a different lineup, pushed back hard in the second set to run out 9-2 winners and force the game to a tiebreak.
With the title on the line, the Melbourne Pulse’s skip in Sutton kept his nerve to draw shot and ultimately win the title.
The 2025 Junior BPL Challenge final can be viewed on Bowls Australia’s YouTube channel HERE
