Sport
17 July, 2026
Lightning Fours face wet conditions and tight scorelines
A FULL green of 64 bowlers battled wet weather and tight scorelines at Innisfail Bowls Club on 5 July as the Lightning Fours returned with players from across the Far Northern district chasing $1680 in prize money.
Despite persistent rain forcing shortened games and the final round abandoned altogether, the competition delivered nail biting finishes and stand-out performances.
Sixteen teams completed two morning games of 11 ends, broke for lunch, then returned for a third shortened match of 10 ends before smoko and presentations wrapped up the day.
The team of Hayden Hohnke, Jim Martinod, Steve Stoter and Wayne O’Neill claimed top honours with a winning score of 38, edging out a tightly contested field.
Just one point behind on 37 were runners up Roy McCarthy, David Leach, Bobby Wright and Santo Raciti, while Ashley Hammond, Steve Henson, Chris Henson and Doug Laycock also finished on 37 to secure third place on countback.
In fourth position, with a strong score of 36, were Tony Burns, Wayne Petroholis, John Phillips and Michael Greenwood, rounding out a competitive leaderboard.
The competitive spirit continued throughout the week. In the men’s championship pairs semi final on 6 July, Peter Broccardo and Rob Croatto edged out Doug Juhas and Warren Sinclair in a tight 22-20 contest.
On 7 July, the men’s fours championship final produced another thriller, with Ian Humphreys, David Leach, John Phillips and skip Michael de Vries claiming the 2026 title after a nail biting 20-19 victory over Tony Burns, Gordon Goes, Ted Pearce and Sam Pagano.
Thursday afternoon social bowls on 2 July also delivered a close finish. Kevin Foord, Warren Sinclair and Kevin Bliss took the win 25-24 over Doug Juhas, Geoff Johnston, John Fossey and Peter Broccardo.