Two Mpumalanga teams participated at the Bowls SA U20 National Championship in Bloemfontein from March 25 to 29.

Mpumalanga entered two teams, with each team consisting of four players. Seventeen districts from the country were represented. The tournament was played in six sections on a league basis, with each team playing each other twice.

The six section winners, plus the two best second-place teams, competed in the play-offs. Competing in the Green Section, Mpumalanga A team topped the league stage, winning nine of their games, losing only to the Northern Cape B team. The Mpumalanga B team found the competition more challenging, winning two games in their section.

In the quarter-finals, Mpumalanga A defeated Limpopo A by 16 shots to 14 and followed this with a narrow 8-5 win against Ekurhuleni in the semi-finals. In the final, Mpumalanga A team came out motivated to do well, but unfortunately were beaten by a classy Border A team, 18-12.

The Mpumalanga players gained valuable experience at this tournament and have laid the foundations to do even better at next year’s championship. Contrary to popular belief, this tournament proves that bowls is a young person’s sport which older people can also participate in.

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