Allan Matheson Shield | Shepparton Golf and Kyabram set to square off in epic division one decider

During the course of the home and away season and finals series, that trio produced a plethora of tantalising battles which have made this edition of the Allan Matheson Shield one of the most exciting in recent memory.

But in the end it was always going to come down to two and, after an epic fortnight of finals action, Shepparton Golf and Kyabram have earned the right to compete for the top gong at Stanhope Bowling Club this Saturday..

Gearing up for its eighth straight grand final appearance, Golf knows a thing or two about performing on the biggest stage.

However, this time around it enters the big game without the tag of defending premier after its run of six straight flags was broken by Tallygaroopna 12 months ago.

For coach Brett Foley, who took the reins at the beginning of this season and will relinquish them come Saturday evening, this campaign has been all about bringing the famous shield back to Golf.

Now one win away from that goal, he said his squad could not be more excited to get out on the green this weekend.

“The guys are up and about and ready to roll, right now we are all systems go,” Foley said.

“It’s easy to say it’s just another game of bowls, but there are more people watching and the nerves do certainly kick in.

“The experience we have in playing in the last seven grand finals will be of massive benefit for us I think, but you can play in a million of these things and the nerves will always be there.

“As a team we are as hungry as ever coming into this game and cannot wait to get into it.”

For Kyabram on the other hand, getting to this point serves as the culmination of more than 10 months of hard work.

Putting together a recruitment committee for the first time in club history, the Bombers made a splash in the off-season by bringing the quality of Connor Trewren (Shepparton Golf), Geoff Beattie (East Shepparton), Brent Reiner (East Shepparton) and the Cartwrights ― David, Joshua and Jacob (Tatura-Hill Top) ― through its doors.

This cast of stars immediately got to work, playing an eye-catching brand of bowls to record 11 wins and secure a second-placed finish.

But it is in the finals where the Bombers have truly shown their talent, as they fought their way back from a 20-shot deficit against Golf in the semi to fall by three in the finish.

Before finding themselves in a similar position against reigning premier Tallygaroopna in last week’s preliminary final, where they banded together and engineered a famous comeback to win by two shots.

Kyabram vice-president and skip Glenn Fields said that fighting spirit would put his team in good stead come Saturday afternoon.

“We are all so excited and just glad to be there,” Fields said.

“Heading into the game I think we are in a great position, over the past couple of weeks the most pleasing thing has been the way we have managed to fight our way back into games, it shows the character of our team.

“So if we can bring that fighting spirit on Saturday I think we will hard to beat.”

These two teams have shared an epic rivalry during the course of the season, with Golf holding a slight 2-1 advantage in a season series where all three matches have been decided by less than 10 shots.

But the Bombers can take confidence out of the fact that in those three games they hold a dominant 8-4 rink advantage over Golf, with pieces of individual brilliance by Foley and the legendary Brad Orr the only thing standing in the way of the Bombers and a clean sweep of victories.

“We are the only team that has pushed them all three times and the biggest thing for us is that our rink score against them is really fantastic,” Fields said.

“So we know we can beat them and come into the match confident our best is good enough to get the win, especially if it gets tight which I have no doubt it will.

Foley was well aware of the overall dominance Kyabram had shown against his side this season and said if they wanted to win on Saturday they could not just rely on the likes of Orr and himself.

“Brad and I try to lead from the front having played high level bowls, but we also know we can’t do it on our own,” Foley said.

“We don’t want Brad to be drawing the shot to win on Saturday, if he does it that’s good, but we want to go in as a 16 playing well and just not relying on Brad or myself to get it done ‒ grand finals are not the days for that.”

So how much would a victory on Saturday mean to these two teams?

Well for Foley, this will be the last match of his second stint at Shepparton Golf, as he departs the club to focus on family and his role as senior coach of Kyabram District League football side Murchison-Toolamba.

Having never won a premiership for Golf, he said a win on Saturday would be the perfect way to end to this chapter of his career.

“I’ve won and coached a few flags down in Melbourne, but I’ve never got there in the Goulburn Valley, so it would be fantastic to go out on that note,” he said.

“I’m not actually playing bowls any more after this year, I am a family and footy man from now on, and handing the reins back to Brad I’m confident the club is in a great place.”

While for Fields and the Bombers, a win on Saturday would make all the hard work and sacrifice of the past 10 months worth it as the club finally returns to the top of the mountain that is Goulburn Valley bowls.

“It would just be outstanding if we could get it done on Saturday, having been one of the ones who set up the recruiting committee, for it to come to fruition has been very pleasing,” Fields said.

“It is a long season, everyone is probably feeling tired, but to bring it home would just be fantastic for all involved and great reward for how far we have come as a club.”