Berkeley member Harrison claimed the Illawarra singles crown for players with less than 30 months experience, while  he also made the pairs final with Corrimal’s Jai Haines.

Seventeen teams took part in the Rookies Pairs with the Rookies tournament growing in popularity across the state; giving players of a similar standard a chance to compete for a zone title and then claim a NSW crown.

 Warilla’s Aranda and Allen won two sectional games, plus a semi-final and final to claim the Zone 16 title and have been drawn in section 4 of the State Finals to face the champions from zones two, five and 15 on Saturday. 

 The Warilla pair begin their campaign against Zone 15’s Russell Maxwell and Steve Cutler (The Greens The Entrance) before taking on Zone 2’s Terry Mitchell and Geoffrey Horne (Cardiff) and then meeting Zone 5’s Gary Stinson and Todd Nixon (Hazelbrook) in the final sectional match.

 In the Singles tournament on Sunday, Harrison has been drawn in section 2 and meets Zone 4 champion Sam Crook (Narromine) first up.

 Harrison then takes on Zone 11’s Ayhan Senol (Hillsdale) before facing Zone 15’s Greg Molyneaux (Munmorah United) in round three.

 The section winners in pairs and singles advance to the semis with both events finishing on the one day.

The champion will likely have to win five matches in a big day of bowls for an inexperienced player.

Dapto’s John Bonham won the Illawarra Rookies Singles in 2013 and 2014  and both years was drawn against the eventual champion in his section.

The Rookies Finals along with the final two days of the State Championships from Ettalong Memorial BC on October 29-30  will be streamed live through the Bowls NSW website.

  Bowls NSW believe the online coverage will attract a wide audience and help fill the void by the  cancellation of ABC’s television weekly bowls coverage.

Meanwhile, leaders Warilla can lock up a top two spot and the finals double chance in the NSW Champions League at home on Saturday. 

 Warilla lead the 10 team competition with a 4-2 win/loss record after wins over hosts Dubbo Railway and Cabramatta, plus a loss to Merrylands in Dubbo last weekend.

  ‘‘We’ve played six of our nine games, while some clubs have only played two or three games but if we win two of our last three we should clinch a top two sport which is what we want,’’ said Warilla’s Jeremy Henry, who with teammate Aaron Teys are the leading skips.

  The last round and all finals are at Warilla on November 14-15.

 This Saturday’s home clash against Terrigal is from 2pm, with the match against Womens Bowls NSW from 5.30pm. Entry is free.