Click here for results from all Victorian Pennant finals
Australia’s most famous club, Royal Melbourne, has broken an 88-year drought by winning the division one men’s title in the Victorian metropolitan pennant competition, while Huntingdale stunned unbeaten Commonwealth to win the women’s crown.
Royal Melbourne’s victory over Metropolitan at Victoria will go into the annals of the club; it is the first for the club since 1931, when the legendary Ivo Whitton, winner of five Australian Open titles, was captain of the winning team.
It was also the first time ever that the club won the men’s division one and men’s colts titles in the same year.
The division one win was secured when Royal Melbourne’s No. 3 James McMillan took down Metropolitan’s state team member Aiden Didone 3 and 1 at the 17th hole today.
Royal Melbourne ultimately 5-2 overall with Victorian stars Matias Sanchez and Darcy Brereton triumphing in the No. 1 and No. 2 matches.
“It’s an extraordinary occasion for us,” said club captain David Thomas, who was among those who watched the finals at Victoria.
In the women’s division one final, Huntingdale dominated to win 5 ½ – 1 ½ despite going in as the underdog. Veteran pennant player and 14-time club champion Helen Gubbels secured the matchwinning fourth point when she made a solid par at the par-five 17th hole to defeat Commonwealth’s Kai Shipp.
The result was the reverse of last year’s final and was a surprise, given that Commonwealth had gone through the season unbeaten. But on the day Commonwealth won just one match – No. 5 Kim Kennedy beating the Huntingdale captain Emily Smith three and two at the 16th hole.
The winning Huntingdale team included 14-year-old Malaysian immigrant Jeneath Wong, who played at No. 1 and defeated Commonwealth’s state team member Alex Hilliard 3 and 2.
Full table of results (click here for match scores):
| MENS | |||
| Division 1 | Royal Melbourne | def | Metropolitan |
| Division 2 | Latrobe | def | Rosanna |
| Division 3 | Woodlands | def | Riversdale |
| Division 4 | Medway | def | Kooringal |
| Division 5 | Box Hill | def | Eastern |
| Division 6 | Bacchus Marsh | def | Ranfurlie |
| WOMENS | |||
| Division 1 | Huntingdale | def | Commonwealth |
| Division 2 | Victoria | def | Metropolitan |
| Division 3 | Rosanna | def | Settlers Run |
| Division 4 | Latrobe | def | Northern |
| COLTS | |||
| Division 1 | Royal Melbourne | def | Yarra Yarra |
| Division 2 | Peninsula-Kingswood | def | Huntingdale |
| Division 3 | Northern | def | Churchill-Waverley |
| Division 4 | Kew | def | Kooringal |
| Division 5 | Eastern | def | Settlers Run |
| FRIDAY WOMENS | |||
| Division 1 | Victoria | def | Huntingdale |
| Division 2 | Cranbourne | def | Metropolitan |
| Division 3 | Rosanna | def | Latrobe |
| Division 4 | Yering Meadows | def | Box Hill |