Ballarat Tuesday pennant bowls: Buninyong looking to close the gap to top four

That's what makes this week's clash between fourth-placed Midlands and fifth-placed Buninyong so important.

Right now as the ladder stands, Midlands holds a 20-point lead in front on Buninyong. Another victory to Midlands will make it very hard for a side outside the top four to bridge the gap in the second half of the season.

Last round's narrow defeat to Webbcona, going down by just two shots overall, could prove costly for Buninyong as it has left them more than a game outside the top four.

A win here against an in-form opponent will be critical if Buninyong is to remain in contention.

Midlands last week were dominant in a 30-shot win over Sebastopol. All three skippers in Paul Kennedy, David Speechley and Gregory Plier put more than 20 shots on the board in an impressive display.

In other games, after a shaky start to the season, BMS is finally starting to make some inroads up the ladder. This week though it faces a tough test at home against Webbcona.

Webbcona is a having a strong season in both Tuesday and Saturday pennant, siting second on Saturday and third here. The green and white got a close win last week and deserve to once again start the favourites.

It's been a tough start to the season for Central Wendouree which has picked up just the one win so far. This week provides an opportunity for them to push forward, on the road to Learmonth.

Learmonth finds itself in a similar position to Buninyong, needing a win to stay in touch with the top four, a loss here could make it difficult for it to make up the ground needed.

Two of the big clubs of Ballarat will go head-to-head, when Sebastopol plays host to City Oval. But while they remain the powerhouses in terms of numbers, the two teams have so far this season been poles apart.

City Oval was strong in its 13-shot win over its closest challenger at the top end of the ladder, in Creswick last week, while Sebastopol has really struggled for consistency, managing just 43 points in its wipe-out against Midlands.

With just two wins on the board, Sebastopol needs to start winning now or face the very real possibility that they could be in line for relegation given their competition-worst shot difference of -105.

That relegation threat could definitely be real if Central Wendouree is able to get over the top of Learmonth and pick up its second win of the season.

City Oval looks to have all the bases covered here. Chris Smith and Robert Edwards in particular are in strong form as skippers, leading their club to a big win last week over Creswick.

Another of the big clubs that hasn't yet found its best form in Victoria and it won't get any easier for it this week up against Creswick on the rebound.

Until last week, Creswick looked like one of the form sides of the competition and even though it went down to City Oval, lost very few friends with Steve Pope taking a rink off City Oval.

Victoria is in need of a victory, but Creswick certainly has earned the right to be considered favourite.

BMS v Webbcona

Learmonth v Central Wendouree

Sebastopol v City Oval

Creswick v Victoria

Buninyong v Midlands

CITY OVAL 98, +124, CRESWICK 92, +83, WEBBCONA 84, +39, MIDLANDS 79, +64, Buninyong 59, +53, Learmonth 59, -38, BMS 51, -99, Victoria 45, -46, Sebastopol 40, -105, Central Wednouree 34, -75

Invermay v Beaufort

City Oval v Buninyong

Linton v Daylesford

Mount Xavier v Clunes

Sebastopol v Smeaton

Sebastopol v Victoria

City Oval v Central Wendouree

BMS v Ballarat North

Daylesford v Midlands

Webccona v Smeaton

Central Wendouree v Linton

Ballarat East v Victoria

Sebastopol v Midlands

Learmonth v Bungaree

Creswick v Smeaton

Ballan v Buninyong

Mount Xavier v Ballarat

Ballarat North v Victoria

Invermay v Clunes'

Buninyong v Beaufort

BMS v Midlands

Beaufort v Webbcona