2025 Ranked Events

Chi and Dinham Dominate at the Louise Eady Melbourne Junior Cup

By Matt Stevens

September 8, 2025

New South Wales standouts Jessica Chi and Julian Dinham stamped their authority on the national junior circuit, claiming the Louise Eady Melbourne Junior Cup at Wyncity Keon Park over the weekend.

For the first time this year, the junior national tour stopped in Victoria. Heading in, the boys’ side had been owned by Victorian prodigy William Zaccaria, who swept the Australian Junior Masters and Queensland Junior Cup. On the girls’ side, it had been an open race with Sophie Jones and Brooke Buckingham taking the first two titles.

Tricky Conditions, Big Performances

Played on the 43-foot TBA Death Adder oil pattern, scoring came at a premium. Competitors needed to survive 12 qualifying games (two six-game blocks), with only the top 14 advancing to Stage Two on Sunday, before the cut to the top 8 for the matchplay finals.

Both champions set the tone early.

Chi, 17, led the girls’ field from the start, tallying 2,155 (179.6 avg) to edge Queensland’s Bella Westlake by 43 pins. Victorian Shanae Key electrified the crowd with a 246, the highest game of qualifying, to sit fifth.
On the boys’ side, Dinham posted 2,353 (196.1 avg), just 21 pins clear of fellow NSW bowler Joshua Buttigieg, who fired the division’s top game with a 275. The defending champion was on fire early to go back-to-back.

There was minimal movement in the standings during the quick four game second stage. A four-game series to add to the 12 games of qualifying saw the leaders stay up the top and bowlers battled for the final places in the top 8.

Matchplay Masters

The top qualifiers never blinked. Both Chi and Dinham carried their leads into the matchplay finals, where pinfall rolled over and bonus pins (30 for a win, 15 for a tie) added extra spice.

Chi stayed steady, winning four of her seven matches and adding 135 bonus pins to finish on 4,355. Key surged into second with 4,254, while Westlake rounded out the podium on 4,223.

Dinham, meanwhile, put on a show. The 17-year-old went a perfect 7–0 in matchplay, topping 200 in all but one game — including a jaw-dropping 298 in Game 4. He closed with 4,934 total (205.4 avg across 23 games), leaving Buttigieg (4,735) and Zaccaria (4,512) well behind.

This is the second consecutive title at the Louise Eady Melbourne Junior Cup for Julian Dinham as he successfully defends his crown.

Rankings Shake-Up

The victory boosts Chi from 10th into title contention, adding 100 ranking points to her season tally after finishing runner-up at the Queensland Junior Cup.

For Dinham, it’s another chapter in what’s shaping as a fairytale season. Already sitting atop the Open rankings with wins at the Australian Tenpin Bowling Open and Melbourne Tenpin Cup, the Louise Eady title tightens the junior race, while also sitting in third in the youth division. He now trails Zaccaria by just 35 points in the junior division with one event left.

Future Frames

Three of four junior ranked events are now complete. The series wraps at the Junior Sydney Cup, running October 10 at Shellharbour Tenpin Bowl alongside the Sydney Youth Cup during Sydney Bowlfest. Entries remain open, but spots are limited.