THIS weekend will mark the 51st staging of the annual Bathurst RSL ANZAC Triples tournament at the Bathurst City Bowling Club and once more the defending champions will be out to break a recent curse.

Since the current format was introduced 14 years ago, no team has been able to back up their success with another title win 12 months later.

Starting today, it will be the turn of Greg Campbell, John Quinn and Wayne Radburn to try and break that streak as they come back to chase a second straight ANZAC Triples crown.

But as history has proven, it won’t be easy. In a big field against some top quality bowlers, they will have their work cut out.

“This is a great event and such a time-honoured one that most teams who compete try and come back every year whether they win or lose,” organiser Neville Townsend said.

“We are looking at hosting 40 teams this year which means 120 bowlers, they come from all over the place. Western New South Wales, Northern New South Wales, the metropolitan clubs in Sydney, and of course we get plenty of entries from our own districts as well.

“The level of interest we get really speaks volumes for the amount of support given to us by the Bathurst RSL and the RSL Sub-Branch. They’ve put up $4,500 in prize money for this year, which is a great incentive for all the competitors.”

While the Orange City trio who claimed the 2015 crown deserve to be among the favourites to hoist the trophy tomorrow afternoon, Townsend said there are a number of local teams who can have a say.

“I think the team being skipped by Phil Gray has a strong chance, Peter Naylor is skip for another team that should be in the mix, and Craig Townsend from the Majellan is in very good form and has a strong team,” he said.

“It is a great weekend though whether you are winning or losing, you play two games on the Saturday as well as having a free barbecue, and we’re inviting all bowlers to the RSL Club on Saturday night for dinner.

“The third and final game will be played on Sunday and a winner should be decided by the early afternoon. It has worked out beautifully this year with the ANZAC Day holiday falling on a Monday, which allows some of the visitors to stay an extra day."