Clayton's Natasha Russell was in commanding form as she strode to back-to-back titles in the Under-18 ranks, remaining undefeated after seven round-robin fixtures in Wellington.

Clayton bowler Natasha Russell has once again stamped her class on the greens, taking out the National Under-18 Women’s Singles at Naenae - successfully defending her crown following an unbeaten campaign in the capital.

In a shock exit, Stokes Valley teenager Seamus Curtin narrowly failed to qualify for this year’s final, with fellow Wellingtonian Brady Amer stepping up the heat in the final round of section play.

Prior to their match-up, both bowlers had remained undefeated and vying to win their section, the result proved to be a winner-takes all set-up. An impressive display from Amer put paid to Curtin’s purple patch of form, taking the fixture 21-15 and advancing through with an unblemished record.

Meanwhile, section one saw former New Zealand age-group representative Finbar McGuigan edge his way through to the big showdown, tied on five wins a-piece with Stokes Valley’s James Cameron-Powell - though a superior differential favoured McGuigan to set up an all Wellington final.

Plimmerton pride Finbar McGuigan was in devastating form in the Under-18 Men's Singles final, dispatching Johnsonville hopeful Brady Amer 21-1 in the grand finale.

A commanding performance from McGuigan made light work of Amer, and despite Amer’s previous heroics in dispatching Curtin, the Johnsonville hopeful seemingly had no answers for McGuigan’s play - limping to a 21-1 loss and crowning McGuigan the 2018 Under-18 Men’s Singles champion.

In the women’s action, Russell continued her dominance in the division, striding out to a further three wins on day two to claim back-to-back titles with seven straight wins from as many starts.

Rangiora’s Rebecca Jelfs also remained undefeated on day two, finishing a respectable runner-up with her only loss proving to be against Russell on day one. In other placings, Victoria’s Amber Down finished third, while Glenfield’s Laura Tauniva took out fourth spot with four wins from seven.

With the Under-18 champions now crowned for another year, all focus will switch to the Under-21 Kittyhawks, where another level of youthful talent will step up to the fore and vie for their bragging rights as the country’s best age-group player.