Update 25^th November  2014.

Congratulations to the Northern Men's 2^nd  & 3^rd Div Inter-club teams on the winning of their respective competitions for the 2014 – 2015 season.

Well done!

Comment on Bowls   by Denis Duffy.

Television exposure is a vital component of marketing any sport and Bowls is no exception. We get precious little, so anything we can get on air, courtesy of Sky Television, needs to be quality stuff. Over recent days the highs and lows of what does make it have been evident. The second edition of the Australian Premier League, beamed in prime time out of the palatial Pine Rivers complex near Brisbane, was largely superb. In the mix here were several ingredients that could well draw the uninitiated to the sport. First and foremost there was fierce rivalry, with play of a generally high standard. The inclusion of a quality New Zealand side competing at State rather than International level could be questioned, but at least the top Kiwis were on screen and, better still, were winning regularly. Ali Forsyth’s deadly use of the drive shot added an element of the spectacular too. Not all of the hoop-la surrounding the event would go down well on this side of the Tasman, such as the scantily clad hostesses and blatant booze promotion, but most of it is to be applauded. The use of Power Plays and the provision for substitutions and Time Out have been successfully borrowed from cricket and basketball. The players wired live to the commentators seldom have anything insightful to say, but again it adds to the sense of immediacy. Imposing a time limit for delivery of a bowl certainly prevents time-wasting, seen when the legendary Kelvin Kerkow had his missile stopped and summarily removed from the field of play for such a sin. The series did raise the old bogey of using sets to determine results. This method was tried at length and ultimately rejected over here, mainly because the player with the most points doesn’t necessarily win. Sudden death tie-breakers can be a deflating lottery for those on the wrong end of them too, but they generate excitement, and that’s what the Premier League is all about. The truly vital ingredient is star quality among the players. It’s hard to credit now that the likes of the brilliant Scot Alex Marshall, currently undisputed as the world’s best player, was once seen annually and in numbers right here in the Manawatu. Those were the sadly long gone days of the magnificent Lion Masters’ Singles. However, Marshall was somehow enticed to Brisbane atop of an impressive list of big Australian names and the silky skills of the bulky, transplanted Irishman Jeremy Henry.

Also currently screening again are the finals of the annual Trusts New Zealand Open from Henderson. I hate to say it, but this is more likely to deter new bowlers than attract them.  The finalists find themselves far from the sheltered and cosseted comforts of Pine Rivers. Often they step out into the violent gusts and squalls common at this time of year, and, when this is added to large doses of jitters at the sight of the live cameraman, the results often range from poor to disastrous. The sparsely scattered and rugged-up spectators provide no atmosphere, and the unitiated viewer must often wonder how such apparent incompetents could have reached a major final. These are players who are often very well performed within their Centres, and they can’t enjoy being seen to struggle like rank novices on camera. There have been some well fought finals of course, and the McBeth/Belliss commentary is excellent, but generally the standard of play on show is not nearly good enough to be of much value.

Congratulations must again go to the Northern club which has booked three of the four available spots at the regional Interclub finals in Gisborne. Most recently, Northern romped home in the ultra-competitive Men’s Division 2 where there were nine starters, including two from both Takaro and Palmerston North. 

    

 

Thanks Denis.

Update 12^th November  2014.

Comment on Bowls   by Denis Duffy.

Men’s Division 1 Interclub is now complete, which in itself is probably the crucial issue to emerge from a controversial second day’s  play. It’s a matter of history that Northern came through as winners only after the recorders had to use the third of four available means to separate them from the other leading contender, Palmerston North 1. Two sides finishing on the same number of match points is not unusual, but to find their respective shot differentials identical is rare, and it was only on ends won that the winner was determined. Ends are not usually a factor in Singles matches, and this helped to make the final situation a real talking point. It’s no wonder that those of us toiling under a hot Dannevirke sun in Division 2 were confused by conflicting messages emanating from Bowls Central at the Palmerston North greens. Credit must first go to the winning Northern Club, which has had a superbly consistent record in this event for many seasons. This time, as always, they had players of long proven top class in the three key positions – Mark Noble in charge of the Four, Philip Skoglund Skipping the Pair, and Terry Johnson in the Singles berth. However, returning to my opening point, this outcome surely proved that a head to head showdown between the two best performed sides after the Round Robin would have been a more satisfactory way of finding the winner. It’s been done that way not too long ago and there was ample time left last Saturday for it. Alternatively, such a high profile showdown would certainly attract even the most apathetic Bowls watcher. It’s obvious that this type of finale to competitions, with everything on the line in a climactic match, is very much in vogue these days across a wide range of sports.  Finding the right day in a crowded calendar would not be easy, but the Manawatu competition is at present very brief by comparison with the majority of Centres.

The two new Manawatu representative selectors have unveiled their teams for the Tri-Series hosted this weekend by Wanganui. This event has existed in various formats for many years under the title of the Arnott and Duckett Trophies. Eric Watson’s Women’s team looks very sound, with its most eye-catching combination in one of the Pairs where Sheryn Blake and Georgie Kahui-Rogers will surely take a lot of beating. It’s also good to see the return of Palmerston North’s Nola Urbahn. Tania Harris and Christina Bryan are two exciting players to watch in the Development section. Tania played impressively in the 2x4x2 Pairs over Labour Weekend where she and husband Bruce missed the Quarter-Finals on an extra end, and Christina stood out in the team that recently ran second in the WKWM Rep. fixture at Masterton.  Sharon Sims’ first Men’s team has a strong base in the Singles, where Shane Rogers tops the list. He is named with Brian Looker, who steps up after having previously featured only as a fringe Fours selection. Sharon has named a power-packed Four which must be some sort of pointer towards the major events later in the season. Pat Horgan has again been in dominant Club form, and he will step out with Chris Barrett at Lead backed by our two Glasgow medallists in the engine room. Jason Moore has been off the greens for some time and it’s good to see his ability recognised so soon, while the selection of the youthful Eion MacIntosh, now playing at Terrace End, is a sound investment for the future.

    

 

Thanks Denis.

Update 10^th November  2014.

Congratulations to the Northern Ladies 2^nd Div Inter-club Team on the winning of their competition for the 2014 – 2015 season.

Well done!

The Successful Team.

Congratulations also to the Men’s first Div Inter-club Team on the winning of their competition for the 2014 – 2015 season.

Well done!

Update 5^th November  2014.

Comment on Bowls   by Denis Duffy.

A severely wind-blown opening day of Interclub certainly blew away the assumption by this pundit that Northern were obvious favourites to take the Women’s title. Congratulations to the Terrace End side that won every match to take out the competition with plenty to spare. The team that nailed down the first available spot in the Regional finals in Gisborne has already been named in the press, but a victory as comprehensive as this one justifies their repetition. The successful players were Mere Fryer, Georgie Kahui-Rogers, Bev Budd, Sheryn Blake, Ailsa Lindsay, Christina Bryan and Lynlea Rogers. The Men’s competition remains wide open. With two rounds to play, Palmerston North 1 leads by a single point from Terrace End and Northern. Day 2 will be intense, with every chance that the smallest of margins will decide the ultimate outcome. The Horgan/Gilshnan Pair proved again how vital they are to the hopes of leaders Palmerston North 1 by going through the first three rounds unbeaten on a day where honours were relatively evenly divided.

The Bowls Manawatu candidate nominated for this weekend’s Sport Manawatu awards in the Administrator of the Year category didn’t make the finals cut, but was a very worthy nomination. Current Centre Manager Vern Sixtus has clocked up a lifetime’s worth of service to the sport, mainly under the now discarded title of Secretary. Since first joining the Manawatu Centre executive in the early 1980’s, Vern has served in every imaginable capacity, including a two year term as President in the early 1990’s. He retired in 2004, but was persuaded to return when Phil Skoglund revisited the Presidential chair. Today Vern continues to be the ‘go-to man’ for every aspect of the Centre’s activities and especially when there’s a problem to sort out. In a previous life, Vern also clocked up nineteen consecutive years as Secretary of the Takaro club. He is a colossus in the local administration of the sport.

Hours of meticulous research went into the preparation of Vern’s record as an Administrator of the Year candidate, and most of this was performed by another true stalwart in Stan Goston. Stan revealed that he still possesses copies of the Centre Handbook dating back to before 1980, and this was the crucial resource used in checking out Vern’s extensive background in Bowls. Stan is the current Patron of the Terrace End club, where he is a long serving player and administrator.  He’s a diehard Cantabrian at heart, and he continues to oversee the ever popular Skoglund Triples weekly competition, together with former National president Keith McMurtrie.

A great night was had by all who turned up at the Palmerston North clubrooms for a very successful indoors ‘Race Meeting’ which raised a sizeable part of the funds required to send Manawatu teams to the National Inter-Centre event in Christchurch later in the season.

    

 

Thanks Denis.