Update 10th
September 2012.
Hi
Everyone!
Winter
is a goneburger and the new season is upon us along with the usual amounts of
wind for this time of the year.
Have
a great season and I will catch up with you all on the Greens.
From Captain
Paul.
Saturday September 15th OPENING
DAY
Play
will commence at 1pm weather permitting.
Drawn
Triples are our preferred choice and names in by 12pm.
Club Handbook
Will be available at Opening Day.
Social night
Next social night will be on Friday 21st
September at the clubrooms.
Details will be on notice board.
Tony Jensen’s - Bowling on 10th September 2012.
The warm
feeling of the sun on your back is a sure sign the bowling season is upon us
and I would expect most clubs will formally open their seasons in the next
three weeks.
While the
new season has not officially begun our women's
five year and under side has already played in and won the annual
hexagonal tournament at Wanganui. This is a splendid effort as they were in
very good company with Wanganui, Wellington, Hawkes Bay, Taranaki and Kapiti
Coast. Manawatu made a clean sweep of the first round and then held their form
sufficiently to retain the lead throughout the weekend.
The five
year and under grade is one where Manawatu has struggled in recent years but
this result would suggest these women have come of age. For the record the team
was Michele Welsh, Trish Didham, Lindy Crawford, Beryll England, Ailsa Lindsay,
Glenda O'Connor, Sophie Fisher, Caitlin Thomson, Tania Harris and Christina
Bryan. Watch those names in the future.
It is now
well known we have a very different looking Bowls Manawatu executive and they
have certainly produced a radically changed programme for the season. The most
fundamental change is that Open Events will no longer be the contests that go
on to Regional and National finals.
Champion of
Champion events will all be decided before the end of February and the winners
will go forward to the regional finals. This will dramatically change our Club
seasons and effectively mean that the bulk of club titles will need to be
decided this side of Christmas.
A point that
worries me is that as there are far fewer pathways to a centre title we will
see one or two very stacked teams in each club and ordinary club bowlers are
likely to feel they are only cannon fodder to the elite and not bother to
enter. Time will tell but with falling memberships change has to happen. It
will certainly mean big gaps in playing opportunity in the late summer and
autumn but clubs need to be aware that is opportunity.
Interclub
will also be played pre- Christmas and again interest will centre on the number
of Division One entries. We had only three in the women's competition and four
in the men's last season and I am not anticipating much change. With Division
Two also going through to a New Zealand title many clubs are targeting where
they can be more competitive. I hear Te Kawau and Ashhurst men will combine for
a Division two team this year and I commend the initiative. Regulations for the
competition allow for clubs with fewer than 20 members of one gender to combine
with a similar club. Clubs need to have their interclub entries in by 30
September so we will know soon enough the make-up of the event. I see five days
have been put aside for interclub which seems extraordinary to me. We had it
all over in two days last season.
• There will
still be some open centre tournaments held and the mixed 2-4-2 over Labour
Weekend is the first of these to be contested. I commend the effort in
attracting one of the game's greats Peter Belliss to enter. Unfortunately I
won't be able play the event this year or early interclub as I have an
appointment at Old Trafford that will take precedence.
• When in
Scotland earlier in the year I had the fortune to visit the Marchmount Bowling
Club in Dumfries. I pulled into a Bed and Breakfast only to look over the fence
and see bowls being played. The club has but one green but 195 full playing
members. When I enquired how they can get through a full programme with but one
green they were a little puzzled by the question. The brief answer was they
maximise daylight and players are told don't enter if you can't play when
required. A few of our posers could use such discipline.
I also
admired the way they got on with the game. The skips gave precise and immediate
instructions and all players crossed over briskly. Eighteen ends of fours were
played by nine o'clock.
• Bowls
Manawatu has entered the world of social media by introducing a Facebook.
Apparently 150 have already joined for news and chat. Not for this
old-fashioned ludite but I'm sure it has a place. No doubt a few tantrums will
be played out.
• Takaro ran
a very successful winter competition on Saturdays and believe it or not they
never lost a day through weather. I came off the bench to fill in a few times
and thoroughly enjoyed the outings.
Email news
to tony.jensen@aon.com
TONY JENSEN
Thanks Tony!
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