Update 21^st November  2013.

Congratulations Northern on once again winning the Te Raki cup challenge against Takaro. We can look forward to a rematch in May next year.

Good luck with Interclub this weekend.

Farewell to my old Mate and Skip, Noel. You will be missed. Rest in peace and enjoy your time on the big ole bowling green in the sky.

 Noel with Lindsay - Closing day 2012 - 2013 season - 12 May.

Bowling On - 21^st November  

As we near the halfway mark for the Bowling season it is an appropriate time to review the health of the game.

After a thorough examination including CT scan, ultra-sound, Xray and MRI I am afraid Dr Tony has no option but to conclude "Terminally ill" and little chance of surviving another 20 years. If you don't believe me here are some numbers. The Ladies will please forgive me for dealing only with men's playing numbers but when I pulled out the 1990-91 season handbook it was a reminder that Apartheid was removed in South Africa before our two genders could see their way clear to work together in bowls.

That book told me that at that time 1992 men played the game in the Manawatu  compared to the 542 who do so today. In fact the 1450 that have disappeared represent nearly three times those who remain in the game. I hunted out the 1996-97 handbook next (still in the era of Bowls version of Apartheid) to see there were 1594 playing then so the decline had commenced but there were still more than a thousand more in the game than today. It doesn't surprise me that the decline started in this period as New Zealand changed forever with the advent in 1990 of almost unrestricted weekend shopping.

For you information membership by club in 1990-91 and today follows. I have bracketed clubs that have amalgamated and placed an asterisk beside those that are defunct;

Ashhurst       38        12

Bulls              43        29

Dannevirke  197        29

Feilding)

Oroua   )       242       69

Foxton  )

Foxton Bch)  194       28

Hokowhitu    172       33

Himatangi       -          21

Kairanga        24*

Kimbolton      32        17

Manawatu      98*

Northern      195        52

Pahiatua         90        11

Palm Nth      213       110

Shannon        70        18

Takaro          135       38

Te Kawau       36          9

Terrace End  154        49

Woodville       59         17

TOTAL.          1992      542

The figures speak for themselves thus my health assessment is pretty accurate.  Among the reasons for the change are;

1. The game takes too long

2. Weekend Shopping

3. The game takes too long

4. Weekend work

5. The game takes too long

6. Change in our ethnicity

7. The game takes too long

8. Poor administration at all levels

9. The game takes too long

10. The game does not lend itself to TV.

And by the way the game takes too long! The "taking too long" has many forms. For instance the Centre Open Singles were played on 12 and 13 October 2013 and then the final was held over. Here we are at the end of November and it still hasn't been played. Imagine a game of League going to Golden Boot and you hold that part over for six weeks. Or you play the US Open and hold the playoff over and don't bother setting a date.

Tournaments take too long in both length of game and duration. There is little or no restriction on time wasting and that aspect is demonstrably worse than it was 20 years ago. "Posers" will wander nonchalantly to the head, walk round it three times, walk halfway back to the mat, return for one more lap of the head then go back and play a nothing shot. All the while their team mates are close to comatose from boredom.

Two other aspects of the game that many people find unattractive are smoking on the green and drinking during play. Imagine Richie McCaw imploring his troops to greater effort with a fag hanging out his mouth or in the dressing room having a pint at halftime! For mine it's not an attractive part of the sport and how many has it put off the game? Perhaps we need to ask those 1450 who no longer play.

I know this column sounds very negative but the facts don't lie. No doubt there'll be a few knives waiting for my back if I get back on the green sometime.

TONY JENSEN

Thanks Tony.

Update 6^th November  2013.

Bowling On

The furrowed brow I witnessed on the face of Manawatu Representative Bowls selector Terry Puklowski's face on Sunday was very likely caused by the news that Palmerston North men were unable to win a game in division one interclub last Saturday.

Palmerston North usually provide half the Manawatu men's team and with the annual Arnott Duckett event against Taranaki and Wanganui being played on Saturday 15 November the form of players competing at this level is vital and there are no events being played this coming weekend that will provide the necessary level of competition. Hopefully the adage that class is permanent and form is temporary will apply. The teams for the tournament are: Senior (green) Singles, Brian Looker; Pairs, Stephen Love (s) and Graeme Cooley; Fours Pat Horgan (s), Mark Noble, Darryl Johnson and Dean Gilshnan; (white) Singles Chris Barrett, Pairs Barry Wynks and Scotty McGavin; Fours Brian Little, Steve Toms, Grant Davis and Terry Rossiter: (development) Mike Hodge, Keith Hughes, Colin Cherri, Graham Black, Mike Abraham, Harry Mills, Chance Haussman and Eion McIntosh.

After day one of interclub there are five clubs even on eight points being Northern, Terrace End, Aramaho, Durie Hill and Wanganui East followed by Takaro, Marton and Wanganui on four and Palmerston North failing to worry the scorers. There are five rounds to go of course and anything could happen yet but I suspect we will see a few more surprises.

After making an ageist jibe at the Palmerston North women in this column last week they took the remark right to heart and came out blazing to lead the women's competition on nine points, closely followed by Northern and Wanganui East on eight, Johnston Park six, Laird Park five while Marton, Terrace End and Wanganui are all on four each. A tight looking competition. When the Palmerston North ladies bake me a humble pie please remember my favourite flavour is mince and cheese!

• No results have been provided for division two interclub which also proceeds to a National title but I have to say I have a large bouquet and  an equally sized brickbat for Palmerston North which hosted the men's event. A bouquet for producing two greens of absolutely outstanding quality and I don't believe I have ever played on a better surface than what we struck. The "greenkeeper" is the most maligned person in bowls and it is always his fault when someone plays poorly. Well we got a bath from Northern in one game but the rink was superb. Ken Murray has no peer in his profession.

The brickbat was the club's failure to provide markers for the singles which was a poor show. If they had a problem the time to resolve it was the night before and not leave it to chance on the morning. The information sheet that went to clubs on 15th October was very clear in the requirement for four markers. Not much to ask of a club of 159 members. I suspect we won't encounter the problem at the smaller clubs who pride themselves on their hospitality.

• Philip Skoglund jnr is unavailable for the Manawatu team currently but is in great form all the same. At the weekend he made the final of the prestigious North East Valley singles only to bow to Ali Forsyth the dual NZ singles champion 25-16 after a slow start. In such form he will be useful later in the season.

• Events that hold a real mystique for us mere males are the women's galas which always seem to draw big fields and are great money spinners for the clubs. The cross club support they receive is a lesson for us all. Galas coming up are Terrace End 18 November, Ashhurst 27 November and Johnston Park 9th December.

Good bowling

TONY JENSEN

Thanks Tony

Update 29^th October  2013.

Congratulations to Doug Hayward and Ann Corlett who defeated Liz and Terry Rossiter in the  final of the Centre mixed 2-4-2 pairs on Monday.  J

Good Bowling to those Northern players who are taking part in the first day of Interclub on Saturday and the Club Singles championships on Sunday. The long range weather for the weekend looks a little suspect but how often do they get it right? Here's hoping, not this time!

Bowling On

29^th October.

Bowls Manawatu Division One Interclub commences on Saturday and a unique change is the joint competition with Wanganui Clubs.

Each Centre will still provide a representative club to go onto regional and perhaps National finals and in theory one of the Centres could grant that privilege to a club finishing fifth overall although unlikely.

Manawatu will be represented by Palmerston North, Northern and Terrace End in both gender competitions while Johnston Park and Takaro will be the fourth team in the women's and men's competitions respectively. Wanganui and Wanganui East will be in both competitions for the Wanganui Centre and the highly ranked Aramaho and Durie Hill are the other two men's clubs. Laird Park and Marton complete the four clubs in the women's competitions.

What the change will do is remove a lot of the predictability with travel, different greens and unknown opponents being considerations for all players and how they cope on day one may dictate the outcome.

Wanganui teams are not known to me but at Centre level our representative players often struggle to compete and I expect they will be very competitive all round. Northern women will be without Feona Sayles, Chris Quinn and Sharon Sims but it's side still looks well balanced and exemplifies the club's depth. I like the look of Terrace End's women's team while Johnston Park is newly promoted to Division One but will feel the loss of their two best players Robyn Schischka and Lyn Jensen who are both unavailable.

 At the risk of being ageist Palmerston North women look just a little too seasoned to foot it - I await the howls of protest.

Northern also have several changes in the men's seven with Philip Sloglund Jnr, Craig Gush, Cameron Nairne, Grant Simms and Ray Lovie all gone from the club or unavailable. Palmerston North have lost singles exponent Ross Ellery but lose nothing in replacement Chris Barrett while Pat Horgan will skip a four with two new faces in Clayton Simpson who has transferred from Terrace End and Dean Gilshnan who came of age last season.  Brian Little skips Graeme Cooley in the pair and I expect they will be a formidable combination.

Takaro and Terrace End will be competitive with the mens sevens they have named but I question some of the playing order particularly the Takaro four which has an upside down look about it.

Men's Division two is back in numbers with eight teams and Johnston Park and Palmerston North have two entries each. It is usually a matter of which of the Palmerston North teams wins this grade.

Most divisions play two rounds on day one then three rounds on subsequent days which I find thoughtless and totally illogical. If you lose time in a competition it needs to be made up and common sense says if you lose the time later on you can't return to day one to make it up! Play three rounds a day from the start is the only sensible approach.

Manawatu Division One teams are (singles players are shown first followed by pairs skip, lead, fours skip etc): Women, Palmerston North, Robyn McGregor, Pat Cohr, Joan Ware, Ngaire Cowen, Nancy Meads, Marilyn Free, Jewell Griggs; Johnston Park Ann Corlett, Gillian Friis, Christina Bryan, Tina Vartha, Lois Tyler, Tania McKay, Maureen Coffey; Northern, Mere Fryer, Liz Rossiter, Noeleen Elston, Sue Meyer, Anna Davis, Juilanne Mills, Janeen Noble: Terrace End, Patricia Hansen, Bev Budd, Georgie Kahui-Rogers, Sheryn Blake, Hine Bennett-Davies, Ailsa Lindsay, Sharon Groves; Men, Palmerston North, Chris Barrett, Brian Little, Graeme Cooley, Pat Horgan, Steve Toms, Clayton Simpson, Dean Gilshnan: Northern, Terry Johnson, Mark Noble, Neil Gordon, Grant Davis, Adam Johnston, Rhys Hakkens, Bruce Harris; Terrace End, Brian Looker, Shane Rogers, Graeme Gosnell, Dave Newell, Barry Evans, Scruff Anderson, Mike Hodge; Takaro, Terry Rossiter, Barry Wynks, Don Sones, Clark Norris, Kevin Bryan, Ian Johnson. Terry Curtis.

• In a thrilling finish Doug Hayward and Ann Corlett (Northern) beat the husband and wife combination of Liz and Terry Rossiter in the final of the Centre mixed 2-4-2 pairs at Northern on Monday. The score was 12-12 going into the last end and Corlett immediately plonked a bowl right on the jack and it stayed there. All of those characters are in the "Good Guys" category and all a little unheralded as well.

• The Centre is still to set a date to play the carried over final of the Open singles which will be between the crusty old Palmerston North bowler Brian Henn and the highly rated Mark Noble. There is some disquiet among bowlers after the final was carried over after a Monday was set down for the tournament. Several top bowlers did not enter because of work commitments and were bemused to see such a change can be made on a whim.

• Good Bowling

Tony Jensen

Thanks Tony

Update 8^th October  2013.

Northern was handed a bit of a hiding on Saturday by Paraparaumu.

I believe that the score was something like 23 to Northern and 53 to Paraparaumu. 

It is good tactics to let them win once in a while, keeps them interested. J

Bowling On

8^th October.

Manawatu Bowls will swing into full gear for the season with the playing of the Centre Open Singles for both genders this coming weekend.

The only disappointment for me is completing the tournament on Monday rather than a later weekend thus precluding some working people from playing. It is easy to suggest taking leave but many jobs are such today that one off leave days are not easy. There is enough thought that bowls is an old man's game without going out of the way to make workers unwelcome.

Nevertheless there is a good field lining up and the top half of the Women's B section at Feilding has the look of the draw from hell about it. Included in the eight players are Noeleen Elston, Sheryn Blake, Feona Sayles, Mere Fryer, Anna Davis all top Manawatu representative bowlers of recent vintage as well as Taradale's Colleen Ferrick who has been prominent at National level. The bottom half is only marginally less fierce including Georgie Kahui-Rogers, Janeen Noble, Joan Ware, Sue Meyer and Sharon Groves.  Many of these women will be in the one-life draw after one round so that won't be an easy path. Selector Viv Lozell will be delighted to see so many good match-ups to look at as she looks to find her teams for the season.

The men's sections do not have the same spread of talent but there are some good first round match-ups all the same. At Shannon Brian Schischka who won the open singles when it was last played two years ago meets Current Representative Barry Wynks and with both bowlers sporting reputations as slowish players I can see markers hiding in the locker room to avoid that game.

At Woodville Philip Skoglund jnr plays Darryl Johnson (who has joined the exodus from Foxton & Beach to Himatangi Beach) who is a formidable singles exponent. Another top match there will be Terrace End clubmates Brian Looker and Shane Rogers. The pick of first round games at Palmerston North will be Mark Noble playing Clayton Simpson.

After two rounds a quarter of the field will exit and the numbers will reduce quickly from then. I am a proponent of the two-life system and some good bowlers will be marking come the third round. The most prominent bowlers missing are Scotty McGavin, Stephen Love and Chris Barrett.

. Bowls administration hit a new low last weekend when the running of the annual hexagonal event in Wanganui turned into a shambles. The Manawatu Centre President Phil Skoglund is guarded about commenting but it would appear that after Centres agreeing some time back that the event would now be open to eight year and under bowlers the agreement was overturned during the tournament. All of us in bowls know that conditions of play can only be altered by the Controlling Body but a decision was taken by a group comprising the Managers of the women's teams.

That being  allowed to happen is incredulous enough but that it only applied to the women's event and not the men's adds to the suggestion that someone who couldn't run a bath was running things. The upshot was that Manawatu won the women's event on the green but were penalised two points for each game they fielded a player that was not a five year and under bowler. I understand the Manawatu women reacted with admirable dignity when informed of the assinine decision but I can't understand the Centre having no comment. In this day and age social media means the information is spread around the bowling fraternity rapidly so staying "mum" is no response. I awoke to a text before 6-00am on Monday alerting me something was up. It is said the Lord moves in mysterious ways but he has nothing on Bowls administration.

• It is probably bittersweet now but I thought it a fantastic achievement from Kylie Yates of the Ashhurst Club to make the "eight year" and under Manawatu team. The club has but three women bowlers so to excel at centre level has been a special effort.

TONY JENSEN

Thanks Tony