Yes, it has been a very busy week at bowls.
What with the previous Saturday and Sunday holding our Mixed Pairs Championship, Tuesday being the final night of Twilight Bowls, Thursday being our Premier Event, The Western 1000, Saturday was our Annual Challenge against Pirongia Club and then Sunday was the Post Section of the Open Men’s Pairs Championship. Busy bodies indeed!
MIXED PAIRS: Sponsored by Whaingaroa Physiotherapy. All the ladies in our club took part, but only eight men could play because we do not have any other ladies to partner them. Four teams qualified to play the Post section on Sunday. In these rounds Heather Dalbeth and Murray Eddy were defeated by Tim Ryan and Maureen (Maws) Wahanga, Ross Turner and Eileen Stephens defeated Richard (Blue) Stephens and Merleen Newport. Ross and Eileen defeated Tim and Maws to win the event. Congratulations to you all.
TWILIGHT BOWLS: Sponsored by Top Cut Butchery and Jack Peel. The weather affected our attendance every night except finals night on March 20, giving us 13 teams for the competition. With names like, Pirates, Te Mata 1, Te Mata 2, Alan’s Kings, 123, BB, Des Disciples, R.D., Here for a Beer, Slippery Ball, Just Us, Americanos and Helen Place, there was always going to be that special banter happening, which was flourishing well! After five weeks of challenges, the overall winners were ‘Pirates’ – Bob Carter, Terry Wright and Phil Shea, with Nicole Shea as a reserve player. In second place (and also the winners of the group without a bowler in their team) were Liz, Geoff and Robin. Congratulations all. The Triers prize went to the team called Helen Place. Great, fun times had by all – watch out for November’s round of Twilight Bowls.
WESTERN 1000: Sponsored by Seddon Park Funeral Home, Raglan SuperValue, Chris Leuthart of PGG Wrightson with Bill Bond and Jack Peel sponsoring the Top Local team. The weather played its part for us and gave us a calm, warm and sometimes overcast day, with rain arriving well after we had completed the day. Full rinks of 28 teams attended from Huntly, Taupiri, Hillcrest, Bereescourt, Hamilton Cossie Club, Frankton Junction, Frankton Railway, Pirongia, Te Awamutu, Otorohanga, Tokoroa, two Composite Teams and our local teams. We were treated to a luscious lunch, plus morning and afternoon tea. With music flowing through the air and great comradeship, the atmosphere was splendid for a wonderful day to be had by all. Two teams achieved four wins, while six teams achieved three wins. Pirongia, skippered by Laurie Roycroft, and Hillcrest, skippered by Ray Finlay, each had 4 wins plus 57 points gained. So, we had to see who had the least number of points scored gains them. Hillcrest had 25 while Pirongia only had 14 which gave then the Winning title. In third place was a composite team, skippered by Ross McGrail, and in fourth place was Dan Winbergs’s team from Te Kuiti. The Top Local Team was skippered by Ross Turner. Congratulations to you all.
ANNUAL PIRONGIA INTERCLUB: It was Raglan’s turn to host this challenge this year. The weather plagued us again, but we did mange to complete two full games with the third one getting rain off, so we called it a day. This challenge has been happening for a number of decades now and is still fought with great valour. There is only one criteria to find the winner and that is the side with the highest points scored over the whole day. Raglan sneaked in to retain the trophy, 101 points to 97. – that was a bit close. We return to Pirongia next year.
CHAMPIONSHIP MEN’S PAIRS: The Post Section of the Men’s Pairs was held on Sunday March 25. Although the weather forecast was to include a wet front passing through, it actually was a brilliant Autumn’s day, perfect for playing bowls. Playing in the semi-finals were Terry Green and Alan Price who were defeated by Ross Turner and Tim Ryan, with Bill Bond and Jack Peel (who were defeated by Colin Bouzaid and Murray Eddy) playing in the other semi. The final was between Ross Turner and Tim Ryan, and Colin Bouzaid and Murray Eddy – a well challenged game, which saw Ross and Tim gain momentum later in the game to take out the Championship Pairs this year. Congratulations all of you.
EASTER WEEKEND: Anyone wishing to play bowls over the weekend can contact Ruth 027 2063171 or Jack 022 1567509. (Fees apply)
Happy Bowling and Happy Easter, Eileen Stephens.
