BOWLING.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 78, 2 April 1928, Page 15

BOWLING.

JHc fiEND.HO GOLD 30WLS. THE EASTER TOURNAMENT.

(By TRUNDLER.)

Several clubs have now chosen their 'rink to represent them in the championship tournament for the Bendigo Gold Bowls, to commence tin Wednesday, April' 18. The Ponsonby committee sclcted A. J. letbam, R. S. Somervell, J. Torrance and A. Parsons. The West End choice is F Wise, I. Clarke, A. J. Thomson and W. Bremner, a very appropriate selection, considering the spectacular victory achieved by the second and the skip in the pairs flUal on Saturday. The Onehunga match committee decided on Saturday to nomiuate J. W. Jlacklow, I. ,1. Sutherland, H. A. Robertson and E. B. Wright. The eight Epsom rinks selected by the match committee are now reduced to two, and they will probably play oil this afternoon. In Wellington no special competition ] was necessary, for they already have a ■ rink championship, and it was won by the Kelburn Club, represented by Wil- ] liams, Harris, Smith, Lowry. Mr. J. W. | Lowry is well known in Auckland, hav- . ing been for many years a successful ikip at Carlton. The issue is also open at Carlton. I The four rinks chosen by the four skips nominated by the match committee 1 played off on Saturday, the two win- , fling rinka being T. Rowe, G. Wrightson, 6. Martin, G. R'. Hosking; and J. Clark- ' •on, J. Bird, W. Ball, W. J. Truscott. Unfortunately it became dark before the finalists could complete the 21 heads, and the remaining five heads, to decide which of these two rinks will represent, the club, will be played before the antries close on Wednesday evening. Rawhiti adopted tlio Takapuna system of electing a rink by a vote of the whole dub, and the choice fell upon A. Martin, J. B. Patevson, W. McKinlay, A. Macpherson, with W. Chiplin as an emergency. The chosen four decided amongst themselves to play in the above order. Rawhiti expected to complete the Percentage Fours last Saturday, but a delay has occurred, and the final will to played .on the .first free Saturday after Easter. The competing rinks are Neil Thomson, A. Martin, W. Austin, P. B. Thomson; N. Hamlin, J. Savin, C. Murray, A. Macpherson. Rawhiti has this year joined the list of clubs who have a father and son as members, Mr. Neil Thomson being the ion of Mr. P. B. Thomson, vice-president of the club. He has started well in kit bowling career, having already won the junior championship, and he is in the Anal of the first-year championship, besides the Percentage Fours described above. The Eaater Tournament. By keeping open the entries for the Executive Fours for a few days, the committee were successful in getting the remaining entry that was necessary in order to avoid a bye, a policy which will receive general commendation. The record entries compare with recent years a* under:— First Tear. Open. Executive. Year. Total. 1022 72 20 10 102 1628 64 20 17 101 1024 70 10 12 98 1025 80 22 11 113 1026 72 14 8 94 1027 62 24 18 104 1928 76 26 20 122 Probably the most popular feature in the coming tournament is the large entry from South Auckland, there being one rink from Te Awamutu in the Executive Fours (Ross, Douglas, North, Noonan), and three in the Easter Fours. These are Lafferty, Baker, Anchor, Astle (Frankton); Smith, Joll, N. Bell, jun., N. Bell, sen. (Hamilton); and Booth, Wycherly, Lovcridge, Higgott (Whitiora). All these well-known and popular players will receive a hearty welcome in the city, and their presence may be taken as an indication of the active cooperation between the city and the pro- . vince. It will be noted that while South Auckland sends sixteen players to the city, Auckland sends sixteen rinks to Cambridge for Easter. A Bowler Honoured. The congratulations of all bowlers will be offered to Mr. H. D. Mahon, of the Remuera Bowling Club, on the great honour conferred upon him last week, in being appointed headmaster of the greatest secondary school in the city, and in many ways the greatest in the Dominion. Those of us who knew Harold Mahon as a boy at school, when we were all proud to sit at the feet of the late Mr. J. W. Tibbs, will probably appreciate, even better than the thousands , who have only known him as a tutor, lis keen sense of responsibility, which will be his guiding star in his new position. Ho follows another bowler, the late Mr. James Drummond, a former ■■ president of the Ponsonby Bowling Club, and resembles him in his capacity to bold the balance evenly between ath-1 letics and scholarship, in order to develop that mens sana in corpore sano which has been the aim of his distinguished predecessors. Thousands of bowlers will join with tens of thousands of Grammar Old Boys in wishing a brilliant term of office to the new head.