Huntly four wins title

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32525, 8 February 1971, Page 5

Huntly four wins title

A team, which only qualified for post-section play with the minimum of four wins and by its own account was fortunate to beat the cut-off, on Saturday easily won the fours title at the New Zealand women’s bowls championships in Christchurch.

Mrs Z. Smith’s rink of Mesdames M. Johnson, J. Keith and I. McKeaman, gave their Huntly club its first national title when in the final it had a comfortable 19-10 win over the Palmerston team skipped by Mrs E. Stevenson. Of the winning four, only Mrs Smith had before been in sight of a New Zealand title—in 1964 she was run-ner-up in the pairs. The lead, Mrs Johnson, has never visited the South Island, but Mrs Keith only moved to Huntly from Greymouth just over a year ago. The team, all members of which are housewives, had played together only a few times before coming south, and it was originally intended that Mrs Smith’s sister, Mrs M. Dean, would be in the party. When Mrs Dean pulled out, Mrs Johnson was invited to join. Although clearly beaten in the final, Mrs Stevenson’s team of Mesdames W. Taylor, H. Cunningham and R. Rawson put up a great performance for a club which has only about 20 active members. For Mrs Stevenson and Mrs Taylor second placing was an improvement on the fourth spot they filled in the 1959 Dominion fours. It was a rather strange quirk of fate that brought Mrs Smith

and Mrs Stevenson together in the final as they both draw the same section and had it not been for a late change in the matchings for the first round of section play they would have met then. Mrs Smith had an easy passage through the semi-finals in the morning when her team allowed Mrs C. Bain (Wilton) to score on only three of the 20 ends played and won 23-6. For Mrs Stevenson it was a very different story and she gained her place in the final at the expense of Mrs L. Fowler i i Herne Bay) only after a -tensionpacked last end. Playing the iast end Mrs Stevenson led 17-16, but Herne Bay’s stocks rose when its lead. Mrs J. Gifford, played both her bowls within two feet of the kitty. However, the No. 2 Mrs V. Devlin pushed the kitty to the side of the rink and cut her team back to one shot. Mrs Taylor captured the shot for Palmerston when she knocked

up a front bowl and then to give her colleagues further heart she drew a second. Mrs Fowler cut out one of the counters with a superb draw under pressure and with all bowls played it was a measure for shot with opinions divided. The measure took a long time to settle, but when it was the triumphant hand-raising of Mrs Taylor told her team that they were through to the final. After such an exciting game, although just one of the many the championship produced, the final was something of a letdown. The occasion was probably largely the reason, but neither team played well and a good few of the heads were scattered over many yards. Although none of the eight players was drawing consistently well, Mrs Smith fared the better on the opening ends and with a three on the seventh end from , a very scattered head she took an 8-2 lead. The Palmerston front players were having weight problems and • after they had been heavy on . the ninth end Mrs Smith drew t two shots to add to the two she • held at the change-over and went l ahead 12-3. Mrs Stevenson, who throughi out the game had many narrow I misses with shots into the head, 1 saw one come off on the four- . teenth end and the two she c earned reduced the gap to 16-6. i However, on the next end when

holding two shots she moved the kitty and gave one away. Mrs Smith, with her No. 3, Mrs McKeaman, finding better form, continued to hold the upper hand and it was only a fine shot by Mrs Stevenson that denied the Huntly team a five on the seventeenth end. The eighteenth end, at which point Mrs Smith led 17-8, produced the best head of the game. Mrs McKearnan played a fine shot to move the kitty back and wrest the shot from Palmerston. Mrs Stevenson drew to within a yard of the kitty, and then Mrs Smith drew inside her. But Mrs Stevenson was not to be denied and with her second delivery regained the shot. Needing two on the twentieth end to wrap up the title, Mrs Smith's team gave them to her and also the position bowls she asked for. Mrs Stevenson played two running shots to kill the head but both just shaved the kitty. Results:— Semi-finals.—Mrs' Z. Smith (Huntly) 23, Mrs C. Bain (Wilton) 6; Mrs E. Stevenson 18, Mrs L. Fowler (Heme Bay) 16. Final.—Smith 19, Stevenson 10.