Chch bowlers seeking third win

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32775, 27 November 1971, Page 46

Chch bowlers seeking third win

(By our bowls reporter)

The South Island zone finals tomorrow in the Rothmans national intercentre bowling tournament are the first step in Christchurch’s bid to complete three successive wins in the event.

Christchurch comfortably won the inaugural tournament in 1969 and last year just as conclusively repeated the performance. It must, therefore, start favourite this year, but it may not find the going quite so easy. Christchurch led the rest of the country in holding trials before its teams were selected and making new selections after each round in accordance with form. Other centres are likely to follow this practice this season. Also, it is no secret that the major North Island centres, long convinced that they hold New Zealand’s bowling strength, are determined to put an end to Christchurch’s supremacy. Tomorrow, Christchurch will field three teams in two zones and as the opposition is not greatly different to

last year’s, there seems a good chance that two will win through to the South Island final, which will be played on February 6 at a venue yet to be decided. In the zone six final at Buller, the Christchurch “black” team will compete and it appears a well-knit side with strength in all sections. The singles player is the former national champion, S. E. Lawson, and in the pairs is the proven combination, F. W. Hoy and A. B. Nottingham, last season’s pairs champion of champions. The fours skip is L. C. Lindley, who is no stranger to bowling successes west of the alps, and his rink of P. F.

Meier, C. T. Bateman and A. Memory seems extremely well-balanced. Memory, in particular, seems destined to make a big name for himself in the sport. Buller will supply two teams and West Coast one for the zone six play-off, and the biggest obstacle to a Christchurch victory might come in the pairs. T. James, who has a fine record, and who bowled most impressively in Christchurch last year, will skip one of the Buller pairs, and playing second in the other will be L. Fayen, who has been close to winning a New Zealand title.

The West Coast pair of ’E. Pascoe, a draw bowler of the highest calibre, and B. Crestani will also trouble Hoy and Nottingham.

In the zone five elemination, which will be played on the Linwood green, the two Christchurch teams entered will meet in the first round and then go on to play Nelson and Marlborough. Christchurch would probably prefer that one of its teams should win handsomely in the first round as a shared success would prove advantageous to either Nelson or

Blenheim if the final decision is close. . The Christchurch “red” team may prove stronger than the “white” team if only for the fact that the former’s pair is made up of the world tournament nominees, B. W. Sinclair and W. R: Wilkinson.

Their first-round opponents will be H. -Hartley: and W. J. Cogswell and this is a noteworthy matching as it was largely through the efforts of these four players that the St Albans club has achieved national prominence in recent years.

In the singles, J. P? Anderson will play M. K. Boon first; as these two players have been the Christchurch

open singles champions in the last two years, an absorbing duel seems assured.

The “red” four contains three players who performed with great credit for Christchurch in the tournament last year and for this reason it could hold a slight advantage. They are R. A. Lulham, W. Hayes and T. F. Coup (s); the newcomer is the lead, B. D. Chapman. The “white” four is E. Bell, G. R. Matthews, R. A. Croft and G. E. Bennett (s).

Although both these Christchurch teams can be expected to perform well, they may need to attain an even higher level to hold Marlborough and Nelson at bay. Marlborough, in particular, 'with L. Poidevin and F. L. Smith, tbe pair, and M. Reardon and R. Brown, the back end of the four, will make a very strong challenge.

The best known of the Nelson players are R. H. Wadsworth, the pairs skip, and F. L. Oakley, a member of the four.

As in the past, Christchurch’s strength may be most clearly seen in the singles, where it has gained enough match points to offset any dropped games by the pair of four.