35 teams qualify in bowls fours

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33425, 5 January 1974, Page 3

35 teams qualify in bowls fours

Thirty-five of the 542 teams contesting the fours at the New Zealand bowls championships in Christchurch might well have enjoyed a quiet but deserved celebration last evening. The pressure temporarily came off these teams yesterday when they recorded a sixth successive win in the section rounds to qualify for post-section play next week.

However, further wins in the final two rounds today will be eagerly sought, as for the eight-game winners there is the prospect of a bye through the first round of post-section play. It is expected that about 100 teams will qualify — and there will be 173 teams fighting it out today for the remaining places. Seventytwo of them require only one more win; and 101 must win both their games today to make it.

For the remaining 334 teams, all hope of six wins has gone. Their only inducement today is to try to topple some of those still in the contest. In one or two sections, there is a faint chance that there might be no six-game winners, and if so, the teams with five will come through . It is generally the skips expected to figure prominently in the post-section rounds who are in the first batch of qualifiers. The title-holder, R. L. McDonald (Onehunga), had two more big wins — 32-13 and 36-8 — and his main concern could be that his team is having too easy a time of it. In McDonald’s section, N. A. Hill (Port Chalmers), one of the many younger skips playing a prominent part in the championships, has also qualified, but the two will not meet.

j. Somerville (Matamata), who like McDonald has still to be tested, E. W. S. Wilson (Balmacewen), K. Murtagh (Paritutu), J. A. Lambert (Tawa) and P. C. Skoglund (Northern) were other prominent skips to qualify yesterday. Murtagh, who has the

Commonwealth Games selection, D. C. Baldwin, as his third and his son, J. Murtagh, one of the near-misses from the Games team, as his lead, was a little lucky to win his final game yesterday. K. G. Shivas (Burnside) had the four shots he needed to level ithe score on the last end, ;but Murtagh chipped on: of ■them out with his final bowl.

Skoglund, too, had a close shave. S. C. Kennedy (Tokoroa) made him play very hard to win, and with a little more luck on the final end could well have got the three shots he needed to level the score.

Another favoured contender to win narrowly in the fifth round was V. J. Sellars (Northern). He got home by one against T. E, Scott

(Cromwell), but then comfortably beat J. M. Gill (South Brighton), who in spite of going down, 13-24, played some excellent shots.

Among those on the brink of qualifying with five wins is the redoubtable Carlton skip, W. P. O’Neill, who has been playing in New Zealand tournaments for almost 30 years and who has won the fours three times — in 1954, 1960. and 1963. O’Neill had a very keen struggle in the last round yesterday before beating R. J. Hey (Burnham Camp), 21-18. Hay needed to win to have a chance of qualifying. So far, four Canterbury skips are assured of a place in the post-section draw — K. G. Murray (Linwood), R. A. Lulham (Christchurch), N. Poole (Sumner) and A. K. Browning (Sydenham). There are 52 others with a chance of getting a sixth win toady. L. C. Lindley (Christchurch), who has a strong team, suffered his first loss in the final round yesterday when he went down, 23-25, to J. Page (Park Avenue). Page enjoyed a great deal of success in moving the kitty on the early heads and was 12-0 up after only six ends.

Another favoured local team to be beaten yesterday was the St Albans four skipped by B. W. Sincalir. It lost, 11-27, to W. Brown (Drummond), who has won only one other game.

Sinclair must now win twice today to qualify, and is unlikely to find the assignment easy, as both his opponents have a chance of reaching six wins. W. J. Cogswell (St Albans), J. A. Dale (Burwood),

and P. L. Remi ' (Hornby) were among the local skips beaten for a third time yesterday, but there is a strong contingent fighting a rearguard action to stay alive. H. P. Butts (St Albans), W. Hayes (Belfast), W. A. Hadlee (Fendalton), R. T. Bailey (Canterbury), G. Craig (Canterbury), and C. G. Cox (Burnside) all had two wins yesterday and need to do as well again today to qualify. One surprise result yesterday was the defeat of R. S. M. Low (Mt Albert), by M. B. Hayes (Elmwood), -22-20. Low has P. E. B. Jones leading for him and had shown good form in winning his five previous matches. Hayes, however, even with this success, cannot qualify.