TRENTHAM SHOOT

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

TRENTHAM SHOOT

British team wins (N.Z. Press Association) WELLINGTON. Lord Swansea flits between rifle-shooting meetings and the the House of Lords—having been involved in shooting and politics most of his life. Lord Swansea gave a hint of his obvious talent on the Trentham rifle range yesterday with a total of 179 out of a possible 185, fired over four rounds of 300 600, 700, and 900 yards. He was one of four members of the British team which topped the Wellington Rifle Association’s meeting, prelude to the national event which will begin at Trentham today. Lord Swansea, like most of the 22 members of the British team, found conditions awkward for shooting. “This is known as a fairly tricky range, and it certainly lived up to its reputation today,” he said. Lord Swansea is the first member of the Welsh rifle-shooting team to arrive in New Zealand to prepare for the Commonwealth Games. With him also are K. Pilcher and J. Spaight, members of the England team. ‘Probably we shall find that we won t need to do too much shooting before the Games, or we could get stale,” Lord Swansea said. Lord Swansea won a gold medal for Wales in the 1966 Games in Jamaica in the fullbore competition, the only other time shooting has been included on a Commonwealth Games calendar. Swirling, unpredictable winds knocked scores awry at Trentham yesterday—but Britain’s top shooters adjusted much better than their New Zealand counterparts. Major L. Orpen-Smellie, A. Chown, R. Britton, and Lord Swansea headed the A grade championship. In fifth and sixth places were M. Gordon (Okawa), a New Zealand representative for the Games, and A. Paynter (Blenheim).