Linwood bowlers again a dominant force

Press, 9 April 1980, Page 24

Linwood bowlers again a dominant force

By

KEVIN McMENAMIN

No Christchurch bowler managed more than one centre title'in the season now drawing to a close, but once again it was the Linwood club, from both the men’s .and women’s sections, that supplied most of the star performers. It has been, in fact, one of Linwood’s best seasons in a period of great success and the era shows no sign of ending. The club’s only fall from grace was in failing to retain its division

one Three-fours title. ■ The women again won ’ their inter-club competition, but one bad result cost the men victory, although the top Three-fours team came again to finish ' second to South Brighton. / South Brighton held its 'ranking as the second ' strongest club to Linwood Its double of winning both , divisions of the Three-fours . was particularly meritoriious and teams from the club also figured promin/ently in both national and ' local tournaments. r. South Brighton has a strong group of about a h dozen top players and the ' best of them is probably . Graham Stanley. Stanley found the water t a little * deep when he was given the vital singles spot in the

Rothmans inter-centre final, but he still lived up to his promise of previous

years. But whereas South Brighton, and some other i clubs, Papanui for one, can ' boast of more than its fair > share of top players, LinI wood has them in abundance. Morgan Moffat and £Kevin Darling, from LinSwood, remain Christa church’s only current New representatives l and they should hold their (places for some time yet. | Their involvement in the ; world /championships in * .national events, (• restricted | their but lit was not surprising that

they should confront each other in the final of the recent Easter fours. Darling had a particularly fine season, especially as a pairs skip, and despite the fact that he has never achieved much as a singles player he is probably the top bowler in the country at present. Moffat again served New Zealand competently, although he might consider

his Easter fours victory as the highpoint of his season. It gave him his much-want-ed first Christchurch centre title, and it should be the first of many. Moffat and Darling may have been Linwood’s most illustrious members, but close on their heels were Wally Wilkinson, Sonny Calder and Ken Watson, and from the women’s section, Lex Kimber and Agnes Beazley. Wilkinson had an excellent first season with the club. After losing two centre finals, plus the national fours final, he at last, as a member of Moffat’s winning Easter team, got the tenth title he needed for the bar to his gold star. Although thinking seriously of dropping down to lead in the near future, Wilkinson should add to his haul in the next few years, especially if he maintains his partnership with Moffat.

Notwithstanding the continued lack of interest the national selectors show in him, Wilkinson remains one of the country’s most ablest bowlers, an expert in all the shots and as good a singles player as he is a skip or third.

Peter Meier. (South Brighton) put some pressure on Wilkinson when he joined him on nine

centre titles and although Wilkinson got to, 10 first Meier, at just 40,-can look ahead to 15, or even 20, with every confidence. He is a top-class draw bowler. ' ■' .

Calder and Watson, with placings in both the singles and fours, distinguished themselves at the national championships and Calder, in par* ticular, was an asset to

any team. His omission from the Rothmans final was inexcusable. The Linwood ladies never allow the men of the club to steal a march on them for long., Mrs Beazley and Mrs Kimber gave the club three placings, as had the men, at their national tournament and Mrs Beazley was a very convincing winner of the open singles. It was unfortunate that a car accident shortly before the national cham* pion-of-champions prevented her from giving of her best at this tourna ment.

But Mrs Kimber is undoubtedly Linwood’s top woman player and after her performances this last season she must be well in the running for a place in the next New Zealand team selected. She started out by winning the Olympia Rose Bowl, finished second, in the pairs (Mrs Beazley was third) and third in the singles at the Dominion tournament, and just recently, was third in a big singles invitation tournament. in Palmerston North — a great display of consistency at the top. level. Yet while Linwood members captured most Of the spotlight, there were others who enjoyed fruitful seasons. lan Scott

(Dallington) and Bill McDonald (Spreydon) rose from the ranks of handy players to the champion class by winning the two major singles titles. It was also a notable summer for Morris Nairn, of Leestom Hardly known at the start of it, he first attracted attention to himself when he beat Moffat 33-11 in a Town-Country game.' This was, and still is, the biggest hiding Moffat has had since he came to New Zealand from Scotland in 1975. Naim then went on to finish third in the national fours, a remarkable feat for a skip with a composite team and nothing but a feyz sub-centre titles to his name. And as if to prove the placing was no fluke, Nairn, in partnership with Colin Lowery, soon after took the Christchurch open pairs.

This is one of the hardest centre championships to win, if only because of the heavy demands it makes on concentration, and by beating Calder and Wilkinson in the final Lowery and Nairn gave a special glow to their triumph.Most of the other big tournaments were won by proven players and one who will be watched closely in the future is the 1 6-y e a r-old Fendalton member, Chris Carter. There were some very good colts in evidence during the season, perhaps the- best crop for years, but Carter still had no dif* ficulty winning the colts championship for a second time, the first time in 25 years the. double has been achieved.

If carefully nurtured, Carter must have an exciting future. The biggest problem he faces, as did Darling some 10 years ago, is surviving under a whiz-kid label. Darling managed it and there is no reason why Carter should be any different.