Tough golf draw for Canterbury

Press, 30 October 1981, Page 28

Tough golf draw for Canterbury

By

BOB SCHUMACHER

Only once before has the Poverty Bay Golf Club in Gisborne held the Freyberg Rose Bowl golf tournament. That was in 1957 and it was the scene for Canterbury’s first victory in the national inter-provincial teams’ championship. Next week, the Poverty Bay club will hold the Government Life-sponsored, tournament and Canterbury will go to Gisborne with high hopes of a fifth success in the country’s premier teams’ event. The mission ahead is an imposing one for the Canterbury five-man team of Jim Lapsley, John Williamson, Stephen Street, Mark Street and lan Ross. The draw could not be more difficult. Canterbury’s opposition in order will be Poverty BayEast Coast, Southland, Otago, Mid-South Canterbury, Wellington, Waikato and Auckland. (

In normal circumstances, Canterbury could expect to open its Freyberg campaign with a decisive win against Poverty Bay-East Coast. The combined team has finished at the bottom of the 14-team table for the last three years and in that period has managed only one win and two draws. But home course knowledge and especially familiarity with the putting greens is invaluable and that will give the Poverty Bay golfers an advantage which will have to be offset. Canterbury comfortably disposed of Southland at the Freyberg tournament last year and again had a convincing win in the .South Island inter-provincial contest earlier this month. Even without its international, Geoff Clarke, now a professional, Otago, as always, will be a difficult proposition, Canterbury headed off Otago last year

but was well beaten by the Otago eight-man side at the recent South Island tournament. Mid-South Canterbury has not beaten Canterbury in the event since 1974 and in the absence of its consistent No. 1, Robbie Bell, its prospects of upsetting seem remote. Canterbury won last year’s Freyberg match, 5-C. If Canterbury can survive the first four rounds, it will have done well but the pressure will become even more intense over the last three rounds as it confronts the teams which finished fourth, fifth and first last year. Wellington and Canterbury have had some extremely close and enthralling matches in recent years with honours about even. However Canterbury’s only loss last year was to Wellington, and that cost it the Rose Bowl. It has been some years since Canterbury last met Waikato and Canterbury will

be pleased that a former team-mate and national champion, Paul Hartstone, is no longer in the team. However, Waikato has an international, Colin Taylor, at No. 1 and experienced match- . players, John Gatley and Perry Meehan, in the next two positions. Auckland, which has won the last two tournaments, is favoured by a seemingly easy draw until the final day when it meets ManawatuWanganui, third last year, and Canterbury. The Auckland team is without two national representatives, Michael Barltrop and Phil Mosley, but still fields a formidable five with the twice national amateur champion, Terry Pulman, at No. 2, the New Zealand junior captain, Phillip Aieken, at No. 3, and the present national match-play champion, Terry Cochrane, at No. 4. Auckland will be favoured

to win its third successive title but the surprise packet might be Bay of Plenty, which has never won the Rose Bowl. It has three outstanding golfers in the • front positions in Owen Kendall, Mike Nicholson and Peter Creighton. The teams in playing order are.— AUCKLAND: Tony Treen, Terry Pulman, Phillip Aickin, Terry Cochrane, Michael Leitch. BAY OF PLENTY: Owen Kendall, Mike Nicholson, Peter Creighton, Noel Johnson, Peter Hay. CANTERBURY: Jim Lapsley, . John Williamson, Stephen Street, Mark Street, lan Ross. HAWKE’S BAY: Jamie Kupa, Steve Transom, Stuart Jones, Don Harper, Stuart Holmes. MANAWATU-WANGANUI: Neil Gaskin, Peter Simpson, Morrie Gibbons, Grant Waite, Darryl Court.

MID-SOUTH CANTERBURY: Geoff Kelly, Charlie Alexander, Kevin Frazier, Eric Maguigan, Laurie Goodson. NORTHLAND: Alan Morgan, Kevin Billington, Bernie Bonnington, Bruce McLeod, Sei Sullivan. OTAGO: Kim McDonald, Michael Atkinson, John Sanders, Greg Turner, John Finn. POVERTY BAY-EAST COAST: Peter Rouse, Mike Thomson, Murray Fisher, Rowan Clarke, Simon Jeune. SOUTHLAND: Gary Radka, Paul Adams, Gary Hildyard,. John Creedy, Tony Richards. TARANAKI: Robert Rookes, Jack Kurta, Murray Davidson, lan Cull, Peter Hewart. TASMAN: lan Strickett, Warren Hoy, lan Donaldson, Gary Girvin, Lyall Marfefl. WAIKATO: Colin Taylor, John Gatley, Perry Meehan, Peter Hunter, Boger Morgan. WELLINGTON: Rod Barltrop, Keith Roberts, Tony Proctor, Martin Webber. Michael Bartlett.