Christchurch for bowls zone final

Press, 30 January 1984, Page 3

Christchurch for bowls zone final

Christchurch had little trouble winning the zone five elimination of the Rothmans inter-centre bowls tournament at the Woolston W.M.C. greens over the week-end. It now goes on to the national final, to be played in Christchurch on March 3 and 4. Christchurch gained 16 points, with only the one loss in its nine games. South Canterbury and West Coast both earned eight, with South Canterbury having the superior points differential (plus 3 as against minus 35). North Otago came in last, with four. Three wins in the first round on Saturday gave Christchurch a firm grip on the contest, and that grip never looked likely to loosen through the second and third rounds yesterday. Christchurch was very well served by its singles player, Neville Poole. He took a while to get the feel of the green on Saturday, but once he had adjusted to the pace he drew with great precision and he maintained this form yesterday. Poole’s best win came in the last round, where he beat Arthur Rudduck (North Otago), 25-9. Rudduck was also unbeaten up to this stage, but he had no answer to Poole’s opening burst, which gave him a 15-0 lead. The Christchurch pair of Leon Jones and Bob Patterson (s) was also unbeaten. They had three tight finishes, after being well ahead early in two of the games, but played well under pressure to get home on each occasion. Surprisingly, Christchurch had a big loss in the fours. Neither Morgan Moffat, nor his third, Graham Stanley, played up to their best form and it was the front half of

Ken Watson and Alan Griffin who held the team together. But the whole four was outplayed in the second round by Robin Milne’s South Canterbury combination. Two sixes early helped Milne to a 17-2 lead after seven ends and Moffat never looked like coming back. The final score was 24-9 and this was probably the biggest defeat Moffat has had in the nine years he has been a Christchurch representative skip. The Christchurch four also had problems in its last round game against Fred Goodall (West Coast). It was only two fours and a three near the finish that won the game for Moffat, 17-15. The Christchurch junior team fared equally well. It had just one loss for 16 points and comfortably headed off North Otago (10), South Canterbury (6), and West Coast (4). The stars of the Christchurch team were the pair of Geoff Wilkinson and Ron Fridd (s). It won all its three games by big margins. The four, skipped by Stan Ansell, had two close finishes in its three wins, while the only loss was by the singles player, Stewart Buttar, in the last round. The junior national final will be played in Wellington, also on the week-end of March 3 and 4. Results:— Seniors First round Singles.—Christchurch (N. Poole) 25, South Canterbury (D. Bailey) 13; North Otago (A. Rudduck) 25, West Coast (G. Pascoe) 7. Pairs.—Christchurch (J. Patterson) 19, West Coast (A. Muncaster) 15; South Canterbury (J. Gillespie) 22, North Otago (M. McAra) 19. Fours.—Christchurch (M.

Moffat) 23, North Otago (E. Baird) 10; South Canterbury (R. Milne) 22, West Coast (F. Goodall) 6. Second round Singles.—Christchurch 25, West Coast 11; North Otago 25, South Canterbury 14. Pairs.—West Coast 25, South Canterbury 19; Christchurch 18, North Otago 17. Fours.—West Coast 18, North Otago 10; South Canterbury 24, Christchurch 9. Third round Singles.—West Coast 25, South Canterbury 22; Christchurch 25, North Otago 9. Pairs.—West Coast 24, North Otago 22; Christchurch 17, South Canterbury 15. Fours.—South Canterbury 18, North Otago 15; Christchurch 17, West Coast 15. Juniors Singles.—Christchurch (S. Buttar) 25, South Canterbury (T. Richards) 18; North Otago (B. Shirley) 25, West Coast (M. Pascoe) 19. Pairs.—Christchurch (R. Fridd) 25, West Coast (S. Muncaster) 8; South Canterbury (M. Heaps) 24, North Otago (N. Fraser) 18. Fours.—West Coast (J. Bull) 18, South Canterbury (H. Smith) 17; Christchurch (S. Ansell) 19, North Otago (R. Wilkinson) 18. Second round Singles.—North Otago 25, South Canterbury 15; Christchurch 25, West Coast 8. Pairs.—West Coast 24, South Canterbury 7; Christchurch 34, North Otago 11. Fours—North Otago 20, West Coast 15; Christchurch 15, South Canterbury 14. Third round Singles.—South Canterbury 25, West Coast 19; North Otago 25, Christchurch 21. Pairs.—North Otago 26, West Coast 16; Christchurch 32, South Canterbury 14. Fours.—South Canterbury 33, North Otago 6; Christchurch 30, West Coast 13.