Avon pair win seats in eight for Australia

Press, 9 March 1987, Page 38

Avon pair win seats in eight for Australia

By

TIM DUNBAR

Two Avon men, Gary Hay and Andrew Skelton, have won seats in the first New Zealand lightweight eight selected for a trip to the Australian rowing championships in Tasmania next month.

Hay, along with Waikato’s Martin Eade and Simon Koller, was in the New Zealand lightweight coxless four which made the final of the world championships at Nottingham last year. Waikato dominated the men’s championship lightweight events in the national regatta which ended at Lake Ruataniwha on Saturday and it was no surprise that rowers from the club make up exactly half the New Zealand crew. Koller and Michael Rodger were among the more successful rowers of the regatta, winning titles for Waikato in the lightweight eights, coxless fours and coxless pairs.

Rodger’s older brother, David, is a double world championship eights gold medallist. The lightweight eight named at the week-end is (in boating order): Ken Atkins (Waikato), stroke, Martin Eade (Waikato), Simon Koller (Waikato), Michael Rodger (Waikato), Alan Turner (Wairau), Gary Hay (Avon), Andrew Skelton (Avon), Geoff MacDonald (Wairau). Non-travelling reserve: Michael McManaway (Wairau). Coxswain: Andrew Bird (Avon). It will train under Avon’s Doug Burrowes at Kerrs Reach before leaving for Australia on March 21. The Australian championships begin at Lake Barrington, Tasmania, on April 1.

The New Zealand selectors, Fred Strachan (convener), Peter Baddeley and Ivan Sutherland, also picked a women’s lightweight double of Linda de Jong and Debby Callaghan (both Cambridge)

for the trip to Tasmania.

At the end of the regatta the three selectors also announced the names of 20 rowers and four coxswains to attend the premier trials at Wanganui for the New Zealand team to contest the world championships at Copenhagen in August. The new national women’s single sculling champion, Philippa Baker (Cambridge), will also be at the trials, presumably already assured of a trip to Europe. Missing from the list are two of Baker’s clubmates, Stephanie Foster and Robin Clarke, who combined to win a Commonwealth Games gold medal and a world championship bronze medal in double sculls last year. Foster missed the national regatta because of injury while Clarke, a heavyweight, could manage only third in the championship singles final behind Baker, a lightweight,

and Brenda Lawson (Wairau). Making" up the bulk of the trialists are members of the Waikato and Tauranga premier men’s eights which filled the first two places in the championship event at Ruataniwha.

The trialists are: Martin Bamford, Neil Gibson, Luke van Velthooven (Avon); Eric Verdonk (North Shore); Mike Burrell, Cameron Bell, David Carlson, Geoff Cotter, George Russell, Carl Vincent (Tauranga); Campbell ClaytonGreene, Bill i Coventry, Bruce Holden, Greg Johnston, Warren Jonson, Chris White, lan Wright (Waikato); Owen Davidson, George Keys, Jerome McKeefry (Wairau). Women: Philippa Baker (Cambridge)! Coxswains:’ Andrew Bird (Avon), Jason Harris (West End), Shaun Robinson (Wairau), Russell Robson (Waikato).

The four coaches to attend are: Richard Webster (Hauraki Plains), Alan Cotter (Waikato), Hermann Krutzman (Cambridge), Sam Le Compte (Wairau).