BOWLS WITHOUT BIAS

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 54, 27 November 1930, Page 15

BOWLS WITHOUT BIAS

Progress in the Thorndon Roses

VICTORIA VISITS FEATHERSTON

(By

“Armada.”)

Of the half-dozen greens visited over a windy week-end the conditions were most pleasant at Thorndon, where the wind hardly penetrated sufficiently to disturb the bowlers. It was not over troublesome on the Petone green, but at Central, Lower Hutt, Woburn, and Hataitai many a good bowl failed to do what it should have done because the wind caught it behind and sent it twoor three yards through, or a side gust turned it across the head or made it run like a straight bowl. Saturday was the kind of day when results are due as much to luck as to judgment, and the crack players did not always come into their own. In nearly all cases club rinks were the order of the day. « ♦ • Match Results. On a certain green, which shall be nameless, I ran into the selector, and was so reminded of the fact that the result of last mid-week pennant game had not come to hand. My inquiry as to the result brought forth an immediate apology. He had the cards in his pocket and had forgotten to send the results in, as the players were late in forwarding the cards to him. ♦ ♦ • The results of the mid-week pennant games have not been coming in too well yet, and it is to be hoped the senior pennant games will be handled better. Perhaps if the task is simplified, club secretaries or correspondents will do better. In regard to the mid-week senior and junior pennants, seeing that the full teams are published before the games, it is only necessary to give the skip’s name .when sending in the results. This will ■'reduce the number of names to be Riven, from four to one in each rink. Will club players please note this? Victoria Visits Featherston. Five rinks from the Victoria Bowling Club have just paid their annual visit to Featherston, taking with them the Madeley Shield of Goodwill, which will be returned to Victoria when Featherston rinks return the visit later in the season. • ♦ » The party left by car about 7.30 a.m., arriving just after 9.30. They were entertained to tea before the morning games, which Featherston won 3—2, Play was resumed after the lunch adjournment, and this time Victoria won three games, and also won on the maximum points by 13. The total was: Victoria, 201; Featherston, 188. Mr. W. Cole, president of the Victoria club, and Mr. W. Madeley, the donor of the shield, were with the party, and gave a brief explanation of how the annual visit Came into being. The shield was presented to indicate the goodwill existing between the two clubs. Afternoon tea was served in the pavilion, the hostesses being Mesdames Bloxam, J. G. Mackenzie, G. Yule, and W. Franks. The morning games resulted: — Victoria. Featherston. Keith 8 Rolls 27 Snadden ... 21 Smith .... 14 Pole 16 Franks .... 20 Cole . 18 Deas ...... 21 Tucker .... 28 Sinclair ... 12 The afternoon results were:— 0 Victoria. Featherston. Cole 21 Smith .... 25 Tucker .... 23 Rolls 13 Keith 21 Sinclair ... 25 Snadden .. 19 Franks .... 16 Pole 26 Deas ..... 15 201 188 « • * Dominion Tourney. Wellington bowlers are slow in making up their minds to enter for the Dominion tournament in Auckland in January. It has been so unlike bowling weather that they must be waiting for a real sign of summer before deciding. It was reported that Benzies, of Petone, was going to take a rink up, but now I hear it is off. D. Ardell, Hataitai, will skip a rink comprising Young, Woolley, Fielding and himself, and it is likely that Brighting will take up another rink. Thorndon will have at least one rink at the tourney, skipped by Goodwin, and Kelburn and Wellington are likely to be represented. It is understood that the well-known Island Bay rink skipped by Ferkins will make the trip. * • ♦ , E. J. Hill, Wellington club, will probably go to the Rotorua tournament again. He won the rinks event last year with Captain McArthur, H. Nash and J. Porteous, whose pictures appear herewith. It they go up again good luck to them.

It is also' on the cards that Mr. J. Hodgins will go to Auckland with a team from Lower Hutt. In all, the Wellington Centre looks like bein„ well represented in the northern city, and it is nearly time a Wellington rink brought Dominion honours borne. * H. W. Frost, for many years a member of the Wellington club, now of Carlton, Auckland, was in town a few (lays ago, and visited his old green. Has anyone yet beaten his record in holding a handful of bowls and jacks? • • * Thorndon Roses. Two rink games of 1G heads each were played in the “Roses” at Thorndon green on Saturday, nnd there was a good attendance of old members on the bank to watch them. The sun was beautifully warm, and the wind hardly affected play anywhere. No wonder Thorndon bowlers were happy when the wind was playing havoc on other greens. The game* between Immigration and Horticulture —"Mona” Thompson and J. A. Campbell—was good going, but fates were against Horticulture, who went down 19—8, though not without a fight. In the last head Campbell was lying seven and his opponent only had one bowl left. But it was enough, for with a perfect bowl he drew the shot. “Just what you can expect ? with ‘Mona’,” remarked a member ot the Horticultural'rink. A nice compliment, and those who know the old ‘ All Black know it is As a matter of fact, the Horticultural skipper lost both his games that afternoon, but his colleague, W. T. Goodwin, won both games, although these were his first successes in four games. ine Fire Board chairman, N. W. Nelson, is in Goodwin’s rink and was drawing well. On an adjoining rink Baker, who was playing good bowls, lost his first game so far, ♦ $ • ■ It is reported that E. Stewart is Icaving shortly for the Old Country. Crawford was showing good form last week in the role of skip, until he went up the hill. • • ♦ Hataitai Doings. '•The Hataitai green suffered a good deal from trefoil last season, but thanks to the good work done by the superintendent and greenkeeper during the winter months the pest has been eradicated. The green now looks in tip-top condition. G. Halliday and W. Cathie are, the holders of the Diamond Buckles. Which is the next pair to challenge? We don t see the diamond game played much nowadays. q * . | « This club is very popular with civil servants and ex-civil servants. The selector retired from the Public Works Department. The assistant secretary, Public Works Department 1 , Mr. C. E. Bennett, who is still in . harness, is a genial and popular figure on the green; Mr. G. P. Anderson, hydraulic engineer, of the

hydro-electricity branch of the Public Works Department, is another; while Mr. D. Ardell hails from the Internal Affairs Department. E. J. Lezard retired from the . Railway Department six months ago, since when, with his wife, he has. spent', a well-earned holiday in Australia, arriving home last week. He was back on the green on Saturday. In days gone by he, Gibson, McWhannel and one or two other kindred spirits used to enjoy a motor-boat holiday in the Sounds fishing. They are not the only ones who like that sort of holiday. « ♦ *. The result of last week’s mid-week pennant match was a win for Hataitai, the scores being: Brightling. Hataitai, 21; Webb, Seatoun, 12. Watts, Hataitai, 19; Jones, Seatoun, 21. V. Ridleyais taking a friendly rink to Central green this week-end. His son is a member there. The senior pennant at present adorns the Hataitai pavilion. Who are the fav-

ourites this time? Both Wellington and Lyall Bay clubs fancy their chances. Murrell is doing well in club singles, having won two out of three games. Talbot and Kean were his victims. • ♦ » H. A. Shepherd is getting more enjoyment on the green now that he has laid down the task of selector, an onerous job which he undertook for a couple of seasons 'with thi utmost credit to the dub and himself. Fearless in his decisions, but not harsh, he was ready to speak and act if the occasion called for it, and now and again it was necessary to bring, discipline into action. Fielding and Brighting both had a short spell in the position, but soon passed it in. When McWhannel held office he was often away, and “Shep” stepped into his shoes on those occasions. The club achieved some of its greatest successes under “Shep’s” guidance. and results speak louder than words. If “G.H.” can bring as much success in his train, the members will undoubtedly say: “Well done.” And why shouldn’t he? He is a most genial man, but I. fancy he could show the strong hand if it was required. « ♦ « “H.A.S.” used to like a game at Eastbourne at the week-end, but seems to have been giving it a miss lately. * ft * Two visitors from Southend-on-Sea, Essex, were visitors to the Hataitai green last week. They were Messrs. Lane and Long. ♦ « ♦ Hutt Valley. In the first round of the Hutt Valley banner competition, Petone Central and Lower Hutt scored 60 per cent, wins, Upper Hutt 25 per cent., and Woburn 16 per cent. The next round. will be played on Saturday week.

Petone has a promising junior rink in Harding, Hepworth, Weston, and Johnson. « « o A few members from Petone are paying a visit to Masterton early in January. * ♦ « A. Cowie, one of the three foundation members of Petone club, has been in New Zealand 35 years, and is a past president of the club. He was on the green committee for many years, and took the levels and arranged the contract for the laying of the green when the club was founded. Dr. Hislop and A. Carter are the two foundation members still living. Mr. Cowie was away from the club on two occasions for about a year, once at Christchurch, when he joined hte City club, and once at Wellington, when he was a member of Thorndon. Central. It was quite a nice honours board in oak which was presented to Central Club by Mr. J. Kerr during the year of his presidency. The panel on which the honours are recorded is covered with

plate glass, and the list goes back' to 1919-20 season. There is an imposing collection of past-presidents’ photographs hung in' the pavilion, but only one carries a plate giving the name of the president and the year of office. » ♦ • A couple of Central’s veterans were enjoying a roll down on Saturday, although the breeze was cool. One was C. L. Jensen, who first, played as a veteran in 1925, and has only missed once since. The other was T. Green, who played for the first time last year. Both hope to take part in the next one. Tom Henry and Fitzgerald made up the rink last year, but the latter is now greenkeeper at Petone. Lower Hutt. ! T. Spite, who was one of Lower Hutt’s representatives in the veterans’ tourney, will not be available for the next occasion, as he returns to Invercargill to his old home in a few days. His daughter has gone to England, hence his return south. He had been a member of Hutt Club for about three years. W. Hendry and M. J. Hodgins are the only ones left of the foundation members of the Hutt Club, and both are still active playing members. The club was founded in 1903. Neither of them has yet qualified for the veterans’ tourney, but they have not far to go, although one would not guess it. As a matter of fact, Lower Hutt will be hard pushed to find a veterans’ rink for next February. Composite rinks are permitted, however, so the deficiency may he made up from some other club. e » » Barton Ginger and F. Campbell were challenged by Kennington and Davidson for the Mason Ferns on Saturday, but succeeded in retaining them.

J. Slinn, superintendent of the fire brigade, who was badly burned in a fire some weeks ago, came out of hospital at the end of last week, and members are preparing to welcome him back to the green this week. The Oldest Green. The green at Plymouth Hoe may be pretty ancient, but is not by any means the oldest green in the world. Southampton claims the honour. “Measurer” says the oldest green is the "old green” at Southampton. Records prove it to go back to 1777, and a “knighthood” tournament is said to have been played on it every year for -the last 150 years. Tradition has it that the players taking part are attired in frock coats and silk hats, and smoke churchwarden pipes. He who obtains the first seven points wins the title of “Knight of the Court,” and is invested with the court regaliai with all the old ceremonial. He is entitled to be addressed as “Sir” whenever on the green. ♦ « « Keep These. Here are the bowlers ten commandments, in which there is something in addition to humour, if one will try to read between the lines-. The big games will soon be on, and bowlers should be prepared to take defeat with as much grace as victory. In that light they will be real winners. • « • (i) Thou shalt nof put any game before bowls. • * • (ii) Thou shalt not take uiito thee any golf club, tennis racket, or anything that may wean thine affection from the game of bowls. (iii) Thou shalt not use any unseemly language about the skip nor take his name in vain, for the skip will verily punish him that so doeth. (iv) Remember the Saturdays of the bowling season and keep them wholly' for bowls. (v) Honour thy sole selector or match committee that thy place may be secure in the matches played by the club. (vi) Thou shalt not kill the reputation of any bowler, no matter how unskilful he may be. » • ♦ (vii) Thou shalt not be unfaithful to the ancient game of thy fathers once ye have given yourselves unto;it, clinging ye only unto it as long as ye shall live. ♦ » ♦ (viii) Thou shalt not steal from a fellow bowler any little name he has earned in the bowling world, for that is dear to him as his life. ■ . (ix) Thou shalt not covet a bowler’s bowls, neither his bowling jacket, nor anything that is characteristic of thy brother bowler. , (x) Thou shalt not hear false witness against a bt other bowler, no matter how stainless his record, but shalt speak the truth of him in love, so that the world may be able to say, “See how these bowlers love one another” 'I ♦ ■ ft “Would iii be encroaching on your column too much for you to emphasise the rule in pennants and tournaments prohibiting rolling up and practising shots immediately prior to a match?” asks “Old Bowler.” I have not seen this done. It is an unusual practice, anl is not quite according to the spirit of the game. Perhaps this paragraph will have the desired effect