BOWLS WITHOUT BIAS

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 95, 16 January 1935, Page 14

BOWLS WITHOUT BIAS

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New Zealand Customs IMPRESSIONS OF VISITOR

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Bowls as it is played in New Zealand has many novelties for an Australian, judging by the comments made in the "Sydney Referee” by R. T. Harrison, who writes under the pen-name ••Boomerang.” Harrison has been a competitor in the Christmas tournament at Auckland, and in the Dominion tournament there. “I have learned much that is new to me,” he writes. “Predominant is the fat, wobbly ‘Christmas pudding’ bowl of wood, so dear to the New Zealander. They come down to the head like miniature steam rollers, not overburdened with bias, and their ‘tread’ on the green surface must be three inches. . They are very weird-looking objects, and mostly heavyweights. Many of these bowls arc owned and played with by men who have never studied the ‘size of bowl to suit the hand,’ but go for the weight, whether it means lead, cast-iron, or tubes of steel to give it to them. “But what amazed me was to find, at this time of the year, when the summer is at its height, every rink at Remuera clothed like a valuable racehorse, with scrim, for the whole' length_ of the green at the ends, and for some 15ft. in toward the centre. The bagging is held down by tacks about 2in. long, and at times these rise with the footwork on the surface of the scrim, and bowls come into contact. On top of the covering they use coconut mots and you can imagine how a fast driver would fare when he stretched out for action. , „„„ “I have told Aucklanders that 009 out of every 1000 Australians would prefer to Stand on the bank rather than play off and up to these “eye-fillers” at both'ends of the green. The player has to be constantly tapping down the tacks with his foot before playing—at least visitors do, as the local men are accustomed to it, they say. It can be seen, therefore, that taking the mat up the green to- follow ditch theory is out of the question. If you want a short head you must throw it from the scrim, twd at any time it is very difficult to get ywur ‘green’ correctly with these clouds of scrim ‘making faces n you, as it were. I think the club tend to molly-coddle their green-keepers, for. as I have pointed out so often, the soft English grasses of the Melbourne greens are never covered, or allowed to be coyereu, and I have never heard of a club having to shut down its green because of wearing. “Before being allowed to play my bowis had to be taken out to be tested by the official at Remuera. It is strange, but true, that whereas they have one contro.Img body, the New Zealand council, they have two different testa —table and green. In the south, and at Wellington in the north, they have the green test, but Auckland centre will have none of it. and all bowls are tested on the table. “Headers will be more than interested to learn, and some Australian officials in particular, that the wobble test is also employed by the Auckland centre official, who swears by it, and says that it is indispensable. Rater I will give what I might call ‘a day with Auckland’s tester,’ and recall the many points we discussed, and describe the ‘trophies’ he has to display in the way of -cancerous growths’ taken from the inners of many bowls passing through his hands, and condemned. “The ditches are as hard as concrete, and if a jack !s driven into them they act as races, and the white runs out of bounds with the least angle. Much license is taken with the one foot off the mat, and several players were noticed with both feet much off its surface. Also it is common for a player to stand with his left foot any distance to the left. of the mat, while he just touched the side with his right toe. Tremendous advantage is thus given, ami I am not now so much taken with the New Zealand mode, for this reason. Instead of the mat being a haw, outside of which you should not go, it is, particularly with scrim, just a ‘locality.’ from which you operate to the best advantage, one side or the other. “Leading players, like Lancaster, inform me that they are neither in favour of scrim, narrow rinks, nor smooth-bot-tomed ditches. Lancaster thinks that the game as played in Australia is more scientific and not-'as open to abuse in the direction indicated. “Hardy-Neil and Theo Walker, both of Auckland club, are converts to composition bowls, and the latter, says that reform is long overdue regarding the wooden article. He and Hardy-Neil also consider that the New Zealand council erred badly when it did not adopt the A.B.C. weight, shape and size laws in their entirety.” Veterans* Day. Bowlers 70 years of age and over are already looking forward to Veterans’ Day, the annual tournament conducted by the Wellington Bowling Centre for the seniors of the game. In fact, it is one of those occasions when the social aspect of the pastime becomes so large that the eligible ones all the year round are anticipating the enjoyment of next Veterans’ Day. Last year a rink under the colours of the Masterton cluo and skipped by Rwin-gton won. Two of the players were Masterton men and two Wellington players. but. this year the Masterton skip is reported to be planning an expedition to the city with a full rink. Any bowlers at all may enter for this competition, the only qualification being age. It will be played on January 30 at the Wellington club’s green. The prize for which the oldsters play is the Shallcrass Memorial Trophy, for which the players subscribed, thus establishing a memorial to the late Mr. R. W. Shallcrass. former secretary to the centre. Returned Soldiers’ Tournament. It has been decided to hold the Returned Soldiers' Tournament on February 14. All men who served overseas in the South African War or the Great War are eligible, and the conditions are to be the same as last year. Arrangements for greens have not yet been made.