REMARKABLY FINE BOWLS

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 93, 13 January 1939, Page 11

REMARKABLY FINE BOWLS

Ginger’s Second Round

WELLINGTON SKIP LATER

ELIMINATED

By Telegraph—Press Association.

AUCKLAND, January 12.

i Remarkably fine bowls was played by Ginger (Hataitai), who beat the New Zealand champion skip, H. Wilson (Linwood) in the second round of the post-section play in pair's at tbe New Zealand championship bowls tournament today. On one head, which was partly covered, he drew round short bowls three times to score three points on liis opponent, who had a bowl about 15 inches away, it was a-great display of consistent drawGinger unexpectedly went out in the third round to an Avondale team skipped 'by J. Tomlinson, who in turn was beaten for green winner on the Ponsonbv green by Robinson (Hamilton). Robinson and bis P !lr J‘ ier> Anchor, put up the large score of 32 to one against the Barriball brothers (Waiuku). The Hamilton skip was in irresistible form and need only reproduce play of the same type to stand an excellent chance of winning the pairs title. ~ _ The sensation of the morning was tbe •’2-points victory of the Crosses, fatlieland son (England), against tbe Ellerslie pair, Maud and Martin, the latter of whom has been one of Canterbury s and Auckland’s most prominent players in tbe last few years. The Englishmen failed to survive the day, however. On the same green (Onehunga) Tucker and S. Ingram (Victoria) scored points to half a dozen by Walker and Williams (Gisborne). The next biggest surprise to. Martin’s avalanche was the 22-9 beating a - ministered to Woolley and Walker (tn latter was the 1927 winning skip) by the To Aroha pair, Maingay and Calhghan. Close Contest. The last game in the pairs on the Carlton green between Gisborne and Helensville teams saw the respective, skips, Stephenson and R. Smith, fighting hard for victory. Smith equalized with a three on the eighteenth head, at which stage the score was 16 all. On the next head when Hunt, who was lead for Smith, was iving well Stephenson, who is a very ■good driver, .burnt the head. The Gisborne players were too steady over the next three heads. Barber and his partner, Kelly (Balmoral), had a runaway win in the last round of the pairs on the Auckland green over the Onehunga pair skipped by F. Livingstone. The Sydenham pair, Gibson and White, prevailed over strong opposition on the Mt. Eden green. White’s final opponent wag Benefield. (St. John’s) champion skip in 1927. Benefield had had a hard tussle in the previous game to beat R. Thomas. A strong local .pair in McMurchy and Buckley (Grey Lynn) justified papular opinion that they would go far in the event. They encountered a strong team from Te Aroha skipped' iby Callaghan, which has shown up well so far, in the last round at the Balmoral green, and won decisively 24-15. Buckley .beat Somervell in the morning round game, and so released the latter for singles play. The 1937 singles wanner, C. .Spearman (Sydenham) maintained his form, and came through in a strong section on the Balmoral green. Play in Singles. Good .progress was made in the singles championship. By a fortunate chance players who were required for further play in the singles were eliminated from the pairs, and this enabled t>he fifth round of the .post-section play in tbe singles competition to be completed. Bell’s lose of a life in his match with Cowper (Ponsonby) came as a surprise. The Takapuna player was much below his form and did not appear at alljiappy, ay- 1 parcntly being’ troubled by the gusty wind. The game was generally very loose. Cowper’s play was also a little-dis-appointing. J. M. Martin (Ellerslie), who is considered to have an outstanding chance in the singles, disposed of the strong Grey Lynn exponent, L. Donaldson. A very fine exhibition was witnessed in the contest between Cross (England) and Franks (Balmoral). Considering tbe difficult. conditions tbe players rose to great heights and frequent changes in fortunes had a large gallery of spectators keenly interested. Requiring two to tie on the final head, Franks took the jack to the ditch to square the match at 14-aIJ. Franks drew better than his opponent onthe deciding head and one of his shots sat close to the jack. Cross attempted to burn the head with both his last bowls, but on each occasion failed by a narrow margin.