BOWLERS V. NON-BOWLERS

Evening Post, Volume XCIII, Issue 96, 23 April 1917, Page 2

BOWLERS V. NON-BOWLERS

The annual fixture, Bowlers v. Nonbowlers, was commenced on Saturday evening in the Y.M.CIA. Rooms, under the auspices of the Wellington Chess Club, about fifty enthusiasts being piesent. Shortly before 8 p.m., Mr. C. W. Tanner,, the club's senior vice-president, extended a. cordial welcome to the visitors, and in a happy speech, that showed him to be a bowler as well as a chessist, formally declared the match open. As the pairing had been done in advance, and the other necessary'preliminaries had been ■ attended to by a working bee during the afternoon, forty-two of the assembled players were able to commence hostilities without delay. There was an interval for refreshments at 9.30. p.m., at which stage each side had scored seven games, and matters were 'very interesting. Later in the evening the bowlers had what bad luck was going. One payer who should have won comfortably, somehow or other "got into the ditch," and two other bowlers had the misfortune to lose half a point each in." doing the things they didn't ought." The result'of .these, three mishaps is that when play ceased at 11 p.m. the Bowlers were three points to the bad, instead of being a point-to the good (as they had the opportunity to bo). When editing the Book of the Napier Congress, Mr. H. ,L. James, in dealing with a game in which a draw had been agreed to very prematurely, put in a plea for the praiseworthy spirit of the Kilkenny cats of famous memory":—"They scratched and they spit, and they fought and they bit, Till, instead of two cats there weren't any." The wholeheartedness recommended by the editor referred to 1" was not lacking at one of the boards on Saturday evening, where the forces at the finish were reduced ta two kings—when, of course, the players had to knock off " for wrfnt of ammuni-, tion." The position of the match is now as follows :—Nori-bowlers 11 wins, Bowlers 8 wins, drawn games 2, outstanding i games (which have to be accounted'for by the end of next week) 16. In bowling parlance the Non-bowlers are "lying 3 With 16 heads to go." Messrs, J. A. Connell (Carterton), Stan. Gyles, H. A; Ward, Grenfell, Lomas, Banks, H. A. Shepherd, and C. A. Jolly scored for the Bowlers,, while Messrs. W. Mac; kay, Godtschalk, Welton, Harper, Hopkins, Kerry, Stephens, Connell jun., Dalrymple, Dornbusch,- and W. J. Helyer scored for the Non-bowlers. The games Tanner v. Fouhy and Bland v. Faulknor were drawn. A close . finish may be looked for when the sixteen outstanding games are completed. • It is hoped to publish, the full score in a fortnight's time. ,