CLAY BIRD SHOOTING

Greymouth Evening Star, 20 July 1936, Page 11

CLAY BIRD SHOOTING

EVENTS AT PALMERSTON

[PEB PRESS ASSOCIATION.]

PALMERSTON N„ July 19

The West Coast (North Island) clay bird championship £5O open handicap, was the principal eVent on the programme at the Palmerston North Gun Club’s shoot on Saturday. The field was one of the ’nest ever gathered at. Palmerston North, among those competing being Ernest Groome (Hawke’s Bay) Murray Pratt (Otorohanga) and Charlie Soddon (Hamilton), who have won t lie New Zealand championship, T. A. Wrigley (Levin) and W. McKee (Wanganui), who have held North Island titles, and R. E. Cuthbertson (Wanganui) who has won the live bird title. The conditions were perfect and the shooting so consistently good that clear cut wins were out of the- question. The championship was won by R. Anderson (Taihape), after a shoot off with his clubmate, H. Belk. The £5O, 21 bird, open handicap, resulted: Groome (Hastings) 19yds; C. Seddon (Hamilton) 18yds; J. Duncun (Taihape) 14yds: H. Belk (Taihape) 16yds: M. Pratt (Otorohanga) 17yds. These five registered a possible and divided the prize. Other good records were as under: West Coast North Island Clay Bird championship, 21 birds off 18yds: R. Anderson (Taihape) 21; IT. Belk (Taihape) 21; C. Seddon (Hamilton) 21. Seddon did not have the residential qualification to compete for the championship, for which Anderson and Belk had to shoot off, Anderson winning.

Before the big handicap event, there was a six bird “eye opener,” and of 25 competitors, 16 shot the possible to divide the sweepstake. The winners were Wrigley. W. A. Thomson, Dunlop. Duncan, Pratt, Seddon, Maher, Anderson. B. K. Thomson, Stevenson, Saunders, Ingley, C. Kempton (Wanganui), Farmer, H. Mangerson (Wanganui), and Groome. The programme concluded with a five-bird, first miss out, sweepstake. There were seventeen starters. After five birds, the field had been reduced to a dozen. There were seven still going strongly after ten birds, Pratt, Duncan. W. A. Thomson, Farmer, Cuthbertson, Dunlop, and Maher. Dunlop missed the seventeenth, and Duncan the ninetenth. Maher dropped out at 21, leaving Pratt, Thomson and Farmer and Cuthbertson to fight it out. After the quartette had each broken 23 birds, it was decided to call it a day, and divide the sweepstake.