CRUISER SAILS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22513, 17 December 1947, Page 6

CRUISER SAILS

GISBORNE VISIT ENJOYABLE FOUR DAYS THANKS FOR HOSPITALITY After lying at anchor in the bay since Saturday afternoon, H.M.N.Z.S. Bellona sailed from Gisborne at 8.30 o’clock this morning on the conclusion of her first visit to the town. She is due to berth at the Devenport naval dockyard, Auckland, at 11 a.m. tomorrow. Last evening a 5 to 7 o’clock party was held aboard the ship .to repay the hospitality which had been extended to the officers and men during their fourday visit to Gisborne. This morning, shortly after the departure of the cruiser, the Mayor, Mr. N. H. Bull, sent a wireless message to the ship extending Christmas and New Year greetings and thanking the commander, Captain M. B. Laing, C.8.E., R.N., for the hospitality extended to visitors to the ship during her stay. A message was received back from the ship by the Mayor, reciprocating the greeting and thanking the residents of Gisborne for the hospitality extended to the ship’s company during their very pleasant stay. Cricket and soccer teams from the ship yesterday afternoon played what they voted as the pleasantest matches of their present New Zealand tour when they met two local teams. The cricket match, played on the Oval, was a return game between a Bellona eleven and a team drawn from Cosmopolitan Club members. The first match, played at Tatapouri on Sunday, resulted in a win for H.M.N.Z.S. Bellona eleven, as did yesterday's game. The scores yesterday were: Bellona, 175 runs: Cosmopolitan Club. 138. For the local side E. Bridge made 63 runs, while Ellison, a member of the ship’s company, also made 63 for the Bellona team. . Bellona also scored a win in the soccer match played against a Gisborne team, the final score being Bellona, six goals; Gisborne, two. The Gisborne defence proved to be too weak for the sailors, who dominated the play over the younger and less fit local team. Scorers for the Gisborne team were Twaddle and F. Huxtable.