BOWLING.

Otago Witness, Issue 2921, 9 March 1910, Page 64

BOWLING.

S«cr«t*ri*i are requested to forward particular* •t fames played and of forthcoming matoh-a». fIOTES BY JACK. Many players are seriously considering their attitude towards centre rink championships, and it is likely that there will be a toed deal of discussion about the matter when the annual meetings of clubs come round. The selection of the teams is the difficulty. In most clubs three ct rot*? players invariably stand out as entitled to a position, but after that there are quite tt number whose claims to inclusion in a championship team are evenly balanced.Those cannot all play, amd as a result ther'B is a. good deal of discontent caused among those left out. Of course selectors have' ideas of their own, but it is difficult times to even imagine the reasons which' actuate them in selecting some players. If! one instance, several alterations were maP in some of -the championship rinks whifli had a fair record, while one rink with ft succession of losses was kept intact aira still played. In another instance a skip who had been unsuccessful not only IsSftJ his nlace as skip, but was not even ineludw in the team in any position. Then J§ the selection of recognised skips as leaQS and seconds. When this is done there 1 i§ no encouragement for young players w make themselves efficient as leads, as wn'?W a championship game is played their pl££3S aye '. taken by seasoned skips. No there are, players- who may be ■ caltew veterans, capable of leading well >, buti' §S a rule a good' skip is not a good lep.d§F; Altogether i here is .a growing dissatisfaction with championship rink matches SI not being in the best interests of the gain® from its 3ocial side The final for the Dunedin Centre's fottFj rink championship between Dunedin arm Roslyn, played on the Caledonian Green 1 ;

provided a less exciting game than was anticipated, but despite this it was a pleasant game to watch. The green had a good bit of li bite " in it as the result of recent rains, but this was not altogether against pretty play. Roslyn went away with the lead, but had lost this advantage at the sixth head, and was 7 down at the seventh head. The scoring was even in the next seven hoads, Dunedin having gained an. extra point at the fourteenth head, and being 8 up on the aggregate. In the concluding seven heads Dunedin gained another 11 points on Roslyn, and finished 19 to the good, thus winning the centre's championship banner for the season, and becoming the holder tor tho season of the handsome snuff mull presented some years ago by Messrs Rattray and Co., and held by the Taiexi Club since winning it in the pennant matches ot that period. ~ , . Wedderspoon and hra men played an excellent game for Roslyn against Bentley, who did 1 not receive the support ot his men to the same extent. Wedderspoon had put on 9 before Bentley scored. A quartet and a brace to Dunedin came at the sixth and seventh heads. The Roslyn men drew ahead still more, and a 4 at the fourteenth head brought their total to 17 to Bentley's 9. They added 6 in the next seven heads. Bentley wound up with a single and a 4, secured by taking the jack into the ditch, making his score 16 to Wedderepoon's 23. This was his first defeat in the championship games. The scoring was small in the game between Crawford (Roslyn) and Sinclair (Dunedin), but the latter had always the best of it, and finished 5 to the good. Secular went away with the load from M'Laren (Dunedin), but the latter then had a look in, and, scoring at five heads in succession, had put on 12 to Secular's 5. Keeping going, the Dunedin team scored at seven of the remaining 12 heads, and finished 12 up—23 to 11. Dall and his men got going at once against R. H. Scott's Roslyn team, his lead and second player putting in some fn© shots. But the Roslvn players hung on well, and, winding up with a couple of 2's, were only 6 down on the total. Rather a curious incident happened in the final head between Wedderspoon and Bentley in the Roslyn v. Dunedin game. Bentley, with his first bowl, carried the kittv into the ditch, and laid three shots. Weddarspoon failed with his drive to remove two of the shots, and Bentley drew another shot. Wedderspoon attempted to draw the shot. His bowl had not enough pace on it, but where it would have finished is a matter of doubt. A Roslyn player in the adjoining rink, seeing the bowl travelling, and noii realising what he was doing, stopped its course,. It appears the announcement that the entry list for the Eoster tournament at Invercargill was nearly full was somewhat premature, and there is evidently a misunderstanding amongst those who have entered for the rinks, as they have not entered for the pairs or singles matches, although the entries for these events close on the same date as for the rinks. Inquiries made recently would appear to show that at least 20 rinks from this side of the Mataura River would nominate, and that those shut out from the Oamaru fixture would also proceed south.' There are many players who would like to go to Invercargill quite unable to say yet whether they will be able to get away, and thus it has bean found difficult to form rinks so. far ahead. A start has been made with the formation of the bowling green at Wyndham, under the supervision of Mr J. B. Perks, who considers the site an ideal one for a bowling green, with every facility for drainage and shelter from the prevailing winds, all that is necessary being the planting of an additional belt of trees on the northern side. The green will be ready for play when the next season opens. Three rinks of senior players and one colts' rink from Kaitangata naid a visit to Stirling and played a friendly same with the local players. In the match between the senior* the Kaitangata men had a majority of 9 points, but the Stirling colts piled up a score of 40 to 9; and as the match was decided by the aggregates Stirling won by 22 points For Kaitangata M'Fadyen had an advantage of 10 points over Snow, while Hitehon beat Boyd by 1 point, Alexander, on the other hand, was down 2 points against Nearae. A little speech-makinc- was indulged in, during which J. C. Andersen said he was a firm believer in the friendlv inter-club matches as against the cokl-blobded pennant matches, when everyone played for keeps. Four rinks from the Phoenix Club, Oamaru, naid a visit to Palmerston last and aft?'- a most enjoyable ?ame, during which fhe ladies provided refreshments for the players, victory rested with Phoenix: Club hv 23 points. For the Phoenix Club Watson, Hewat, and A. Potter had majorities; but Lefevre. for Palmerston, succeeded in defeating Aitkenhead by 1 ooint. Winton Green, was opened on Wednesday last, when a large number of visitors _ from Invercargill and the surrounding district were present. The green was formally opened by Mr C. D. Moore, Mayor of Winton, the first, bowl being rolled up by Mrs Moore. The wind was a little troublesome, vbut what between the pleasure of playing and the refreshments so liberally provided by the ladies a most enjoyable afternoon was spent. The Vice-president's side proved successful by 28 points. Visitors praised the state of the !?reen, which, under tha circumstances, was in good order. The Winton Club has deoided to obtain a loan of 5150. to be exoended on making the graven on* of the best in Southland. Glove defeated Mataura in a five-rink match bv 19 points, two of the Mataura rinks being in a majority, King beating Frobath by 25 to 8. BOWLING NEWS. (Feoj£ Ova Oww Correspondent.) LONDON, January 21 THs reSsnfc aation of the New Zealand Bowling Assaejiat'on upon the bias testing kflfl i-eeaiyed the highest justification through Ui3 sensational statements in the" ftfinßiM import of the secretary of English pflwHng Association (Mr T. Barnes); fe Rf pe&d at the. annual, meeting 6f that F&JfF j €P Monday . as follows : '■' Qwlnf lo f3«mplaintis that had been re-.sej-vgd It? {h.o association as to the proper tasting of kq§]§. the committee passed, a. resolution in wmwn ' Ih & n :° ft* of BBM--nlai ie -l £? #BP omt A <3 ! official bias miMh 6f tl Je £ fter wis year unless tWf Hire fSiff .down in their factory a pf?Btfs#f- §sßS3:S«i£' for the testing of bowls, i-kd 3 1 §UbH?9 m, HJer efi was appointed to visit ilia gf the various official bias

testers, and ascertain whether they had suitable testing appliances. The sub-com-mittee has submitted an interim report, the main effect of which is that most of the factories have been visited. In some instances the sub-committee considered there were no proper testing appliances at all, and in other instances they were deemed unsatisfactory, and in one instance only did the sub-committee think that the testing appliance was perfect. Most of those firms that had no proper testing appliances, and those that, had perfect ones nave promised to lay down, and some have already done so at a great expense, an apparatus which will meet the views of the association."

Interviewed upon the action taken by the New Zealand Bowling Association upon bowl-testing, a leading maker here states that if the machine adopted by the association "after prolonged labours and exhaustive tests" is used for trying the bowls upon the turf, then absolutely reLiable tests could hardly be looked for. It may be of interest to note that the sub-committee of the English Bowling Association has reported so unfavourably upon the bias-testing methods so general here (with the single exception) considered that an apparatus sent here from Australia, which they likewise tested, proved by no means satisfactory, mainly in consequence of the " woods " not being held in best possible way by the machine, with the consequence that when the bowls were released there was a certain unsteadiness which prevented a smooth delivery and a true course being followed.