BOWLING

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17780, 25 February 1926, Page 3

BOWLING

NOTES FROM THE GREENS

By

“Toucher.”

British Team Departs. Commenting on the tour of the British bowling party, which has now come to an end, “ Number Two ” writes as follows in the Wellington “Post”:— From the Britishers’ point of view the tour has been a successful one, as they won the most of their games in Australia and New Zealand. In New South Wales they won the “ rubber ” —a very creditable performance. Of course, they were not all champion bowlers, and at no time did they profess to be. With only three internationals out of a party of forty, they could not be expected to be other than a medium class of bowlers. Their tour has been a most strenuous one, too much so, in fact, and in future when teams come here from abroad it is sincerely to be hoped that they will not be made such rush affairs. The wonder- is that on this occasion the visitors stood up to it so well, as they were not all youthful by any means. Considering the size of the party—forty men and seventeen ladies—the manager. Mr Walter Wake, has not been holding down a sinecure, and one can realise that he will thoroughly appreciate the holiday he and Mrs Wake are now having. It is their intention to see more of the Dominion before going Home. During the latter part of the tour, Mr Wake has been incapacitated with his right hand, an excessive amount of hand-shaking having had a like effect on him as that which the Prince of Wales experienced on his world wide peregrinations. Such is the penalty of being a jolly fine “ sport." Undoubtedly the visit of the British team has done a wonderful amount of good in cementing the ties of Empire and in the making of new friendships, even if neither side has learned a great deal about bowling as a result of it, and it is to be hoped that it will not be long before a New Zealand team makes another tour of the Old Country. When our team does go Home it should be a smaller one than that of the British bowlers, who have iust left us. A party of fifty or sixty is too unwieldy to manage with ease, and it would be surprising if Mr Wake did not find that out while the British party was being chased about all over the place. An Amusing Lyric. One of the happiest notions on the programme of the smoke concert held in Wellington during the visit of the British team were verses (written to the lilt of “Come to the Fair"), entitled “ Come on the Green," composed by Mr J. J. Roberts (of the Wellington Club). Very cleverly he managed to introduce the name of every player in the British team, and in several instances to introduce personal touches that were hailed with delight by the visitors. Space will not permit of reproducing the whole of the verses, but following are the final three as a sample:— Of Scots there are twenty; from Glasgow come seven— Heigh, ho! Come on the Green ! Theres’ one hails from Wishaw, a 3'oung bridegroom, “ ye ken ” Heigh, ho! Come on the green. There’s a Stephen, a Baird and a Thomas Mickel, Wee Jamsie from Bathgate, good stories to tell— So it’s come, then, Jamsie, my man. On the green in your pride in the morning: (You’ve “ Mair ” time for play, it’s your birthday to-day— TTeigh. ho! Come on the green. Now, Morrison, Brodie, Lawson and Inglis— Heigh, ho! Come on the green. By bringing vour wives, see the good things you miss— Heigh, ho! Come on the green. Which Bryson and Fleming and others did find For Maorilands lassies are loving and kind— So it's come, then. Hunter, just man, On the green in the pride of the morning. Your judging of rugs, George, was just the just thing—lieigh, ho! Come on the green. And till Father Time claims the throw of the jack—lieigh. ho! Come on the green. We hope to this country you’ll always come back— Heigh, ho! Come on.the green. To meet all your old friends whose friendship is dear. And make many new, as you've all done this year— So it's come, then, Wright and your Back with Husband and Thomas and Millar—- ** Farewell," not “Good-bye," let's all merrily sing— Heigh, ho! Come on the green. 55 55 55 Well-Merited-Bowlers throughout New Zealand will congratulate Mr R. W. Shallcrass (secretary of the Wellington Centre and late secretary of the Dominion Bowling Association) on being singled out by the British team for a presentation (says a Wellington writer). It was well merited, for no one has been more assiduous in his attention to correspondence, and the carrying out of preliminary arrangements for the reception of the British team than Mr irhallcrass, whose administrative wisdom is rarely at fault. This was thoroughly recognised by the Britishers, who one and all found much to respect and admire in the centre's secretary. Talking over the tour. Mr Shallcrass sajd one great mistake had been made, for which no one in New Zealand was responsible. They had been given to understand that one of the chief reasons of the visit to New Zealand was a desire on the part of the Britishers to play at the Dominion Association’s tournament in Dunedin, and it was

with that desire in mind that the whole of the itinerary was mapped. The Auckland engagements were rushed, and the team was jumped from Palmerston North to Dunedin. Really nothing further from the minds of the visitors, who only wished for social bowls on their tour, and did not at all relish the strenuous programme they had to face at Dunedin, nor would they thereafter consider playing more than one game per day. It was an unfortunate misunderstanding which certainly tended to make the tour less pleasant than it otherwise might have been. » :« Rolling of Greens. Should heavy rollers be used on bowling greens? This problem has agitated the minds ot New Zealand bowlers for many a long day, and it is not by any means solved to everyone’s satisfaction yet. Mr Walter A\ ake, manager of the British bowling team, has very* definite views on the subject, however, and they are dead against heavy rolling. He does not hold to the view that keen greens should be sought after at all costs. In the course of a conversation with “Number Two," of • the Wellington “Post,” Mr Wake said that some of our greens resembled nothing so much as hard-baked mud. They had been rolled and rolled with heavy rollers so regularly and frequently, even when wet, that they had been so compressed as to make it impossible to scratch them with one’s finger nail, so hard had they become. Under such conditions it was a wonder the grass grew at all, and if there were imperfections on such greens, the incessant rolling had made it utterly impossible to roll them out, even when moist on the surface, so like concrete had they become. In Britain, said Mr Wake, the bowling swards were made of Cumberland sea-washed turves, which were cut by a box mould into squares exactly 13 inches square. Each piece of turf was laid with the aid of a straight-edge and spirit level, and the whole surface of the green was as level as a billiard table. As the turves rapidly became knitted it was possible to play on a green a fortnight, or so after it had been put down, and in time the roots of the grass went so deep and become so thoroughly interwoven, that the surface of the green "was just like a great mat or carpet, which, if it were desired, rould be rolled up into one piece. Very rarely indeed, and then only very lightly, was a roller used—perhaps once or twice in a season. The grass was kept smooth of cutting with a machine and by scything. A quarter of an hour after a heavy shower British greens would be again playable, the mat of grass and the fine ash foundation having absorbed the moisture, whereas in New Zealand greens were under water after a downpour. Grasssown greens, to which we were accustomed in New Zealand, were rare in the Old Country. Mr Wake mentioned that there was one green in England, the grass of which had not been touched for eighty years. There was no need to top-dress there like we had to do on our grasssown greens. While admitting that it was impracticable to get Cumberland turf brought out to New Zealand on a large scale for green-making purposes for the reason that all the moisture would go out of it en route, Mr Wake still thought that we could keep ourj greens in good playing trim by cutting! and scything and eliminating the roller, particularly the heavy type. They would be quite pleasant to play on, even if not rolled into a hard mass. Hard to Believe. ’Twas hard to believe, but Mr J. Harraway declared that it was a fact when he told the story at the last meeting of the Dunedin Bowling Centre Executive. The Balmacewan representative had declared that the Roslyn green was the best in Dunedin this season. “ I believe that it is," stated Mr Ilarrawav. “When the English bowlers were here one called the greenkeeper at Roslyn over to him. and. taking a handful of cash out of his pocket, said, 4 This is the best green I’ve ever pla\'ed on! Here you are,’ he said, as he handed over some money, 4 go and have a drink.’ It was sixpence.” The Two-life System. The British visitors have been criticising our two-life system, and also our section system, saying they prefer “ sudden death," so that it is rather refreshing to learn that the two-life finds favour in the eyes of Mr R. Husband. captain of the Scottish section of the touring team. He says that it is gradually getting more popular at Home, and that they are thinking of introducing it as the official system in Scotland.