The national Intercentre tournament was held in Wellington last weekend and it was a case of so near, yet so far for the Northland women's team attempting to repeat their 2016 success.
They comfortably won their section and then in the quarter-finals met Waikato.
The singles player lost her match, the fours won their match and all hinged on the pairs game. Success went to Waikato and they won the match 2-1 and went forward to the semifinals.
The final was between Bay of Plenty and Counties-Manukau, with Bay of Plenty winning the event and becoming New Zealand champions for 2017.
In the men's division Northland just missed out on qualifying by one game point.
Well done to Dennis Brewster who played the singles for Northland and played outstandingly well, including a win over Shannon McIlroy, the current world singles champion.
This event was won by Canterbury which defeated Bowls North Harbour in the final.
The Northland 1-8 Intercentre teams had a one-day tournament against Auckland, North Harbour and Counties-Manukau in preparation for their NZ final in two weeks time.
The third round of the event was washed out but the women finished with 3 1/2 wins from six matches and the men finished with 4 1/2 wins from six matches.
The men finished second and the women third on a countback after three teams all finished on 10 points. This was a good strong competition for our teams before their major event.
It was disappointing to see 14 teams take part in Presidents Day on Wednesday.
Many clubs did not make the effort to enter a team and this will undoubtedly put the event in jeopardy for next season.
Sponsorship for the event was excellent and it was a shame that more clubs did not support the Centre president by being in attendance.
The Umpires Association's annual AC Triples event was postponed last week and has now been rescheduled for Tuesday, May 16. Please reconfirm your entry, or enter a team by contacting Bruce Scott.
The tournament calendar and Centre calendar for 2017-18 has been distributed to all clubs. Please ensure these documents are passed on to the match committee personnel for their immediate attention.
Maungakaramea advise that their Marsh family-sponsored open tournament has ben rescheduled to April 18.
This weekend sees the Centre Junior 1-5 Year singles being played at Waipu (men) and One Tree Point (women) on Saturday and post-section at Waipu on Sunday.
Latest reporting time is 8.30am with play starting at 8.45am. Please check the Centre website for names of entrants.
Twenty men and 16 women will be taking part. Please don't forget to bring your marker, one marker for each two entrants from your club.