Intercentre success: Gisborne-East Coast women go through

BOUND FOR NATIONALS: As winners of the Region 3 intercentre finals in Hastings, the Bowls Gisborne-East Coast women’s team will contest the national finals in Auckland in October. Team members are, back (from left): Lesley Seymour, Anita Vaotuua (reserve/manager), Joy Davis, Carol Hawes and Mere Nepia. Front: Jasmine Merrick, Tanya Harrison, Bobbie Beattie (selector) and Dayvinia Mills.Pictures supplied

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BOWLS Gisborne-East Coast emerged from a one-round shootout as the Region 3 women’s representatives at the national finals.

Gisborne-East Coast took the shootout with a clean sweep of wins against Wairarapa.

By winning the regional intercentre finals in Hastings this month, the women’s team won a spot in the Bowls New Zealand national finals in Auckland in October.

The team comprised Dayvinia Mills, Tanya Harrison and Carol Hawes (Gisborne Bowling Club), Mere Nepia and Jasmine Merrick (Te Karaka), and Joy Davis and Lesley Seymour (Poverty Bay). The reserve was manager Anita Vaotuua and the selector was Bobbie Beattie.

Mills played the singles and was unbeaten, with three wins. Nepia (skip) and Harrison had two wins and a loss in the pairs. Hawes (skip), Merrick, Davis and Seymour were unbeaten in the fours, with two wins and a draw.

In the first round, against Manawatu, Mills won the singles 25-9 and the pair won 25-7, while the four had a 14-all draw.

In the next round, against Hawke’s Bay, Mills had another win, 25-16. The pair lost 31-9 and the four won 14-10.

Then came the one-round shootout with Wairarapa to find the winner of the regional finals, and Gisborne-East Coast completed the round with another clean sweep.

The men’s team finished fourth in the Region 3 finals.

They were: Paul Harrison, Steve Goldsbury and Boon McIlroy (Gisborne Bowling Club), Ben Elkington (Tolaga Bay), July Hoepo-Williams and Willie Murray (Te Karaka), and Don Williams (Poverty Bay). Selector/manager was Tim Sherriff.

Harrison played the singles. Goldsbury (skip) and Elkington played the pairs, and McIlroy (skip), Hoepo-Williams (director), Don Williams (two) and Murray (lead) played the fours.

In the first round, against Wairarapa, Harrison won the singles 25-12. The pair lost 21-10 and the four won 15-6.

In the second round, against Manawatu, Gisborne-East Coast men lost all their games.

In the last round, against Hawke’s Bay, Harrison won his singles 25-13 while the pair lost 26-10 and the four lost 23-4.