A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.
BOWLS by Trevor Mills
All six clubs in the Bowls Gisborne East Coast centre will be represented in the annual interclub fixture tomorrow.
Unfortunately this event is no longer a qualifying tournament for the regional and national finals as it has been for many years, due to a decision by Bowls NZ to end their involvement.
However, this has not affected the entries in either Division 1 or Division 2 this time, with four teams in each of the four men’s and women’s sections.
That means 112 players will turn out on the four Gisborne and Kahutia greens.
Each team of seven players will comprise a singles player, one pair and a four.
The Gisborne Bowling Club hosts the Division 1 men and women. Play gets under way at 9am.
The feature game in the men’s singles will be that between Bowls NZ silver star holder David File (Te Karaka) and Jamey Ferris (Gisborne). Ferris will be determined to make a good showing to cement a singles berth against Hawke’s Bay next month.
Kahutia’s Murray Murton is in top form and plays Te Wharau School principal Steve Berezowski (Poverty Bay).
The men’s pairs features new faces John Kawana (Gisborne) and Kanakanaia farmer Bruno Lourie (Kahutia), who both look to be valuable acquisitions to the representative sides this season. John Dawson (Te Karaka) makes a comeback to the local scene with long-time stalwart Arthur Baty.
A new name in the Kahutia four is past Burton Cup winner Ron Law, who is making his debut for the club.
It is encouraging to see Lytton High School student Luke Sanders leading for the Poverty Bay four.
The Division 1 women’s event will be an even contest with Hawkes Bay’s Mere Nepia turning out for Te Karaka. She will be up against Joy Davis (Poverty Bay), still in the junior ranks, along with Kahutia’s Dayvinia Mills and Gisborne’s Tanya Harrison.
Betty Herring, formerly of the Ohope Bowling Club, is another making her debut for Kahutia, in the pairs with Judy Taylor.
Gisborne’s Queenie Takurua and her daughter Adrienne Smiler are back again, along with Poverty Bay’s Jan Powell and Erin Sutherland, and Te Karaka’s Sarah Brown and Del Tamanui.
Kahutia’s top skip Glenys Whiteman looks to have a powerful side, with Marie Wright, Pat Murton and Lesley Seymour.
However, the long-time combination of Gisborne’s Carol Hawes, Lorna Reeve and Lesley McIntosh along with Margot Willock will be in familiar surroundings.
And don’t discount Poverty Bay’s Ora Peipi, Val McGreevy, June Stichbury and Kathy Carroll after their success last season, while Te Karaka have two juniors in Diane Murray and Michelle Brown along with the experienced Del Tamanui and Sarah Brown.
Kahutia Bowling Club hosts the Division 2 men’s and women’s events.
The team with the most confidence in the men’s event will be Wairoa, who last season achieved a clean sweep in this tournament. They have the same side again — Graham Fitzpatrick in the singles, Brent Smith and Wayne Goodley in the pairs, and Peter Robinson, Steve McRoberts, Min Johansen and Tim Thompson in the fours.
However, with the likes of experienced campaigners Arthur Hawes, Bruce Easton and Maurice Taylor along with singles player Charlie Ure, Gisborne Boys’ High School’s Ashli Ferris and veterans Ron Robertson and Ropata Ruwhiu, the Gisborne club’s team could mount a strong challenge.
Don’t discount Kahutia and Poverty Bay’s chances, either, as both teams contain well-performed bowlers only too eager to lower Wairoa’s colours.
Women’s Division 2 looks to be an even contest with some players having representative experience at junior level.
The Gisborne team have home green advantage with Beverly Davy, Ginny Sherriff, Kay Goldsbury and Anne Day leading from the front.
Kahutia have limited numbers in their junior playing ranks but have plenty of enthusiasm from the likes of Diane Oates, Lucy Shanks and Lytton High School student Paige Richter.
There is also plenty of determination in the Poverty Bay side, especially from singles player Ngawai Turipa, Kym Walters, Diane Christie and Norma Miller.
However, the Wairoa women’s team will be determined to emulate the success of their men’s team last season and are a tight-knit group led by singles player Glenda Kapene.
Fours skip Donna Smith has plenty of experience in these situations and will lead by example, with the support of Raelene Tangiora and Penny Mitchell.
Conditions of play for both events are 25 shots for the singles, 18 ends for the pairs and 15 ends for the fours, with all games subject to a time limit of two hours 30 minutes.