New faces in Gisborne-East Coast lawn bowls rep teams

The lawn bowls scene is busy again. The Ella Gibson Memorial Women's Fours and the Peace Shield Men's Fours were held at Te Karaka Bowling Club over the weekend, a junior intercentre clash with Hawke's Bay will be held in Wairoa on Friday (Waitangi Day) and the women's Octagonal will be held at (the pictured) Gisborne Bowling Club from February 13 to 15. The men will play at Napier Bowling Club.

New faces are among the teams that Bowls Gisborne-East Coast selectors have named for tournaments coming up in the next few weeks.

The junior men’s and women’s teams have an intercentre fixture against Hawke’s Bay at the Wairoa Bowling Club on Friday (Waitangi Day).

Then from Friday, February 13, to Sunday, February 15, the senior teams have the Octagonal, a tournament in which they play rep teams from Hawke’s Bay, Taranaki, Whanganui, Manawatū, Wairarapa, Kāpiti and Wellington.

This year, the women will play at Gisborne Bowling Club, while the men are at Napier Bowling Club.

Both men’s and women’s senior rep selectors have put together teams from a reduced pool of contenders, due to some well-performed players being unavailable.

Women’s selector Bobbie Beattie has brought in players from the junior ranks (those with up to eight years of bowls experience) to “bring them through for the future”, while men’s selector Malcolm Trowell has benefited from the return of some previously unavailable players.

Jackie Horsfall, Joanne Wroe, Deborah Hancock, Erica Thompson and Anna Colvin would all make their senior representative debuts in the Octagonal, Beattie said.

“Hancock is a second-year player, and Horsfall, Thompson and Colvin are also juniors.

“Marise Raklander is a third-year player who had her senior rep debut last year.”

Glenda Kapene and Wroe play their bowls out of Wairoa, and the rest of the squad come from Te Karaka or the city clubs.

Beattie said Tolaga Bay Bowling Club had some excellent players, but they were unavailable at present.

Trowell said Wairoa Bowling Club’s Vern Withey would make his Gisborne-East Coast senior rep debut in the Octagonal, while Hawke’s Bay-domiciled Wairoa club member Murray Glassey would bring extensive representative experience with Hawke’s Bay and Waikato.

The return of Leighton Shanks and Vern Alder after a spell out of the representative scene was a boon to the team, Trowell said.

Hiki Kennedy was back in the rep fold after time away from the game, and Warren Gibb – after a lengthy spell concentrating on indoor bowls – was finding the type of form that had made him a rep lawn bowls player in the South Island.

With Gisborne Bowling Club greenkeeper Andrew Ball, Auckland-based Shaun Goldsbury and this season’s multiple centre title winner July Hoepo also in the mix, the team had plenty of potential, Trowell said.

Gisborne East Coast teams

Juniors, playing the intercentre in Wairoa on February 6, starting at 9.30am.

Men: Geoff Pinn, Liam Pinn, Kyle Pinn, Kelly Te Miha, BJ Seymour, Craig Smith, Greg Flett and Regan Tahuri. Selector: Geoff Pinn.

Women: Anna Colvin, Marise Raklander, Delores Woodcock, Lyn Hayes, Jean Patterson, Jackie Horsfall, Win Baker and Nanette Treloar. Reserve: Jenny Amor. Selector: Jessie Davis-Law. Manager: Kathryn Flaugere.

Seniors, playing the Octagonal from February 13 to 15.

Women, playing in Gisborne, starting at 8.30am on the Friday: Dayvinia Mills, Glenda Kapene, Jessie Davis-Law, Diane Murray, Lesley Seymour, Joanne Wroe, Marise Raklander, Erica Thompson, Jackie Horsfall, Anna Colvin and Deborah Hancock. Selector: Bobbie Beattie. Manager: Kathryn Flaugere.

Men, playing in Napier, starting at midday on the Friday: July Hoepo, Murray Glassey, Leighton Shanks, Vern Alder, Hiki Kennedy, Vern Withey, Malcolm Trowell, Shaun Goldsbury, Warren Gibb and Andrew Ball. Reserve: Steve Berezowski. Selector: Malcolm Trowell. Manager: Ron Nepe.