On the mats — Indoor bowls news

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Nathan Trowell and his cousin Matthew Foster needed an extra end to beat Keith Setter and Bruce Easton in the final of the Clarke Schollum Pairs, played before lockdown.

Setter and Easton were 2-1 up early in the nine-end final.

On End 4, Setter looked to have played a great shot for the point, but that wasn’t the case. Trowell held on for the point to level the score at 2-2.

Trowell and Foster, who are grandsons of Easton, then settled in to play consistently to pick up one point on each of ends 5 and 6, then two points on End 7 to take the score to 6-2 .

Setter and Easton started a comeback, picking up three points on End 8 to be down 6-5.

On the last end, Setter and Easton again put the heat on the young guns.

Trowell killed the kitty and gave away three penalty points to be down 8-6. Under the rules, though, if the last end is killed, an extra end can be played to find the winner.

Foster began the extra end well, and when the teams changed ends, Trowell and Foster were holding two points for a draw.

Trowell did not get near the scoring zone with his first bowl, and neither did Setter. Trowell set up a shot with the second of his three bowls. Setter tried to push the second shot bowl of Trowell’s forward to push the kitty back to a waiting Easton bowl, but Setter was too wide and missed.

Trowell then drew a short bowl just out of the count. Setter, with the last bowl of the game, decided to try to draw the shot, instead of having another go at pushing Trowell’s second shot bowl. However, Setter played too narrow and pushed up Trowell’s short bowl, which wasn’t originally in the count, enough for third shot and the win.

Trowell now has 19 centre titles, a great achievement for a 17-year-old. Foster, also 17, notched up his seventh centre title, having been runner-up to Trowell in centre events on numerous occasions.