On the mats — indoor bowls news

Matthew (left) and Dylan Foster

Andrew Rickard and his nine-year-old son Adam won the final of the White Family Pairs 6-5 against Arnold Hutchins and Florence Denham.

The White Family Pairs was introduced in 1996 to get families to take part in indoor bowls events, and has been a huge success.

This year, father/daughter, father/son, mother/daughter, sister/brother, grandfather/granddaughter and other combinations of relatives all had a go in the event.

After three ends of the nine-end final, the score was tied at 2-2.

After End 6, the score was locked at 4-4 and after End 8, it was 5-5.

On the last end, though, the Rickards scored the vital point to win.

In the semifinal, the Rickards defeated Dylan Foster and his father Michael 12-4, while Hutchins defeated Aku Keelan and his father Noble 9-7.

BROTHERS Matthew and Dylan Foster won the Poverty Bay-East Coast Centre under-21 pairs with four straight wins. It was great to see 32 young bowlers having a go last Wednesday afternoon.

The runners-up were Akuhata Keelan and Hina Preddey, with three wins and a draw (32.5 points).

They were followed by Adam and Rachael Rickard, also with three wins and a draw (26.5 points).