On the mats

SPOILS OF SPORT: Indoor bowls winners (from left) Nathan Trowell, Kaia Matenga, David Lynn, Lois Lamont and Nathan’s grandfather, Bruce Easton, with recently won trophies. Picture by Paul Rickard

BRUCE Easton teamed up with his grandson, 11-year-old Nathan Trowell, to defeat Nathan’s father Malcolm Trowell and Malcolm’s nephew, Matthew Foster, in the final of the Travellers Inn Motel White Family pairs.

Easton and his grandson won a high-scoring, nine-end final 11-7.

Going into the final end, Easton led 8-7. Malcolm Trowell had the opportunity to draw the kitty, but just missed. With his next shot, Easton left Trowell no option but to run into the Easton bowl. However, Trowell knocked the kitty off the mat, which gave Easton three penalty points and the 11-7 win.

The White family pairs was introduced to encourage families to play together, and members of the White family took part in the event. Mike Foster, grandson of the late Maureen White, was playing, as was his wife Karyn Foster (née Easton) and their two children Matthew and Dylan Foster.

Fourteen-year-old Kaia Matenga won the handicap singles 14-9 against 12-year-old Akuhata Keelan in an all-junior final.

Matenga, starting on a three-point handicap and Keelan, on a five-point handicap, had a great game. Matenga led 8-7 after three ends and he gradually scored points to take command of the final.

To reach the final, Matenga defeated Te Rina Keelan, Nanette Treloar and Akuhata Keelan to qualify, while Keelan defeated Doc Tipene, Coralie Campbell-Whitehead and Kevin Fishburn to qualify.

Keelan defeated Tipene again in the semifinal, 15-9, while Matenga had the bye into the final.

David Lynn, Lois Lamont, Kaia Matenga and Nathan Trowell were unstoppable in the Poverty Bay-East Coast Tom Duffin Open Fours. They beat Warren Gibb, Lyn Kay-Allen, Doc Tipene and Kevin Lee 13-4 in the final.

Lynn’s team led 3–0 after two ends, but Gibb’s team came back with four unanswered points over the next three ends to lead the nine-end final 4–3.

Superb bowling by 11-year-old Trowell and 14-year-old Matenga was a feature of the final. With Lamont playing her usual steady bowls and Lynn finding some form, the Lynn team struck back with three points on each of ends 6 and 7 to go ahead 9-4. Two points to Lynn’s team on End 8 meant the game was in the bag, and they picked up two more points on the last end.

For Trowell and Matenga, this was their second centre title towards their silver star, which players win when they achieve five centre titles. This was Lamont’s 53rd centre title, and Lynn’s 130th.