Pairs champions deliver the goods

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

Gisborne East-Coast recently held its Champion of Champion Pairs tournament for junior men and women at Kahutia Bowling Club, and the senior men and women played at Te Karaka Bowling Club.

In the junior women's first round, Barbara Gibson (Skip) and second-year bowler Karen Pinn (Gisborne Bowling Club) had a close game against Robyn Arthur (Skip) and Norma Miller from Poverty Bay Bowling Club, but Gisborne won the game 20-14. Te Karaka's Dianne Murray (Skip) and Erica Thompson had a win of 24-9 against Tolaga Bay's Kay Goldsbury (Skip) and first-year bowler Holli Elkington.

In Round 2, Poverty Bay lost 17-10 to two well-seasoned bowlers from Kahutia Bowling Club, Lucy Shanks (Skip) and Paige Richter. Shanks and Richter had a great season together and both recently represented their club in the National Interclub Sevens in Christchurch; impressive for such young bowlers who have a bright future in bowls. In Round 2 Gibson and Pinn beat Goldsbury and Elkington with a win of 24-9.

In Round 3, Goldsbury and Elkington bounced back with a win of 19-7 against Arthur and Miller. Shanks and Richter beat Murray and Thompson with a comfortable win. In Round 4, Murray and Thompson beat Gibson and Pinn, which put them in the running to win the Champ of Champ Pairs title alongside Kahutia's duo, Shanks and Richter. Shanks and Richter had a close game against Goldsbury and Elkington but enjoyed a win at the last end by 15-13. Again they comfortably beat Gibson and Pinn in Round 5. Murray and Thompson also had a win against Poverty Bay's pairs but their differential was not enough to win the title so they finished in second place. With four wins, Shanks and Richter claimed the Junior Women's Champion of Champion Pairs on their own home green. Gisborne finished third, Tolaga Bay fourth and Poverty Bay finished fifth.

In the junior men's first round, Andrew Ball (Skip) and Otto Louw from Poverty Bay Bowling Club were leading comfortably against Kahutia's Willy Murray (Skip) and Ray Young. Murray and Young made a comeback and ended up with a draw of 13-13 against Ball and Louw. Gisborne's Don Oates (Skip) and Ron Robertson took a loss of 23-9 to Tolaga Bay's Anton Tashkoff (Skip) and George Tamihana.

In Round 2, Ball and Louw defeated Oates and Robertson 22-10. Tahskoff and Tamihana beat Murray and Young 21-13. Ball and Louw faced Tashkoff and Tamihana in Round 3 or Potential Final as both pairs were the top two in the junior men's section. Kahutia and Gisborne decided not to play in the last round. In Round 3, Tolaga was leading comfortably until Poverty Bay made a commendable comeback and won the game 17-14. With two wins and a draw, Ball and Louw won the Junior Men's Champion of Champion Pairs. Tolaga Bay finished second, Kahutia third and Gisborne fourth.

In the senior men's first round, Robin Jefferson (skip) and Geoff Pinn from Gisborne Bowling Club enjoyed a good win of 22-13 against Te Karaka's David File (Skip) and Steve Goldsbury. Pinn is only a third-year bowler and he replaced Jamey Ferris as Jefferson's partner because Ferris has moved to Christchurch and is unable to play in that tournament. Tolaga Bay's Mick Maunder (Skip) and Ben Brown beat Poverty Bay's Ian Carroll (Skip) and Jeff Davis 25-7. Wairoa's Brent Smith (Skip) and W Whaanga won 18-14 against Kahutia's George Vaotuua (Skip) and Steve Jenkins.

In Round 2, Te Karaka won 26-13 against Poverty Bay, Gisborne won 15-13 against Wairoa and Kahutia beat Tolaga Bay 16-14. In Round 3, Poverty Bay beat Kahutia 15-11, Gisborne beat Tolaga Bay 27-10 and Te Karaka beat Wairoa 29-10. In Round 4, Te Karaka beat Tolaga Bay 15-10 and Wairoa beat Poverty Bay 25-8. In Round 5, Te Karaka won 13-11 against Kahutia while Tolaga Bay and Wairoa had a draw of 6-6.

Gisborne's Jefferson and Pinn enjoyed winning streaks and won all their games. In the fourth game, they beat Kahutia 25-11 and won 18-7 against Poverty Bay. With five wins, 10 points and a +53 differential, Gisborne won the Senior Men's Champion of Champion Pairs. It is Pinn's first Centre Senior Title and both Jefferson and Pinn will compete in the New Zealand Champion of Champion Pairs, which will be held in Dunedin in July 2021.

Te Karaka was the runner-up, Wairoa third, Tolaga fourth, Kahutia fifth and Poverty Bay took sixth place.

In the senior women's section, Kahutia's Glenys Whiteman (Skip) and Marie Wright enjoyed three wins on the first day. They beat Wairoa's Donna Smith (Skip) and M Kyle 20-15 in the first game. Then they won 16-14 against Poverty Bay's Val McGreevy (Skip) and Lesley Seymour. The had a strong win of 20-9 in the third game against Tolaga Bay's Jo Atkins (Skip) and Sharon Olsen.

Meanwhile, Tolaga Bay beat Poverty Bay 19-14 in the Round 1, and Gisborne's Queenie Takurua (Skip) and Dayvinia Mills won 17-12 against Te Karaka's Mere Nepia (Skip) and Jasmine Merrick. In Round 2, Te Karaka beat Wairoa 24-11 and Tolaga Bay beat Gisborne 24-17.

In Round 4, Tolaga Bay beat Wairoa 19-15, Gisborne defeated Poverty Bay 20-14 and Kahutia beat Te Karaka 17-14. In Round 5, Te Karaka had a big win of 22-5 against Tolaga Bay, Wairoa beat Poverty Bay 14-7 and Gisborne won 14-12 against Kahutia. Both Gisborne and Kahutia had four wins but Kahutia won the Champ of Champ Pairs title with four wins +19 differential. Gisborne finished in second place with four wins +10 differential, Tolaga Bay in third place, Te Karaka in fourth, Poverty Bay in fifth and Wairoa in sixth place.