Gwen Lawson - Northland bowls: Thunderstorm washes out final round of singles

After he had a convincing win over Bruno Barnetta, Maungaturoto bowler Wayne Wrack (pictured) lost in round two of the centre men's open singles. Photo / File

The weather had a part to play in the completion of the centre men's open singles when the last round of qualifying had to be abandoned due to thunderstorms and the closure of the greens at Mangawhai.

As a result, all two and three winners qualified for post-section play.

Results:

Round 1: Wayne Wrack (Maungaturoto) def Bruno Barnetta (Mangawhai) 21-2, John Dunn (Onerahi) def Paul Price (Whangārei) 21-14, Dean McMurchy (Onerahi) def Steve Smith (Whangārei) 21-8, David Hood (Whangārei) def Alistair Trimmer (Kamo) 21-13, Kevin Robinson (Maungaturoto) beat Larry Vallance (Whangārei) 21-18. Byes: Alistair Colliar, (Mangawhai), Dennis Brewster (Whangārei), Carl van Haaften (Kensington).

Round 2: Brewster def Colliar 21-16, van Haaften def Wrack 21-15, McMurchy def Dunn 21-18, Hood def Robinson 21-12.

Round 3: Brewster def van Haaften 21-15, McMurchy def Hood 20-18.

Final: McMurchy def Brewster 21-20.

The final was a 31-end, 2-1/2 hour epic. The scores were even until the 18th end when McMurchy went on a scoring spree with seven shots in three ends to get a five-shot advantage.

But the condition of the green and a change of wind direction came into play and Brewster then scored eight shots on five of the next eight ends to fight back and they went into the final end at 20-all.

The last end saw McMurchy place his second bowl within 30cm of the jack and although 0Brewster attempted to pick up the jack or remove the shot bowl he missed on both occasions and the match went to McMurchy 21-20. It was his eighth centre title.

The women completed the centre open triples on the same weekend and once again section play was disrupted by the weather.

After the thunderstorm passed and the weather cleared the teams played the last round with the matches reduced to 10 ends. Only four teams managed the necessary three or four wins to qualify and play shifted to the Mangawhai greens on Sunday.

Post-section results:

Semifinals: Pam Brewster, Dawn Owens and Linda Spratt (Kensington) def Skye Renes, Dot Hardy and Glenys Sandilands (Kamo) 24-11, Madeline Yovich, Carol Neeley and Karina Cooper (Kamo) def Manu Timoti, Linda Pedro and Betty Mitchell (Hikurangi) 24-12.

Final: Yovich, Neeley, Cooper def Brewster, Owens, Spratt 18-3

This match saw the Kamo combination go out to a 9-nil lead after six ends and they never relinquished the lead with the Brewster combination scoring on only three ends and conceding the match with four ends to play.

This combination has won the centre triples for a second time. It was a 14th title for Yovich, eighth title for Neeley and fourth for Cooper.

This weekend the interclub sevens competition is being played.

The men's and women's winners of this event will contest the New Zealand finals later in the season.

Fifteen teams of seven players are taking part and will compete in singles, pairs and fours.

The men will play at Kensington and Onerahi greens on Saturday and at Mangawhai
on Sunday.

The women will play at Kamo on Saturday and Whangārei on Sunday.

The Bowls3Five competition will conclude on Wednesday from 6pm. The results will be on the centre website as soon as they come to hand.

The open division will all play at Kensington and years 1-5 division at Ngunguru and Kamo. The televised version came to an end on Wednesday night.

Congratulations to the team from Nelson, skipped by Shannon McIlroy who took out the final from Christchurch's Gary Lawson-skipped Elmwood Park and earned their club $15,000.

Coming fixtures:

Tomorrow: Ruawai MX drawn triples, Arapohue MX drawn (both single entry).
Tuesday: Hikurangi 2x4x2 pairs.
Wednesday: Whangārei Bowls3Five triples.
Friday: Kamo AC pairs.
Next weekend (Dec 21/22): Club championships.