KEY POINTS:
Any debt Wales may have owed New Zealand for the legendary Bob Deans' try that wasn't allowed on the Originals' rugby tour of 1905 may have been repaid in the world bowls championships at Christchurch's Burnside club yesterday.
New Zealand's men's singles representative Ali Forsyth, after an easy
eighth round win, lost what could have been a place in post-section play starting tomorrow when he was beaten by Australia's Aron Sherriff 21-12.
But on a nearby rink Wales' Mike Prosser all but guaranteed Forsyth a fourth place finish in the section by soundly beating one of the tournament's giant-killers, Spain's Nick Cole, and that virtually meant an end to Coles' quarter-final hopes.
"If I can beat Papua-New Guinea [Peter Juni] tomorrow then I think I'm in, because my differential is pretty good," Forsyth said.
Though obviously disappointed to lose, particularly as the score had been 12-12 until the 18 th end, Forsyth took some positives from his match with Sherriff, recognising the burly Australian had produced scintillating bowls to score nine unanswered shots over the final four ends.
"It was a great game," Forsyth said. "If everyone has to play that well to beat me then so be it."
On the last two ends Sherriff had played some magical bowls when Forsyth was holding shot, and on the last end three. But on the 21st end Sherriff drew the shot right to the edge of the ditch to which Forsyth had trailed the jack. Then on the 22nd end when Forsyth was holding two shots Sherriff trailed the jack to two of his own to give him the three needed for victory.
Sherriff was particularly effective taking the last bowl, by always giving the mat away. Forsyth, as all top bowlers do now, also gave the mat away every time he won an end, but wondered ruefully whether the rule, which has only come in recent years, was right.
Had Sherriff lost, his place in the top four too might have been in danger, for in the morning round he was pipped by the unbeaten Malaysian Safuan Said, who showed his class in last week's pairs. Leading 18-12 at one stage, Sherriff lost 21-20.
Having beaten Sherriff on Tuesday, Cole continued his spoiling role by scoring another major upset in the morning, outdrawing the booming drives of Canada's Ryan Bester, for a 21-12 win, Bester's only loss so far.
Said and Bester meet in the final section match today and, while Said looks sure of being first or second, Bester will have to survive his clash with Sherriff. If he hangs on to fourth Forsyth's quarterfinal opponent should be either South Africa's Gerry Baker or Scotland's Darren Burnett.
New Zealand's other teams, Gary Lawson's men's four, Sharon Sims' women's triple and Jo Edwards and Val Smith in the women's pairs won both matches yesterday to stay on target for top two finishes in their respective sections.