Judo entries high

JUDO: Seventeen members of the Wanganui Judo Club have entered the North Island championships being held on Saturday at the Jubilee Stadium in Springvale.
Several of them, should their bodies survive the battering, will try out for their black belts at the clubrooms on Sunday.
These include best local hope Tim O'Hara, Kyle O'Connor and probably Shaun Walton.
Some 211 entries have been received for the championships and that's a notable figure in itself because just 140 fought in last year's event in Hamilton.
Wanganui spokesman Wayne Watson puts that down to Wanganui's central location.
"It's a big tournament and the entry is probably because we're central ? but also because members of the New Zealand team for the Commonwealth championships in Auckland next month will use it as a lead-up," Watson said.
"The 17 we have in from Wanganui is our biggest entry for a long time."
It has been a good 12 years since the event has been held in Wanganui, and amongst the watchers will be several "original" members of the 48-year-old club ? including Don McKay, Rod Johnson, Des Smith, Bob McGahey, Eric Cresswell, Robert Pointon and Ray Walton.
Best local hopes include: Oceania Games representative Tim O'Hara ? junior men's and senior men's under-81kg, and both open events.
Clare Lawlor ? the club's top woman, in the junior women's and senior women's U57kg and open events.
Gary Davies ? in the U90kg senior men.
Kyle O'Connor ? third in New Zealand U66kg, now up a weight class in the U73.
And Shaun Walton, recently returned from overseas, in the 100kg senior men's class.