Singles and fours bowls crowns up for grabs in end-of-year rollouts
Bowls Manawatu¯ held its open singles tournaments throughout the weekend and splendid contests were seen throughout in both genders.
The women’s event has been completed, while the men’s contest is down to three one-lifers. There were five women left after Saturday, being two sets of club mates, Mere Fryer and Sheryn Blake, from Terrace End, and Lyn Jensen and Tania Harris, from Johnston Park, with Ashhurst providing promising junior Faye Jones.
Fryer had the first-round bye, as the remaining two-lifer, and Blake was in devastating touch as she accounted for Jones 23-2 and Harris continued her improvement this season, with a 21-12 margin over Jensen.
Blake had the next bye and Fryer looked in ominous touch as Harris bowed out 21-6, and so it was all Terrace End to decide the title.
Both Fryer and Blake were shooting for a 20th title and fourth gold star and the scene was set for a huge struggle at the Northern greens, which were playing extra well.
The game is ultimately about who draws best and the quality of play in the first final was sublime, before Blake prevailed 21-18 and brought the title down to a one-life match.
In spite of a Manawatu¯ wind having sprung up, their play remained artisan-like and Blake managed to hold a narrow lead throughout, before running out a 21-16 winner.
Singles is about mental toughness as much as anything and I predicted the hard section at Johnston Park would toughen the survivors for day two. It was proven to be, with three from that section in Shane Rogers, Tim Hook and Stephen Love joining Ray Boffa in the last four.
In consecutive games on Saturday, Love faced Rogers 20-21, yours truly 21-16 and Jason Hawe the same score, but the preparation made him the dominant figure on the Sunday.
Three two-lifers and eight onelifers started day two and with Rogers drawing the bye, Boffa and Clayton Simpson played the twolife game. Simpson is probably still wondering how he turned a 20-13 lead into a 20-21 loss.
Two of the centre’s most promising bowlers in Darren Wright (Kimbolton) and Pat Edwards (Palmerston North) were still going on the Sunday and both won a further match before stumbling in the last nine. Both showed the value of patience and poise under pressure.
By this stage, Love was in his very best form and he dispatched Terry Curtis 21-8, Wright 21-5 and Simpson 21-9, before a rematch with Rogers.
As befits a match between the centre’s two best singles exponents, it was a cracker, with Love finally asserting 21-13 and booking his place in the final.
Hook had finished runner-up last season and he performed very well, with 21-11 and 21-6 wins over Kerry Hewitt and Bruce Harris, before Boffa worried him out of a last-three spot with a 21-18 win. Rogers had a tough day, defeating Terry Johnson 21-15 and Boffa 21-17 before the Love match.
So it is to Palmerston North on Saturday at 10am, when Rogers and Boffa will meet for the right to play Love in the final. The men’s fours will follow, which sees Craig Gush’s Northern team play Pat Horgan’s home team. A top day’s bowls is in store.