Friday, 05 February 2010
A POWHIRI at Kawerau’s Rautahi Marae today will mark the start of one of the biggest bowls tournaments in the Eastern Bay.
The 36th Aotearoa National Bowls Championships are being hosted primarily by the Kawerau Bowling Club, but 500 bowlers are taking part in the event and Edgecumbe, Whakatane, Taneatua and Ohope bowling clubs will also host preliminary games.
Play gets under way tomorrow with finals beginning at 1.30pm on Sunday. The Mataatua Maori Bowls committee are behind the event and the committee includes 12 representatives from outdoor bowling clubs in the Eastern Bay.
And there will be some Eastern Bay talent in action. Whakatane’s singles champion Dave Good has registered to attend. Good won the Whakatane championship in November and became a third generation winner of the title.
Current and former New Zealand bowls representatives will be in action at the event. Black Jack Shannon McIlroy, who was named for the trans-Tasman series last year, will be at the event.
Raika Gregory is another New Zealand representative attending tournament.
Gregory made a national ranking jump from 76th to 10th last year and was part of the New Zealand team that travelled to the Scottish International Open Singles in November.
Former New Zealand representatives, David File and Dwayne Cameron, will also be participating.