JACK'S CORNER - Big weekend for centre fours competitors

With Garry Houlahan
Centre Fours this weekend and draws are as follows: Women at Te Kopuru - A. Bateman (Kensington), A. Muir (Kensington), S. Wightman (Hakaru), A. Fry (Onerahi), G. Lawson (Hikurangi), M. Parker (Kensington), E. Riceman (Kamo), M. Shaw (Onerahi), T. Rakich (Dargaville), S. James (Kensington).
Women at Arapohue - S. Stirling (Te Kopuru), S. Harris (Ruawai), H. Johnston (Kensington), C. Crawford (Maungakaramea), I. Izzard (Kamo), D. Stewart (Arapohue), M. Timoti (Hikurangi), P. Warth (Kensington), J. Smith (Dargaville), R. Childs (Ruawai).
Men at Ruawai No. 1 green - M. Thurston (Ruawai), M. Marinkovich (Dargaville), G. Rope (Te Kopuru), K. Nash (Arapohue), A. Rakich (Dargaville), R. Steele (Kensington), L. Hawkins (Mangawhai), I. Halls (Onerahi), M. Haslam (Kensington), K. Robinson (Maungaturoto), T. Reader (Whangarei), B. Horscroft (Kensington).
Men at Ruawai No. 2 green - K. Sidwell (Maungatapere), P. Wightman (Mangawhai), I. McMurchy (Maungatapere), N. Yovich (Kamo), T. Chapman (Whangarei), A. Wintle (Mangawhai) , T. Manga (Ruawai), G. Houlahan (Whangarei), S. Smith (Kensington), M. Butler (Kensington), J. Wintle (Mangawhai), J. Dunn (Onerahi), G. Herbert (Whangarei), A. N. Other.
Post section play for those teams good enough to have 3 or 4 wins on Saturday will be at Ruawai on Sunday.
Dargaville Bowling Club held their Jim Vodanovich open triples tournament on Friday 19th October.
This tournament has been played for since the 1954-55 season and there would not be too many that have been going longer than that.
Named in honour of Jim Vodanovich, a former club president and life member plus a Northland Gold Star holder, this year's event unfortunately did not attract the numbers it deserved.
The winners with four wins was a Kensington team of Eric Pattillo, Mike Butler and Joe Thorburn while the sponsors team of Peter and Billl Vodanovich plus brother in law Nick Puharich was second with three wins and a composite team of Ned Yovich, Wally Yovich and Sam Prasad were third with 3 wins.
Hopefully this tournament will attract more entries in the future.
Another tournament in the western area over the weekend was Arapohue's Bill Kay Memorial Classic Fours which had been postponed earlier in the season because of inclement weather.
Fortunately the event got through without any problems this time although the wind made conditions very trying indeed.
The only unbeaten team on the day was Bowls Whangarei's John Jamieson, Garry Houlahan, Laurie Reader and Harry Williams with the maximum five wins.
Runners up with four wins were Dargaville's Alan Rakich, Jim Vallance, Max Jones and Lucky Te Tuhu while third with three wins went to Mangawhai's Lindsay Stichbury, Alan Wintle, Charlie Shepherd and Chris Gore.
Bowls Whangarei were supposed to hold their Combo tournament last Sunday but an uneven number of teams meant that this concept was abandoned and two separate triples tournaments - one for men and one for women - were played instead.
Once again the wind was a great leveller but two women's teams managed to read the conditions well enough to come out with four wins each.
After a countback on points differential it was a Kamo Women's combination of Irene Izzard, Pam Brewster and Bev Rear with four wins and plus 24 who were the winners from another Kamo Women's combination of Dinkie Fischer, Maureen Church and Shirley James also with four wins but a differential of plus 16 shots.
The only men's team who could handle the wind were the Mt Manaia team of Ray Martin, Winston Kake and Des Simons who had four wins and plus 25 shots and they were well clear of the rest of the field.
Strangely enough there were no three winners, so second place went to a local Bowls Whangarei team of Dusty Reader, Paul Graham and Alistair Robertson with two wins and plus 20 shots.