Juniors bolster team's title bid

Caroline Bon will lead the Northland team into battle at the 61st Toro Women's Interprovincials in Auckland.
Joining Bon is Waitangi's Phoebe Perrin and Tapora's Aroha Tito, who helped Northland reach their first  interprovincial semifinal last year and who will bolster the side contesting the five-day tournament at The Grange Golf Course, Manukau.
Whangaroa's Samantha Dangen is making her return to the competition this year after a couple of years off, while newcomer Chelsea Rivers and travelling reserve Rachael Williams round off the team.
Rivers, 19, and Williams, 15, both play for Northland Golf Club and are two juniors who have made excellent progress, team manager and selector Mary Sorenson said.
Looking at team line-ups, Sorenson said Northland should be competitive at the event they finished third in last year.
"Golf is one of those games where anyone can do well ... it depends on how you play on the day and we hope our team will play well this week," she said.
"It would be nice to repeat that third place if not better it."
Among the teams to beat are Auckland and Waikato, Sorenson said.
Auckland have won 19 titles,  and boast NZ Amateur champion Cecilia Cho who was last year's Toro player of the tournament on her debut, while 2008 winners Waikato will
be searching for more silverware.
Meanwhile, North Harbour have won four times in their brief history, including three times in four years until 2005. They have a young team led by the outstanding 12-year-old Lydia Ko, runner-up in the NZ Amateur Championship this year.
With Bon lining up fresh on the back of contesting the Port Taranaki Open and 19-year-old Perrin in good recent form, Northland should get off to a solid start.
Northland tee off against Taranaki tomorrow morning, followed by a round two bye.
"I would like to think we could beat them [Taranaki] but last year we thought we could beat the first team we played and we lost so we won't say that!"
On Wednesday, Northland play Canterbury before facing Manawatu/Whanganui followed by North Harbour and Tasman on Thursday. Northland have one game on Friday, against  Waikato ahead of Saturday's semifinals and final.
Australian-based professional golfer Dale Clarke headed the Northland field contesting the Taranaki Open, starting strongly hitting two rounds of 70, followed by 77 and 73 to finish ninth, while fellow professional Alex Tait also had mixed  results.
He shot 74, 71, 69 and then 79 to place 15th ahead of Doug Batty in 25th spot after making his debut at the US Open this year. Martin Pettigrew was 29th.
North Harbour professional Michael Hendry overcame the elements as well as the opposition to secure his second Charles Tour golf title of the year by winning the event.
Hendry managed an outstanding one-over-par 73 in brutal weather as players braved continual rain as well as strong and bitterly cold winds at the New Plymouth Golf Club.
The 29-year-old, who make his breakthrough victory at the Tauranga Open, finished on eight-under 280 to hold off former Taranaki Open champion Doug Holloway by two shots, with another two strokes back to defending champion Troy Ropiha.