Masterton petanque aces Oz

Preparation was a key factor in New Zealand's dominance of their transtasman petanque international with Australia at St Kilda, Melbourne.
Five members of the Kiwi contingent are members of the Masterton Petanque Club - Barb Johnston, Joan Miller, Claire Wilson, Graeme Morris and Ralph Priddle - and they all played a full part in either the 61-47 success in the senior section or the 72-48 win in the open division.
The senior side, which included Miller, Morris and Priddle, were so superior they had to win only one of the four triples matches in the penultimate round of the tourney to seal their victory. Meanwhile, the open team, including Johnston and Wilson, needed to win only one of the six mixed doubles in the last round to put the Aussies out of their misery. On both occasions the objective was achieved with a minimum amount of fuss and bother.
Morris said a decision by the New Zealand selectors to have their triples teams play together in tournaments before they crossed the Tasman played a big part in the success.
Triples was the discipline in which most points could be scored and therefore it was vital the players worked well together.
"The combinations were excellent and that counted for a lot in the end result," Morris said.
This weekend will see the Masterton club stage their annual midwinter tourney indoors at Clareville Showgrounds, with a pleasing 42 entries being received from places as far north as Whangarei and as far south as Christchurch.
Play will get under way at 9am on Saturday.