KEY POINTS:
Members of the Australian bowls squad at present taking part in the New Zealand bowls open were victims of a sneak thief at Henderson early on Monday night, putting some members out of pocket by up to $10,000.
Coaches Cameron Curtis and Ian Schuback and the squad's sports scientist, Damien Smeaton, had video equipment, laptop computers and passbooks stolen when entry was forced into one of the complex's storage rooms.
A young intruder was apparently sighted bolting the scene, but there was insufficient identification to help police inquiries. Checks with local second hand pawn shops had also been unsuccessful.
"It's very annoying," team manager Kim Littlejohn said yesterday. "Much of the material on video and in the laptops relates to our last training camp last week in Christchurch."
The theft, however, has not altered the Australians' good impression of New Zealand or the reception they have had.
