Bowls: Atkinson at it again during weekend bowls

Grant Hassall

The achievement of Briar Atkinson to make two finals and a repeat of the men’s singles finals were two of the biggest features from the opening weekend of the Bowls Taranaki champion-of-champions series.

Atkinson has already won two Taranaki titles this season and looks set to add to this when the finals weekend takes place at Stratford-Avon on April 27-28.

On Saturday, on the indoor rinks at her home Paritutu club, Atkinson skipped her team into the final of the fours. Then, on Sunday at West End, Atkinson managed to survive a major scare in the singles semifinals to book her place in the final.

In the singles, Atkinson trailed Tower’s Lyn Scott 15-5 in the race to 21 shots. But remarkably the game completely turned and Atkinson took the next 16 points to win 21-15.

In the final she will play Hawera Park’s Ella Smailes. Smailes upset her long-time skip Kristin Stampa (Stratford-Avon) 21-13 in the other semi.

In the fours, Atkinson skipped Jackie Moeahu, Alesha Quay and Tina Atkinson-Watt to a 21-12 win in the last four over Fitzroy’s Lesley Te Awa, Trish Seaver, Maree Gadsby and Val Symes. In the decider, Paritutu will play Waitara’s Jenny Newton, Anne Hinton, Ada Senior and Marlene Malcolm. The Waitara quartet, after two extra end victories, ended the hopes of Opunake’s Chris Commane, Rita Davey, Angela Debique and Julie Hemahema 17-12 in the semis.

The big news from the men’s play was that Fitzroy’s Maurice Symes and Inglewood’s Gerry O’Sullivan will again contest the senior singles final, just as they did 12 months ago. Symes won 21-17 then.

Symes produced a brilliant final bowl to trail the jack for three shots to edge out Rahotu’s Camron Horo 21-18 in one semi, while O’Sullivan beat Paritutu’s Paul Howell 21-15 in the other.

Following three rounds in the men’s fours on Saturday, Tower’s Scott Roberts and Fitzroy’s Bill Johnston were the two surviving skips.

Johnston and his side of Andrew Gadsby, Ian Dawson – both second year players – and Peter Vink squeaked past Hawera Park’s Graham Cockerell, Brian Eccleshall, Wayne Hart and Sean Cullinan 11-10 in the semifinals.

Roberts, who is skipping the three Anderson brothers, Brendan, Mark and Grant, beat Joel Chard, Les Waiwiri, Dennis Morris and Shae Fleming (Rahotu) 16-7.

Fleming added to his growing reputation over the weekend. He was the only bowler to play seven games and he won six of them – including four on Sunday when he advanced to the final of the men’s junior singles at Inglewood.

Fleming beat Paritutu’s Mike Baldwin 21-14 in the semis. He will meet Fred Quilter in the final, appropriately, given Quilter and his wife Tina have played a big part in the growth of the Lepperton club in recent times. Quilter accounted for Cockerell 21-15 in the semis.

The women’s junior singles final will be between defending titleholder Alethea Rowlands (Tower) and Amanda Crehan (Paritutu). In the semis, Rowlands beat Mihi Hona (Lepperton) 21-10 and Crehan defeated Helen Chitty (New Plymouth) 21-7.