Bowls: Horo named in the Black Jacks

Grant Hassall

It took three attempts from New Zealand bowls coach Michael Kernaghan before Rahotu’s Camron Horo decided to answer his telephone late on the evening of January 13.

Thankfully, Kernaghan had enough resolve to keep trying and thankfully Horo eventually plucked up enough courage to answer the call from a number unknown to him.

Horo was half-asleep, which partly explained why he couldn’t believe the news: he had been selected to represent the Black Jacks at the Nations Cup in Kaula Lumpur on February 15-18.

It means that Horo, aged just 20 years, will become a full-international, following a rapid rise in recent seasons.

New Zealand are sending six men and three women to the event, in what many are considering is the final trial before the side for the Commonwealth Games, which commences on July 23 in Glasgow, is selected. Three men and three women will make that trip, plus Para players, which will almost certainly include Oakura’s Kurt Smith.

“I couldn’t sleep afterwards,” Horo, who is in his eighth season of bowls, said. “I’m pretty stoked. It is very unexpected. I didn’t think it would happen this quick.”

Horo will lead in the pairs in the New Zealand Silver side for Australian-based Ali Forsyth. Shannon McIlroy, New Zealand’s singles player at the past three Commonwealth Games, will play the four-bowl discipline.

In the Black team, Aiden Takarua plays with the singles, with Tony Grantham and Keanu Darby the pair.

The New Zealand women’s team predictably contains established internationals Tayla Bruce, Selina Goddard and Katelyn Inch.

Horo, who splits his time between the Rahotu and Paritutu clubs, has collated an impressive CV in his relatively short tenure in bowls. He has four Taranaki titles, including last year’s open singles, has represented New Zealand Maori side at the 2024 Oceania Challenge, has won back-to-back New Zealand under-21 titles, and then performed with distinction at the world indoor championships in Ireland late last year.

There he won the mixed pairs with Briar Atkinson and narrowly lost the semifinals in the men’s singles. He was also Taranaki’s best-performed player at the recent Dominion in Christchurch, making the quarterfinals of the singles.

Horo becomes the 119th man capped for New Zealand and the eighth to achieve the feat while affiliated to Taranaki. The others have been Edward Leach (cap 4), Bill MacArthur (49), Dave Baldwin (51), John Murtagh (60), Jim Christie (68), Maurice Symes (71) and Brian Baldwin (86).

Work commitments means that Horo is not taking part in this week’s Open fours.