Lawn Bowls

We are pleased to announce our new Board for Bowls Taranaki 2023-24

President: Grant Hassall
Vice President: Kristin Stampa
Chairman: Robert Wolfe
Board Members: Dean File, Val McEldowney, Kevin Gray, Chris Commane
Executive Officer: Ian Lewis

We thank, Eric Foreman and David Brunton for their time on the board, and wish them well with their clubs.

Bowls Taranaki are pleased to announce that Don Christensen and John Garrud are the Women’s and Men’s Selectors for the upcoming season.

A busy representative season sees our Revital Fertilisers Taranaki Team take to the greens on 6 occasions. We start the season with a new tournament hosted by Bowls Wellington featuring some of the best Under 26 players from around the country. Then we face off against Waikato at the start of September in a fixture designed to get the best out of our upcoming open development players. Our regular fixture against Whanganui is scheduled for Saturday 11th November. Before the Junior teams take to the green in the Junior Hexagonal (Venue to be confirmed) and the Seniors compete in the Octagonal to be held at Whanganui. Finally our best 7 players will compete to lift the trophy at the National Intercentre in Wellington. With players representing a large number of clubs last year, we wish all the best for all players involved.

Revital Fertilisers Taranaki Fixtures:
National Under 26 Tournament at Wellington – 14th-16th July 2023
Open Development Taranaki v Waikato – 2nd & 3rd September 2023
Taranaki v Whanganui – Saturday 11th November 2023
Junior Hexagonal (Venue -tbc) – 10th & 11th February 2024
Senior Octagonal at Whanganui – 9th, 10th & 11th February 2024
Bowls New Zealand National Intercentre at Wellington – 14th, 15th, 16th & 17th March 2024

Congratulations to the following winners of the Bowls Taranaki Awards for 2022-23

Club of the Year:                          Okato

Administrator of the Year:           Cliff Rona

Umpire of the Year:                     Betty Brunton

Greenkeeper of the Year:            Gary Lilley

Coach of the Year:                       Joan Richards

Youth Player of the Year:             Briar Atkinson

Women’s Player of the Year:       Briar Atkinson

Men’s Player of the Year:            Aidan Zittersteijn

Thanks to all of our Volunteers, Umpires, Greenkeepers, Coaches, Players and Clubs for making 2022-23 a great season.

Dates for next year’s Taranaki Open have been announced.

The Men’s Open starts Monday 15th January-21st January
The Women’s Open starts Tuesday 23rd January – 28th January.

We are happy to announce that Revital Fertilisers Bowls Taranaki will feature in a National Under 26’s competition to be held in Wellington. Playing indoors at Naenae will be a challenge, as they face some of the best junior bowlers from provinces around the country, including New Zealand representative Seamus Curtain. Our junior bowlers have performed well over the season and we are hopeful of a strong showing from our team who will be managed for the first time by Simon Rowe. We look forward to following their results and wish everyone involved the best of luck. Thanks to Shifty’s Sports Bar and Café and Revital Fertilisers for their sponsorship of Bowls Taranaki.

Paritutu had a weekend to remember when it claimed seven of the 12 Taranaki titles that were concluded at the club on Saturday and Sunday.

Across those seven victories in the TCM-sponsored champion-of-champions series, five players collected their gold star for five Taranaki wins – Bridget Fletcher, Gale Fache, Daryl Read, Kaylin Huwyler and Briar Atkinson.

Atkinson, aged 19, became the youngest ever gold star holder when she skipped her triple of Gaye Holub and Jackie Moeahu to a commanding 24-5 win over Inglewood’s Lorraine Crofskey, Loris Ropitini and Cindy Nicoll in the last of the events that were completed.

Atkinson had earlier won her fourth title on Saturday when she overturned a 12-4 deficit to beat Trish Howard (West End) 21-16 in the senior women’s singles final.

Fletcher and Fache combined with Holub and Kileigh Barber to post a big 26-9 win over Tower’s Alethea Rowlands, Faye Hopkins, Alison Sayer and Jane Augustine in the women’s fours final.

For good measure Fache added a sixth title on Sunday, when in a dramatic finish, partner Brendon Walton ran the jack into the ditch with the last bowl of the Cross Country Rentals mixed pairs final. That enabled the duo to pip Val and Maurice Symes (Fitzroy) 16-15.

Huwyler had the added satisfaction of winning the men’s triples with his father, Phil, and Kevan Sellers. They beat Sam Geers, Ian Spurdle and Matt Watson (Hawera Park) 21-9. Huwyler, a fourth-year player, became the quickest ever to win the star having only played in the province in the past two seasons and then on just a part-time basis. He has claimed two Wanganui titles during that same period.

Read’s fifth victory came in the men’s pairs with Aidan Zittersteijn, after they overcame Tower’s Mark Hawken and Kevin Hills 24-14.

Veteran Maurice Symes had earlier taken his fourth senior men’s singles title, a remarkable feat, given his last one was 40 years ago. Symes beat Gerry O’Sullivan (Inglewood) 21-17 in the final. O’Sullivan had led 17-14, before Symes took a four, a two and a single.

A tense and exciting finish came in the men’s fours, when Nathan Goodin, Rodger Hassall, Adam Collins and Darren Goodin (Paritutu) prevailed 17-14 over Bruce Lilley, Steve Temperton, Bruce Hall and John Garrud (West End). Paritutu led by six with two to play, before two bombs from Garrud saw West End take a four and then hold two on the last end. However, Goodin, with the last bowl, put the jack into the ditch for one.

Howard was also left frustrated in the women’s pairs, with Lorraine Heal, after she suffered her second finals loss, going down 31-17 to Fitzroy’s Faye Gecse and Maree Gadsby.

Rowlands, after the fours loss, got some consolation in beating Irene Taunt (Manaia) 21-11 in the women’s junior singles decider.

The men’s junior singles title went Camron Horo (Rahotu) who beat Craig Murray (Oakura) 21-13.

In the Dean File Colliers Hugh Moss junior pairs, Merv Dew and Michael Mathews (New Plymouth) came from 8-3 down to beat Shelley and Mike Baldwin (Paritutu) 15-10.

Gold star winners

Gale Fache: champion-champions pairs (1999), champion-of-champions fours (2014), champion-of-champions pairs (2015), open pairs (2017), champion-of-champions fours (2023).

Bridget Fletcher: champion-champions pairs (2017), champion-of-champions triples (2020), open triples (2022), open triples (2023), champion-of-champions fours (2023).

Daryl Read: champion-of-champions junior singles (2012), champion-of-champions triples (2020), mixed pairs (2021), open fours (2023), champion-of-champions pairs (2023).

Kaylin Huwyler: centre fours (2022), champion-of-champions triples (2022), centre fours (2023), open fours (2023), champion-of-champions triples (2023).

Briar Atkinson: mixed pairs (2021), open triples (2022), open singles (2023), champion-of-champions singles (2023), champion-of-champions triples (2023).

TCM Champion of Champions Finals Weekend will be played at Paritutu this weekend. Good luck to everyone involved. See the programme below. Thanks to TCM, Cross Country Rentals, and Dean File Colliers Real Estate for their sponsorship of the Mixed Pairs and Hugh Moss tournaments.

Click below for times and events.

Programme for Finals Weekend

For anyone interested in becoming a Coach or updating their Coaches Certificate. We are hosting with Bowls New Zealand and our Coaches Association a Weekend for you!

Coaching Workshop at the Paritutu Indoor Stadium: 23^rd & 24th July
Foundation $50,   (Saturday 23 July)

Development $100 and  (Saturday and Sunday 23 July and 24 July)

Update Coaches $30 (Sunday 9am to 1pm)

If anyone is interested in becoming a coach or renewing their coaches certificate, this will be your opportunity! It promises to be a good weekend, and an opportunity to improve your skills as a bowler and as a coach. You can register your interest with the Centre via email or on 027 757 8800. Payments will have to be made to Bowls New Zealand prior to the event.

Please make payment to Bowls New Zealand: 

Payment to attend the Bowls NZ Development Coaching Course can be deposited into:

Account number:   BNZ 02-0240-0260530-00

In the two fields available enter following information:

Code (12 letters/numbers) available: CoachnameName

Reference (12 letters/numbers): CoachCsTaran

For more information check out our Coaches Weekend Poster

Our Coaches Association AGM will be held on 20^th May – Stratford-Avon – 10.30am

6.55am Due to the current wet weather and expected rain this morning. We have transferred the Men’s and Women’s Triples from West End to the Indoor Stadium at Paritutu.

Could the following teams report and be ready to play at:

8.30am
Men: Fitzroy, Waitara, Inglewood, Lepperton, Waimea, West End, Vogeltown, Stratford-Avon, Manaia and Paritutu
Women: West End and Waitara (one round only for the Women)

11am:
Men: Tower, Opunake, Oakura, New Plymouth, Hawera Park, Rahotu, Okato,

2pm:
Women: Paritutu, Stratford-Avon, Manaia, Hawera Park, Opunake, Fitzroy, Tower, Lepperton.

Conditions of Play:

Games of Triples have been changed and will be 18 ends. No Time Limit.

Due to slow play in previous events, restricted movement and deliberate slow play laws A4 and A5 will come into effect.
We do not want to have to put you on the stop watch because you are delaying play!
This is included in the Conditions of Play because the stadium is not available to us after 5.30pm
We thank you for your anticipated cooperation.

Okato, New Plymouth and Inglewood Women are straight through to finals weekend.