Garnering support ...
Ross Garner is back and will play a key role in Otago's bid to win the Welch Trophy for the first time since 2003.
Garner, an administration manager, was a key member of the Otago team that won the trophy in 1999, 2001 and 2003.
''We were the dominant province at that time and then lost two Welch Trophy teams in four years with players shifting to another province or giving up the game,'' he said.
''To come back now and be a challenging team at the top is fantastic for me.''
Garner last played in the national competition in 2005 and has made himself available again this year.
He finished runner-up in the national singles to defending champion Bruce Meyer (Manawatu) in 2003 and in the fours two years ago.
Indoor bowls was a family sport for Garner when he joined the Mornington club 42 years ago. He has won 15 Otago titles.
Both his parents - Moria and Doug - played and his mother won an Otago title. His brother, Peter, won two provincial titles. Son Kris (26) and daughter Nicole (28) both played.
... for Welch bid
Otago had the youngest team playing in the zone 6 Paterson Trophy qualifying competition when it scored 121.5 points and was followed by Southland 120, South Otago 95.5, South Canterbury 82.5, Central Otago 65 and North Otago 54.5.
The other winning teams that Otago will meet in the finals in Hutt Valley on September 4-6 are Counties (zone 1), Waikato (zone 2), North Taranaki (zone 3), Upper Hutt Valley (zone 4) and Canterbury (zone 5).
The format of the Welch Trophy has changed several times since it was first held in 1952. The present format was started in 1989.
Otago has won the trophy under the old formats in 1970 and 1990 and three times under the new format.
The likely lads
The Otago team is: team 1, Daniel French (skip), Brandon Williams, Nick Sinclair, Craig Cowan; team 2: David Webb (skip), Daniel Sinclair, John Williams, Ross Garner. Reserve: Jonty Horwell. Manager: Barry Cadogan.
Cadogan (67), a logistics manager, has been playing indoor bowls for 30 years and has won 19 Otago titles. He was a member of the winning Otago Welch Trophy teams in 1999, 2001 and 2003.
''The average age of our team is only 34 but we have two experienced guys at lead, Craig Cowan and Ross Garner, to help the young fellows,'' he said.
''My first title at Palmerston North in 1999 was special because we came from behind to win it in the last round. We dominated at Wanganui in 2003 and had won it with a round of pairs and singles to go.''
Otago also finished runner-up twice in those halcyon years from 1999 to 2003.
Young guns
Logan Park High School pupil Jonty Horwell, a travelling reserve for the Welch Trophy, will defend his New Zealand junior singles title and will contest the national secondary schools singles, and pairs with Sean Hall, this month.
The promising Nick Sinclair (20), a tourism student, has been a member of the Otago Paterson Trophy team for the past three years.
He has won four Otago titles and will play in the Welch Trophy for the first time.
He will also contest the national Young Guns tournament in Hamilton with other promising Otago bowlers Daniel Sinclair, Kristin Gould, Brandon Williams and James Horton.
Horton (23), a wildlife project manager, joined the Mornington club four years ago and has won two Otago titles.
North triumphs again
The North Island extended its unbeaten run to 12 years when the South Island was beaten 25-23 in the annual interisland test in Auckland last Saturday.
Otago bowlers to win interisland gold medals were South Otago's Robert Wilson, the skip of the South Island men's triples, and Dunedin's Ann Cottrell, the skip of the women's four.
The South Island team beat Taranaki 34-14, King Country 33-15, Waikato 26-22, Tauranga 29-19, Thames Valley 29-19, Counties-Roskill 29-19 and Northland 28-20, and lost to North Taranaki 30-18 and Auckland-North Harbour 28-20.
Bosman rules
Hugh Bosman (Hillhead) beat Marylin Holmes (Momona) 18-7 to win the Otago champion of champions singles and will contest the national Henselite singles finals in Christchurch on September 12. Daniel French (Green Island) won the national title last year.
Craig Cowan and Tracey van Tuel (Henley) beat Kristin Gould and Tim Wood (Brockville) 9-5 to win the Otago pairs.
Central update
Theresa Gallagher (Alexandra) beat Gail Sargeant (Manuherikia) 14-7 to win the Central Otago champion of champion's women's singles.
Mat Begg (Manuherikia) beat Ted McKewen (Alexandra) 15-5 in the men's singles final to win his 29th Central Otago title.
Stalker Walker
Veteran Ken Walker (69) is like good wine - he just gets better with age. He beat fellow Dunedin bowler Andrew McCallum 12-3, 9-4 in the final of the PBA world indoor qualifying tournament at the Westpac Stadium.
''I'm absolutely rapt,'' Walker said.
''I had tough opposition and did not have an easy ride.''
In winning his six games, Walker beat five opponents who had won a regional qualifying event in the past: Aidan Lusby (13-6, 7-7), Ross Munro (8-3, 11-10), Ross Thompson (11-2, 8-3), Shane Sincock (10-5, 14-8) and Andrew Kelly (9-8, 8-3).
''I had a nice flow in my game. It gave me a lot of confidence and I don't think I have ever played better,'' Walker said.
In his six games of singles, Walker scored 120 points and conceded 62. His points consisted of 31 singles, 17 twos, 10 threes and six fours.
PBA wrap
The tournament emphasised that one is never too old to play bowls at the top level. Only two players - Kelly (27) and Alexandra's Marty Kreft (40) - who reached the top eight were under the age of 50. Five players were over 60.
The biggest upset of the tournament came in the first round when Dunedin's Duane White was beaten by Dunedin novice Paul Nicholls 2-11, 9-2, 2-0. White has been a member of the New Zealand PBA transtasman team for the past three years.
The best women's performance came from Dunedin's Dale Bourke, who beat promising youngster Elliott Mason 11-8, 2-11, 2-0.
Black Jack Andrew Kelly (Canterbury) teamed with Andrew McLean (Dunedin) to beat the Dunedin combination of Joko Susilo and White 13-1, 9-4 in the final of the ranking pairs.
In this month's tournament, Aidan Lusby (Dunedin) beat White 10-6, 3-8, 2-1 to qualify for the national finals of the international singles.
Lusby, who lost the final of the ranking singles to Ross Thomson (Dunedin) 7-6, 7-9, 2-0, won the international singles with his last bowl in the tiebreaker.
Top of the pops
Walker still leads the national ranking list with 376 points and is followed by Murray Glassey (Hastings) 367, Andy McLean (Dunedin) 350, Craig Merrilees (Southland) 334, Rob Ashton (Auckland) 326, Laurie Guy (Wellington) 322, Aidan Lusby (Dunedin) 312, Duane White (Dunedin) 309, Paul Sorensen (Hawkes Bay) 275, Roger Stevens (Southland) 271.
The national finals of the PBA will be held in Pukekohe on September 7-9. The finalists from the Dunedin events are Andrew Kelly (Scottish singles), Ken Walker (world indoor singles), Aidan Lusby (international singles) and Sheldon Bagrie-Howley (Shanghai singles).
