Wairarapa bowls tournaments can go ahead under Bowls NZ guidelines. PHOTO/FILE
COVID-19
CHRIS COGDALE
[email protected]
Wairarapa club sports can go ahead mostly as scheduled, without too much adjustments needed to fit the covid-19 level two restrictions.
However, there are some cancellations and postponements of events with gatherings limited to 100 people.
BOWLS
The Wairarapa men’s and women’s open pairs will go ahead as scheduled.
Executive officer Warren Fisher confirmed that the layout of the greens and the allocation of games fit Bowls New Zealand’s guidelines, and the tournaments could proceed.
Twenty combinations have entered the men’s competition, with 10 teams over two qualifying sections, to be played at Featherston and Eketahuna on Saturday.
Pairs need to win two of their three games on Saturday to qualify for post-section play at Eketahuna on Sunday.
Defending champions Lester Dee and Matthew Day from Masterton, the Featherston combinations of Peter Ireland and Les O’Donovan, and Scott Mackenzie and Hayden Frew, and Gary Caffell and Ronnie Saunders from Masterton will be among the favoured combinations.
Twelve pairs will contest the women’s championship at the Carrington club in Carterton.
Reigning champions Leanne Petersen [Masterton] and Shirley Poutu [Featherston] face a stiff challenge in their first round of qualifying when they go against the strong Masterton combination of Makaia Campbell and Leah Mackenzie.
The Masterton pair of Judith Wyeth and Tina Hogg, and Tanya Wheeler and Janalle Frew from Featherston are others expected to make a strong showing.
CRICKET
Saturday’s Bidwill Cup match between Mitsubishi Greytown and Jackson Street Bar Lansdowne to be played at Greytown Memorial Park will start 30 minutes later at 12.30pm.
Wairarapa Cricket have also requested that teams don’t arrive at the ground until 11.55am to avoid congestion at the ground as the junior game is scheduled to finish by 11.45am.
General manager Simon Roseingrave advised each individual pitch will be treated as its own venue bubble, and the draws can go ahead almost as scheduled.
“However, we would ask that if two games are played at a similar ground, such as junior cricket at Queen Elizabeth Park Oval, that each pitch [North and South] is kept separate and there is no inter-mingling of players, coaches, or spectators,” he said.
Roseingrave said all the ground QR codes are available on the Wairarapa Cricket website.
SOFTBALL
The Giants club’s intermediate school Friday night league has been cancelled for this week.
Club president Chris Feary confirmed that the club could not guarantee that there would be less than 100 players and supporters at South Park for the popular competition, and it was best to put it on hold for a week.
As expected, the national evergreens tournament in Palmerston North has been canned, leaving Wairarapa players without any more softball this season.
