The Summerset National Fours champions have been crowned at the Naenae Bowling Club, with New Zealand squad member Mandy Boyd guiding her side of mother and daughter combination Kirsten Edward and Leigh Griffin, along with sister Angela Boyd, to a dominant win against against the well performed side of Margaret O’Connor, Christine Buchanan, Linley O’Callaghan and Anne Dorreen – Boyd’s side racing out to a strong start and holding on to the finish.
The win marked Mandy’s fifth fours title, successfully defending the title from last year’s event – albeit with one change in personnel as Edwards replaced Canterbury’s Sheryl McLean. Between the quartet, it’s the sixth national title the Boyd sisters have won together, while Griffin has starred in three and Edwards in two.
The semi-finals saw Boyd’s side edged a thrilling encounter opposite reigning national women’s singles champion Debbie White, whose line-up included two development bowlers, Angela Stephen and Jocelyn Holten, along with White’s local clubmate Carol Cox – Boyd’s side finishing strong, 19-15.
On the first day of post-section the Boyd combination signalled their intentions early on in the piece, posting a resounding win over the well-performed Reen Stratford 25-13, before edging past Lisa White’s side of Ashleigh Jeffcoat, Kennie Critchlow and Kimberley Hemingway in a thrilling quarter-final showing, 22-21.
The Summerset National Fours were staged across seven clubs (with a further four wet weather alternatives) in the Wellington region, with the finals at the Naenae Bowling Club in Lower Hutt.
Leigh’s title was Victoria’s 6th in 6 years starting with Helen King’s singles title at Taieri, Leigh defending that singles for the club at Browns Bay, Leigh winning the fours three of the last four years, and Neville Rodda taking out the men’s pairs at Paritutu.