Woodlands Bowling Club celebrates centenary

20 October 2010

MEDIA RELEASE

Woodlands Bowling Club celebrates centenary

The Woodlands Bowling Club will celebrate its centenary this weekend (NB: 23 October) with a special Labour Weekend Tournament, sponsored by SBS Bank.

First opened on 30 November 1910, following a meeting attended by six locals in the community hall, the Woodlands Bowling Club was established on a site donated to the club by J Robertson, who was later made a life member in 1919 and also gifted the adjacent tennis grounds to the club.

Club secretary Ivan Crean said he had been able to glean some classic information from the club’s minute books that had been saved from the inaugural meeting.

“It’s amazing how our little club has stood the test of time through some challenging events. It all began with just 17 members and peaked at 57 before settling with our current 35 members.

“The club had a three-year recess during World War 2 and remarkably reopened on 10 March 1948 with the assistance of a £100 Licensing Trust grant. Its survival has allowed members to compete for a great range of trophies over the century including, the Friendship, Diggers, Murihiku and President cups, along with the Turnbull, Derbridge, Wood Hock and Buchanan trophies.”

Mr Crean said the arrival of a fancy new cash register in the clubrooms had clearly been problematic for some members with a blow-by-blow account of how to get the till drawer open noted in the meeting minutes.

“After working through pressing ‘C’ for clear and listening to the high pitch buzz, step six stated ‘if that doesn’t work, find an axe!”

Mr Crean said the ongoing support of SBS Bank as community partners helped to ensure the club’s future for current and prospective members.

SBS Bank senior investment consultant Iain Walker said his team was delighted to be able to carry-on SBS Bank’s tradition of community support as major sponsor of the Woodlands Bowling Club.

“Community support and looking after our customers is what we’re about. We wouldn’t have it any other way and that’s why I’ll be getting out my whites and taking part in this weekend’s tournament and celebrations.

“100 years for a little club to survive and be a respected community asset for everyone to enjoy is a fantastic milestone and something we understand as a long-standing Southland institution.”

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