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Salient. Victoria University of Wellington Student's Newspaper. Volume 31, Number 7. April 23 1968

Easter Tournament

page 10

Easter Tournament

Vic eight's decisive win

The Victoria eight took a spectacular win at Wanganui to win the feature rowing event.

The Easter regatta was held in Wanganui on Saturday. The feature event, the tutor Varsity Eights race was the first to start.

Auckland jumped out from the gun, with Canterbury second and Victoria third at the half-mile mark. The other university crews were not a challenge.

As the race settled. Auckland began to crack as Canterbury and Victoria applied the pressure. The skilful steering of Noel Lynch had by this stage put Victoria in the better water.

With a hardened dozen Victoria look a length off the Auckland boat. Canterbury were slower to realise Auckland's weakness, and Victoria was a length clear by the mile and a quarter mark.

From then to the finish Victoria was forced to work to maintain its lead, by a determined Canterbury crew, but emerged the victor for the third year in succession. Massey came a well-waited third.

In the College fours, the Victoria crew relied upon their minimal training to come last. The novice four, which was to distinguish itself later in the weekend, did little better.

The single sculls was again won by John Gibbons. Taking an early lead he was content to watch the remainder of the field for most of the race. Although Norm Sherpe of Otago made a determined challenge over the final Mages Gibbons proved superior.

Otago had its revenge in the double sculls, beating Victoria by 2½( lengths. The NZU crew again contained a strong Victoria contingent: Gibbons. Trott, Gamble and Gilbert.

The regalia result was: Victoria 1st, Canterbury 2nd. Otago 3rd.

Athletics

For Victoria, the NZU athletics championships were a mixture of misfortune and disappointment.

Although Vic looked strong. Otago won the points shield. This was in spile of two tiring days travelling through storm and shipwreck.

Track conditions for Saturdays' competition were unfavourable. The loose surface of the heavy grass track was heavily cut up. and this together with a strong wind on Monday left no chance of really fast times.

As expected Vic's Penny Haworth was a star of the meeting, taking a fine sprint double: 100 yards in 10.9s and 220 yards in 24.6s. both fine performances on the heavy track.

In the women's relay. Penny ran last starting her leg with a 10 yards deficit on Otago, who were in the lead. She drew abreast of the Olago runner in the straight, only to draw up to a sudden halt with an injured hamstring muscle. Penny managed to limp across the line to take second place.

Photo by P. Craven.

Penny Howarth, Vic's leading athlete, winning the 220 yards at Easter Tournament in 24.6 seconds.

After a good placing in the National Championships final. Vic's Alan Dougal was favourite for the 220 yards Hurdles title. However he too sustained hamstring injuries in the heats of his event, and only managed a second place in this race, and in his other event, the 440 yards Hurdles.

Vic athletes chose to represent NZU in Australia were:

Penny Haworth-Women's 100 yards, 220 yards and 440 yards.

Alan Dougall - 220 yards Hurdles.

Richard Tweedie-880 yards, 4 × 440 yards relay.

Yachting

Victoria emerged overall winners of the New Zealand University's Easter Tournament yachting regatta held on the Wanganui River.

The regatta was marred by unfavourable weather and a drift-wood covered course, and featured several spectacular capsizes during the three days' racing.

The regatta reached a virtual standstill on Saturday and Sunday when driftwood carried away marker buoys.

In the first race on Saturday Victoria was disqualified in the moths which was a triumph for 'Canterbury's C. Poulton, who had been headed nearly all the way by G. Abbott of Massey. Auckland's P. Robertson was third.

R. Harvey and M. Leahy, of Massey, made the most of reduced competition to win from Otago's D. Thompson and A. Atkinson.

After vain attempts to race on Sunday, it was not until Monday morning that the second race could be held, and even then three cherubs and two moths were claimed by capsizes in a 40 m.p.h. wind.

C. Boulton of Canterbury was again victorious in the moths, relishing in the gusty wind. Victoria's B. Johnston was second, closely followed by M. Robertson of Auckland.

Victoria (M. Pether, H. Anderson) won the cherubs and Auckland and Massey were next across the finish.

The third and fourth races of the series were also run on Monday, in exhausting and wet conditions.

The third race of the Easter tournament regatta began a bare half hour after the second had finished. First casualty was Otago who ran on to an island in the river at full speed and split the bottom of their yacht.

Capsizes were the order of the day. as were terrific speeds in both classes. Auckland had the edge in the cherubs with crewman P. A. McNaughton using his 6 ft. 2 in. and 14 stones to advantage.

However. Victoria with a little more finesse, swept in for first.

Victoria continued to pile up the points with their third win of the day in the moths' third race.

B. Johnston overcame his earlier defeats by C. Boulton (Canterbury) and thoroughly deserved his victory in this race.

A terrific tussle developed between Auckland and Victoria in the cherubs, but then Victoria capsized and Auckland took the lead fo ran exciting finish. Only Auckland and Victoria finished the race.

In the moths' fourth race Glenn Abbott of Massey had his mast collapse on the last leg, and only two crews finished — Canterbury comfortably ahead of Victoria.

Over all in the cherubs Auckland and Victoria were superior in the rough conditions. with Victoria winning on points.

In the moths. Canterbury's C. Boulton stole the limelight for a meritorious win in the series, followed by Victoria's B. Johnston and G. Abbott of Massey.

Overall winners of the tournament were Victoria with 4371 points. Auckland second with 3116 points and Massey third with 2940 points.

Nzu Team

A New Zealand Universities Athletic Team will tour Australia in May.

The tour, from May 6 to May 26. will culminate in a Test against an Australian Universities Team in Brisbane on May 25.

The following is the N.Z.U. representative athletics team announced in Palmerston North on Monday 15 April I968:

Women

P. Cochran (O). G. Hannan (C). P. Howarth (V). G. Longman (O). L. Tong (A). B. Walker (O).

Men

D. Cairns (M). R. Clarke (A). P. Crawford (M), K. Darling (O), A. Dougall (V), A. Jordan (A). G. Keddell (O). J. Le Grice (A). E. Robertson (M). W. Spiers (O). D. Sutherland (O), D. Tweedie (V). A. Welsh (O) Team Captain.

Swimming

Prue Chapman, of Victoria, won the 220 yards medley at Easter Tournament in a time 1.2 seconds under Tui Shipston's New Zealand record.

Her time of 2.35.6 was only 1.1 seconds over the Olympic qualifying time.

The time was also a fantastic 22.8 sees, under the old NZU record.

In the 110 freestyle Prue was three seconds under the old NZU record, though 1.5 secs, outside the national record, and in the 110 backstroke she was 5 seconds under the NZU record.

Other performances which raised the rather low standard of swimming included Barnett Bond of Auckland who won the men's 110 yds backstroke in an NZU record time of 68 seconds.

Alan Kindred of Canterbury set an NZU record of 4.46.3 in the men's 440 freestyle. He is NZ champion at 440 and 1650 yds.

One of Vic's most prominent swimmers was Alan Trotter. who was the outstanding goalkeeper in the waterpolo, and a NZU rep.

Other successes for Vic were gained by Robbie Walker who was 1st in the I 10 yds men's freestyle. 3rd in the 220 yds men's medley, and a NZU water-polo rep.

Drusilla Megget was 1st in the women's diving and Prue Brock was 1st in 110 yds women's breast-stroke and 2nd in 110 yds women's butterfly.