Bowls: Tongan international joins Dunedin women's team

Tongan international Malia Ellison (Andersons Bay) is one of three new caps named in the Bowls Dunedin women's team for next weekend's regional intercentre event in Dunedin.

Ellison (54) was a member of the Tongan team that played in the South Pacific Games at Apia for the first time in 2007.

The other newcomers in the seven-strong team for the event are Mary Stevenson (Outram) and Jenny Dhyberg (Taieri).

Dhyberg, who has won a centre title in the triples and was runner-up in the pairs this season, is lead in the four and Stevenson is at second.

Ellison, a former schoolteacher who emigrated to New Zealand and came to Dunedin in 1982, has been playing bowls for the last nine years.

She reached the semifinals of the world championship qualifying singles in Dunedin two years ago.

She will play at lead in the pairs, with Carolyn Crawford as skip, and has won Bowls Dunedin titles in the pairs and fours this season.

Crawford, the most experienced in the team, has won 14 Bowls Dunedin titles and has the fourth most titles in the history of Dunedin women's bowls.

Sue Hodges (Outram), a member of the New Zealand squad, is the singles player and the experienced Taieri pair of Janet Swallow and Beth Brown will play skip and third in the four.

The Dunedin women's team won the regional zone tournament against South Canterbury, North Otago, Central Otago, South Otago and Southland last year, to advance to the New Zealand final.

The intercentre tournament for women and men has been restored to teams of seven after an experiment of six players in the last two years.

There is only one change in the Dunedin men's team of six from last year, with Ross Brown (St Clair) replacing Blair Barringer (Fairfield) in the pairs.

Brown, who has taken a long rest from bowls, last played in this event nearly 20 years ago.

He has won 10 Bowls Dunedin titles and finished runner-up to Ken Walker (Fairfield) in the New Zealand championship singles at Wellington in 1987.

He is lead in the pairs for Walker who is a former World Bowls representative and has won 30 Bowls Dunedin titles.

With the teams changing from six to seven, Mark Watt (North East Valley), who is a member of the elite Bowls New Zealand squad, comes in as lead in the four.

The other members are Dennis Leeden (Wakari), Nigel Wright (Leith) and skip Paul Girdler (Wakari).

The singles player is Shaun Scott (North East Valley), who won his club's invitation singles at Labour Weekend.

The women's intercentre regional finals will be played at Taieri next weekend and the men's at Balclutha.

Regional interclub finals are being played this weekend.

The men's finals will be played at Alexandra and Clyde.

The Dunedin representatives are Wakari (first division) and North East Valley (second division).

The women's finals will be at Timaru, where Dunedin will be represented by Andersons Bay (first division) and North East Valley (second division).

Dunedin teams
For regional bowls
Women: Singles, Sue Hodges (Outram); pairs, Carolyn Crawford (St Clair), Malia Ellison (Andersons Bay); fours, Janet Swallow (Taieri), Beth Brown (Taieri), Mary Stevenson (Outram), Jenny Dhyberg (Taieri).

Men: Singles, Shaun Scott (North East Valley); pairs, Ken Walker (Fairfield), Ross Brown (St Clair); fours, Paul Girdler (Wakari), Nigel Wright (Leith), Dennis Leeden (Wakari), Mark Watt (North East Valley).