The Wanaka Gun Club team - (from left) Jerry Cray, Ray
Anderson, Rex Smart, Phil Studholme, Denis Nyhon and
Cameron Meikle (15) - which won Saturday's Bodkin Shield
match in Wanaka for the second consecutive year poses with
the spoils. Photo by Andy Woods.
A perfect score from the Wanaka Gun Club at the annual
Bodkin Shield match on Saturday ensured the team a second
consecutive victory.
After winning the shield for the first time in 35 years last
year, the Wanaka club backed up that memorable performance by
shooting a perfect score of 90 out of 90 targets to win the
trophy again at the weekend.
The Bodkin Shield match attracts club teams from as far
afield as Darfield in the north to Invercargill in the south.
This year, 22 teams of six tried their luck in near-perfect
conditions.
Several teams finished the match with a team total of 89,
having only missed one target, but the Wanaka team, of Jerry
Cray, 15-year-old Cameron Meikle, Phil Studholme, Rex Smart,
Denis Nyhon and Ray Anderson, posted the only perfect team
score.
"I think that's [a perfect score] happened only a handful of
times in the history of the cup as well ... so that's a bit
of a turn-up for the books," Smart said.
He believed a strong youth development focus had contributed
to the club's renewed success.
Several of the club's young shooters had competed as a team
at last year's national schools clay target shooting
competition, finishing fourth overall, and their ongoing
successes were the "focus of much pride" within the club.
"[The young shooters have] actually been quite a inspiration
to the older shooters. We're getting back from them the
enthusiasm and we can see how well they're doing and
everybody's lifting their game as well," Smart said.
"First-rate" gear had also helped improve the club's
fortunes, after it bought new clay-target throwers this year,
and the club had "one of the best visual backgrounds" to
throw targets against at its club grounds at Horse Shoe Bend,
between Albert Town and Lake Hawea.
"It's pretty much just a plane of clear sky."
When Wanaka held the shield about 35 years ago, Studholme
competed as a 15-year-old shooter, the same age as present
team-mate Meikle is now.
"[Cameron] hopefully won't have to wait another 35 years
until we win it again," Smart said.
A trophy match held in conjunction with the Bodkin Shield was
won by James Andrews with Alan Thompson second, Shane Kingan
third, Geoff Matheson fourth and Peter Armstrong fifth.
The Cotty Burdon Cup for the highest individual score went to
Kingan, who shot 60/60 in the handicapped by distance events.
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