Former international Mike Kernaghan has the chance to win two more New Zealand titles at Auckland this week.
Kernaghan, the Commonwealth Games singles bronze medallist at Manchester in 2002, has won three national titles. He won back-to-back singles titles in 2001 and 2002 and the pairs with Dave Archer in 2007.
He is singles player in the Kaikorai team that will contest the national interclub final today and tomorrow and is skip of the pair in the Dunedin team for the intercentre final on Saturday and Sunday.
The men's intercentre competition was first held in 1970 and Dunedin has won a record 12 wins. The first was in 1973 and the last in 2005.
Dunedin qualified for for the national final at the Howick Bowling Club when it won the zone 6 regional final in Alexandra. It was a nailbiter, with Dunedin beating Southland on the countback. Both teams scored 22 points but Dunedin advanced because it had a better differential, 68 against 59 by Southland.
A key member of the Dunedin team is singles player Shaun Scott, who is on the shortlist to represent the Black Jacks at this year's World Bowls at Adelaide.
Two other members of the Kaikorai club team have also been selected in the Dunedin team. Craig McCaw will lead for Kernaghan in the pairs and Peter Wilson is second in the four.
The other players in the team are all in the fours. Alistair Keith is skip, former international Ken Walker is third and Regan Larkin is the lead.
The other finalists are Northland, Manawatu, Taranaki and Canterbury.
The men's interclub competition was first held in 1991 and only two Dunedin clubs have won the event - Fairfield in 1998 and 2002 and North East Valley last year.
Kaikorai should be a strong contender. A key player is Kerry Becks who will skip the pair.
The three other players in the fours team are skip Graham Allen, second Steve Wilson and lead Andy Callender.
Kaikorai will compete against Onehunga (Auckland), Frankton Railway (Waikato), Masterton (Wairarapa), Wanganui (Wanganui) and Havelock (Marlborough).
The interclub competition for men and women is an event that begins at centre level throughout New Zealand.
The women's competition was first held in 1997 and the only Otago team to win the event was Alexandra in 2010.
Taieri will represent region 6 in the women's division 1 competition.
The team is: singles, Beth Brown; pairs, Judy Robertson, Jan Barclay; fours, Jenny Dyhrberg, Jean Young, Loris Miller, Janet Swallow.
Their opponents will be Kensington (Northland), Rotorua (Bay of Plenty), Northern (Manawatu), Paraparaumu Beach (Kapiti Coast) and Beckenham (Canterbury).
Arrowtown will represent region six in the national finals for the first time in division two of the women's competition.
The team is: singles, Helen Bye; pairs, Evelyn Dennison, Bev Menlove; fours, Joyce Edgerton, Judy Willis, Diane Brash and Jenni Heazlewood.
Their opponents will be Kensington (Northland), Te Awamutu (Waikato), Bay View (Hawkes Bay), Paraparaumu Beach (Kapiti Coast) and Leeston-Dunsandel (Canterbury).
NZ bowls
Team events
• Venue: Auckland.
• Interclub: March 22-23.
• Otago teams: Kaikorai (men), Taieri (women), Arrowtown (women's division 2).
• Intercentre: March 24-25.
• Otago team: Dunedin.
