Warmed up by free cups of barista coffee on arrival and the wafting smell of Royal Oak’s world-famous freshly baked scones, four weeks of WinterClub competition concluded on Sunday, 28 July.

St Heliers’ Rangitoto side emerged victorious in what has proved to be a very successful campaign, for the side. They quickly made themselves the team to watch, earning the top qualifier spot in section four. Pringle Park made a last-minute charge to pip Onehunga & Districts at the post in the final round. Howick 2 was the top qualifier overall with 31 rink points out of a possible 36. Henderson exceeded all expectations, finishing second and earning a spot in the finals.

Te Atatu Red, Balmoral, Pt Chevalier, and Bridge Park rounded out the top eight. Following the live draw, Henderson provided an upset by defeating Bridge Park with just a four-point differential after one of the two games finished in a draw. The match between Pt Chevalier and Balmoral came down to the final bowl, with Balmoral Skip Steve Kirwan drawing to add to his team’s score count and securing the match by just a one-point differential, with each club managing a win.

St Heliers won both matches against Henderson, 27-21 and 29-17. Meanwhile, Eddie Jones (Howick) skipped four, blew out to a massive lead, and took full advantage of the bonus fours format, winning their match 39-15. Despite the efforts of the opposite Balmoral side, they were only able to win their match by a single point, giving Howick the nod 58-35 when the scores were combined.

In the final, St Heliers again won both their matches, making them 6-0 for the day and winning 15 of the 18 individual games. Team selector John Ross said he was thrilled with the side’s performance and was pleased his lack of ability to win coin tosses had no impact on the team’s result.

WinterClub and the unique bonus fours format once again proved to be a very popular competition, with 32 sides braving the winter cold and participating in this social yet competitive event.