The Channel magazine report – 2025 2026 Season BNH Representatives

 John Walker, in his new role as representative team director, has been pro-active already in spearheading Bowls North Harbour’s resolve to achieve greater success at national team levels.
Walker, one of Harbour’s official “legends” and with 31 centre titles plus two national successes to his credit, is well equipped to tap the potential of those aspiring to higher honours. He especially has welcomed the challenge as he believes BNH has several very promising men and in particular women bowlers who can compete successfully against any other centres.
And to do so he has recruited a strong team of well performed bowlers, many of whom are experienced as well as coaches, for the various selecting roles. Walker said he had been encouraged by their enthusiasm for the task ahead.
Takapuna life member, Murray Mathieson, and the centre’s most decorated player with 39 titles, Colin Rogan, have been appointed to the men’s open team, Charlie McDonald, from Milford, to the men’s development and Orewa’s Warren Seeque to the men’s one-to-five representatives.
Bob Telfer, from Takapuna, and Browns Bay’s Rona Turner, another with a gold star, have been appointed to the women’s open team, Grant Keats to the women’s development squad and Northcote stalwart Greg Taylor to the women’s one-to-fives.
Assisting with the women’s teams will be Judy McSweeney, Penny Wakelin and Keiko Kurohara.
The appointees have all enjoyed playing success at club, centre and even at national levels. Mathieson has a Harbour gold star for winning five centre titles, and McDonald has a gold star from the Counties centre and has a Harbour title.
And many have played or coached at high levels in other sports. Mathieson was a New Zealand hockey representative in the 1960s, Keats has been a low handicap golfer and a teaching professional, and Telfer coached many top rugby sides, including Southland in the national provincial champion first division in 1998-99.
Walker is confident the team he has assembled share his vision of successfully building teams and creating an environment that players want to be part of. “To have so much experience now available is a real boost,” he says.
While he says not everything will be turned around overnight but with structures and support in place he’s expecting improved performances in the coming season.
The development teams will now be limited to one-to-ten-year bowlers and this had been essential to having the selection team working together because there were many players capable of playing in all three divisions.
In its 40 years existence as a centre, North Harbour’s successes in the national inter-centre competitions have been sparse. Indeed, its one and only win at open level was as far back as 2006 when the centre was boosted by the likes of Rowan Brassey and Danny O’Connor moving from Auckland.
There was a double that season with the men’s Development team winning the national title.
The one-to-eight-year representatives then had back-to-back wins in 2016-17 in the now
discontinued national development competition. The Harbour women’s open team has
also been close in recent years, generally thwarted by the strong Nelson teams led by two of
the game’s greats, Jo Edwards and Val Smith.
Missing from the new coaching-selection team is Graham Dorreen, the winner of many “coach of the year” accolades. But for the coming season Graham, also a member of the Pauanui club, has opted to help his old friend Tim Preston with a Thames Valley development programme targeting high performance.