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BOSTON AND DISTRICT

INDOOR BOWLS LEAGUE 2005-2006

 

All the up-to-date news from the Boston and District Indoor Bowls League 2005-2006

 

 

 

 

Latest reports for the 2005-2006 season at Boston Indoor Bowls Centre

 

MARCH 2006 WEEKLY REPORTS

FOR LATEST TABLES: click here

FOR RESULTS ARCHIVE: click here

 

Week ending March 31:

 

Miko Coffee (East Midlands) Division One

 

Newly-crowned champions Cosmos closed their campaign in a fixture against Holland Fen, a side trailing some 17 points behind in third spot - but the newly crowned champions were certainly tested to the full. Royce Reynolds, Colin
Palmer and Abb French appeared in generous mood (perhaps thinking they were contesting the Marriotts Handicap event) and allowed the Fen's master bowler Mick Tomlin to establish a 9-1 lead. But it was short-lived as the Cossies surged back and snatched the points in a tight 14-12 win. Meanwhile, Les Feary, Sue Simpson-Shaw and skipper Keith French were 14-10 ahead before allowing Martin Tomlin's rink to hit back and tie the scores at 14-14. Rumours on the grapevine suggest that the Cosmos' captain is about to treat his team to some extra coaching. It is understood he has booked the side in to help them further their knowledge about the complexities of the bias on a bowl!


The result for the Fenmen saw them drop to fourth place while A40 managed to claim third spot. Matched against the Rustics, Jean Cammack, Di Wilson and Arnold Bennett won 16-10 while Gill Grant Sarah McKay and Mick Asplen were
under the cosh all night but somehow recovered to win 11-10 against Keith Stones’ trio.


Elsewhere, Invaders - who were promoted from Division Two last term - are going to finish in a hugely creditable seventh place. They have been the best of the promoted sides as Rustics and Stickney are occupying the relegation slots. For their last game of the season Invaders were forced into playing three “floaters.” Captain Paul Gurton and partners should have won two points for the team but had to settle for just one instead. Leading 10-2 at nine ends, they saw the Farmers’ set of Daryl Garner, Shirley Allen and Dick Allen fight back to square the match at 14-14. The Farmers claimed the balance of the points with great difficulty thanks to a closely-contested win of 18-16 from skip Joe Moore and his partners.


Eastenders consolidated their second position with a comfortable win over IBC which saw the latter drop to their lowest ever finish in the league. Matt Whyers, Tony Powell and Simon Reeson won 21-10 while Andrew Limb, Ian Clark and Paul Flatters had a success of 19-11.


Swineshead, hoping to finish in ninth place, won two points from Carlton Road that saw them fulfil their ambition. Alex Tomlin, Geoff Parker and Roy Vinter won 16-12 for the Road. Replying for Swineshead, Janet Vinter, Pam Dawson and Bob Thompson recovered well for a 15-13 success after trailing 6-1 after four ends against Alan Coupland's trio.
The bottom two, Foresters and Stickney were matched against each other and it was the Foresters who came out on top. They possibly should have had all six points. Angela Saxton, Graham Tooley and Ron Flower for Stickney were 11-4 down after eight ends and 14-11 adrift with just one end left. NBut here they picked up a count of three to force a tie for a point against John and Beryl Parker and John Whyers. Meanwhile, Janet Whyers, Lorraine Stevens and John Stevens (for Foresters) secured a further four points by winning 12-8.


Kirton Town produced a good win when they defeated Freelanders on both rinks. Ann Kemp, Sheila Tracey and Tony Kemp (5-7 down against Derek Whelbourn’s trio) finished up by winning 14-7.The Town's top rink of Jeff Homewood, Jill Smith and Dorothy Hawkesworth made hard work of winning their points but finished with counts of four and two to triumph 17-12.

 

Boston Electrical Services Division Two

 

The champions, Stumpers, negotiated a decent result against the Gang. Eliot Dews, Gerry Myers and Denis Robins secured four points with a win of 22-8. The Gang's set of Rita Epton, Pete Vines and John Allen defeated the leaders’ most successful rink of Margaret Bycroft, Norma Barnes and Ken Bycroft 21-10. It must have been a pleasing result, as the scorecard was taken home for lots of studying!


Royal Mail in second place could only lift two points when matched against the Butchers. Here Ken Sharman, Ted Bloodworth and Barry Barton fell by a wide margin to the Butchers' Eileen May, Barry Dawson and Geoff Dawson 22-9. The Mail’s set of Margaret and Dave Gardner plus Keith Thorlby were unable to fully compensate for their colleagues' margin of defeat as they won 16-9.


Breakaways, seeing that the Mail had dropped points, did not take full advantage and only pocketed two thesmelves. Matched against the feathers, Carol Dowse, Gloria French and Mark Brown snatched a 13-12 success. For the Feathers -
with a good win - Dick Masters, Keith Posey and Ray Matson overcame Alan Saxton and his trio 17-7.


Amateurs and BBC shared the rink points while the extra two count went to the former's set of Jonathan West, Albert Bachelor and Phil Sharp with a win of 20-10. Mu Watson's set, in reply for BBC, won 13-10.


Parthians scored four good points against the Shunters. The latter's set of Nancy Mason, Abb Houlden and Alan Mason picked up two counts of three late on to win 18-13. The Parthians' set of Diane and Pete Bedford plus Mick Atkin picked
up the lion's share of rewards with an 18-5 win.


Is the green running to the Golfers’ liking now? Last week they excelled. And they have done so again this time around. Up against high-flying Strollers, they secured four points. For Strollers, Alex Seaton, Bob Pearce and Berwyn Thomas
were 13-1 up at five ends but let things slip and at the penultimate end led only 17-16. However, the final end went in their favour and they clinched a 19-16 success. For the Golfers, Jerry Gill, David Smith and Norman Ablard were 17-5 up after 10 ends and went on to win 20-9.


Norprint just had the edge over Vikings with skips Ralph Pick and Chris Avison winning 17-10 and 14-13.


Woodhall secured six points win a win over Patriarchs. Skips Alan Eastgate and Eric Ulyatt posted winning scorecards of 16-11 and a last-gasp 15-14.

 

Benton’s Glazing Division Three

 

The Robins have almost placed their hands on the title trophy now with a maximum points haul against the Traders. They now need just one more point to be absolutely safe. Janet Pipe, Eileen Sellars and John Riches won a difficult game against Traders’ Margaret Harris, Pete Coulson and Sid Coultan by a 14-11 margin. Brenda Hanson, Alan Davey and Brian Stanhope enjoyed a 16-11 triumph.


Highflyers, who have pushed Robins right to the finish, overcame Terriers with wins of 9-7 and 20-9 for skips Alan Watson and Barrie Trigg.

 

Punchbowlers, in third spot, were matched against Central. Richard Bell, Bill Young and Barry Julian gleaned the aggregate points with a 20-10. The Central team's set of Iris Facey, Tracey Bembridge and Dean Chapman overcame the Bowlers' Jean Young, Norman Truepenny and Peter Cannon 13-9 for two points.


Wrangle, in fourth place, were off the pace and fell on both rinks. Fenhouses' Linda Garner, Mary King and Malc Nichols won 18-9. And Wrangle's captain would, no doubt, be disappointed to be on the losing side with two strong players as they slipped 16-11 to Vera Monger, Frank Smith, Vic Chester.


The Shipmates versus Crowns match saw the points going to the higher team. The Crowns' skips Peter Copeland and Peter Emery succeeded 17-6 and 16-11 respectively.


Abrasives, who joined the league for the 2000-2001 season, are having their best ever campaign. Matched against Fairways, six more points went on their tally. Derek Cooper, Maureen Brammer and Charles Russell picked up a last end count of three to win 15-12. And Philip Stubley, Ivan Stimson and Ray Wagstaff (13-2 up at eight ends) succeeded 18-13.


The Burtons had a splendid week of bowling. Matched against Punchbowlers in third spot and then leaders, the Robins, they picked up a total of 11 points. The Bowlers could only field five players and skip Chris Hill tied 13-13 while Mick Green's rink won 18-10. This was followed by a maximum points haul at the expesne of the leaders. Eileen Smithbone, Jean Young and Chris Hill won 14-11 while Oliver and Jim Fenner with Mick Greet enjoyed a 21-6 success. Will the Robins slip up in their final game of the season?

 

Week ending March 24:

 

Miko Coffee (East Midlands) Division One

 

Cosmos are the newly-crowned champions of the Boston Indoor bowls League’s top section. They last won the league in the 2001-02 season. Since then they have finished third and fourth (twice), last year's finish being hugely disappointing with nine losses overall. But this year they have been the most consistent team in the division with only two defeats and are simply the best. Matched against Swineshead for their penultimate game Colin Palmer, Keith French and Les Feary won 25-7 and Royce Reynolds, Chris Hiom and Abb French finished strongly to win 21-8. The Cossies' last game against Holland Fen has a little but at stake as the Fenmen are trying to finish in second spot. But Eastenders have a three-point advantage and they look favourites to secure the second position.


The Enders played the Fenmen this week and it was the Fenmen who claimed the lion's share of the points. Enders' set of Andrew Limb, Ian Clarke and Paul Flatters have kept the flag flying for the team in recent weeks by picking up the points. As expected matched against Martin Tomlin, the game was close and they edged home 13-12. Meanwhile Matt Whyers, Bunny Reeson and Simon Reeson must be wondering when their next win is going to be achieved in the league as ey went down heavily to Andy Dawson, Peter Gorbutt and Mick Tomlin 26-7.

 

Invaders lifted themselves up another position in the league with a good result against Crusaders. Sally Gurton, Sandra Tebbs and Ian Tebbs won 11-6. Michael Emery, Scott Whyers and Paul Gurton with a good 21-14.

 

The Jolly Farmers surprisingly lost to bottom team Stickney who were playing at their best. Skips Ron Flower and Brian Hooker had wins of 14-7 and 15-6.

 

Kirton Town also fell to a team below them in the league. IBC's Reg Doughty snatched the aggregate points by one shot.

 

The Freelanders versus Carlton Road game saw the rink points shared, the aggregate points being won for the Road from the bowls of Pete Clarke, John Benton and Alan Coupland with a win of 17-10. Replying for the Landers, Vic Murtough secured two points with a success of 14-9. Rustics and Foresters (third and second from the bottom) saw the points going to the lower team. Foresters' Janet Whyers, May Hewinson and Keith Hewinson had a win of 18-10 which saw the aggregate points safely in the bag.

 

Boston Electrical Services Division Two

 

The leaders Stumpers needed two points for the title. And this they duly gained to take the championship when matched against second placed Breakaways, they were given a tough game. For the Breakaways Keith Bailey, Jo Dowse and Alan Saxton (playing superbly) put in a winning scorecard of 21-8. The Stumpers relied on their consistent set to pick up the required two points when Margaret Bycroft, Norma Barnes and Ken Bycroft won 16-12.

 

Royal Mail tied with Breakaways in second, gave them a two-point cushion going into the last game of the season when they picked up all six points from Patriarchs. The Mail are definitely the form team of the league, having won 47 points from a possible 48 in their last eight matches. Skips Barry Barton and Keith Sharp were in commanding form with wins of 23-4 and 23-3.

 

A mid-table contest between Butchers and Shunters saw the latter claim four of the six points at stake. For the Butchers, Eileen May, George Eastgate and John Sellars won 18-12. Replying with a wider margin for the Shunters Mathew Smith, Rod West and Norman Wright won 23-10.

 

The Golfers played well above their league position with a comfortable win against Feathers. Jerry Gill, Mick Nundy and Graham Scarboro were 7-0 down and 13-8 down but closed out the closing ends to win 15-13. David Locking, Ron Hulley and Peter Dyer were under no pressure with a win of 22-13.

 

Woodhall, as expected, overcame Vikings with skips George Salmon and Eric Ulyatt lifting the points 11-7 and 32-5.

 

Parthians were pleased to beat Norprint. With the rink points shared Mary Cowham, Malc Rogers and Derek Henderson won the extra points with a success of 16-9. BBC were unfortunate to lose the aggregate points to high riding Strollers y just one shot. Mike Campion, Jack Howes and Mu Watson 11-5 up at 11 ends dropped three consecutive counts of two and were grateful to pick up a last end count of one to win 12-11. Derek Richmond, Rene Howes and Margaret Kirk recovered from 7-1 down to level the game at 12 ends 8-8 and they just lost the game 11-9 against the Strollers Dave France, Mick Hippisley and Keith Swain.


The Gang found beating the Amateurs a difficult task. Rita Epton, Pete Vines and John Allen were 12-3 up at seven ends but only won one of the remaining nine ends played to finish with a 14-13 success against Tony Nixon, Sam Leafe and Eric Taylor. Meanwhile David Tebbs, Ivan Dilley and Denis Tebbs (9-8 down at nine ends) won all the remaining ends for a 17-9.


Benton’s Glazing Division Three

 

Champions-elect, the Robins, matched against the Crowns saw four more points put on the league table. Janet Pape, Eileen Sellars and John Riches (707 at seven ends) stormed away to win 21-7. Neil Lockwood, Terry Hall and Arnold Pape trailed their feet and were always playing catch-up, losing the points 16-10 to the Crowns' George Rennison, Lee Mulholland and Graham Mulholland.

 

Highflyers saw off the challenge of the Burtons and look like they will finish in second spot. Skips Ivor Roberts and Barrie Trigg won 12-9 and 16-10. They followed this maximum points haul with another against Shipmates. Here Peter Hoyles, Bas Atkin and Barrie Trigg had a win of 24-5 and Joy Troy, Eric Lewis and Alan Watson had a success of 15-11, thanks to a last end count of four.

 

Abrasives and Fenhouses, lying in sixth and seventh in the table, saw the rink points shared with the Houses claiming the extra points. For Abrasives Philip Stubley, Ray Wagstaffe and Charles Russell (12-4 down) recovered superbly to claim a win of 16-13. The Houses' set of Norma Davis, Ben Davis and Malc Nichols - leading by a wide margin at the half-way stage - ensured the aggregate points went in their favour.

 

Shipmates, having lost all the points to the Flyers, also finished pointless against the Crowns. For the Crowns, skips Peter Boxall and Fred Epton won 21-7 and 15-13, another good recovery as the captain was 11-3 down and did not put his nose in front until the last end was finished.

 

Wrangle made hard work of beating the Fairways. Brian Simpson, Fluer Simpson and Russ Rousell (trailing 11-9 with three ends left to play) finished by winning 17-11. Margaret Purkiss, Phil Purkiss and Tony Drury (9-8 up playing the last end and three down at the head), saw a cracking last bowl from the skip (he knows when to play them) to a one up advantage and a win of 10-8.

 

Traders had too much ammunition for the Terriers when they secured five of the six points at stake. Chas Newham and Sid Coultan tied 10-10. Gordon Wells, Maurice Harden and Pete Coulson for Traders won 25-16.

 

Punchbowlers, in third spot, finished by sharing the points with the Burtons. For the Bowlers, Les Kelly, Norman Truepenny and Barry Julian won 13-8. Replying for the Burtons, Olive and Jim Fenner with Chris Hill succeeded 11-6.

 

 

Week ending March 17:

 

Miko Coffee (East Midlands) Division One

 

The head-to-head game between Cosmos and nearest rivals Eastenders, as expected, was a close run thing. The Enders, with the pressure of needing to claim all six points, did not get over the line. And their chance of the title has been blown away over the last four games. Here, Matt Whyers, Tony Powell and Simon Reeson looked favourites (on paper) to secure the points against Cossies' Royce Reynolds, Colin Palmer and Keith French. But the latter had no problems. They were 9-2 up at seven ends and finished up by winning 16-7. Andrew Limb, Ian Clark and Paul Flatters, for the Enders, did their stuff. They led 11-1 at eight ends before finishing up 14-8 winners. But that was still only good enough for two points. The Cossies’ captain's concern of not having his leading player - Chris Hiom (away watching West Ham in London) - available proved unfounded.


Crusaders surprised highflyers Freelanders with the points going 5-1 in their favour. They did not keep it going against A40. The match was evenly balanced at half-way. The A40 skips Sheila King and Mick Asplen found overdrive in the box and went away to win 14-9 and 19-8 against Chris Clarke and Denis Clare. Freelanders’ loss to Crusaders did not "gee" them up as, leading 10-0 and 12-1 against Swineshead at seven ends played, they then becmae becalmed and opposing skips Bon Thompson and Brian Vinter recovered the produced scorecards of 14-14 and 17-15 for five points.


Carlton Road are the Jekyll and Hyde side of the division. If they start their campaign better next season, they could pose some problems for the top teams. This week they picked up maximum points from a double fixture.Matched against the Rustics, skips Alan Coupland and Geoff Parker won 17-12 and 26-11 respectively. Next up were Kirton Town. The Road used the same two skips and the scorecards read 18-10 and 16-9. The Road’s captain Geoff Parker had the luxury of Alex Tomlin playing superbly to carry him through the game. The Town's top skip, Dorothy Hawkesworth held the opposition at bay for 11 ends but finally succumbed over the final four ends.


Holland Fen, at present in fourth spot, might just press Eastenders for second spot. But they will have to beat both the Enders and Cossies in the last two games for the ambition to be realised.The Fenmen had no problems in their quest for points this week when they overcame an out-of-form IBC team with set wins of 19-11 and 16-12.


Jolly Farmers just had the edge over Foresters. For the latter, Janet Whyers, Lorraine Steven and John Stevens were 17-3 ahead at 11 ends against Dave Allen’s trio. Three ends later the final score read 17-11. For the Farmers, Shirley Moore, Ken Rawlings and Joe Moore had a slender lead at 10 ends against Keith Hewinson before winning 19-12. Dave Allen’s trio with a splendid finish won the aggregate for the Farmers.


Invaders are not strong numerically, but the players at their disposal do turn in some good results. And they have pushed themselves ahead of the more illustrious IBC in the table to occupy a creditable eighth position. Matched against Stickney (albeit at the bottom), they picked up all the points. Dale Elsam, Sally Gurton and Paul Gurton won 16-9. And Sandra Tebbs, Scott Whyers and Ian Tebbs secured a win of 18-14.

 

Boston Electrical Services Division Two

 

Stumpers have nearly clinched the title. Second from bottom Vikings held them up slightly as Ray Loughran, Ray Blackmore and Geoff Barnes secured two points when they won the last two ends against Bernard Skelton's trio for a 12-11 win. Stumpers' four points came from Gerry Myers, Denis Robins and ken Bycroft with a win of 24-9.


Breakaways in second place had seen Stumpers drop two points - and then promptly a pair themselves. Matched against Woodhall, Carol and Jo Dowse plus Alan Saxton produced a mammoth 22-3 win. This was nearly matched by Woodhall's Richard Whitaker, Alan Eastgate and Tom Richardson who were 21-2 up at one point. But the Breakaways' set made things more respectable and closed the final gap to 22-9.


Royal Mail consolidated their position in third with a good result against fourth-placed the Gang. Skips Keith Sharp and Barry Fenton guided their trios to successes of 21-9 and a much closer 15-13. This win for the Mail puts them level on points with the Breakaways.


Strollers are showing some consistent form as they picked up five points from the Butchers. Dave France, Mick Hippisley and Keith Swain collected a last end count of three to tie 14-14. Ray Hobart, Ken Haigh and Alan Everitt won with a bit to spare, 20-9.


Parthians surprisingly beat Feathers this week. For Feathers, Beryl Brewster, Tony Dawson and Sheila Dawson won a close game 14-11. Gerald Horrey, Malc Rogers and Derek Henderson claimed the aggregate points for the lower team with a win of 23-6.


Norprint were fully focused this week and secured a good win against the Golfers. Barbara Kenny, Malc Cook and Ralph Pick won 20-5. Ray Broughton, Margaret Broughton and Chris Avison trailed 14-11 but then picked up a last end count of four to secure a 15-14 success.


Patriarchs' skips Alan Bristow and Ray Woods helped to secure all six points with wins of 20-6 and 15-9 against BBC whose set of Sue Upsall, Jack Howes and Mu Watson looked like they were going to produce something special when leading 13-4 in their game against Shunters. But the latter's skip Vic Pattern and his trio refused to give in and rallied well before the bell counted them out with just a 14-13 deficit. Shunters' Ian Smith, Rod West and Norman Wright won 14-8 against Rene Howes and partners to claim the aggregate points.

 

Benton’s Glazing Division Three

 

The Robins are rapidly closing in on championship glory. After a season of domination, the high-flyers now find thesmelves 14 points clear of the chasing pack.And with just four matches remaining, it's hard to see any opposing side making up the difference. As such, the Robins look nailed on for title success. In their latest match, they picked up their 25th win of the season when lined up against Central. Skips Brian Stanhope and Arnold Pape led their trios to respective successes of 15-9 and 16-8.


Highflyers, in second place, surprisingly let two points slip to lowly Shipmates. For the latter, Betty Taylor, Brian Hunn and John Balderson came from behind to win 17-13. Highflyers replied on Peter Hoyles, Craig Spencer and skipper Barrie Trigg for the aggregate points with a win of 18-9. Third placed Punchbowlers are pressing hard to finish second with a good result against the Fenhouses. Skips Jeff Skelton and Peter Cannon had successes of 17-11 and 20-11 respectively.


Wrangle picked up six good points from the Terriers. Despite having to field a late replacement, the victors produced comfortable wins of 17-5 and 22-9 for skips Maurice Young and Russ Rousell.The Terriers had earlier suffered a loss against the Crowns. For the latter, Brian Blackbourn, Sandra Copeland and Peter Copeland won 15-6. But the Terriers' set of Phyl Rickett, R Peter King and Fran King - in an "up and down" game secured two points with a win of 16-14.


The Abrasives skipper normally wears a big smile. But when his team wins nine points from a possible 12 and moves up to sixth place in the table, it was even more pleasing for the captain.Up against Abrasives were Fairways their set of Mavis Ablard, Catherine Isaac and Carol Nundy were matched against Charles Russell's trio and snatched a last end count of one to force a 14-14 tie. Richard Jutsam, Maureen Brammer and George Bulman were 9-3 up after nine ends and hung on to win 11-8.The latter were also in good form against the Crowns with a 16-7 success which secured the extra points as the Crown's set of Peter Copeland, Sandra Copeland and Peter Emery enjoyed a 15-9 win.


The Burtons and Traders had little more than pride at stake. But the lion’s share of points went to the Burtons. Barrie Hudson, Ray Robinson and Norman Stanley won 13-9 for the Traders but the Burtons set of Eileen Smithbone, Jean Young and Chris Hall did even better with a 16-6 win.

 

Week ending March 10:

 

Miko Coffee (East Midlands) Division One

 

Eastenders faced a double fixture against A40 and Invaders. But they failed to muster as many returns as they probably expected — a factor in them arguably making life much tougher for themselves in the title race. Needing at least 10 points from a possible 12 they finished by winning only seven.

 

The game against A40 seemed in the bag. Skip Paul Flatters won his two points 11-10 against Arnold Bennett. But Simon Reeson contested a roller-coaster game against Mick Asplen. He led 18-13 with two ends remaining but let it slip and A40 secured a win of 19-18 and a tie for the points. Against Invaders, the Enders were forced into a crucial team change. Paul Flatters again won, but the Invaders set of Michael Emery, Dale Elsam and Paul Gurton were never behind against Matt Whyers, Bunny Reeson and Simon Reeson and secured two useful points with a win of 14-8.

 

The crunch game is next week for the Enders when they are head to head with the leaders Cosmos. And nothing but six points will be good enough if they are going to lift the trophy. Both then have a tough encounter with Holland Fen coming up who are in third spot.

 

The Invaders, earlier in the week, had a good result when they defeated IBC on both rinks. Michael Emery, Dale Elsam and Paul Gurton won 20-8 and Sandra Tebbs, Sally Gurton and Ian Tebbs were successful 12-10.

 

Two more teams in the lower regions produced good results. Rustics’ Don Ebbage, Ron Reed and John Craft won 19-5 and Ray Reeson, Henry Dowse and Keith Stones recovered from a 10-5 deficit to secure a 13-10 result to see Swineshead finish pointless.

 

Crusaders matched against Kirton Town saw four points going to the former. For the Town, Ann Thomas, Sheila Tracey and Tony Kemp trailed 10-7 but then scored on all the remaining ends for a convincing 21-10 scoreline. But the Town’s prolific points winners and top rink of Geoff Homewood, Jill Smith and Dorothy Hawkesworth were not at the races and Gordon Harris, John Swain and Denis Clare (14-1 up at nine ends) finished winning 19-4.

 

The leaders, on paper, had a comfortable-looking fixture against Foresters. But at nine ends played Cosmos were making hard work of it. The Foresters’ skips John Stevens was tying 7-7 with Les Feary and Keith Hewinson was 7-6 down against Abb French. The latter went on to win 15-9. But Les, feeling under the weather, had to change positions to produce his win. Keith French took on the skip’s role to succeed 15-11. Freelanders overcame Stickney with wins of 12-10 and 23-11 for skips Stan Lawrence and Jeff Nicholson.

 

Boston Electrical Services Division Two

 

With three games remaining, Stumpers were given a boost this week when their nearest rivals Breakaways failed to pick up any points. Breakaways, matched against Royal Mail in third spot, were comprehensively beaten. The Mail’s Keith Sharp and Barry Barton won 17-9 and 22-7.

 

Stumpers had a pretty easy game on paper. And so it proved as Parthians in the lower regions fell 18-10 and 12-10 to skips Bernard Skelton and Ken Bycroft.

 

Fourth placed Gang looked like they were losing all six points to Shunters. For the Shunters, Mathew Smith, Rod West and Norman Wright won with plenty to spare 17-5. The Gang’s set of Rita Epton, Pete Vines and John Allen (trailing 11-7) finished with five counts of one to secure a 12-11 success for two points.

 

Patriarchs came up with the good this week — surprisingly against Strollers. Chris Bristow, Alan Woods and Alan Bristow trailed in the early stages but recovered well to win 21-8. Marie Woods, Shamus Rooney and Ray Woods had a fairly comfortable 16-5 success for all six points.

 

Golfers and Woodhall shared the rink points but the aggregate went to the underdogs team (the Golfers) by just one shot. For Woodhall, skip Eric Ulyatt, helped by Doreen Sharp and Alan Eastgate won 16-12. Replying for the Golfers Jerry Gill, David Smith and Norman Ablard nearly let it slip when they dropped a penultimate count of five, but snatched the aggregate on the last end to win 21-16.

 

With just one point separating them in the league table the Feathers widened the margin when they picked up five points from the Butchers. Beryl Brewster, Dick Masters and Keith Posey tied 13-13 with John Sellars. Maureen Hunn, Richard Sharp and Derek Hunn were in overdrive as from 5-0 down, they won 19-6 against the Printers’ Pam Vinter, Ralph Pick and Tony Hall with a success of 17-13. The Printers’ winning rink of Barbara Kenny, Margaret Broughton and Chris Avison had a good second half of the game to secure four points with a 24-7 success.

 

Vikings had no answer to the bowls of Amateurs Brenda Wheway, Sam Leafe and Eric Taylor with a win of 21-8 while Jonathan West, Albert Bachelor and Phil Sharp, after a ropy start, recovered to win 18-10.

 

Benton’s Glazing Division Three

 

Highflyers made their quest for the title a little harder when they let four points drift away to mid-table Traders. Winning well for the Flyers, Joy Troy, Robert Goodale and Alan Watson produced a scorecard of 21-7. For the Traders, Gordon Wells, Ray Robinson and Norman Stanley were in commanding form and won the extra points with a 23-4 success.

 

Meanwhile the leaders, Robins, have topped the table since late September but did not take advantage of the Flyers’ loss as the fell to the Fairways. The Robins top rink of Janet Pape, Eileen Sellars and John Riches — who have been pretty consistent all season were under the cosh from the off as Mavis Ablard, Barbara Slade and Carol Nundy (13-2 ahead at five ends) finished with a winning scoreline of 19-14. The margin was enough for the aggregate points as skip Brian Stanhope for the Robins could only managed a 12-9 success against Heather Scarboro.

 

The Fairways had earlier gone down to Shipmates with John Burton, Brian Lund and Brian Hunn taking the aggregate with a win of 19-7.

 

The Crowns, playing a double fixture, picked up all the points. Matched against Abrasives the scorelines were 23-3 and 23-8 for skips Peter Emery and Peter Copeland. Against an under-strength Fenhouses, the points again went in favour of the Crowns. Earlier, the Houses had tied their game with the Central. For Central skip Peter Boxall won 13-6. Replying for the Houses, Norma Davis, Ben Davis and Malc Nichols succeeded 14-7.

 

Central had earlier fallen to the Terriers. For Central, skip Fred Epton won 17-15. Replying for Terriers, Alf Twiddy, Glenda Middleton and Ken Thompson (9-5 down at eight ends) “bared their teeth” and recovered to win 18-9.

 

Wrangle’s captain knows how to pick her team as they moved up a spot in the table when they overcame the Burtons. Pete Dodes, for the Burtons, won 15-12. Replying for the Wrangle team, Jill Rousell, Tony Drury and Maurice Young secured four points with a win of 19-13.

 

Shipmates could not keep up their good work of earlier in the week and fell on both rinks to highflying Punchbowlers. for the Bowlers, Maggie and Stuart Van Beirendonk with Jeff Skelton won 17-6. Les Kelly, Norman Truepenny and Peter Cannon (12-0 up at eight ends) went on to win 17-11.

 

National Championships, Nottingham

 

The quartet of Sarah McKay, Di Wilson, Dorothy Hawkesworth and Jean Cammack safely negotiated two of the national fours competition rounds before falling in the semi-final. The over-50s triples of Janet Vinter, Jean Thompson and

Hazel Marshall also fell at the same stage.

 

Week ending March 3:

 

National Championships

 

At Nottingham:

 

National titles are far from simple competitions to win. But at Nottingham the Boston Indoor Bowls Club had plenty to celebrate when the first of their competitors at the National Championships — Janet Vinter and Gill Grant — hit a rich vein of form and lifted the National Unbadged Pairs Trophy.

 

At the same venue, Bex Field did really well but fell in the semi-finals of the Champion of Champions singles. Bex Field and Sarah McKay won their first game in the pairs but fell at the quarter-final stage.

 

At Northampton:

 

Sarah McKay and Martin Tomlin came up against a skip who had all the shots in the bag and fell at the first hurdle.

 

 
Miko Coffee (East Midlands) Division One

 

Cosmos, at the head of affairs, saw off the challenge of IBC with wins of 15-10 and 30-8. The leaders then picked up all the points as expected from the bottom team Stickney.


Second placed Holland Fen were up against fifth placed Carlton Road and it was not a surprise to see the game finish three points apiece. Carlton Road - like Cossies, also on a double week - played Jolly Farmers. And the Farmers would be pleased to nick two points from the Road. Darryl Gardner, Dick Allen and David Allen just edged a close game 14-12. Joe Moore for the Farmers stood at 7-7 at nine ends but could only add one more shot and went down to Geoff Parker for the Road 17-8.


Eastenders, who virtually play the same six players each week, moved into second spot with wins of 21-12 and 15-10.
The lone slight shock among results for the top five sides came when A40 in fourth spot, playing against the bottom team Stickney were unable to lift all six points. Angela Saxton, Graham Tooley and Ron Flower for Stickney were 7-1 down but recovered well to record a win of 11-10 against A40's top ladies set.


Invaders in the lower regions were matched against second from bottom Foresters and came off the green with all the points. Michael Emery, Sally Gurton and Paul Gurton won 26-5 and Sandra Tebbs, Scott Whyers and Ian Tebbs, in a much closer game, won 14-9.


Swineshead and Kirton Town shared the rink points and also the aggregate points. Becci Reeson, Bob Thompson and Fred Scrupps came from behind against the Town's top rink to win 12-10. The Town forced a tie from the bowls of Janet Tomlin, Ann Kemp and Peter Tracey with a win of 16-14. They nearly folded as, leading 12-2, skip Brian Vinter for Swineshead recovered well to be level 12-12. But the Town picked up two counts of two to snatch the win and earn a tie overall.

 

The Crusaders captain did not have his full set of players to chose his team from but still produced a maximum points haul. John Swain, making a rare appearance, and Bill Barton (off the floaters’ list) helped skips Alan Hill and Denis Clare to capture the points 19-7 and 17-7 and Rustics were comprehensively beaten.


The fight to finish in the top nine is on. Kirton Town, IBC and Swineshead are ninth and above, but all three have tough closing game and it could be that Crusaders and Jolly Farmers could have a say in the final league positions
.

 

Boston Electrical Services Division Two

 

Top of the league Stumpers and second placed Breakaways both picked up six points and fourth placed Royal Mail picked up five. Golfers, Amateurs and Vikings were the losing side.


Strollers, in fifth place, are striving to finish in the top three. They produced a huge result this week when they overcame third placed Gang picking up five of the six points at stake. Dave France, Mick Hippisley and Keith Swain picked up a last end count of one to tie 13-13 and Alex Seaton, Bob Pearce and Berwyn Thomas (3-10 down at seven ends) had a second half rampage to destroy their opposition with a win of 20-14.


Patriarchs versus Shunters saw the underdogs (Patriarchs) finish on top. It should have been all points for the lower team, but Shunters’ set of Mathew Smith, Rod West and Norman Wright picked up a full house count on the 13th end which saw them edge into the lead to win two points. Winning the four points for the Patriarchs were Colin Baxter, Alan Bristow and Ray Woods with a success of 21-14.


BBC fell to the Feathers with rink wins of 17-9 and 15-10 for Derek Hunn and Sheila Dawson. The Butchers and Norprint shared the rink points with the extra points going the Butchers' way. For Norprint, Barbara Kenny, Mal Cook and Ralph Pick won 16-8. Replying for the Butchers, Eileen May, Barry Dawson and Geoff Dawson finished with a 19-9 success to just claim the extra points.


Woodhall overcame Parthians with wins of 11-6 for Doreen Sharp, Alan Eastgate and Eric Ulyatt and a strong finish from Peter West, George Salmon and Tom Richardson to produce a 15-13 win.

 

Benton’s Glazing Division Three

 

Top-of-the-table Robins saw their set of Neil Lockwood, Terry Hall and Arnold Pape have a tough week. Matched against traders' Gordon Neal, Cyn Baker and Sid Coultan they fell 19-9. And against Highfliers' set of Bas Atkins, Eric Lewis and Ivor Roberts they went down 13-9. The Robins, though, picked up four points from a possible 12 from the bowls of Brenda Hanson, Alan Davey and Brian Stanhope who won 20-8. Janet Pape, Eileen Sellars and John Riches (the Robins’ reliable set) also went down as Highflyers claimed all the points. Peter Hoyles, Craig Spencer and Barrie Trigg won 16-11.


Highflyers completed their week with an expected maximum points haul against the Bottom team Terriers. Skips Alan Watson and Barrie Trigg won 16-9 and 21-8.


Wrangle were successful against the Crowns with Russ Rousell and Tony Wilson-Carter winning 15-5 and 9-7.
This result did not lift them higher in the table as the Burtons overcame Abrasives 13-10 and 15-11.


With just three points separating them in the table Central widened the margin when they picked up all six from Shipmates. Frank Bembridge, Marion Epton and Fred Epton won 15-11 and Iris Facey, Eunice Belford and Peter Boxall with a 19-7 success.