One rink too many

In this five rink match, reduced from six rinks because we were only able to field twenty players, we would have won the game if we had only taken four rinks. A seventeen shot deficit after twelve ends was gradually reduced but with four ends to play our host were ten shots to the good, the four ends went against them and we ended two shots up.

The away win was denied, Brian Every, Mollie Jennings, Sheila Clayton and Mark Amos failed to score until the tenth end and were fifteen shots down, they reached five shots by the fifteenth end but were still fifteen adrift and fell further behind losing 7 – 29 at the end.

Marion Amos, Dean Wood, Charles Lewis and Alan Offord fared better, a poor start saw them 3 – 13 down after nine ends but the tea break saw a change in fortunes, their opponents only scored on four of the remaining ends to finish on twenty shots holding on to a two shot win.

Margaret Cahill, Ivor Walker, Frank Amos and Jim Nicholl were also adrift, 4 – 10 after eleven ends but again the tea break had a good effect. Losing on just three of the remaining ends it was 14 – 16 with one end to play and with one bowl from the opposing skip to play we were three snot up but the last bowl came in for second and a 15 – 16 result was a fair one.

Debbie Roe, Eric Legate, Roy Beale and Dave Beckett also benefitted with the break for tea, 4 – 11 down after eleven ends and 8 – 16 down after another four ends, then came a storming finish, eleven shots to one in our favour and a win at 19 – 17.

Doug Whiteland, Jan Umney Beryl Clegg and Michael Everitt were our top rink, in a close game there was never more than six shots between the two sides but our opponents were never in the lead from the start and we ran out 16 - 13 winners