Top Club whitewash for Stamford

Post date: Oct 21, 2018 1:11:47 PM

WITH DOUBLE defeat in both the Denny and Yetton national inter-club championships still fresh in the mind, Stamford bowlers could have been forgiven moments of self doubt less than 24 hours later when their team of men and women stepped out against Kempston Park (Bedford) in the Top Club event.

The competition demands five disciplines - men's and women's singles, then mixed pairs, triples and rinks - with overall shots the arbiter if points are level.

However, Stamford - competing for the first time in many years - had no need to worry. They won on every rink with an overall score of 105-67, to earn an away trip in the next round to either Bedford Borough or Kettering Lodge.

As the 16-0 points score suggests, everyone played their part, with Adam Warrington and Christine Ford giving Stamford an early boost with respective 21-12 singles victories.

Said Warrington, who had admitted he had trepidation about his role in the team: "I bowled my backhand on rink 5 all the time. I haven't played as well as that for a very long time."

With the fours skipped by Tristan Morton and the pairs combination of Elizabeth Wallace and Martyn Dolby, always in command, it was left to the triple of John Holroyd, Shirley Suffling and Simon Law to ensure a whitewash, despite being 8-16 behind with seven ends to play.

They did it in some style picking up 14 shots without reply in six ends before veteran Kempston skip Graham White conceded.

Result (Stamford names first):

Top Club: Stamford 105 (16 pts) Kempston Park 67 (0). Men's singles - A Warrington (2pts) beat M Curtiss 21-12; women's singles - C Ford (2) beat H Page 21-12; Mixed pairs - E Wallace & M Dolby (4) beat L Croxon & J Kayne 19-9; mixed triples - J Holroyd, S Suffling & S Law (4) beat E Church, T Peck & G White 22-16; mixed fours - H Holroyd, K Bailey, J Earl & T Morton (4) beat A Cunningham, A Rosier, A Cunningham and D Rosier 21-18.

CAPTAIN BAILEY RINGS THE CHANGES

Stamford men's A team captain Paul Bailey has rung the changes in a bid to get the team back on track following the defeat of Louth in the opening Lincs League Division One fixture.

For the visit to Sleaford on November 4 he introduces James Harford, Simon Law, Paul Dalliday and Neil Wright to the line-up against a side who were promoted from the second division last season.

Stamford A: D Hudson, Mal Smith, A Barnes, P Edwards, ; R Allam, M Linnell, J Harford, T Collins; A Romaine, J Travis-Jenner, A Warrington, P Bailey; W Aspinall, C Ballard, B Warters, Roger Martin; P Dalliday, N Wright, J Holroyd, J Earl.