THE LADIES NATIONAL championship events started in earnest last week with the first two rounds in the county fours event being played.

However, it saw Chippenham Town who won the Wiltshire ladies county fours title last season for the first time in the club’s history and since the county women’s championships were first introduced in 1947 crash-out.

The holders Barbara Land’s Chippenham Town rink were knocked-out in round two of the North Area of the draw by a quartet from Wanborough skipped by Deanne Davis.

Round three took place on Monday evening with the North Wilts rink skipped by Fizz Mace knocking-out 2012 winners Stratton Churchway led by Janet Willis to book a place in the quarter and semi-finals of the fours championship this coming Saturday at Amesbury (10.15am).

Also falling by the wayside in round three were Highworth skipped by Linda Kingston who reached the national fours semi-final at Royal Leamington Spa in 2014.

In the South Area of the county fours championship draw two Devizes teams were draw against each other in round three with Sheila Garlick’s rink defeating Marguerite Alexander’s foursome.

Meanwhile two fours from the successful Box club skipped by Michele Williams and Alex Jacobs were victorious in round three but have been drawn against each other in the last eight of the competition.

The quarter-finals and semi-finals of the fours will be played down to the last two at Amesbury this Saturday (10.15am start) with the two quartets left standing becoming the first players to book a place and represent Wiltshire at the 2016 national championships at Leamington in early August.

A week earlier they will contest the county ladies fours final on July 30 at Supermarine on ladies national finals day.

FOURS DRAW

Quarter-finals at Amesbury (Saturday, May 21): Purton (Alison Fail) v Wanborough (Deanne Davis); Deb Shadwell, Jane Taylor, Jean Collier & Michele Williams (Box) v Carol Grenfell, Karen Funnell, Sue Cooke & Alex Jacobs (Box); Supermarine (Bev Millin) v Janice Rowe (Amesbury); Marie Greenwood, Denise Howard, Bev Lilley, Sheila Garlick (Devizes) v Ann Greenland, Sue Haslop, Anne Roberts-Phare (sub Janet Hardie) & Fizz Mace (North Wilts).

The semi-finals will be played in the afternoon (2.15pm approx).

WILTSHIRE Ladies, led by county president Pat Jones (Supermarine), made a winning start in their opening county women’s friendly of the 2016 season away in Wales against West Glamorgan.

In a very close game they were three shots down with only two rinks left out on the green at Brynhyfrid .

But Lesley Trattles rink scored a two on the last end to cut the gap to only one shot. Then Wroughton’s Babs Salter with her last wood moved the jack to grab two shots and give Wiltshire a last gasp one shot success as they ran-out 109-108 victors although they took the honours on four of the six rinks.

Across the board Wiltshire were 25-22 down at five ends and 52-46 adrift at ten but had restored parity after 15 ends at 79-79.

Home side West Glamorgan edged ahead 92-91 at 18 but Wiltshire grabbed a last gasp one shot success on the very last end of the match.

County ladies next scheduled friendly match is later this week at Supermarine against Warwickshire.

RESULTS v West Glamorgan (skips only) Rink 1: Babs Salter beat W Evans 29-12. Rink 2: Fizz Mace beat M Cowley 22-16. Rink 3: June Corbett lost to G Thomas 10-26. Rink 4: Pat Jones lost to K Hawes 10-26. Rink 5: Lesley Trattles beat H Bevan 18-16. Rink 6: Janice Rowe beat M Davies 20-12.

Score: Wiltshire beat West Glamorgan 109-108.