BOWLS: No luck for county ladies (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

BOWLS: No luck for county ladies

10:00am Thursday 17th May 2012 in Wiltshire Sport

WILTSHIRE Ladies fared no better than the county men, losing their Johns Trophy, inter-county championship trial, at Amesbury, writes DAVE EATON.

Despite leading for three quarters of the match they went down by 27 shots to Wiltshire men’s South West Counties League squad.

The men’s side showing no fewer than 14 changes to the original team came storming through at the end to claim a 143-116 victory.

Wiltshire ladies led 42-24 and 70-56 at five and ten ends across the board respectively and were still eight up at 97-89 at 15.

But the wheels then came off the wagon as they collapsed in the final six ends across the board going 106-115 down at 18 ends and finally losing at 21 ends 116-143.

Wiltshire Ladies only took the honours in one game, that was on the rink skipped by new county ladies secretary Babs Salter (Wroughton) who won by seven shots.

Box duo Alex Jacobs and Carol Grenfell saw victory denied them both when dropping shots on the last end.

RESULTS

Rink 1: Viv Baskerville (Chippenham Town), Debbie Shadwell, Kim Smith (both Spencer Moulton) and Babs Salter (Wroughton) beat Josh Fail (Purton), George Tappenden (Ramsbury/A’bourne), Tom Pittuck (Town Gardens) and John Ellis (Amesbury) 25-18. Rink 2: Jean Renicks (North End), Barbara Shepheard (Chip T), June Corbett (Town G) and Ann Richards (Ames) lost to Chris Easton, Fred Tape, Steve Morton (all Avon) and Martin Salter (Wroughton) 16-26. Rink 3: Jo Dunford (Warminster), Ann Hindley (Wilton), Evelyn Tape (Avon) and Marguerite Alexander (Devizes) lost to Ben Hatton, William Collier, Jim Ford and Steve Mitchell (all Ames) 18-23. Rink 4: Jill Webb (Wroughton), Cathy Hill (War), Josie Lloyd (Westlecot) and Fizz Mace (North Wilts) lost to Bob George (NW), Dean Thomas (Box), Dave Warren (H’worth) and Nick Grenfell (Box) 17-34. Rink 5: Alison Fail (Purton), Margaret Annetts (Salisbury), Sue Cooke and Alex Jacobs (both Box) lost to James Richman, Shaun Hicks, Mark Richman and Richard Young (all H’worth) 19-20. Rink 6: Rose Ellis, Janice Bull (both Ames), Linda Kingston (H’worth) and Carol Grenfell (Box) lost to Denis Holborow (Swindon), Dale Hayward, Steve Gedge and David Laws (all Spencer Melksham) 21-22.

Score: Wiltshire Ladies lost to Wilts Men’s SWC Squad 116-143.

THE FIRST Wiltshire qualifiers for the 2012 Ladies National Championships to held at Royal Leamington Spa in late July will be known this weekend.

The quarter-finals and semi-finals of the county ladies national fours will be staged at Bradford-on-Avon on Saturday (10.15am) with the last two left standing automatically qualifying to represent the county at Leamington.

On Monday night four quartets from both the north and south of the county battled their way successfully through the weather and third round of the fours to reach the last eight at Bradford.

They were: South – Debbie Shadwell (Spencer Moulton), S Garlick (Devizes), Alex Jacobs (Box) and Carol Grenfell (Box). North – Alison Fail (Purton), Janet Willis (Stratton Churchway), Rosemary Nichols (Westlecot) and Deanna Gingell (Purton).

DRAW

Quarter-finals: Garlick v Fail; Jacobs v Grenfell; Shadwell v Nichols; Gingell v Willis.

Semi-finals: Garlick/Fail v Jacobs/Grenfell; Shadwell/Nichols v Gingell/Willis.

Both semi-final winners qualify for nationals at Leamington but county fours final will not be held until Saturday, July 21.

MORE SPORTS NEWS & PICTURES IN THURSDAY'S GAZETTE & HERALD AND FRIDAY'S WILTSHIRE TIMES