WILTSHIRE’S men’s side open their bid for glory in the inter-county championship for the Liberty Trophy with a trip to Cotswold Indoor Bowls Club (Stroud) to face Gloucestershire in the first round on Saturday.

Last year, the team produced their best set of results in this indoor competition since the mid-1990s when they reached the semi-finals before losing to Kent at the national finals in Nottingham.

Wiltshire will be seeking to go at least one step better this time around and reach the final for the first time since 1996.

In preparation, Moonrakers held a full-scale trial match against Surrey, winning the six-rink challenge contest 131-114.

Four players from the North Wilts Club in Chippenham – Steve Snook, Darren Anteney, Andy Moore and Dave Williams – were all members of that successful side and won their respective games They all retain their places for the Gloucestershire match.

The first three are in the same rink that will be skipped by Andy Moore and are joined by Westlecot’s Chris Cheesley at number three.

While Williams is named at number two alongside Gary Fountain (Five Rivers) and Westlecot duo Mel Biggs and Neil Smith.

Apart from the four North Wilts players, the rest of the Wiltshire side consists of seven representatives from Five Rivers, Salisbury and 13 from Swindon club Westlecot.

  • NORTH Wilts have registered a mixed set of results at the start of the season in national indoor team competitions.

The men’s side lost 87-38 to Malvern Hills in their first match in the Denny Cup, while the mixed side crashed out of the Top Club competition as they lost all five disciplines – ladies and men’s two wood singles, mixed pairs, mixed triples and mixed fours – to b whitewashed 16 points to nil by neighbours Clarrie Dunbar (Frome).

The only success came from the ladies’ side, who thumped Fairford 102-40 in the opening round of the Yetton Trophy.

However, the men at North Wilts made an excellent start to this season’s Wessex League.

They pulled off a 86-69 victory over Somerset side Clevedon, winning on three of the four rinks to collect 14 of the 16 points on offer.

Their next match in the Central Region is against Clarrie Dunbar on November 4.

Following the demise of Melksham’s Christie Miller Sports Centre, the Central Region only now comprises of eight clubs.

The top two clubs will qualify for the last 16 and end-of-season play-offs for the overall Wessex title.