Dramatic conclusion sees Elm claim title

Team Elm have won the Crabtree Trophy at Woodhall Spa Short Mat Bowls Club - after a cliffhanger of a finish.

Don Allison, Leo Boshier and Gloria Crawshaw claimed the trophy after a tense finale to the campaign.

The league was started last season in memory of Brenda Crabtree, a founder member of the club, and was played by six teams of three for 22 ends over 10 weekly sessions.

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The last wood of the 10th and final game was the deciding factor for the top position in the league.

Team Larch needed to win their game against Team Cedar to finish on top, and the score on the penultimate end saw Larch trail 16-19.

But in the final round Larch had sent all their woods and held three shots.

At this point they were looking at a draw and set to win the trophy, but Cedar’s Judith Branthwaite had one wood to deliver, stealing the end to the gasps of spectators, seeing Cedar win 20-16.

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This saw the Larch team of Cynthia Selkirk, David Shelton and Lyn Wyatt, who had held top position for the first six weeks of the league, drop to third.

This meant Team Elm were crowned worthy winners of the league with Team Beech (Val Fox, Susan Millership and Peter Selkirk) in second, just a point behind.

Club president Dennis Crabtree presented the runners-up with £10 vouchers, the winners with the Crabtree Cup, and an individual trophy, each plus a voucher.

The standard of bowling improved weekly as players bowled with grit and determination throughout.