Shield triumphs for big guns Melrose and Marshall A
The duel for the Gainsborough Bowls League title between Melrose and Marshall A is far from resolved -- but both sides still have cause to celebrate.
For while Melrose lifted the league’s Knockout Shield, Marshall A won the Millennium Shield, both after finals against Beckingham.
For much of the Knockout final, played on a spongy surface at Owston Ferry, Beckingham led by up to ten shots and seemed in control. But the rink of Derek Scott, Eric Dobbie and Alan Marshall led the Melrose revival by winning five ends in a row, and on the last end, Marshall produced his best two woods to snatch victory by 71 shots to 69.
The Millennium final was more one-way traffic as Marshall A judged the speed of the Melrose green much better than most of the Beckingham players and led by as many as 30 shots at one stage. The final 20-shot margin was disappointing for Beckingham, considering they had beaten the same opponents 6-4 (by one shot) in a league match days earlier. It was only the second defeat of the league season for Marshall A, who duly dropped three points behind Melrose in the race for the title, with three matches to play. The leaders beat North Wheatley 7-3 (62 shots to 47).
In other league games, third-placed Scotter won 8-2 (82 shots to 62) at Rose A, while bottom team Marshall Sports pulled off a rare win against Owston Ferry.