Successful bowls-cricket evening at Boston bowls club

Split into 16 teams of three bowlers, each team played three preliminary games, the best four progressing through to the knock-out rounds. Starting each game with the score at 20-20, points could be deducted from an opponent’s score by bowling around an obstacle to hit some wickets and added to your score by bowling to a target, scoring anything from one to ten.

The winners were Keith Swain, Nathan Dunnington, Trish Dunn and Scott Whyers, who were clear winners of their semi-final 50-15 and then took the final 40-22, beating John Clark, Sue Hoyles, Jeff Ginsburgh and Marilyn Read, who had won a dramatic semi-final by one point, 31-30.

Also recently, the Denny team played the first round in the Plate competition against Grantham, winning 95-78 across the four rinks to progress into the next round against Horncastle on 6th December. Sadly, the women’s Yetton team lost to Lincoln, 68-89, in their second-round match, as did the mixed Egham team who met Spalding Lightning, losing 61-77, to end their participation for this season.

Week 12 of the Evening League witnessed plenty of action in both divisions, strengthening the positions of teams at the top.

The key game in the Orchard Health Group First Division saw third-placed A40, currently in good form, meet the leaders Holland Fen, beating them 4-2 and taking the shot aggregate by just a single shot. Sue Hoyles’ rink established a 15-4 lead early-on, eventually winning 20-13. Les Feary held the advantage on the other rink to win 16-10.

Invaders beat bottom side Nomads 6-0, to move within three points of the leaders. Nathan Dunnington, bowling with Ian Tebbs and Harry Allerton, had a storming win, 34-3, while Rod West’s rink won 17-11.

Strollers, fourth, and Golfers, eighth, shared the points 3-3 with two closely contested rinks, Paul Flatters winning 16-12 and David Marshall 19-15.

Dynamics and Breakaways both won 6-0 to remain tied on points in fifth and sixth places, Dynamics beating Parthians 23-13 and 20-13 and Breakaways overcoming IBC, just, 24-23 and 17-15.

Finally, Optimists beat Royal Mail on both rinks 32-12 and 27-11 to move up two places to seventh.

In Cammacks Second Division, the top two, Desperados and Hotspurs, both won 6-0 from positions of total control. For Desperados, Dave Allen won 25-9 and Adam Hodgson 20-10, while Hotspurs won 22-11 for Scot Gray and 19-8.

Kingfishers beat third-placed Vectors 4-2, moving up to sixth as a result, with Ian Pryke’s rink having a good 20-9 win. Colin Heppenstall took the other rink 16-10.

Burtons and Woodpeckers, fourth and fifth, both had 6-0 wins against Amateurs and Vikings respectively. Chris Hill’s rink won 15-9 and Trevor Dunnington’s 20-14 for Burtons, while Richard Cullen won 16-10 and Phil Exton 16-12 for Woodpeckers.