Shebbear Bowls

BOWLS CLUB REPORT 21st OCTOBER 2007
by Richard Clark

Today, Rita Lacey (Libbear) Brenda and I (and a guest player Richard Ivings) took part in the Exeter Nomads mixed fours tournament at Clyst St Mary. Last year, we won this tournament - in our team in 2006 we had Julia Woolgar who was not available this year so Rita played instead. Richard Ivings was a guest player last year and we kept him in the team as we were the defending champions.

We had no idea in advance whom we would be drawn against. Our first match of the morning session was against Anstey, whom we had beaten only last Tuesday in a league game. Imagine their glum faces when they realised they had to face us again. We capitalised on that feeling and beat them 11 to 2 in eight ends.

The second round was against a team from Wonford, which includes a lady skip who plays for Devon County. Wonford often win this type of tournament and must have started either favourite or second favourite. Through keeping our heads down we managed to see them off too, and those two wins guaranteed us a semi final place.

Then came a period of waiting, while other matches took place to determine who would be the other semi finalists. They were Huntsham (near Bampton), Winkleigh and Totnes Creameries. We were drawn to play Huntsham, who weren't so much as outsiders more an unknown quantity as this was the first time they had entered this tournament. They proved to be very skilful opponents and nice folk to play against. But the inexperience was their achilles heel and we beat them to take a place in the final.

Meanwhile Winkleigh under the captaincy of the redoubtable Bill Brook were doing their best to stem Totnes Creameries' challenge. It wasn't to be, Totnes had the better of the game, and that meant it was going to be Shebbear v Totnes in the final. North Devon versus South Devon. There is sometimes a feeling that the South Devon clubs regard us up here as lightweights and amateurs so it helps to keep that in mind as a backdrop to the final.

All day we had won the toss for first jack, and now in the final we lost it. Was that a bad omen? Not really, Totnes predictably asked us to play first, and we opened the scoring by taking 3 shots on the first end. This tournament comprises only 8 ends to a game, so a 3 shot start is a good one. We piled it on from there, taking 1 on the next end and 1 more on the third, making a 5 shot lead.

Totnes is a very competent and experienced side with two Devon County players in this team, and we weren't expecting to get away with it too easily. They came back at us once or twice with attacking play of a kind we need to practice more of ourselves, but we kept our cool, and with only one end to play we were 8-5 up. That meant they had to win the last end by 3 to draw or 4 to win outright. Our defence would be to make sure every wood of theirs was shadowed closely by one of ours.

Rose Morrison their skip played a desperate shot in the last end to avoid defeat, taking the jack off the mat - which she is allowed to do twice without penalty - and the end was replayed. If anything we played even better after that, and try as she might she could not find an opportunity to make 4 or even 3 shots out of it. Eventually a chuck-it-and-hope shot, delivered in some atmosphere of despair I should imagine, rattled through the head and snicked the jack to one of our waiting woods. Game over, we had won 9-5, and we retain the trophy for another year.

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