In the premier division of the BDO Inter County Championships, Warwickshire picked up a valuable draw in their away game against Hampshire. Saturday’s games saw them trailing 11-7 after the ladies lost 5-1, Wendy Adams (16.34) their sole winner, and the men came back from 5-3 down to snatch a 6-6 draw, Mark Archer their top player with a 27.06 average.
Sunday was a much better day as the ladies, with yet another match award going to Trina Gulliver (24.48), winning 4-2 and the men, who opened up a 4-2 lead were pegged back to 4-4, then were leading 7-4 and won 7-5, to take the overall scoreline to 18-18. Noel Grant was the ‘A’ side man of the match with a superb 30.17 average beating his counterpart Sam Rooney 4-3.
Despite sharing the points, Warwickshire remain in the bottom three above Kent and Cambridgeshire.
On the journey back home from the Hampshire match, Brian Johnson and Mark Birch were involved in a serious accident, Brian was kept in Oxford Hospital with two fractured bones in his back, while Mark was able to return home with cuts, bruises and a painful back. Best wishes go to both Brian and Mark for a full and speedy recovery.
———————————
West Midlands played hosts to bottom of the table Bedfordshire, a game vital to both teams. Both men’s teams won 7-5, with Andy Forrester (27.45) and Doug Thompson (27.42) taking the respective ‘A’ and ‘B’ awards.
The ladies ’B’ finished all square at 3-3, chalking up their first points since winning in the opening day of the season away to Surrey. Shelbie Simmons (16.70) took the match award. The ‘A’ side however, fell to their second consecutive 6-0 whitewash putting the final score at 19-17 to Bedfordshire to leave West Midlands in the bottom three, ten points above Derbyshire and fifteen ahead of Bedfordshire.
———————————
The Camp Hill League staged the early rounds of their Doubles Knockout at Roosters and winning through to the last eight were, George Winters / Terry Blakemore (Sportsman), Jean Forde / Gloria Lightwood (Devils Club), John O’Connor / Colin Attwood (Roosters), Dean Taylor / Richard Cuff snr, Richard Cuff jnr / Bob Glover (Forgers), T.Riley / G.Dort (Scruffy’s Mob), Glynn Thomas / Arturus Bogucianskas (Custard House) and John Hunt / Mark Standley (Waggoners).
The finals will be played at the Custard House on the Wednesday 29th February.
———————————
In division one of the Forest of Arden Winter League Riley’s Red Arrows bounced back from their crushing 8-1 defeat at the hands of local rivals Riley’s Flights last week to beat Highwood 6-3. Despite the win Arrows remain in second place behind Flights who also won 6-3 in their home game with Harvester and hold on to their two points lead at the top of the table.
In the one division two game played Greville Arms beat Crown Arrows 5-4 and now go level on ten points with leaders Greville Arrows, with just one leg of average separating them.
———————————
There is just two points between the top six teams in the Rowley League. Wilson kept up their 100% win record with a convincing 7-2 win at Rowley Olympic giving them a maximum ten points, then comes a block of five teams, Ivy Bush ‘Z’, Boat, Gate Hangs Well, Bell and Timbertree, all on eight points.
Ivy Bush ‘Z’ and Boat handed out 9-0 whitewashes to Hunting Tree and Fairfield, Gate Hangs Well won 6-3 away to Bulls Head, Bell won 5-4 at home to Ex-Serviceman’s and Timbertree , also playing at home had a 7-2 win against Spring Meadow.
———————————
Congratulations go to Dolphin in division one of the Pip Club League, who in their latest fixture beat Birchmoor Club 11-5 to record their first win of the season in five games. Birchmoor and J.W.Belgrave Club are the only two teams without a win.
The second division brought together the top two teams, Pip Club and Travellers. Prior to the game the two teams were locked together on the same number of points and average and the final score of 8-8 did nothing to separate them.
———————————
Division three of the Sheldon and District Winter League provided the surprises in week 14 as the top three teams all lost. Leaders Shirley RBL Flights, playing at home lost 5-4 to seventh placed Custard House Flights. Also second placed George V, who travelled to take on eighth in the table Crown Arrows lost by the same 5-4 margin. Centurion, were third in the table prior to their home tie with Shirley RBL Misfits, who were fifth. The 7-2 result, in favour of the Misfits moved them one place up the table to fourth and saw their hosts replace them in fifth position.
In division one New Firs Flights, after going down 5-4 against E.B.A.H.A. the previous week lost again by the same margin, this time away to their nearest rivals Pavilions, who have replaced them at the top of the table and pushed Firs into second spot.
———————————
More than 100 players competed in the Four Oaks and District League’s Richard Winslow Pairs competition, sponsored by Central Container Services and staged at the Red Lion, Station Road, Erdington. The first of the semi finals was an all Sutton Sports affair with R.Hawker and L.Harris beating M.Wild and D.Vickers 2-0. There was also a straight legs victory for Plough and Arrows duo M.Archer and C.Millward snr over the Fox pairing of M.Willetts and J.Frost.
In the extended game for the final Archer and Millward accounted for Hawker and Harris with a 3-0 result.
———————————
Neil Parsonage had his winning run of ten games halted in the E.B.A.H.A. Double Top League this week as fellow title contender Martin Cooper beat him in three straight legs. Both players recorded four three figure scores, Parsonage 2×135,2×100 and Cooper 3×100 plus a 101finish. Parsonage remains in pole position but is now joined on the same 36 points by Dave Carter, who is the only player in the league to remain unbeaten. Martin Cooper is on 31 points, but has played one game fewer than the top two players, also on 31 points is Paul Webster.
———————————
In the Tamworth Sports Bar League leaders Three Horse Shoes had their fixture with Rugby Club postponed, however, their nearest rivals, Sports Bar 180 were unable to take advantage and reduce the arrears as they lost 5-2 away to Wigginton, they now trail by eight points and have played two more games than Shoes.
In the players league Trevor Barrs (Sports Bar 180) after defeating Grant Harris (Wigginton) is now on 36 points from 13 games, chasing Barrs are Mark Tomlinson (Three Horse Shoes) and Brian Bird (Dolphin), both with 24 points and having in turn two and one games in hand on Barrs.
———————————