Ross continue to be the only club to have won the County Over 55 Pairs Championship since its inception in 2020, with David Millington Jones & Gary Peachey, the third different pairing from the club, claiming the title in dramatic fashion following an extra end.
The final County Championship of the season took place on Sunday 17th March at Ross Bowling Club. Twenty-one entrants from seven clubs took part in the round robin group stages with eight players going through to the knockout stages.
The quarter finals demonstrated a significant dominance from Ross and Fownhope, with teams from these clubs making up six of the eight competitors. The first quarter final saw Fownhope’s Helen Parry and Nic Lloyd taking on St Martin’s Jo Millington and Jim Knowles. In a nip and tuck game, Parry & Lloyd held a 4-2 lead after the sixth end with two maximums on the seventh and eighth ends securing a 12-3 victory without the final end needing to be played. Fownhope hoped to see another team through to the semi finals as Fran & Peter Jones faced recently crowned County Pairs champions Dave Watkins & Ian Roe but the Ross duo proved too strong for their opponents as they ran out 11-2 winners. Ross knew they were guaranteed a second semi finalist from the third quarter final as David Millington Jones & Gary Peachey faced clubmates Andre Edwards & Tony Vitale. Millington Jones & Peachey raced into a 7-0 lead after five ends before a fightback from Edwards & Vitale brought the scores back to 7-7 after eight ends before Millington Jones & Peachey retaliated with a three and a two to win 12-7. The final quarter final featured a very close game between Fownhope’s Carole Rowland & Nic Cooper and Mark Cindery & Jamie Harris, with the Fownhope side just edging out their experienced opponents 8-7.
The semi final draw kept both club’s hopes of a one club final alive. In the first match, Parry & Lloyd took on Watkins & Roe. With the score at 5-3 on the fifth end the Ross duo consolidated their lead, winning the following three ends to book their place in the final with a 10-5 win. The second semi final saw Peachey & Millington Jones looking to join their club mates as they faced Rowland & Cooper. A dominant performance from the Ross team saw them achieve their aims as they limited their opponents to just one shot in seven ends, eventually winning the game 11-5.
A slow burning final saw Watkins & Roe race into an 8-1 lead at the halfway stage before a four for Millington Jones and Peachey put them back in contention. Heading into the final end Watkins and Roe held an 11-8 lead, with their opponents requiring a three to take the game to an extra end. A strong start from Watkins looked to have limited his opponent’s chances before Peachey removed the holding bowl, drawing in with his final wood to take the three required and force the game to an extra end. In a similar fashion to the previous end, Watkins & Roe started the extra end well as Roe consolidated a strong start from Watkins with a draw in front of the jack. However, a perfect final wood draw from Peachey took shot with the follow up from Roe failing to dislodge the wood as their opponents took the match and the title by the barest of margins.
Congratulations to both teams on a fantastic final. The HSMBA sends its thanks to Joe Loveys for running the day alongside all of the entrants who produced such a competitive day of bowls.