Reports Basildon "B"
19th July - Away v Castle Point 'C'
Lost 45 - 54 Shots (2-5 League Points)
Another fine evening and a decent green.
Rink 4 Helen, Roy and Jon (skip) For the first half of the match they were fairly evenly matched, being slightly ahead until Castle Point levelled at 10-10 on the 10th end. From then on their luck changed and conceding 8 shots on the 14th end put them into a position from which they couldn't recover, despite winning more ends than Castle Point. Final score 15-23, winning 10 ends.
Rink 5 Heather, David and Mike (skip) After losing the first end, they caught up and took the lead by the 3rd end, steadily increasing it, no thanks to the skip, who apart from three superb woods on the final end, contributed not a lot! Scoring three shots on each of four ends in the second half gave them a healthy lead by the end. Final score 22-7, winning 12 ends.
Rink 6 Lorraine, Chris and Winston (skip) In a repeat of Rink 4's match, they held their own for the first half of the match to be 7-7 after nine ends. Castle Point won eight of the remaining nine ends to be comfortable winners. Final score 8-24, winning 6 ends.
Not our best result, but we did our best! We are still at the top of Division 4 but have only a two point lead and Brentwood, our nearest rivals, have a game in hand. Our remaining five matches are all at home (oh dear!)
12th July - Away v South Benfleet and Canvey 'D'
Lost 54 - 52 Shots (3-4 League Points)
A fine evening and a decent green. Against a new team with a mix of inexperienced bowlers strengthened by some players of county standard.
Rink 2 Heather, David B and Mike (skip) after losing the first end, scored 3 on the second end and never really looked back. The opposition skip (an Essex County Cricket Club over 70s 1st team player) loved firing, which occasionally worked well but more often went badly, in one case giving us 5 shots! Final score 24-7, winning 11 ends.
Rink 3 Chris W, Steve and Winston (skip) played a see-saw game against an opposition which included a county coach! After winning 3 shots on the first end, they then lost the next four ends to be 10-3 down after five ends. Winning five of the next six ends they were 15-11 up by end 11. The final seven ends, including five shots on end 15 went to the opposition. Final Score 15-26, winning 6 ends.
Rink 4 Helen, Catherine and Jon (skip) started well, winning six of the first eight ends, to be 12-3 up. Losing the next seven ends allowed their opponents back into the game and to take a lead which they never lost. Final score 15-19, winning 8 ends.
Although we lost on two rinks, we won on shots, giving us a valuable bonus point. Well done everyone!
5th July - Home v Wickford 'B'
Lost 18 - 31 Shots (2-5 League points)
Unfortunately another wet evening in a summer of wet evenings. The skies were dark and threatening from the start, heavy with the threat of a downpour, David B on the other hand was just heavy, the all you can eat diet plan still not working. The captains agreed beforehand to assess the situation after 10 ends and the consensus was it would be drier to play in the local swimming pool so the match finished with 18 wet bowlers heading in for an early night. Thank you especially to Dennis, Sue and David Sarbutt for turning out for us in such trying conditions.
Rink 3 Catherine, Dennis and Jon as skip
in a close game throughout our team went into the last end needing 2 shots to win. Up till then only one shot had been scored in each of the previous 9 ends so it was asking a lot of them. Unfortunately Wickford scored the obligatory 1 shot and ran out 4-6 winners.
Rink 4 Sue, Chris W and Winston as Skip
Safe to say that our team found the conditions and opposition hard to handle. It didn’t help that two of their opponents looked as if they could still apply for a students rail pass and found the slow wet greens no problem whatsoever. A couple of heavy scoring ends saw them run out 3-18 winners
Rink 5 Helen, David S and David B skip
Both teams scored on 5 end’s each with 7 ends resulting in just one scoring shot. In the end the 5 shots we gained on just the second end of the game ensured us of an 11-7 victory.
Once again thanks to everyone for coming out in such trying conditions.
28th June - Away v Corringham & Fobbing
Lost 50 - 50 shots (2-4 League Points)
A sunny warm evening with the sounds of gnats enjoying an all you can eat buffet on any bare legs they could find (mostly mine) and the shouts of an away skip who had to be constantly reminded his team members names.
The rink played slightly better than ours, but only slightly.
Rink 3 Chris, Lorraine and Winston as skip.
A very close game with both teams scoring on 9 ends and entering the final end tied on 13 points. Unfortunately the opposition managed to score one shot and won 14-13 and no drinks or biscuits offered to help ease the pain of a well fought fight - how rude!
Rink 4 Helen, Catherine and Jon as skip.
By end 11 our intrepid trio were ahead 23-1. All you could hear was Catherine shouting out how many shots they had scored and the opposition skip shouting out the wrong name to his number 2 and wondering why the bowls still weren’t coming in after trying 33 times on the same line. Then something clicked and Corringham scored 18 points in 6 ends and entered the final end with a chance of a highly unlikely victory. But a rousing address from Helen did the trick with Catherine scoring two shots for a final score of 25-19. PHEW!
Rink 5 Sue, David S and David B as skip
After 12 ends we were 10 shots down and had given up counting the number of times the opposition scored from a lucky wick at just the right time. To be fair they also bowled well, occasionally, and that was enough to see them 13-3 ahead. We rallied after that and out scored them by 9 points to 4 but it was too little too late and they ran out 17-12 victors.
The overall score was tied at 50-50 and so no bonus point for either team.
Well done everyone and thanks to Sue & David Sarbutt for helping us out
14th June - Away v Brentwood
Won 48 - 44 shots (5-2 League Points)
A pleasant, dry evening and another good green.
Rink 2 Helen, Catherine and Jon (skip) played a very evenly matched game, never being more than three shots ahead or behind their opponents until the end. With a one shot lead after end 15, they were unlucky to lose the final three ends. Final score 15-19, winning 8 ends.
Rink 3 Heather, David and Mike (skip) were perhaps lucky to be faced with an opposition who struggled with long jacks. They played a rather ragged game with none of our players on their best form. However, winning the first five ends to take them 8-0 ahead gave them a lead they retained throughout the match, although Brentwood started to win more ends and close the gap later in the game. Final score 19-13, winning 10 ends.
Rink 4 Chris, Lorraine and Winston (skip) started well, winning the first four ends. Continuing to build a steady lead, they conceded only two of the first 12 ends to be 12-4 ahead. Brentwood won five of the final six ends, including four shots on end 13 to end the match only two shots down. Final score 14-12, winning 11 ends.
Well done everyone!
7th June - Away v Runwell 'B'
Won 55 - 45 shots (6-1 League Points)
A pleasant, dry evening and one of the best greens we've had the pleasure to play on!
Rink 2 Heather, David B and Mike (skip) were always playing catchup after losing the first four ends to be 8-0 down! After that they started a winning streak and even though (apart from 2 shots on end 7) they were all single shots, they got back to within three shots by end 14. Some good shots by Mike on end 15 (3 shots) saw them equalise at 11-11. Mike took the jack back to the ditch on end 16, giving us the lead for the first time. Runwell pulled back on end 17 after the two skips traded blows, each knocking the other's woods out of the head. With all to play for on the final end, we won a single shot to draw the match. Final score 13-13, winning 10 ends.
Rink 3 Helen, Catherine and Jon (skip) played a strong game and apart from briefly losing the lead on the 3rd end where they conceded five shots, were always in command. A string of twos, threes, a four and a five saw them build a healthy lead which was never again challenged. Final score 23-15, winning 11 ends.
Rink 4 Chris, Steve and Winston (skip) had a close match throughout. After a strong start they conceded four shots on each of ends 6 and 10 to be 11-11 at end 11. Another four shots conceded on end 12 gave Runwell the advantage which we clawed back to be 18-17 by the penultimate end. A nail-biting final end was won by one shot to give us the win. Final score 19-17, winning 10 ends.
Another excellent result! Well done everyone!
31st May - Away v Pitsea 'B'
Won 76 - 45 shots (7-0 League Points)
A chilly, damp evening with wet mats in use but a nice green even though it didn't turn much.
Rink 1 Catherine, Jon and Roy (skip) made a strong start, winning the first four ends to set up a lead of 9-0. Pitsea won the next four ends to be only one shot adrift after eight ends. The remaining ten ends were shared but a six on end 10 and threes on ends 14 and 17 sealed a good win for us. Final score 23-13, winning 9 ends.
Rink 2 Chris W, Steve and Winston (skip). After losing five shots on the first end, came back with four shots on end 3 and seven shots on end 4 to be 14-6 up after six ends. A lean period saw Pitsea equalise by end 10 and go three shots ahead by end 13. Four shots on end 17 put us back two shots in the lead. With everything hanging on the final end, two fine shots by Winston gave us the win. Final score 26-21, winning 9 ends.
Rink 3 Heather, David B and Mike (skip) lost 2 shots on the first end but recovered to be 4-5 down after six ends. Five shots on end 7 and a string of six winning ends gave us a lead which we never lost, thanks largely to consistently accurate front-end bowling by Heather. Final score 27-11, winning 11 ends.
Well done team!
24th May - Away v Billericay 'C'
Won 58 - 40 shots (7-0 League Points)
Firstly, huge thanks to David Sarbutt and David Barrett who stood in for two incapacitated regular players, despite only having a ten minute break between the end of another match and the start of ours! Such dedication!!
A dry, fairly warm evening and a green which could be unpredictable at times.
Rink 3 Chris W, David S and David B (skip) stormed off to a great start, leading 10-0 at end 6. However, our opponents had a good run in the second half, scoring on five consecutive ends. Final score 18-13, winning 11 ends.
Rink 4 Lorraine, Sandra and Mike (skip) had a shaky start, losing three of the first four ends. A four on end 6 put us ahead, although Billericay 'C' retook the lead on end 9, before we levelling again on end 10. Five shots on end 12 gave us a lead which we held until the end. Final score 21-15, winning 9 ends.
Rink 5 Catherine, Helen and Roy (skip) had a great start to be leading 12-0 by end 8. However, their opponents scored on six of the remaining ends including a 3 (end 15) and a 4 (end 17). Final score 19-12, winning 12 ends.
Another great result! Well done team!
21st May Murrayfield Cup Away Carreras
Lost 43 - 15
Firstly, thanks to everyone for turning out on a miserable wet Tuesday more suited to ducks than playing bowls.
The rinks were wet, but playable, the air was wetter and by the end of the evening we were all very happy that the two captains had decided to only play 10 ends.
Rink 2 Helen, Steve and Jon (skip) won the first two ends but struggled after that as the home took the next eight ends scoring heavily in the last few ends to give a very lopsided final score of 2-18.
Rink 4 Chris, Dennis and Roy (skip) also found the conditions challenging and against a team that scored heavily on a number of end’s including a 4 on the first end. Final score 4-17
Rink 5 Shirley, Doug and David B (skip) were fortunate that their opposition were unable to post any large scores and so were able to keep close to them in a nip and tuck match. Both teams scored on five ends each, mostly due to some excellent shot making from Doug and two shots on the final end saw them through to a 8-9 victory.
A special thank you to Shirley, Dennis and Doug for standing in at short notice to enable us to put a full team out on the night.
17th May - Home v Castlepoint 'C'
Won 41 - 34 shots ( 5-2 League Points)
Another lovely evening in Billericay, unfortunately playing on slow, nonturning rinks, which will hopefully improve as the summer progresses.
Rink 2 Helen, Jon, and Roy (skip) found themselves in a nip and tuck contest up until end nine, when, unfortunately, one of their opposition had to retire due to feeling unwell. In line with league rules, we took two match points for a win and an extra 10 points to our score, making the final score 17 -7.
Rink 3 Chris, Steve and Winston (skip) found themselves being outscored on two thirds of the ends (6 ends to 12), but only by the odd shot here and there, with not a single end scoring more than 2 shots. Unfortunately, it was like death by 1000 cuts with the final score 7-17.
Rink 4 Catherine, Christine and David (skip) were involved in a close game up until 11 ends, with the score being 8 to 7 in our favour, but finally pulled away after that to record a 17-10 win. Victory in the main due to the two ladies, as the skip contributed very little I’m afraid
Another good result in the league, let’s see how we do with a much changed team in the Murrayfield Cup on Tues.
10th May - Away v Wickford 'B'
Won 65 - 39 shots (5-2 League Points)
A warm sunny evening, although after recent wet weather, the green was still quite heavy.
Rink 2 Catherine, Roy, Jon B (Skip) completely outclassed their opponents, winning 11 ends with some heavy scoring. Final result 31-8.
Rink 3 Mike S, Lorraine, Winston (Skip) after scoring a 3 on the first end and a no-score tie on end 2, were fairly level with their opponents for most of the match, being 9-9 after twelve ends. However, a good run of wins in the last four ends, culminating in a 5 on the final end thanks to some great shots by Winston, sealed a good result. Final Result 21-11.
Rink 5 Heather, Christine, David B (Skip) had a more difficult match on a very bumpy and unpredictable rink. Although leading up to end 12, the opposition continually cast maximum length jacks which caused our team some difficulties towards the end of the match. Final result 13-20.
Another good result. Once again, well done team!
3rd May - Home v. Billericay 'C'
Won 67 - 35 shots (7-0 League Points)
A day of continuous rainfall left us with a very wet, heavy green, though thankfully the rain stopped just prior to the match.
Rink 2 Heather, David B, Mike S (Skip) with some accurate bowling by all members, aided by a bit of luck, were able to score steadily throughout the match, winning 14 ends. Final result 32-5.
Rink 3 Sandra, Lorraine, Winston (Skip) were evenly matched for most of the game. After nine ends they were 7-9 down, but recovered well with some good ends in the second half to win by one shot. Final result 19-18.
Rink 4 Helen, Catherine, Jon B (Skip) started with an impressive seven shots on the first end, after which both teams scored fairly evenly with single shots throught the match. However, the opposition achieved a couple of three shot ends towards the end of the match, closing the gap. Final result 16-12.
A great start to our season. Well done team!