Connaught Bowls Club

BRECKLAND A TEAM

CONNAUGHT 'A' v WYMONDHAM

Connaught 'A' played the second leg at Wymondham on Monday 19 December, losing by 39-45 and going down 83-87 on aggregate.

The website reporter was not present at the match, having slipped on ice getting a dustbin, flown  in various directions and damaged various parts of his anatomy. This report is cobbled together from a discussion with Bill Adcock and from Chris Mann's even-handed report on the Wymondham website.

     Owen Secker and Rita Secker won 15-4 against M Lindsell and P Saunders

      Derek Liles and Mike Parsons lost 5-10 against B Saunders and J Barrett

      Bill Adcock and Diana Adcock lost 6-8 against D Phillips and B Barker

      S Parsons and C Musk lost 7-9 against C Mann and M Barker

     Sheila Bragg and Ty Musk lost 6-14 against A Stratton and M George

Owen and Rita Secker gave Connaught a dream start with a tremendous win and a big shots margin; both played exceptionally well.

 Wymondham won the next three matches, although some of their players seemed a bit nervous, but Connaught were content to have kept things reasonably tight.

 Mike and Derek came into the side as a new combination after scratchings, a rather daunting task, but stuck to it. 

 Bill was a bit disappointed to lose a 1-6 lead but as ever he and Diana gave little away.

 Chris did well at lead and  Sylvia rose to the occasion with a competitive personal performance. Containing Chris to 2 shots on Wymondham mats was no mean feat.

 Connaught held a 2 shots lead on the night and 4 shots overall as the last match started. Connaught would have been confident enough because Sheila and Ty had won 15-9 against the same opponents in the home leg and both were seasoned campaigners.

 But it was not to be as the Wymondham pair rose to the occasion with a solid display of tight leading and flair play at skip; Andrew's left-handedness in Bill Adcock's view was a key factor in this match. Sheila and Ty will be disappointed but that 4 and 3 finish at home did give Connaught the 2 shots lead.

 It is a team game and the general home performance could have been better. Congratulations to Wymondham as we look forward to Wednesday's league match at Connaught - the two sides have slugged out  many matches against each other in recent seasons and doubtless this one will bring its share of shocks and surprises

Click here to view Wymondham website report

CONNAUGHT 'A' v WYMONDHAM

Connaught A won 44-42 against Wymondham in the first leg of the five pairs on 12^th December

C. Musk and S. Parsons lost 5-10 to P. Saunders and M. Linsdell

D. Adcock and B. Adcock won 12-5 against R. Steele and B. Saunders

R. Secker and O. Secker lost 5-6 to B. Barker and D. Phillips

L. Fallows and O. Allen lost 7-12 to M. Barker and C. Mann

T. Musk and S. Bragg won 15-9 against M. George and A. Stratton

Both sides showed personnel and playing order changes since meeting in the competition last year and therefore this latest encounter was not quite a 100% rerun but still contained its quota of drama and excitement. Sylvia Parsons and Chris Musk had been an established second pair in previous seasons and the change to lead pair did not work for them. Both played well enough but without that usual combined consistency and they found Mark Lindsell in good form at skip; he managed to eke out extra shots whereas Connaught were contained to 5 x single shots

.

Bill and Diana Adcock, moved up to second pair, had a bit of a struggle at first to be 3-4 down after 5 ends with R Steele leading well for Wymondham. The Connaught pair then moved up a gear and won the remaining 5 ends by 9-1; Diana gained the ascendancy at lead and Bill played some of the best shots of the evening in that spell.

The third match was tense and tough with the players virtually cancelling each other out; 5 x single shots to Connaught and 1 x 2 and 4 x 1 to Wymondham say it all. After a nervous start Rita came through well and Owen played with his usual calmness to match Debbie who had some brilliant drawing woods.

The younger guns were on display in match 4 (although Mel Barker must be excepted from that description!) and Connaught got off to a good start to lead 4-0 after 2 ends. Wymondham then took complete control to win the next 6 ends and to put Connaught 4-11 down. A 3 to Connaught on end 9 did salvage something. Chris Mann was his usual ruthless self but owed much to his older partner who led very well throughout. For Connaught Lee showed some signs of rustiness but came into the match more when he and Ollie changed positions about half way through. Ollie played some good shots as skip and then as lead but especially at skip was usually up against it.

The final match was a more loose affair, with Connaught notching up 1 x 4 and 3 x 3 but conceding 1 x 4 and 1 x 3, but contained more attacking play than the others. With no particular pattern established Connaught were 8-9 down after 8 ends and 5 down on overall shots. In an extraordinary climax Connaught scored 4 and 3 on the final two ends to finish on a high; Andrew contributed a bit to that and was either unlucky or a bit rash with running woods - depends how you see it. For Connaught Ty applied hinself well at lead against a good player and Sheila, who did have a heavy cold, managed some fine pressure shots.

Wymondham will take a bit more from the first leg, winning 3 out of 5 and going down by just 2 shots away from home, but Connaught will not consider themselves out of it

CONNAUGHT 'A' v CONNAUGHT 'B'

Connaught 'A' hosted Connaught 'B' on Saturday 15 October in a first round first leg match, winning by 48-28.

Steve Hall's 'B' team report opposite says it all, really. Connaught 'B' were playing catch-up after a disastrous opening against Bill and Diana, and although winning the last two of the remaining matches did not have the steadiness required against a side which has done well in recent years at this form of the game.

From an 'A' team perspective, Bill and Diana remain a class act as the opening pair and Sylvia and Chris are very strong at 2.

A bonus for Connaught 'A' was the form of Owen and Rita who both bowled as though born on Mat 1.

Peter Hambling and Alan Marshall showed what the 'B' could do by applying pressure to Sheila and Ty.

Ollie and Lee showed some rustiness in just losing to a good pair in Ralf and Steve

BRECKLAND B TEAM

CONNAUGHT B v CONNAUGHT A

Connaught 'B' lost to Connaught A in the first leg of the Five Pairs on Saturday 15th October by 28 - 48

      Ken Lurcock and Len Thurston lost to Bill and Diane Adcock 3 - 16

      Alison Rush and Ron Maddern lost to Owen and Rita Secker 4 - 10

      Joe Li-Rocchi and Marie Head lost to Christine Musk and Sylvia Parsons 5 – 10

      Alan Marshall and Peter Hambling beat Sheila Bragg and Ty Musk 8 – 5

      Ralf Ramm and Steve Hall beat Ollie Allen and Lee Fallows 8 - 7

As ever with these encounters the A Team had everything to lose and the B Team wanted to be competitive and hoped upon hope. The B Team had started the season well and were looking forward to the match. However, as the result shows the A Team dominated most of this encounter.

Bill Adcock returning from a recent illness was helped by the ever consistent Diane as lead. Len in general could not deal with Diane's accuracy allowing Bill to build on the head rather than chase it. Ken also struggled to compete with Bill and the scores were never close after the first end. A 4 and two 3's indicated that Connaught B need to think about shots difference in certain games rather than trying to win the game. A 13 shot difference took the pressure of the A Team and dented the confidence of the B Team.

Rita and Owen Secker consolidated the 13 shot lead by leading 8 – 0 after 4 ends. Alison seemed out of sorts to start with and Ron's early season form has not returned. Rita was in fine form as lead, dominating the first four woods throughout the game. Alison found form to win four of the next six ends but only by one shot on each end.

Joe Li-Rocchi and Marie Head once settled were more competitive but started badly to be 6 – 1 down after 6 ends. Marie challenged the dominance of Christine at lead and Joe gained in confidence. Although Joe and Marie won four of the last 6 ends and won 5 ends overall, they were only by one shot. A 4 and two 2's were Connaught's downfall.

Alan Marshall and Peter Hambling dominated this match winning six of the 10 ends and only dropping three single shots and one 2. Peter, playing his first game for the B Team dominated the lead position against Ty. With Alan consolidating the head they led 6 – 1 after five ends. The game then became more competitive with Sheila and Ty winning three out of the next five ends but Alan and Peter ensured that shots lost were reduced to a minimum.

Ralf Ramm and Steve Hall enjoyed a very competitive game against the 'young guns' Ollie and Lee. With Steve leading well and Ralf drawing well they took a 6-1 lead after 5 ends. Lee then swapped with Ollie and the match changed. Ollie leading superbly put the B Team pair on the back foot and Steve found Ollie 'too hot to handle'. A dropped three on end 7 put the teams level at 6 – 6. Steve then took the decision to chicken out at lead and leave it to his partner Ralf to take on Ollie. This change worked with the next two ends shared. Ollie and Lee held 2 with Steve's last wood to come and much to his own surprise (and pleasure) drew in to take shot and the game. He must apologise for his lack of etiquette in celebrating the win but showed his enthusiasm and competitiveness!

The lessons of the evening. The leads are so important in this (and other) competitions. With only 4 woods every wood counts. Playing for second wood and keeping shots down is very important. Connaught B lost five ends by 3 shots or more and seven ends by 2. Connaught A lost four ends by 2 and every other end by a single shot. Connaught B won 24 ends out of 50 (48%) but lost by 20 shots.

The return is in two weeks time. The B Team skip, Steve Hall, hoped that his pre match ploy of offering Diane Adcock and Sylvia Parsons to his bedroom before the game (so that he could lock them away) and win the game through default, did not work (did nothing for his self esteem either!). Thinking cap on for his next ploy in two weeks time

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CONNAUGHT B v  CONNAUGHT A

Connaught 'B' lost to Connaught A in the second leg of the Five Pairs on Saturday 29th October by  31 - 57

   Joe Li-Rocchi and Heather Winup drew with Owen and Rita Secker 10–0

   Alison Rush and Phil King lost to Bill and Diane Adcock  4-11

   Alan Marshall and Peter Hambling lost to Sylvia Parsons and Christine Musk 5–12

   Joyce Hazell and Len Thurston lost to Sheila Bragg and Ty Musk 6-13

   Ralf Ramm and Steve Hall let  Ollie Allen and Lee Fallows win 6-11

The A  team gave the B team credit in continuing to put out their strongest side despite having a twenty shot advantage from the first leg.

Joe Li-Rocchi and Heather Winup came out of the blocks well winning the first three ends and taking an 8 – 0 lead.  With Rita struggling to find length and line and Owen not at his best it looked positve for Connaught B. Heather had a very strong game giving the home side every opportunity. With Rita and Owen beginning to find the mat the roles were reversed with the Connaught  A pair winning six  of the next seven ends to draw 10 – 10. Owen and Rita were relieved and Joe and Heather were a touch disappointed not to win.

Alison Rush and Phil King found Bill and Diane Adcock too strong. With Diane not at her best and Phil playing well Connaught B were often in a better position after the leads had completed their bowls. However, Alison struggled and Bill was his normal accurate self and took control of the game. Connaught B were never in this game but battled hard throughout.

Alan Marshall and Peter Hambling were up against the in form Sylvia Parsons supported by Christine Musk. With Peter not as consistant as he can be and with Alan 'Rusty' Marshall struggling, Sylvia time and time again came into take shot. Sylvia's request to transfer to the B Team next year will have to be seriously considered but her form will have to improve further.

Joyce Hazell and Len Thurston battled well against Sheila Bragg and Ty Musk. However, Sheila was in fine form and took control of this game.  Len has been consistant all year and took control of the lead's exchanges. Unfortunately Sheila was too strong for Joyce.

Ralf Ramm and Steve Hall enjoyed another competitive game against the 'young guns' Ollie and Lee. After the first leg Ralf and Steve held the bragging rights. However, it became very clear that Ollie and Lee were up for revenge. To ensure that Ollie was not too downhearted for the rest of the season, Ralf and Steve decided to be competitive but would allow Ollie and Lee to win.............. in other words Ollie and Lee's accuracy was too much on this occasion for them. All level, look forward to the next exchanges!

The result showed why the A Team are just that. However the B Team showed spirit and did not roll over and gained enough respect from the A Team with their squad selection. What the B Team did manage to win was the catering and the social stakes. Apart from Sylvia's cake from the first leg which gave Steve's sponge in the second leg a good run for his money the B Team put on a good spread (thanks Heather) and a nice social evening followed. We wish the A Team well in the next round against Wymondham.

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