INDOOR BOWLS: Sleaford ladies' hopes are dashed at Stamford

However, it wasn’t to be with Stamford winning on all five rinks 120-78 and taking all 16 points.

Playing on rink one, Gill Dwyer with her set of Gloria Davies, Pat Paul and Sheila Pratt started with great determination to lead 8-3 after the sixth end. Stamford began to ease their way back into the game and after 12 ends the scores were almost level at 11-10 in Sleaford’s favour.

Sleaford would not give way and opened the gap further to 15-11 after 15 ends. Then the wheels appeared to fall off with Stamford scoring 17 shots over the last six ends to Sleaford’s four, leaving the home team victors by 28-19.

Rink two saw Gillian Annison joined by Carole Richardson, Steph Collin and Ann Garnham who must have wondered what had hit them when the score stood at 17-1 in Stamford’s favour after 10 ends. Nothing was going for this set on the day and after 13 ends the gap had increased to 22-3. But credit to the ladies who carried on plugging away and managed to narrow the gap to a respectable final score of 26-15.

Rink three had Jill Arnold’s set of Carol Wallis, Janet Fergus and Helen Quirke falling behind 9-1 after five ends, but applied themselves with some steady bowling to catch up with the Stamford set at 9-9 after 12 ends. There was nothing to choose between the two sets until the 19th end when Stamford finished stronger, scoring five shots to Sleaford’s one, leaving them 20-14 winners.

Mary Thomas with Jenny Elphick , Margaret McKie and Andrea Davies played on rink four and held the opposing set to 6-6 after seven ends. Sleaford then opened a gap to 10-7 at the 11th end but then dropped a massive six shots on the 12th end that turned the game around in Stamford’s favour.

Stamford grew in confidence and continued scoring. They then proceeded to pick up 14 shots to Sleaford’s five to finish the match 27-15 victors.

The closest match of the day was played out on rink five. Rhoda Wing with Patricia Rands, Terri Cornwell and Sheila Methven matched their opponents early on, took a 13-4 lead after the ninth end, but then found the opposition slowly starting to take control of the ends and went behind 13-14 after the 14th.

Neither set would give way until the start of the 18th end when Stamford finished the stronger to win 19-15.