Ladywell gain first bowls league victory of the season

Ladywell's 2025 John Colyer Bowls League campaign has been a disappointing one so far, with four losses from four matches. The home fixture against Dulwich Park on Wednesday 13th August gave the Ladywell players a chance to change that.

At the request of the Dulwich Park club, the match was played over two triples, rather than the usual three, as they were finding it difficult to field a full team. This meant that each game was worth three points to the winning club, with an additional four points for the winner on overall scores across the two rinks.

On a humid afternoon at the green in Ladywell Fields, the first rink saw the Ladywell team of Merlin Ramdawar, Terrie Askew and Skip, Phil Welch, get off to a strong start, scoring five shots without reply over the first three ends. Then their Dulwich Park opponents responded with five shots of their own over the following three ends to tie the scores at 5-5. But the Ladywell triple regained the initiative, scoring four shots over the three ends leading up to the break, to go into tea with a 9-5 lead. While the teams took their break, the weather changed and they returned to a wet green. At first, it seemed like the away team were adapting better to the damp conditions, as they scored singles on the next three ends to reduce the deficit to one shot. But the 13th end saw a change in fortunes, with all three players in the Ladywell team playing excellent shots to score five and take a 14-8 lead. Dulwich Park struck back with a single shot on the following end, but Ladywell responded with a score of two to increase their lead. Again, the Dulwich Park team scored a single on the 16th end, but the penultimate end saw Ladywell play brilliantly once again for another score of five and a decisive 21-10 lead. So, despite the Dulwich Park team scoring another single on the last end, Ladywell had gained an impressive 21-11 win.

On the second rink, the Ladywell team of Sally Bryan, Robert Dunn and Skip, Steve Marlow conceded a single shot on the first end, but responded with a gain of two on the second to take a slender lead. But their Dulwich Park opponents were getting into their stride and gained 12 shots over the following five ends to take a commanding 13-2 lead. And with two more shots over the following two ends, Dulwich Park went into the break 15-2 up. This trend continued after the break, with the away team gaining another shot on the 10th end, before Ladywell registered their first score in nine ends, with a single shot of their own. The Dulwich Park team continued to pile on the pressure, with a gain of two shots on the 12th end, and another two on the 13th for a seemingly unassailable 20-3 lead. But the Ladywell team didn't let their heads drop, and a score of four shots on the 14th end gave them a significant boost. They followed this up with another score of four on the 15th end to make the score 20-11, before Dulwich Park regained the jack with a single on the 16th end. This meant the last two ends would be crucial in terms of the overall match score. And the Ladywell team upped their game again, scoring five on the 17th end. But Dulwich Park responded with two shots on the last end, to make the final score 23-16 in their favour.

This meant both clubs gained three points for a win. But the tremendous fightback from 20-3 down by the losing home team meant that the overall scores saw Ladywell pick up a narrow victory by 37-34, to earn their first league win of the season.