Ladywell's two finalists both missed out on the winner's prizes at the Beckenham, Bromley & District Bowling Association's Finals day on Sunday 19th September.
On a grey afternoon there were five finals held at the HSBC Bowling Club in Beckenham on a grey afternoon and Ladywell had representatives in two of them - a remarkable achievement for such a small club in an association that boasts 23 member clubs.
Both matches started in pouring rain, but after after a few ends, the weather brightened up and, although it remained grey, there was no more rain. In the final of the Triples League, Ladywell were up against Coney Hall BC. The final involved two triples matches played over 18 ends simultaneously, with the winners decided by the combined scores from both matches. On the first rink, the Ladywell team of Des Marrett, Robert Dunn and Norman Lewis started off exchanging points with their opponents, before Coney Hall gained the upper hand and pulled away, eventually winning 19-9.
On the other rink, the Ladywell team of Phil Welch, Marion Edwards and Richard Moorhouse didn't really find their form and a strong start by Coney Hall meant that by the halfway point after nine ends, Ladywell were trailing 12-2. This soon turned into a 17-2 deficit, but a gain of five points for Ladywell on the 13th end sparked a mini-revival. By this point however, Coney Hall had built up too big a lead and they eventually ran out winners by 19-11 in the tie and won the title with a combined score of 38-20.
The Ladywell Triples League teams with their runners-up trophy (L-R: Des Marrett, Norman Lewis, Richard Moorhouse, Phil Welch, Robert Dunn & Marion Edwards)
In the Pairs competition, Ladywell's finalists, sister and brother Kim and Mark Simmons lost narrowly in a tight match against a pair from the Met Police Bowling Club. In this format, the winners are the first to 21 points and the lead went backwards and forwards as the two pairs exchanged points in a closely-fought contest. At 15-all, the Met Police team took a one point lead, only for Mark and Kim to peg them back to 16-all. Once again, the Met Police team gained the advantage, going 20-16 up after the next two ends, only for Ladywell to narrow the lead to 20-18. On what turned out to be the final end, the Met Police were holding the single shot they needed and, despite Kim playing some excellent shots that dislodged both the jack and the winning shot, the Met Police had the rub of the green and gained the shot they needed to win 21-18.
Kim Simmons (left) and Mark Simmons (second from right) receiving their runners-up trophy from BBD&BA President, Reg Johns and Competition Secretary, Eunice Pain.
So, at the end of a hard-fought season, Ladywell came away from the finals day with two richly-deserved runners-up prizes. They'll be hoping for better luck next year!
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