The last two leg challenge match of the year between old friends Norfolk Over 60’s and Cambridgeshire Seniors took place at Hingham Sports Centre on Thursday. The visitors were defending a narrow four point lead from the first leg played at March Indoor Bowls Club while Norfolk were hoping for a good first session to put their opponents under early pressure. The opening games saw Norfolk reduce the aggregate deficit to just two points as Val Vardy, David Aldous & George Hume produced an excellent 12-5 win, Peter Grundy, Andy George & Bob Oatway won by 9-4 and Lesley Turner, Brian Turner & Selwyn Goldsmith drew 8-8. The only defeat of the first session was a 6-8 loss incurred by Margaret Reynolds, Pat Hall & Richard Moore after a tight game on mat one. Norfolk took control of the match in session two to move into an aggregate four point lead. Peter Walker, Will Townsend & Terry Newby won 11-5, Reg Wilson, Steve Easter & Pauline Wilson won 10-6 and Di Quadling, David Quadling & Alan Stafford won by 11-8. David Kerslake, David Chadwick & Trish Taylor added a 7-7 draw on mat one to complete an unbeaten session for Norfolk. The third session saw Norfolk increase their overall lead to eight points with three wins and just one loss. Selwyn Goldsmith’s triple won their game by 17-1, Bob Oatway’s triple won by 10-5 and George Hume’s triple won 8-6 while Richard Moore’s triple lost by 3-15. Norfolk’s run of success though was briefly halted in a difficult fourth session as Cambs launched a strong comeback with three wins and a draw. Alan Stafford’s triple earned the home side’s only point drawing their game 9-9 while Pauline Wilson’s triple lost by 4-16 and Trish Taylor’s triple went down 4-8. The remaining game saw Norfolk skip Terry Newby unable to continue through illness with Norfolk Over 60’s Organiser Teresa Goldsmith replacing him on the third end. They then slipped to a 3-13 defeat to compound Norfolk’s fourth session woes as Cambs narrowed the gap to just two points. Norfolk bounced back in the penultimate session securing three wins from the four games to move six points ahead on aggregate. Peter Grundy, Andy George & Bob Oatway finished in style securing their third win by a tremendous 20-0 margin while Selwyn Goldsmith’s triple remained unbeaten with an 11-6 win and Richard Moore’s joined the party with a 10-6 win. George Hume’s triple lost for the first time going down 7-12 in the remaining game. The sixth and final session also saw Norfolk win on three of the four mats to secure a 31-17 points win on the day, 222-178 on shots, which gave them a 53-43 points win on aggregate. Alan Stafford’s triple won by 9-6 to finish their day unbeaten with two wins and a draw. Trish Taylor’s triple had their best game of the day winning by 15-8 while Pauline Wilson’s triple added a 9-5 win. The session’s only home loss was incurred by substitute Melvyn Barker, substituting for Terry Newby, whose triple went down by the narrow margin of 9-11. Another enjoyable day of bowls was had by all with Organiser Teresa Goldsmith thanking Cynthia for all her hard work in the kitchen and Joan Costello for running the raffle. The dates of the first of the two Annual 2 leg challenge matches between Norfolk Over 60’s and Cambridgeshire Seniors in 2017 have been agreed. The first leg will be played at March Indoor Bowls Club in Cambridgeshire on Thursday February 18th and the return leg will be on Thursday March 18th at Hingham Sports Centre where the friendly rivalry will no doubt continue. The Norfolk Over 60’s Annual Christmas Lunch will take place at Castle Carvery Clocktower on Wednesday December 16th at 12 noon.
Norfolk Over 60's triple Peter Grundy, Bob Oatway & Andy George reeled off wins of 9-4, 10-5 & 20-0