Allison Roe and Stuart Thompson snap up Borough Drawn Pairs title

With the combination of so many entrants, the unpromising weather conditions and the fact that Borough’s green will only comfortably accommodate five jacks early games were played with three on the card increased to four for the second round and to five for subsequent rounds, writes David Muir.

The two preliminary round games were uneventful but the random draw had thrown up some very interesting combinations of players which made the remaining rounds very competitive.

In the first round proper three games went to 21-20 with Ian Hadden (Whitby) & Penny Gosling (Borough) beating Barrie Watson (Borough) & Tony Chambers, Jennie Allen (Hunmanby) & Alan Landers (North Cliff) going through against Geoff Oldham (Hunmanby) & Joyce Harland (Whitby) and David Pryce (Borough) & David Muir (Eastfield) eliminating Sue Emmerson & Alan Boland (both Whitby).

Another close game saw Ian Richardson (North Cliff) & Josh Emmerson (Whitby) beat Kevin Gates (Dukes Park) & Alan Lee (North Cliff) 21-18.

The opening games of the second round saw Geoff Coleman (Whitby) & Sue Holdsworth (Hunmanby) beat Katie Gates (Dukes Park) & Emmo Emmerson (Whitby) 21-12 to set up a game against Allen & Landers who saw off Hadden & Gosling by the same margin.

The other top half games saw Borough’s Steve Lonnia & North Cliff’s Callum Malone beat Richardson & Josh Emmerson 21-14 and Paul Morgan (Whitby) & Mo Chambers (Castleford) went through comfortably by 21-11 against Pryce & Muir.

In the bottom half of the draw Gary Thornton (Borough) & Scott Wardman (North Cliff) won 21-14 against Phil Todd (Hunmanby) & Pam Moment (North Cliff) while Sue Purcell (Whitby) & Harry Old (Hunmanby) joined them by winning 21-12 against Geoff Leatherland (Whitby) & Tony Bland (Borough).

The quarter-final line-up was completed when Allison Roe (North Cliff) & Stuart Thompson (Pontefract) defeated Larry Dixon (Westgate) & Danny Cooper (North Cliff) 21-13 and Chris Dobson (Dukes Park) & home bowler Jo Gates beat the all-Whitby pairing of two Kennys, Wale & Rodgers 21-11.

The first quarter final saw Allen & Landers crush Coleman & Holdsworth 21-6 while Morgan & Chambers joined them in the first semi-final by winning 21-14 against Malone (Morgan’s partner in their win last week at North Cliff) & Lonnia.

In the lower half of the draw Purcell & Old won 21-12 against Thornton & Wardman to face Roe & Thompson who had a 21-16 win against Dobson & Gates.

The first semi-final was a close affair with Allen & Landers eventually prevailing by 21-18 against Morgan & Chambers while the second was slightly closer with Roe and Thompson being taken to 21-19 by Purcell & Old.

The final saw another of the coincidences of drawn pairs as it pitted Alan Landers against his fiancé and team-mate Allison Roe.

Landers & Allen edged ahead to lead 9-7 after five ends before Roe & Thompson scored a three and a one to take the lead only for Landers & Allen to do the same to reclaim the lead at 13-11 after nine ends.

A third three and one combination saw Roe & Thompson take a 15-13 lead, a lead that they did not relinquish thanks to some excellent lead bowling from Roe and solid support from Thompson and, despite conceding two singles they ran out 21-15 winners.

The trophy and prizes were were presented by Borough President Pete Hodgson.

This Sunday there will be an Open Pairs at Westgate for which there are currently 30 pairs entered with one player looking for a partner.

Entries for all merits during the summer must be made in advance with the appropriate Competition Secretary for the host club.