Having already dispatched of Whiteknights, Desborough played West Berks in the final of the Berkshire Inter Club Tournament and duly won by 39 shots, 113 – 74, with the Newbury side conceding early. Although the rinks skipped by Stephen McAlister at home and Mark Essex away both won, the cornerstone of the victory came from the unbadged rink skipped by Steve Cotterill, who along with Wayne Renouf, Newark Smelt and Clive Watson won 40 -3 to leave Desborough as the Champions of Berkshire County.

Rink scores

Home

W Renouf                 N Smelt                     C Watson                  S Cotterill      40 – 3

J Lynch                      P Patel                       D Teverson               J Beal             13 – 19

R Collier                     P Collier                     K Smith                      S McAlister   20 – 9

Away

B Alden                      J Carr                         M Harris                   G Burbridge 12 – 15

G Knapper                P Worthy                  B Forster                   A Essex          12 – 17

R Dale                        M Forward              L Chamberlain        M Essex         16 – 11

Desborough played in the semi-final of the county Inter-club against Whiteknights and ran out comfortable winners, 125 – 107. The Maidenhead side won on 4 of the 6 rinks winning with away rinks skipped by George Burbridge, Mark Essex and Kevin Scrace being the cornerstone of the victory. They now play West Berks in the final.

Rink scores

S Short          N Smelt         C Watson      S Cotterill                  14 – 16

M Anderson P Collier        R Collier         L Chamberlain        13 – 25

D Teverson   P Patel          B Forster       J Beal                         25 – 16

B Alden          C Moran       R Thrift          G Burbridge             18 – 17

R Dale            M Forward  K Roper         M Essex                     25 – 19

G Knapper    P Worthy      A Essex          K Scrace                    30 – 14

Congratulations to the following for reaching the National Area Finals :

Open Novice Singles                      Clive Watson

Ladies Singles                                  Nicola Jones

Senior Singles                                  Helen Jones

Men’s Singles                                  Stephen McAlister

Men’s 2 Wood Singles                  Mark Essex

Senior Pairs                                      S McAlister & D Simpson

Over 50 Triples                                H Jones, N Holder & L Woodley

Men’s Fours                                     T & J McGuinness, D Simpson & S McAlister

Good luck one and all.

On the friendly front, Desborough welcomed Trentham to Green Lane for the second time this season and after a nervy afternoon scraped home by 4 shots, 89 – 85. The last time the teams met, Desborough won easily but the visitors vowed that it would be different next time and it that proved to be the case as the home side were only allowed to win 2 of the 5 rinks with one drawing, so it is great credit to a predominantly outdoor club to run us so close. We will be wary when they return next season!! Although the rinks skipped by David Perriman, who won and Glenn Whittaker drew, top rink honours went to Darren Bishop, Jenny Bosley and John Munnelly who won 23 – 12.

Rink scores

A Mindrey                R Bridgen                  D Perriman                                        17 – 13

N Cormican              R Palmer                   G Whittaker                                       14 – 14

T Wolfe                     J Palmer                    D Cormican                                        19 – 27

C Northover             S Stewart                  N Harlow                                            16 – 19

D Bishop                   J Bosley                     J Munnelly                                          23 – 12

Ladies Bannerette Winners

Desborough Ladies’ played the County Womens Indoor Bowling Association (CWIBA)and after an enthralling game of bowls won 83 – 73, earning themselves a Bannerette.

In the 3^rd round of the Egham Trophy, Desborough played Banister Park and with powerful performances from the away rink skipped by Dave Simpson and at home by Mark Essex, the opposition were pummeled into submission with the Maidenhead side winning 84 – 44. They now play county rivals Whiteknights in the next round.

Rink scores

Home

J Morgan         J Beal             C Jones          J McGuinness          19 – 10

T Philpott         N Holder       K Roper         M Essex                    25 – 13

Away

J Skelly              L Woodley    M Woodley   D Simpson    28 – 7

N Jones             H Jones          A Essex           M Peachey               12 – 14

In the 1^st round of the London & Southern Counties Challenge Shield, Desborough played county rivals, West Berks and with strong performances from the rinks skipped by Mark Peachey, Dave Simpson and Kevin Scrace, were able to easily win 89 – 40 and go through to the next round to face Loddon Vale.

 Rink scores

Home

A Trillow          C Watson     N Smelt         M Essex                   16 – 18

D Teverson      P Worthy      C Jones          K Scrace                   29 – 9

Away

R Dale               B Forster       A Essex          M Peachey    17 – 6

J Skelly              P Costin         K Roper         D Simpson                27 – 7

On the friendly front, Desborough welcomed the Bucks VP’s to Green Lane for a five rink friendly and after an entertaining afternoon, it was an easy victory for the home side. However the Captain of the Day for Desborough, Tony Buckley, decided that as it was the season  of goodwill and the game had been played in the right spirit, an honourable draw was the right thing to do. Top rink was Alan Jones, Peter Colton, Jacinta Monteiro and Mervyn Gibbs who won 29 – 11.

Rink scores

J Sandal           T Crane         D Bishop       J Simpson              16 – 15

C Whittaker    V Sandal       D Webster    T Philpott               21 – 8

T Buckley         J Bosley         G Whittaker H Payne                 22 – 9

A Jones            P Colton         J Monteiro    M Gibbs                 29 – 11

J Gibbs             P Winstan     I Bond             J Wing                    16 – 15

Desborough played Atherley in round 3 of the Top Club and by winning 4 of the 5 disciplines, giving them a 12 – 4 win
to ease them through to the next round where they play away at Westlecot on January 5^th.

Rink scores

Men’s Singles          A Essex                      21 – 18

Ladies Singles          N Jones                      21 – 19

Mixed Pairs              J Skelly           D Simpson                13 – 14 

Mixed Triples           J Morgan      M Essex         J McGuiness             14 – 8

Mixed Fours             M Bignell      H Jones          K Roper         S McAlister   27 – 12

On the friendly front, Desborough welcomed Ad Finem to Green Lane and after an entertaining afternoon of bowls the home side eased to a 36 shot victory, 116 – 80. The rinks skipped by Tony Buckley and David Perriman won and Mervin Gibb’s 4 drew, which left top rink honours to go to Vijay Sandal, Debbie Barklamb, Steve Isaac and Keith Roper who won convincingly, 30 -4.

Rink scores

M Loader      J Bolam         M Hobson    T Buckley                  25 – 11

J Walker        D Isaacs        G Whittaker B Harris                    12 – 16

S Page           P Winstan     A Jones          M Gibbs                    17 – 17

J Gibbs           R Beyer          K Bolam        D Perriman              20 – 16

C Moran       B Tavinor      D Bishop       H Payne                    12 – 16

V Sandal       D Barklamb S Isaac           K Roper                     30 – 4

Desborough welcomed the Bucks Bowling Association to Green Lane for an 8 rink friendly and after an entertaining game, the Maidenhead side won by 40 shots, 158 – 118, although the opposing captain did try to claim a draw as both teams won 4 rinks each, he was overruled by what was on the scoreboard. The rinks skipped by Mervin Gibbs, Jez Wing and Michael White all won convincingly but they couldn’t get anywhere near John Skinner, Pauline Tuttle, Club President Angela Isaac and Keith Roper who got top rink honours by winning by 27 shots, 37 – 10.

Rink scores  

M Loader      R Beyer          L Harvey       I Bond            12 – 24

J Gibbs           A Yanna        K Harvey       J Munnelly                12 – 17

S Page           P Winstanley           A Jones          D Bishop       13 – 19

J Skinner       P Tuttle                      A Isaac          K Roper         37 – 10

J Walker        M Schrader              T Slark           M Gibbs        27 – 8

T Skinner      S Isaac                       T Buckley      B Adams       15 – 21

K Schrader   K Wells                      H Payne        J Wing           20 – 11

J Monteiro    R Bridgen                  M Hobson    M White        22 – 8

Some of Desborough’s members like to take their bowls to another level by playing on the Open Singles Circuit where they play some of the top bowlers in the country to try and get ranking points to get into the top 32 to play in the finals weekend. Mark Essex achieved that feat last season. Mark’s campaign this season started at Westlecot IBC  in Swindon where he reached the quarter finals. Fellow club members Nicola Jones and Keith Roper both went out in the 2^nd round and James Lynch, Clive Watson and Darren Teverson went out in the 3^rd round. Good luck to everyone for the rest of the season.

Desborough travelled to Herts IBC in Watford for a friendly with a makeshift side due to the Xmas fayre that was being held in Maidenhead but they still put up a sterling effort as they only went down by 8 shots, 67 – 75. Desborough only won on two rinks both winning by 7 shots and on countback, the rink skipped by Mervin Gibbs had to give top rink honours to Clive Dawson, Sam Stack and Tony the barman at Herts who stepped in to help out.

Rink scores

J Gibbs           K Bolam        D Smith                                    12 – 15

R Bridgen      S Page           A Jones                                     13 – 15

S Stewart      J Bolam         P Winstan     M Hobson         6 – 23

A N Other     M Gibbs                                                            20 – 13

C Dawson     S Stack          Tony                                            16 -9

The other highlight of the week was in round 2 of the Over 60’s Double Rink where Desborough played Camberley who were last year’s semi- finalists and managed to win by two shots, 41 – 39. The home rink skipped by Kevin Scrace went down narrowly by 3 shots but with a strong finish by the rink skipped by Stephen McAlister, who won by 5 shots, managed to get the Maidenhead side into the next round.

Rink scores

J Beal             G Knapper    R Richardson           K Scrace        17 – 20

R Dale            M Peachey   D Simpson                S McAlister   24 – 19

It was National Competition time again and first up was the ladies in the Mason Trophy where the opponents were Handy Cross. The format in this competition is one rink at home and one away and with the comfort of playing at Desborough, the rink skipped by Helen Jones won comfortably and at Handy Cross Lorraine Woodley’s foursome narrowly went down, giving Desborough a 10 shot win, 37 – 27. Next up is Camberley in early December.

Rink scores

Home

J Monteiro    T Philpott      J Beal             H Jones            25 – 11

Away

J Mayne        G Braddock  G O’Neill        L Woodley      12 – 16

Next up was the Yetton Trophy where the ladies faced familiar foes from Camberley and with one rink winning and one losing at home being replicated away, Desborough won 78 – 54 to set up a meeting with Palmerston in the next round.

Lastly it was the Egham Trophy against Chawton Park who had put Desborough’s men out of the Denny Cup the day before but with the mixed format, the men could rely on the ladies assistance and Desborough duly won by 20 shots, 81 – 61. Banister Park is next.

Rink scores

Home

G Hanks        N Jones          A Essex          L Chamberlain        19 – 13

J Morgan      J Beal             J Beal             M Peachey               27 – 14

Away

J Skelly           L Woodley    M Woodley  D Simpson                19 – 15

M Bignell      H Jones          K Roper         M Essex                     16 – 19

Having won the Bannerette against the County last year, Desborough’s men tried to repeat the feat but unfortunately went down by 40 shots, 67 – 107. The rink skipped by Clive Behmber narrowly lost which left all the glory to go to John Skinner, Tony Buckley, Brian Jones and Andrew Essex who won by 12 shots, 21 – 9.

Rink scores

J Skinner       T Buckley      B Jones          A Essex                      21 – 9

D Teverson   D Isaacs        D Perriman  R Wyatt                     14 – 25

C Moran       R Palmer       A Jones          M White                    7 – 31

B Faulkner    K Bolam                                K Crump                    12 – 25

P Winstan     V Sandal       D Bishop       C Behmber               13 – 17

After a stroll in the first round against Camberley, Desborough found Loddon Vale a different proposition and after all the disciplines had been played, with the points being equal it came down to shot difference and the Maidenhead side crept home by seven shots. They now play Atherley at home on the 8^th December.

Rink scores

Men’s Singles          Andrew Essex                      19 – 21

Ladies Singles          Nicola Jones                         20 -21

Mixed Pairs              J Skelly           D Simpson    18 – 14

Mixed Triples           J Mayne        K Roper         J Mc Guinness                     26 – 15

Mixed Fours     M Bignell  H Jones          M Essex         S McAlister               15 – 20

Desborough had a busy weekend on the friendly front and first up was our county rivals, West Berks IBC. It was an interesting afternoon as at one point it looked like the visitors were going to run away with it but Desborough dug in and eked out a 13 shot victory, 140 – 127, although their captain said that both teams won 4 rinks , so it should be an honourable draw. Fair enough!! Although the rinks skipped by John Davis and David Webster returned winning scorecards, the battle for top rink honours  was between the rinks skipped by Roger Wyatt and Tony Buckley and it went to the latter, along with Keith Roper and Jill Locker, on the fact that they scored more shots.  When we go to West Berks it will probably be a different story.

Rink scores

R Bridgen         J Bosley         R Wyatt                 23 – 8

K Roper            J Locker         T Buckley               26 – 11

V Wyatt          C Northover  D Perriman           15 – 20

L Monaghan   B Adams       J Davis                    14 – 12

R Palmer          P Winstan    J Monteiro             13 – 26

S Stewart      J Palmer        I Bond            16 – 22

P H-Smith     D Isaacs        R Fabry                     14 -16

P Ewers         P Smith          D Webster                19 – 12

Next up at Green Lane was the London Welsh Bowling Association and after another entertaining afternoon, Desborough won on 5 of the 6 rinks with a 43 shot advantage, 109 – 66. Four of the skips returned similar winning scorecards but there was no argument about who got top rink honours as Abby Yanna, Paul Winstanley, Tina Scherer and the ever popular Welsh Wizard, Brian Jones, won by 21 shots, 28 -7.

Rink scores

C Bartlett      P Tuttle          A Isaac          S Isaac           16 – 11

A Yanna        P Winstan     T Scherer      B Jones          28 – 7

R Palmer       H Payne                                S Hall             19 -11

M Loader      T Buckley      S Stack          M Gibbs        17 – 10

J Gibbs           R Bridgen      J Palmer        J Monteiro    12 – 15

P Smith          C Northover S Gwillam     T Slark           17 – 12

Desborough’s  Top Club team played the first round on Sunday away at Handy Cross which can be a tricky green to play on but the team managed it with aplomb by winning 4 of the 5 disciplines for an overall winning score of 14 – 2.

The 2^nd round will be on Sunday 10^th November at home to Loddon Vale.

Rink scores

Men’s Singles          M Woodley                                                                               20 – 21

Ladies Singles          N Jones                                                                                       21 -13

Pairs                           J Skelly                       D Simpson                                             12 – 10

Triples                        M Bignell                  K Roper         M Essex                          16 – 9

Fours                         L Woodley      H Jones        B Forster       M Peachey        14 – 9

Desborough travelled up to the Potters Resort in Norfolk for their annual pilgrimage taking 10 teams and by the end of the week, Bob Forster, Russell Dale, Andrew Essex and Jacinta Monteiro won the final against a team from Rugby and with the other teams doing well, Desborough were the Top Club, winning that accolade for the 4^th time in the last 5 years.

After a couple of cancellations, Desborough’s indoor friendly season finally got underway with the first opponents being the London Scottish Bowling Association and in a game involving a mixture of triples and rinks, the Maidenhead side narrowly went down by 5 shots, 108 – 113. It was a tough afternoon for some but Jez Wing done well to skip a winning rink but the top rink honours went to Richard Bridgen, Tonie Philpott and Nicola Jones who won by 19 shots, 30 – 11.

Rink scores   

J Bolam         A Isaac          S Stack          M White                    10 -26

S Crane         P Smith          T Buckley                                          18 – 20

T Crane         K Bolam        H Payne                                            13 – 25

R Bridgen      T Philpott      N Jones                                              30 – 11

P H-Smith     C Northover A Gilkes        J Wing                       26 – 10

B Faulkner    J Bosley         C Dawson     J Simpson                 11 – 21

Next up was a trip to Whiteknights which can be a tricky ask but once again Desborough bucked the trend by winning 5 of the 6 triples being victorious by 37 shots, 113 – 76. The triples skipped by Iain Bond and the Welsh Wizard, Brian Jones, won by 14 and 16 shots respectively but once again it was down to a triple skipped by the mercurial Nicola Jones, along with Craig Moran and Sam Stack, to get top rink honours by winning by 17 shots, 26 – 9.

Rink scores

C Moran                   S Stack                      N Jones                      26 – 9

P Winstanley           J Palmer                    I Bond            25 – 11

B Faulkner                C Northover             D Perriman              10 – 29

S Crane                     T Crane                     J Wing                       16 – 10

J Bosley                     P Smith                      B Jones                      21 – 5

R Palmer                   S Page                       A Jones                      15 – 12

Desborough’s triple of Bob Forster, Paul Worthy and Kevin Scrace played a trio from Tilehurst in the Men’s  County

final and were always in control to such an extent that they didn’t have to play the last end, winning by 10 shots to become County champions.

Desborough’s  Men’s  Double Fours squad of Lee Chamberlain, Andrew Essex, Kevin Scrace, Mark Harris, Keith Roper, Mark Peachey, Mark Essex and Bob Forster  played in the final, once again against Tilehurst, with the game being a nail biting affair going to the last end and with a fantastic shot from Keith Roper, managed to win by 1 shot, giving Desborough another set of County champions.

In the second leg of the Hot Dog Trophy against Maidenhead Town , Desborough’s men won by 2 shots, giving them a 91 shot advantage on aggregate to lift the trophy. Desborough’s Ladies completed the double when they won the inaugural Cream Teas Trophy.

In the Men’s County Double Fours semi-final, Desborough played the Royal Household and with strong performances home and away, earned themselves a place in the final against Tilehurst which will take place on the 8^th September at Reading B C on the 2^nd County Finals day.

Rink scores

Home

A Essex          M Peachey   L Chamberlain         K Scrace                    16 – 12

Away

B Forster       M Harris        K Roper                     M Essex                     18 – 17

In the Kennet League semi-final, Desborough played Tilehurst and upset the favourites  with superb performances from the home rinks skipped by Mark Peachey and Lee Chamberlain along with a sublime effort away from Kevin Scrace’s rink to get a place in the final against Thatcham on the 13^th August at Desborough B C.

In the Men’s and Ladies County Finals, Desborough did have representatives but failed to get any County champions. However, with the exception of the Men’s Senior Fours, they will get the chance to make an impression at the National Championships which will be held in the near future at Leamington Spa.

     Desborough Bowling Club seem to be gaining more places at the National Championships  due to take place at Leamington Spa in August.

>  The Men’s Fours of Andrew Essex, Keith Roper, Mark Essex and Kevin Scrace(above) are in the County Final against Lambourn.

>  The Ladies Fours of Gina Braddock, Linda Harvey, Angie Isaac and Kim Barao have reached their County final.

>  In the Ladies Singles, Kim Barao will reach Leamington Spa if she wins her semi-final against Pam Fowkes next weekend.

>  Andrew Essex has qualified in the Men’s Singles

>  Andrew & Mark Essex have qualified in the Men’s Senior Pairs.

>  The Men’s Senior Fours of Russell Dale, Paul Worthy, Mark Peachey and Kevin Scrace will qualify if they win their County final against Hagbourne on the 3^rd

Desborough’s ladies county Top Club team overcame the semi-final curse that has been hanging over the clubs’ teams recently
by beating Suttons 3.5 – 0.5. In the final, they will play Bracknell  at Trentham Bowling Club on the 10^th August.

In the County Men’s Fours, Andrew Essex, Keith Roper, Mark Essex and Kevin Scrace played in a quarter final against a strong Reading team  and came out winners with a convincing 22 – 10 win. They now play in a semi-final at Tilehurst on the 15^th July against Maidenhead Town for a place in the County Final and a guaranteed spot in the National Finals at Leamington in August.

Desborough’s ladies county Top Club team won their quarter final against Maiden Erleigh 4 – 0 and it is now onwards
to the semi finals against Suttons on 7 July. Let’s hope that they can break the curse that is hanging over Desborough
as we have had other teams reaching that stage in competitions and not going any further. Good luck ladies!!

Desborough’s Men played Maidenhead Town in the National Top Club and won 4 – 1

to move into the area semi-final against Reading.

     Mens National Top Club Team

Desborough’s Ladies won their game against Abingdon in the ladies County Top Club to take them into the quarter finals which will be held at Maiden Erleigh.

Keith Roper has qualified for the National Championships at Leamington in the County Two Wood by winning his semi-final and will play Scott Winskill in the final on 3 August at Suttons BC.

Desborough played Windsor & Eton in the County Men’s Double Fours and won 39 – 30 to earn a semi-final against Reading.

Desborough played Bracknell in the County Double Mixed Fours and after a close fought game managed a 31 – 29 win.

This takes them into the semi-final against Hagbourne on 11 August.

In the Tony Allcock Trophy, Desborough played Windsor & Eton and eased to a 40 -29 win. They now play Thatcham in the Area Semi-Final on 29 June.

Rink scores

T Philpott      L Harvey       R Dale            M Peachey               22 – 15

A Isaac          G O’Neill        B Forster       C Jones                      18 – 14

Desborough travelled to Henley for a 5 rink triples match and unfortunately fell to a 39 shot defeat, 55 – 94. Although the triple skipped by Nicola Jones nearly ended up with a winning scorecard, top rink honours went to Chris Bowler, Keith Harvey and Mark Harris who won 18 – 14

Rink scores

T Skinner      C Dawson     B Wright                   8 – 16

C Bowler       K Harvey       M Harris                   18 – 14

J Monteiro    M Hobson    B Harris                     5 – 26

D Hasler        P Winstan     G O’Neill                    9 – 22

J Skinner       A Gilkes         N Jones                      15 -16

Desborough welcomed Tilehurst to Green Lane for a 4 rink triples match having already beaten them this season and they achieved the double as they won by 22 shots, 75 – 53. 3 of the 4 triples won with top rink honours as two rinks won 23 – 11 and couldn’t be separated on count back. So the stars were Tonie Philpott, Alex Gilkes and Russell Dale along with Mark Loader, Paul Winstanley and Kim Barao.

In the County Triples semi – final against Shrivenham, Kevin Scrace, Paul Worthy and Bob Forster played a steady

game to ease into the final against Tilehurst and it also qualifies them to play in the National Finals at Leamington.

This is on the back of Kevin and Paul, along with Russell Dale and Mark Peachey reaching the final of the County Senior Fours where they will play Hagbourne.

In the National Top Club, Desborough played Royal Household winning the fours and triples but defeats in the 2 wood singles and pairs meant it went to the 4 wood singles where Andrew Essex pulled away to put the Maidenhead side into round three.

Desborough travelled to High Wycombe for the second leg of the Dessau Cup hoping to overturn a 15 shot deficit but it wasn’t to be as they lost 90 – 103 for an aggregate loss of 176 – 204. The rink skipped by John Davis did well to return a winning score but top rink honours went  to the Wyatts, Roger and Val, along with Sally Lane who won by 6 shots, 22 – 16.

Desborough travelled over the Thames to Marlow to play a 6 rink triples match and after an entertaining afternoon, the visitors did prevail 92 – 77 but with the 6 rinks being shared, it seems an honourable draw is only fair. The rinks skipped by the Welsh Wizard Brian Jones and Bruce Adams returned winning scorecards but top rink honours went to Tony Crane, Gina Braddock and John Davis who won by 14 shots, 22 – 8.

Rink scores

T Skinner      D Hasler        T Buckley                  10 – 19

D Barklamb D Isaacs        B Jones                      19 – 4

C Buckley      M Hobson    B Adams                   14 – 11

S Crane         S Isaac           A Jones                      14 – 21

C Bowler       J Skinner       A Isaac                      13 -14

T Crane         G Braddock  J Davis                       22 – 8

The County Competitions are gathering pace and the Men’s Senior Fours saw Russell Dale, Mark Peachey, Paul Worthy and Kevin Scrace beat Suttons to earn a semi-final match against local rivals, Maidenhead Town, on 3 June. In the Men’s Triples, Bob Forster, Paul Worthy and Kevin Scrace beat a trio from Burghfield to get into the quarter final where they face Bracknell on 31 May.

Desborough made the journey to Tilehurst for a 4 rink triples match and found the green very much to their liking as they won by 34 shots, 74 – 30. All rinks were victorious with those skipped by Gill O’Neill, Linda Harvey and Tonie Philpott returning winning scorecards but once again we had to rely on the Welsh Wizard, Brian Jones, who along with Debbie Barklamb and Michael Hobson, got top rink honours with a 25 – 8 win. I am sure we will face a different Tilehurst in the return fixture in Mid-June.

Rink scores

T Buckley        G Braddock            G O’Neill                    17 – 7

D Barklamb   M Hobson              B Jones                      25 – 8

D Hasler          N Jones                   L Harvey                   16 – 11

S Isaac             K Harvey                 T Philpott                  16 – 14

In the quarter-final of the  London & Southern Counties Challenge Shield, Desborough played Bounds Green and the cornerstone of the 76 – 62 victory came from the home rinks skipped by John McGuinness and Kevin Scrace to set up a semi-final  against Falcon from Chelmsford.

John McGuinness reached the final stages of the National Champion of Champions which were held at Dolphin IBC in Dorset. In the Last 16, he faced Andrew Walters from Welford-on-Avon and won 21 – 17 to set up a quarter-final against the eventual winner, Dominic McVittie from Spalding, with John giving the champion his toughest challenge as he lost by one shot, 20 – 21.

On the friendly front, Desborough first of all welcomed Herts IBC to Green Lane for a 5 rink triples match and managed to get home by 4 shots, 82 – 78. The rinks skipped by Mervin Gibbs and Dave Perriman did well to return winning scorecard but there was no doubting the top rink as John Emmons, Jenny Bosley and Bruce Adams who won by 18 shots, 28 – 10.

Rink scores

B Faulkner       S Page          M Gibbs         23-11

J Emmons        J Bosley        B Adams        28 – 10

P Winstan       D Isaacs        D Webster      8 – 21

J Gibbs             P Smith          D Perriman     14 – 13

M Buckles       C Northover J Munnelly      10 – 23

It then was the turn of the London Irish Bowling Association to come to Maidenhead and after the usual entertaining affair the visitors managed to spring a surprise and win by 50 shots, 129 – 79. Desborough only managed to win on 1 of the 6 rinks with the heroes being Brian Bushell, Roy Palmer, Alex Gilkes and Kel Crump who won 19 – 16.

Rink scores

S Isaac           R Bridgen        T Philpott       H Payne       13 – 19

R Turner        K Bolam          J Sandal         T Buckley     9 – 19

S Page           V Sandal         A Isaac           D Seymour    14 – 21

D Perriman  S Stewart        A Jones           Y Hurley        10 – 34

B Bushell       R Palmer         A Gilkes          K Crump       19 – 16

P Winstan     J Bolam           J Palmer         J Simpson     14 – 20

Don’t forget that on Sunday 11 January, Desborough has an Open Day to promote the Club’s facilities and introduce people of all ages and abilities to our wonderful game.

Desborough Bowling Club hosted a weekend of high quality bowls as they once hosted the Open Singles Circuit.

64 players competed and there were some  fantastic efforts from some of the home players namely James Lynch , Darren Teverson and especially Mark Essex who reached the semi-final but it came down to the last two with Lloyd Sabatini beating last year’s winner, Scott Edwards.

The tournament was well organized by Mark Peachey and couldn’t have taken place without the sponsorship of Brian Jones.

All these bowlers started somewhere and Desborough Bowling Club will be hosting an Open Day on 11 February between 2pm – 5pm for people to look at our superb facilities and give the game a go. Dispel the idea that this is an old peoples game as it is for all ages and all abilities. Come and give it a go!!

Above (L to R) Mark Peachey(Club Manager), Brian Jones (Sponsor),
Lloyd Sabatini (Winner)

Desborough welcomed Iver Heath to Green Lane for a 6 rink triples match and the visitors nicked it by 4 shots, 93 – 97, although the hosts could claim a technical draw as the six rinks were shared. The rinks skipped by John Munnelly and Dave Perriman done well to return winning scorecards but top rink honours went to Brian Faulkner, Angie Isaac and Paul Winstanley who won by 10 shots, 23 – 13.

Rink scores

B Faulkner    A Isaac          P Winstanley             23 – 13

S Page           V Sandal       J Simpson                   8 – 16

C Dawson     J Palmer        J Munnelly                  17 – 12

N Cormican  D Isaacs        D Cormican                17 – 19

R Palmer       J Bosley         D Perriman                18 – 15

J Emmons     P Arnott        J Sandal                      10 – 22

For the first friendly of 2024, Desborough welcomed county rivals Whiteknights to Green Lane for a 6 rink triples match and started off the year with a 41 shot win, 124 – 83. The rinks skipped by Stephen Hall and Teresa Slark had comfortable wins but they couldn’t get top rink honours as Roy Palmer, Jacky Sandal and Michael White won by 20 shots, 29 – 9.

Rink scores

J Konrad       T Philipott       S Hall           26 – 11

R Palmer       J Sandal          M White     29 – 9

B Faulkner    G Konrad        T Slark         20 – 11

S Page           P Winstan       D Perriman 15 – 14

J Palmer        V Sandal         J Munnelly 16 – 22

P Tuttle          D Isaacs          N Jones       18 – 16

In Round 3 of the London & Southern Counties Bowling Association Shield, Desborough faced a hard game against Egham but their job was made easier as the Surrey side decided that all rinks would be played at Green Lane and after a tense game, Desborough got home by 6 shots, 63 – 57. The rink skipped by Kevin Scrace done well to return a winning scorecard but the cornerstone of the victory was provided by Jeff Beal, Tim Jones, Kirk Smith and Stephen McAlister who won by 10 shots, 18 – 8. Bounds Green or Herts (Watford) await in the next round.

Rink scores

J Lynch          L Chamberlain        K Roper         M Peachey               11 – 18

A Essex          W Renouf                 B Forster       K Scrace                    17 – 12

S Williams     N Smelt                     A Merry        J McGuinness          17 – 19

J Beal             T Jones                      K Smith          S McAlister               18 – 8​

In the 1^st round of the London & Southern Counties  Bowling Association, a competition Desborough have won before, they made a confident start to do so again as they won by 33 shots, 71 – 38 against Cambridge Park. With the format being two rinks at home and away, it took wonderful performances from two rinks skipped by John McGuinness who won 23 – 4 and Mark Essex’s  skipping a rink to win 22 – 4 to make sure the Club eased through to the next round where they will play Egham.

Rink scores

Home

J Beal             A Merry          C Jones           J McGuinness       23 – 4

R Dale            N Smelt           M Woodley   S McAlister            16 – 14

Away

A Essex          D Teverson     M Peachey     K Scrace                10 – 16

J Lynch          B Forster         K Roper           M Essex                 22 – 4

For the last friendly of 2023, Desborough welcomed the Bucks VP’s to Green Lane for a 5 rink triples match and finished the year in style by winning by 31 shots, 94 – 63. The rinks skipped by Keith Harvey and Dave Webster produced winning scorecards, as did Paul Winstanley and Tony Buckley but top rink honours went to the latter along with Carol Bartlett and June Palmer.

Rink scores

S Page           J Simpson       D Webster              20 – 13

A Jones          M Buckles        K Harvey                 19 – 11

K Bolam        R Palmer          P Winstanley          20 – 10

J Bolam         N Jeacock     M Gibbs                    12  – 16

C Bartlett      J Palmer        T Buckley                  23 – 13

For their penultimate friendly of 2023, Desborough welcomed Ad Finem to Green Lane for a 6 rink match which they usually win but a couple of tactical moves from the visitors gave them the advantage as they won by 37 shots, 131 – 97. There were plus points for the Maidenhead side as some of the newer bowlers gained valuable experience but as one rink had an afternoon to forget, it was left to the winning rink of Jacinta Monteiro and Richard Bridgen, Jan Marshall, Sue Page and David Webster, who got top rink, to provide the bright spots of Desborough’s afternoon.

Rink scores

R Bridgen        J Marshall     S Page          D Webster     23 – 13

K Bolam        D Isaacs          B Jones                                  15 – 19

R Palmer       P Arnott          P Colton       H Payne         18 – 24

P Patel           M Buckles       D Perriman   M Gibbs         17 – 18

J Gibbs           P Smith            S Stewart      C Northover  5  – 42

J Bolam         A Jones            J Palmer        J Monteiro    16 – 15

Desborough had a good weekend on the friendly front as they won both comprehensively. First up was the Berkshire County Women Indoor Bowling Association who could argue that they won as they were victorious on 4 of the 6 rinks but Desborough’s Men had two superlative performances  with Michael White’s rink returning a winning scorecard but they couldn’t touch Keith Harvey, Kel Crump and Bob Forster who picked up top rink honours with a 38 – 1 win.

Rink scores

B Forster         M Hobson    B Jones          17 – 19

S Isaac             D Turner       M White       29 – 6

K Harvey         K Crump        B Forster       38 – 1

M Cranston    J Munnelly   A Essex          13 – 14

C Moran         E Ireland       D Perriman   11 – 28

R Palmer         A Davis        P Winstanley 15 – 21

Desborough then welcomed Victory IBC from Portsmouth  and that produced a 35 shot win, 132 – 97. Although rinks skipped by Roger Wyatt, Jacinta Monteiro and Steven Hall all won, there was an outstanding performance from Paul Winstanley, Dave Perriman, June Palmer and David Webster who won by 32 shots, 38 – 6. Victory have a chance of revenge when we travel to Portsmouth in February 2024.

Rink scores 

J Gibbs              D Isaacs        T Slack           R Wyatt        24 – 20

C Phoenix        R Bridgen     M Hobson    J Monteiro    17 – 16

P Winstanley  D Perriman   J Palmer        D Webster    38 – 6

R Palmer       S Stewart       M Gibbs        T Buckley       13 – 22

B Faulkner    M Buckles      H Payne        S Hall              23 –  16

S Page            V Wyatt         J Simpson     A Davis           17 – 17

In the London & Southern Counties Fours, one of Desborough’s entries played against Egham and were in control all the way as they eased to an 18 – 11 win. They now play a team from Loddon Vale or a game against another Desborough team skipped by Bob Forster.

Rink score

A Essex          M Peachey      M Essex      K Scrace        18 – 11

In the National Champion of Champions, John McGuinness beat an opponent from Loddon Vale and is now in the Area Final against opposition who is yet to be decided.

Desborough welcomed Caversham to Green Lane for a 6 rink triples match and won by 22 shots, 124 – 102. To be fair to the visitors, they are an outdoor club with a few indoor bowlers so put up a good performance in the circumstances. The Maidenhead side won on 4 of the 6 rinks with those skipped by Jim May , Dave Webster and Mervin Gibbs returning winning scorecards but top rink honours went to Sandra Ruiseart, Jason Carr and Steve Isaac who won by 19 shots, 31 – 12.

Rink scores

J Gibbs           D Isaacs        J May                18 – 13

P Arnott        P Colton        D Webster       24 – 16

G Barker       P Smith          B Jones             15 -27

P Winstan     S Page           D Perriman      9 – 21

S Ruiseart     J Carr             S Isaac              31 – 12

J Wing           V Wyatt        M Gibbs           27 – 13

Desborough made the journey to Herts IBC in Watford but unfortunately had an afternoon to forget as they went down by 82 shots, 30 – 112. The loss could be put down to the fact that most Desborough bowlers hadn’t bowled at Herts before and their rinks take a lot of getting used to. Top rink honours went to the best losing rink which consisted of Alan Jones, Richard Bridgen, Gill Konrad and Tony Buckley.

Every indoor season, Desborough’s  Men play Berkshire County’s Men in the hope of gaining a Bannerette for winning, which last happened 10 years ago, but by putting out a strong side the Maidenhead team managed to win this year by 34 shots, 124 – 95. The rinks skipped by Roger Wyatt, Bob Forster and Michael White returned winning scorecards but top rink honours went to James Lynch, Eric Ireland, Alan Speller and Mark Essex who put in an outstanding performance to win by 22 shots, 35 – 13.

Rink scores

D Teverson               N Jeacock                 K Harvey                   R Wyatt         20 -16

A Davis                      T Buckley                  K Crump                    J Davis           16 – 17

W Renouf                 C Watson                  R Fabry                     B Forster       25 – 14

J Lynch                      E Ireland                   A Speller                   M Essex         35 – 13

B Faulkner                C Northover             D Perriman              M White        21 – 12

P Winstanley           D Isaac                      M Hobson                B Jones          13 – 23

Desborough welcomed Egham to Green Lane for a 5 rink friendly but they unfortunately lost by 11 shots, 67 – 78. John Munnelly skipped a winning rink but top rink honours went to Jeff Simpson, Sue Stewart, John Skinner and Brian Faulkner who won by 10 shots, 22 – 12.

Rink scores

J Ward                       J Konrad                   A Davis                      J Munnelly    15 – 10

J Simpson                 S Stewart                  J Skinner                   B Faulkner    22 – 12

D Davis                      R Palmer                   D Perriman              J Davis           12 – 18

P Winstanley           C Howard                 M Hobson                B Jones          11 – 18

C Dawson                 R Bridgen                  J Palmer                    J McDonnell 17 – 20

Desborough’s Ladies played in the 3^rd round of the Yetton Trophy against North Wilts which was always be a tough ask but they certainly took the fight to them and it was only at the very last that it went awry and they agonisingly went down by 3 shots, 64 – 67, to bow out of the competition.

Desborough welcomed the London Welsh Bowling Association to Green Lane for a 6 rink friendly and although the Maidenhead side made a slow start, they come good at the business end of the game to win by 34 shots, 131 – 97. Desborough won on 4 of the six rinks with those skipped by Kel Crump, John Davis and John Munnelly returning winning scorecards but Alan Jones, Jenny Bosley, Jeff Simpson and Stephen Hall pipped them all to top rink honours by winning by 18 shots, 30 – 12.

Rink scores

P Winstanley           M Buckles     T Slark           K Crump           15 – 14

D Davis                      R Palmer       J Monteiro    T Buckley         18 – 20

S Page                       J Bolam         A Davis          J Davis              21 – 16

A Jones                      J Bosley         J Simpson     S Hall                30 – 12

J Palmer                    K Bolam        R Turner        J Munnelly       27 -14

C Bartlett                  J Skinner       Y Hurley        D Webster       20 – 21

Desborough’s Ladies took centre stage in the National Competitions and first up was the Yetton Trophy

where they played county rivals Whiteknights and after a shaky start, a powerful finish saw them win by

17 shots, 82 – 65. They now play  North Wilts on 18^th November. (DBC Away Team pictured)

Rink scores

Home

J Williams     J Morgan      G Jones          H Jones          26 – 12

H Payne        G Braddock  T Philpott      L Woodley    13 – 19

Away

J Monteiro    S Lane            N Jones          N Holder       15 – 22

J Mayne        M Bignell      J Beal             J Skelly           21 – 19

Next up was the Mason Trophy with a format of 1 rink at home and 1 away the home rink put in a great performance  winning by 20 shots and the team winning by 19 overall, 44 – 25. They now play Handy Cross  on 24^th November.

Rink scores

Home

J Mayne        J Beal             N Holder       H Jones          28 – 8

Away

J Monteiro    G Braddock  G O’Neill        L Woodley    16 – 17

On the friendly front, Desborough welcomed Glebelands from North London to Green Lane and after a very tense game , the Maidenhead side managed to edge it by 3 shots, 100 – 97. The game was so close that Desborough only had 2 winning rinks with the rink skipped by Michael White winning by 14 shots but they had to give top rink honours to Clive Dawson, Tonie Philpott and Dave Perriman who won 27 – 5.

Rink scores

C Dawson     T Philpott      D Perriman  27 – 5

D Davis          B Harris         K Crump        5 – 31

J Monteiro    A Davis          M White        27 – 13

M Buckles     C Northover B Faulkner  16 – 19

T Skinner      B Wright       D Webster    11 – 14

J Humphries Y Hurley        B Jones          14 – 15

Desborough then travelled to Newbury to play West Berks  but unfortunately had an afternoon to forget as they went down by 72 shots, 67 – 139. The only ray of sunshine was provided by June Palmer, Josef Konrad and Brian Jones who won 25 – 8.

Rink scores

J Palmer        J Konrad       B Jones          25 – 8

S Stewart      R Bridgen      J McDonnell 4 – 36

A Jones          G Konrad      J Munnelly    7 – 31

P Winstan     C Howard     B Faulkner    10 – 21

J Ward           C Northover D Perriman  8 – 22

S Page           R Palmer       M White        12 – 21

​

Desborough played county rivals Whiteknights in the 1^st round of the Egham Trophy and managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory as they went down by 9 shots, 68 – 77. The format of this competition is two rinks at home and two away and the Maidenhead side were in control for most of this game and despite a winning rink skipped by Mark Peachey, Whiteknights came up on the rails to snatch victory on the line to put Desborough out of the competition.

Rink scores (Desborough skips only)

Home

M Peachey               25 – 16

J McGuinness          9 – 24

Away

M Essex                     18 – 18

M Woodley              18 – 19

In the Yetton Trophy 1^st round Desborough’s Ladies played Handy Cross with two rinks at home and two away and they eased to a 17 shot win, 81 – 64. Desborough won on 3 of the 4 rinks and even a fire alarm at Handy Cross could not put off Sally Lane, Jacinta Monteiro, Julie Skelly and Nora Holder being the best rink of the day as they won 27 – 12 and the Maidenhead side eased into the next round.

Rink scores (skips only)

N Holder       27 – 12

G O’Neill        19 – 21

L Woodley    16 – 16

H Jones          19 – 15

In the Denny Cup, Desborough’s  Men played Chawton Park in the first round and couldn’t get a foothold in the game and with only winning away skipped by Mark Peachey, they unfortunately bowed out of the competition.

Rink scores (Skips only)

K Scrace        21 – 22

J McGuinness 19 – 20

M Peachey   22 – 16

C Jones          11 – 30

Desborough welcomed the London Scottish Bowling Association to Green Lane for a 6 rink match and endured a hard day as they went down by 52 shots, 74 – 126. The only ray of sunshine of the match for the hosts was a drawn rink with Teresa Slark, Marsha Buckles, Dave Perriman and John Davis drawing 16 – 16.

Rink scores (Skips only)

M Hobson         4 – 24

D Webster         17 – 24

T Buckley          14 – 20

J Davis               16 – 16

B Faulkner        13 – 20

S Hall                10 – 22

The National Competitions have now started and first up was Desborough’s Men in the Denny Cup against Loddon Vale. Due to a major competition taking place at home, Desborough played all four rinks at Basingstoke but didn’t lose any advantage as all rinks won but special mention has to go to the rink skipped by Mark Peachey who were trailing but 23 unanswered points meant they coasted to a 30 -10 victory. Desborough now play Chawton Park in the next round.

Rink scores

S Williams     N Smelt         A Merry        C Jones          16 – 15

L Essex           G Knapper    K Roper         K Scrace        26 – 9

D Teverson   T Jones          A Price           M Woodley  26 – 19

A Essex          G Burbridge B Forster       M Peachey   30 – 13

Desborough travelled to Whiteknights to play in the Top Club which is a mixed event and although Andrew Essex and Jenny Morgan won their respective 2 Wood Singles and Julie Skelly teamed up with Mark Essex  to win the Pairs, the game ended up 8 points each with the Maidenhead side losing out on the overall score by 3 shots, 82 – 85.

Desborough’s  2023 Club Champions are Mark Essex who won for the third year in a row by beating his twin brother, Andrew, 21 -10 and Jacinta Monteiro, after many tries finally became Ladies Champion by overwhelming Angie Isaac. Mark again appeared on the honours board by winning the Handicap Singles against Colin Jones and the Benevolent Triples with Keith Roper and his twin. Jacinta also had other wins in the Ladies Handicap Singles, Mixed Nominated Pairs with Keith Roper and Drawn Handicap Pairs with Linda Harvey.

It is good to see new names on the honours board. For the Men, it was Chris Bowler who won the Men’s Novice Singles with a win over Paul McVicar and the Drawn Handicap Pairs with Keith Harvey. The ladies have seemed to have unearthed a new star as Dawn Davis won her Novice Singles by default, followed by the Nominated Pairs with Val Wyatt and the Drawn Triples with Sally Lane and Nicola Jones.

Other multiple winners include Russell Dale and Mark Peachey who won the Men’s Nominated Pairs and Aussie Rules Pairs. Nicola Jones  won the 2 Wood Singles, Mixed Aussie Rules Pairs with Keith Roper  and Aussie Rules Pairs with Sally Lane who were both involved in the aforementioned Drawn Triples.

Special mention has to be given to the game of the weekend which was the Ladies Over 70’s Singles between Gina Braddock and Gill O’Neill. This game was played in searing heat but both ladies put on a fantastic performance and with Gina on the verge of victory at 20 – 14, Gill managed somehow to get the 7 shots to pip her on the line.

FINALS RESULTS

Men

Championship Singles                   Mark Essex   21       Andrew Essex 10

Novice Singles                                 Chris Bowler   21     Paul McVicar 18

Handicap Singles                            Mark Essex  21        Colin Jones   14

2 Wood Singles                          Graeme Mason  15     Bob Forster  12

Over 70’s Singles                       Michael White 21      Dave Seymour  11

Nominated Pairs                       Russell Dale       24      Dave Hasler      4

                                                       Mark Peachey             Brian Wright

Aussie Rules Pairs                    Russell Dale       26       Wayne Renouf  9

                                                     Mark Peachey               Bob Forster

Drawn H’Cap Pairs                 Chris Bowler      21        Dave Hasler 11

                                                     Keith Harvey                  Michael Hobson

Benevolent Triples                  Andrew Essex    23        Phil Smith     8

                                                     Keith Roper                     Dave Smith

                                                     Mark Essex                      Paul Melhuish

Mixed

Aussie Rules Pairs                  Nicola Jones      19         Marina Bignell  16

                                                    Keith Roper                      Mark Essex

Nominated Pairs                    Jacinta Monteiro 16      Nicola Jones     12

                                                    Keith Roper                      Brian Jones

Ladies

Championship Singles          Jacinta Monteiro  21      Angie Isaac 5

Novice Singles                        Dawn Davis W/O            Mandy Boyce

H’Cap Singles                         Jacinta Monteiro  21      Angie Isaac  10

2 Wood Singles                      Nicola Jones          16       Jacinta Monteiro    5

Over 70’s Singles                Gill O’Neill             21          Gina Braddock   20

Nominated Pairs                Dawn Davis          16          Sally Lane            14

                                                Val Wyatt                             Nicola Jones

Aussie Rules Pairs              Sally Lane             17           Pam H-Smith      12

                                                Nicola Jones                         Jacinta Monteiro 

Drawn H’Cap Pairs            Jacinta Monteiro  20         Angie Isaac        12

                                                Linda Harvey                       Alex Gilkes

Drawn Triples                      Dawn Davis        21            Val Wyatt        12

                                                Sally Lane                             Jan Walker  

                                                Nicola Jones                         Gill O’Neill

Desborough only had one representative in the National Championships at Leamington which was Andrew Essex

in the Over 55 singles and after all the efforts of qualifying  he fell at the first hurdle going down 16 -21 to Mike Owen

from East Leake BC in Nottinghamshire. He was disappointed but it is a fine achievement to get that far.

With the Outdoor Season nearly at an end all the leagues have now ended with varying results.

In the Kennet League, the A team ended up 4^th in Division 1 while the B team occupied the same spot in Division 2.

In the KLV, the A team finished 2^nd in Division 1 while the B team finished 6^th in the same division thereby avoiding relegation which was their target at the start of the season.  The C team finished 3^rd in Division 2 while the D team finished 5^th in their league.

In the TVL, the Bluebells finished 6^th in Division 1 while the Buttercups finished 5^th in Division 3.

Overall, no Desborough team got relegated so it’s onwards and upwards for next season.

Desborough travelled to Windsor Great Park for a 5 rink triples match and achieved something that is unheard of, a 98 shot victory, 138 – 40. All triples won and any of them could have been top rink but in the end the honour went to Shug Boyce, Graeme Mason and Mark Essex who won 34 – 5.

Rink scores

R Dale            R Wyatt         M Peachey               28 – 6

S Boyce         G Mason       M Essex                     34 – 5

W Renouf     S Isaac           T Buckley                  24 – 10

J Monteiro    M Hobson    K Roper                     27 – 11

B Harris         B Adams       N Jones                      25 – 8

It was another 5 rink triples match for Desborough as they travelled to Suttons but the result was different this time as they went down by 25 shots, 65 – 90. The triple skipped by Andre Davis had an afternoon to forget and with the rinks skipped by Gill O’Neill, Tonie Philpott and John Davis going down narrowly, it was left to the only winning rink to get top rink and that was Jacinta Monteiro, Brian Harris and Bob Forster who won 18 – 15.

Rink scores

A Isaac          L Stallwood     G O’Neill                14 – 15

J Monteiro    B Harris            B Forster                18 – 15

S Isaac           C Dawson        T Philpott               12 – 14

D Davis          M Hobson       A Davis                   9 – 29

R Stallwood W Renouf        J Davis                    12 – 17

Desborough welcomed our old friends from Southampton Old Green to Green Lane and although we struggle to beat them outdoors we managed it this time winning by 8 shots, 94 – 86. The game was a mixture of triples and rinks with the home team winning on 3 of the 6 rinks with those skipped by Brian Jones, Keith Harvey and John Davis returning winning scorecards but they couldn’t get anywhere near Rose Stallwood, Dawn Davis, Len Stallwood and Michael Hobson who won 21 – 8 to claim top rink honours.

Rink scores

T Philpott      D Isaacs        H Payne        B Jones          17 – 11

R Stallwood D Davis          L Stallwood  M Hobson    21 – 8

C Buckley      S Isaac           K Harvey                               14 – 13

J Walker        A Jones          A Davis          J Davis           18 – 11

V Wyatt        J Seymour    R Wyatt                                 15 – 15

J Skinner       J Monteiro    T Buckley                              9 – 28

Desborough travelled to Tilehurst for a 5 rink triples match with some trepidation but it turned out in their favour as they won by 31 shots, 85 – 54. The rinks skipped by Bob Forster and Tony Buckley both went down by 2 shots but those skipped by Brian Jones and Linda Harvey returned winning scorecards but couldn’t come close to Debbie Barklamb, Keith Harvey and Mark Peachey who won 27 – 4 to claim top rink honours.

Rink scores

C Dawson     A Isaac          B Forster       16 – 18

J Monteiro    M Hobson    T Buckley      12 – 14

D Barklamb K Harvey       M Peachey   27 – 4

S Isaac           B Harris         L Harvey       13 – 10

C Buckley      W Renouf     B Jones          17 – 8

In the Kennet League the A Team went down 14 – 0 to Wokingham A while the B team went down 10 – 4 to Reading B.

In the KLV  the only team to lose was the B team who lost to Maidenhead Town B while the A, C and D teams all won 8 -2 against Wraysbury, Windsor & Eton C and Suttons C respectively.

Sally Darby, Paul Mellhuish, Marina Bignell and Mark Essex represented Desborough in the National Mixed Fours and won the Area Final 15 – 12 to get through to the last 32 in the country where they faced Headington but it proved to be one step too far. A great effort nonetheless.

There was no Kennet League matches due to the weather.

In the KLV, the only losers were the B team as they were beaten by Maidenhead Thicket A leaving the A, C and D teams to win against Windsor & Eton B, Maidenhead Thicket B and Great Hollands B respectively.

Desborough welcomed Ad Finem to Green Lane for a 6 rink friendly match and after an entertaining afternoon emerged victorious by 10 shots, 97 – 87. The hosts won on 3 rinks with 1 drawn and those skipped by Bob Forster and Nicola Jones returned winning scorecards but the top rink was Jacinta Monteiro, Michael Hobson, Brian Harris and Roger Wyatt who won 23 – 15.

Rink scores

P Smith          D Davis          R Dale            B Forster       17 – 11

J Monteiro    M Hobson    B Harris         R Wyatt         23 – 15

D Hasler        C Dawson     S Isaac           N Jones          18 – 11

G Braddock  M Conaghan K Harvey     J Davis           12 – 18

P Braddock  V Wyatt        A Davis          W Renouf     13 -18

J May             B Cooke         A Isaac          G O’Neill        14 – 14

In the Kennet League, the A team won 10 – 4 while the B team suffered a heavy defeat against Maidenhead Town A.

In the KLV, the A team won 7 – 3 against Maidenhead Thicket A, the B team won 6 – 4 against Windsor & Eton B, the C team suffered an 8 – 2 loss to Windsor Great Park  and the D team won 8 – 2 against Wargrave.

Desborough’s Ladies went to Suttons with some trepidation as they contested the Area Final of the National Top Club but they needn’t have worried as the four disciplines were shared which took it down to the overall score which was in Desborough’s favour winning by 20 shots, 72 – 52. The cornerstone of the victory came from powerful performances in the singles and the fours with the pairs and triples keeping their losses low and that now leaves them 2 games from the National Championships at Leamington. Keep going ladies!!

Rink scores

Singles           Jacinta Monteiro    21 – 12

Pairs               Kim Barao & Angie Isaac 15 – 16

Triples            Sally Darby, Gina Braddock, Gill O’Neill           11 – 15

Fours             Pam Harrison- Smith, Jean Seymour, Tonie Philpott, Linda Harvey 25 -10

In the Kennet League, the A team won 10 – 4 against Bracknell with the B team suffering a 10 – 4 reverse against Maidenhead Thicket.

In the KLV, the A team beat the B team 8 – 2 with the C and D teams winning 8 – 2 against Town C and D respectively.

In the Ladies Top Club, Desborough faced a strong Royal Household team and have bowed out of the competition after losing 3 of the 4 disciplines although on the bright side there was a fantastic performance from the triple consisting of Trish Skinner, Tonie Philpott and Helen Payne as they  won 21 – 15.

In the Kennet League, Desborough’s B team defied the weather to play Maidenhead Town A but wish they hadn’t as they fell to a 12 – 2 defeat.

In the KLV, Desborough’s A, C and D teams lost to Maidenhead Thicket A, Windsor Great Park and Wargrave respectively leaving the limelight to fall on the B team as they beat Windsor & Eton B 10 – 0.

Due to a late cancellation of the friendly against Cippenham , Desborough had an internal spoon drive and after an exciting afternoon , Andre Davis emerged the winner with a score of +17.

To mark the beginning of the Outdoor Season, Desborough’s bowlers played a Spoon Drive, the format being 4 games of 4 ends with the winner being the person with the best shot difference.  Everyone found it challenging in the beginning to make the adjustment from indoor bowls but some had no problem with Keith Harvey getting a score of +17, Desborough’s Captain for 2023, Steve Isaac, getting +18 and the winner, Marina Bignell, with a score of +20. The season will be in full swing this week as leagues and County competitions start, so bring it on!!

The indoor season has come to an end for another year and we hope all of our members had a successful and rewarding season. The year culminated in finals week last week where all of the club competitions that were run throughout the season ended with a number of finals being played. There were honours across the board including some familiar names and some new names also which is excellent.

To view a summary of the Mens, Ladies and Open/Mixed finalists and results along with some brief commentary from our Club Secretary please click on the link below.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW FINALS RESULTS

Womens Over 60 Pairs National Champions

Desborough has got National Champions as Lorraine Woodley and Mary Price triumphed in the Womens Over 60 Pairs. They began with a victory against Cumbria in the preliminary round and followed it up with wins against Gallow, North Cave and Bournemouth to set up a final against Northampton where they totally overwhelmed the opposition and  won  21 – 12 to claim a National title. Well done ladies!!

County Inter Club Winners

Desborough travelled to Whiteknights IBC to play West Berks in the final of the County Inter- Club fearing that they would be in for a tough game but turned out to be anything but as they won by 44 shots, 118 – 74, winning on all 6 rinks which included a sterling performance from the rink skipped by Graham Crisp who won by 18 shots, 29 – 11.

Rink scores (Skips only)

G Crisp           29       M Noble        11

N Smelt         19       N Elphick       12

M Peachey  15        B Williams    14

C Behmber   20       N Cabeldu    11

M Essex         20       G Ballantyne 12

C Jones          15       D Parsonson 14

Desborough welcomed Southampton Old Green  to Green Lane for a 6 rink triples match and eased to an  85 shot victory, 155 – 70. The visitors’ team are an outdoor club with a spattering  of indoor bowlers and Desborough took advantage of this by winning on 5 of the 6 rinks with top rink honours going to Eric Ireland, Rose Turner and Dave Webster who won by 30 shots, 35 – 5. It will be a different story when we play them outdoors on June 3^rd.

Rink scores

P Colton        K Harvey       A Isaac          34 – 10

S Stewart      S Isaac           D Perriman  26 – 12

T Philpott      B Wright       L Harvey       31 – 10

E Ireland       R Turner        D Webster    35 – 5

R Bridgen      P Winsanley J Monteiro   20 – 16

For the final friendly of the indoor season Desborough welcomed the Royal Household and the home side had the end of season blues as they went down by 49 shots, 91 – 140. Although the rink skipped by Gill Konrad returned a winning scorecard they were pipped to top rink honours by Mike Hutley, Sue Stewart, June  Palmer and Tony Buckley who won by 6 shots, 17 – 11.

Rink scores

C Moran       P Smith          M Gibbs        T Philpott      20 – 22

J Konrad       R Palmer       N Cormican  S Stack          13 – 29

R Bridgen      A Jones          J Sandal        G Konrad      21 – 17

V Sandal       S Page           P Winstanley                   7 – 33

J Gibbs           D Burdon      D Cormican                     13 – 28

M Hutley       S Stewart      J Palmer  T Buckley        17 – 11

Desborough travelled down to Portsmouth to play Victory IBC and after an entertaining afternoon unfortunately went down by 57 shots, 89 -146. Although some rinks had a game to forget it didn’t matter as everyone had a great day but the rink skipped by John Davis won 13 -12 which left all the glory to the Palmers, Roy and June, along with Val and Roger Wyatt to take all the glory with a 7 shot victory, 26 – 19.

Rink scores

J Jarman       C Tupling      J Munnelly    D Webster                9 – 34

J Marshall     D Isaacs        B Wright       S Stack                      20 – 25

R Palmer       J Palmer        V Wyatt        R Wyatt                     26 – 19

N Cormican  J Bucknell      C Northover M Hobson               7 – 32

J Monteiro    D Cormican  P Stanley      J Davis                       13 – 12

M Buckles     C Dawson     A Isaac          T Buckley                  14 – 24

In the London & Southern Counties Fours quarter final, Andrew and Mark Essex along with Rob Measom and Mark Peachey drove Camberley into an early submission as they won 25 – 12. They now face King George Field in the semi-final.

In the National Men’s Over 60’s Double Rink, Desborough played Malvern Hills and with the rink skipped by Kevin Scrace winning 26 – 10 at home and the one skipped away by Dave Simpson narrowly going down 18 – 20 with an aggregate victory of 44 – 30 meant Desborough are through to a quarter final against Plymouth A on March 7.

Desborough welcomed Herts IBC to Green Lane for a 6 rink triples match hoping to avenge the defeat at Watford earlier in the season   but it never materialised as they went down by 42 shots, 88 – 130. The Maidenhead side struggled on 5 of the 6 rinks which left Craig Moran, Jacinta Monteiro and Paul Winstanley to be the only ray of sunshine as they won by 7 shots, 19 – 12.

 Rink scores

R Palmer       A Isaac          R Wyatt            17 – 25

M Buckles     T Philpott      S Stack              4 – 33

V Wyatt        J Munnelly    K Crump           15 – 16

S Isaac           H Payne        D Webster       13 – 22

C Moran       J Monteiro    P Winstanley  19 – 12

Y Hurley        J Palmer        D Perriman     20 – 22

Desborough welcomed the London Irish Bowling Association (LIBA) to Maidenhead for their annual fixture and won by 13 shots, 111 – 98. It was a game of 3 triples and 3 rinks which turned into a ding dong battle but the winning rinks skipped by Mark Essex and Russell Dale along with the top rink of Vijay Sandal, Norma Cormican and Jeff Simpson got Desborough over the line. It is hoped that the rumours of the demise of LIBA are just that and they return in 2024.

Rink scores 

M Bignell      D Burdon      J Monteiro    M Essex         19 -8

S Gwilliam    C Howard     D Cormican  T Buckley      8 – 27

B Bushell       G Konrad      D Webster                            13 – 19

P Stanley      J Sandal        J McDonnell R Dale           24 – 11

 J Konrad      M Buckles     D Seymour                           17 – 23

V Sandal       N Cormican  J Simpson                             30 -10

In National Competitions the highlight was in the Womens Over 60 Pairs where Lorraine Woodley and Mary Price gave a mind blowing performance to defeat a pair from Whiteknights skipped by Sandra Kemp who conceded after 5 of the 18 ends as they were 21 – 1 down. Lorraine and Mary are now in the Area Final.

After qualifying and winning the Potters Champion of Champions week before Christmas out of 32 teams, Desborough’s team Russel Dale, Mark Peachey, Keith Roper and Mark Essex returned last weekend to the same venue and playing rink as the World Championship Finals 2023 to play the Champion of Champions final against County Durham.

The game was very close with some great bowls played by all on what can only be described as a unique and very individual playing surface built specifically for the World Finals. At the end of an hour and a half the scores were evens at 9-9 and therefore an extra end was required.

Both teams played it well and it was left to the very last bowl to decide the outcome and with County Durham holding shot within an inch of the jack, Desborough’s Mark Essex just drew his last bowl past the jack to sit a few inches behind. Well done County Durham on winning and unlucky to Desborough but the game was played in great spirits.

Picture shown includes Greg Harlow (World number 5) presenting the Desborough team with the Runners Up trophy.

Hard luck Desborough and we are hoping to be back there next year to take the spoils!

The Open Singles Circuit rolled into Desborough once again with 64 players hoping to win the top prize of £1000. 12 of the entrants came from Desborough Bowling Club and were a great advertisement for the club especially Andrew Essex who narrowly lost in the semi-final. After two days of fantastic bowls it came down to a final between Scott Edwards form Westlecot and Lee Harris from Bromley in a game that was just as good as the world singles final itself, with Scott just getting over the line in the tie break. We look forward to the OSC returning next year.

In National Competitions, in the Womens Over 50 Triples there was a match between two Desborough teams which resulted in Nicola Jones, Sarah Wooley and Jacinta Monteiro winning 16 – 10 against Helen Jones, Lorraine Woodley and Mary Price.

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In the Mason Trophy, Desborough Ladies faced Handy Cross and eased through to the next round with a 12 shot victory, 41 – 29. With the home rink skipped by Helen Jones and away skipped by Mary Price always in control the result was never in doubt. They now face North Wilts A on 17^th February.

Rink scores

J Williams     J Mayne        J Beal             H Jones          22 – 15

J Monteiro    G Braddock  N Holder       M Price          19 – 14

Desborough welcomed Victory IBC from Portsmouth to Green Lane for a 6 rink friendly and after an entertaining game, the home side managed to win by 24 shots, 127 – 103.Desborough won on 4 rinks with one drawn with the rink skipped by Roger Wyatt winning by 15 shots which normally would have given them top rink honours  but they had to be second best to John Jarman, Marsha Buckles, Clive Northover and John Munnelly who won by 23 shots, 31 – 8. It is bound to be a different story in the return on February 11^th.

Rink scores

J Jarman       M Buckles     C Northover             J Munnelly                31 – 8

T Portch        J Palmer        H Payne                    R Wyatt                     30 – 15

S Isaac           R Bridgen      V Wyatt                    T Buckley                  10 – 30

B Harris         S Stewart      M Hobson                S Stack                      17 – 13

A Jones          T Philpott      C Dawson                 J Monteiro                18 – 16

J Marshall     J Bucknell      P Winstanley           D Webster                21 – 21

The next visitors to Green Lane were Caversham for a 6 rink triples match and the visitors won by 1 shot, 107 – 108, although with Desborough winning 4 of the 6 rinks it would be fair to call the match a draw.The rinks skipped by Jacinta Monteiro, Trevor White and Sam Stack returned winning scorecards but top rink went to Craig Moran, Christine Howard and the enigmatic Paul Winstanley who won by 11 shots, 28 – 17.

Rink scores

C Moran       C Howard     P Winstanley           28 – 17

B Bushell       D Burdon      `J Monteiro              20 – 15

J Gibbs           S Page           T White                     17 – 12

R Bridgen      A Yanna        S Stack                      18 – 12

M Gibbs        D Isaacs        P Smith                      16 – 31

S Stewart      A Jones          P Tuttle                      8 – 21

Desborough entertained Iver Heath at Green Lane for a 5 rink triples match and came out the other side with a 10 shot win, 88 -78. The home side won on 3 of the 5 rinks with those skipped by Sam Stack and David Webster returning winning scorecards but top rink honours went to Marsha Buckles, Roy Palmer and the very experienced Brian Faulkner who won by 12 shots, 21 – 9.

Rink scores

C Moran       J Palmer        S Stack          19 – 16

M Hutley       J Monteiro    D Webster    21 – 13

M Buckles     R Palmer       B Faulkner    21 – 9

T Skinner      P Stanley      T Buckley      14 – 27

J Skinner       D Isaacs        C Northover 11 – 13

In the Men’s Over 60’s Double Rink Desborough A faced Foxhills and had a facile win by 28 shots, 49 – 21. With the away rink skipped by Dave Simpson winning by 18 shots and the home rink skipped by Kevin Scrace winning by 10 they eased into the next round where they will face Malvern Hills.

Rink scores

S Williams     G Knapper    C Jones          D Simpson    29 – 11

J Beal             C Behmber   M Woodley  K Scrace        20 – 10

In National Competitions, in the Women’s Fours, Julie Skelly, Lorraine Woodley, Helen Jones and Mary Price won 23 – 4 against a four skipped by Sandra Kemp from Whiteknights. They are now one step away from the National Finals at Nottingham. The Women’s Over 50 Triples saw Jacinta Monteiro, Sarah Wooley and Nicola Jones gain victory against a triple from Rivermead skipped by Pat Fowkes by 14 shots, 25 -11. They now face a local grudge match against Helen Jones & Co.

Desborough played Whiteknights in a friendly and although they lost by 24 shots, 92 – 116, the opposing captain said as there had been a problem with the scoring, the game was declared a draw. The Maidenhead side found it a struggle all afternoon and although the rink skipped by David Webster managed to draw, the only highlight for Desborough was the top rink of Vijay Sandal, Marsha Buckles, Keith Harvey and John Munnelly who won by 9 shots, 22 – 13.

Rink scores

T Skinner      J Tregurtha  D Perriman  B Faulkner                18 – 19

J Sandal        D Isaacs        P Winstanley                                   13 – 22

V Sandal       M Buckles     K Harvey       J Munnelly                22 – 13

J Skinner       A Jones          L Harvey       T Buckley                  13 – 19

H Boyce         R Bridgen      S Isaac           D Webster                17 – 17

S Page           S Stewart      A Isaac          C Northover             9 – 17

For the Desborough Ladies, the Yetton Trophy campaign is over despite being in control for most of the game with a 10 shot defeat against Dolphin IBC from Poole, 70 – 80. The men managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory against Whiteknights in the London & Southern Counties Shield with a 1 shot loss, 77 – 78.

In National Competitions, there was a terrific performance from Helen Jones and Lorraine Woodley in the Women’s Pairs as they came back from the dead to defeat Pat Holland and Morgan Merryweather from Whiteknights 19 – 15.

Keith Roper, Mark Peachey, Mark Essex and Russell Dale (pictured below) represented Desborough Bowling Club on a visit to Potters Resort for the 2022 Champion of Champions and competed alongside 32 other teams who had won through to the finals week. After some tough fought games, Desborough ended up winners of finals week alongside County Durham who they now meet in the final showdown in mid-January on the World Bowls Championship portable rink prior to the World Championship 2023 Singles Final taking place.

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