Northants Bowling Federation

Outstanding individual at the Northants Men's and Women's Bowling Federation finals at Whittlesey Manort on Sunday was Linda Darani (City of Peterborough) who won three of the four events in which she competed – the two and four-bowl singles and the two-bowl triples with clubmates Fiona Richardson and Norma Squires.

Along with other Northants winners, she will now fly the Northants flag in Skegness next month, when the national finals take place at the Suncastle greens against 12 other English Federation counties.   

Her only defeat was in the Senior singles, beaten 21-10 by Helen Crow from Langtoft, who also won the three-bowl triples with Parkway team-mates Pat Reynolds and Sarah Newson having lost the 2-bowl triples final.

Among others securing doubles were Mick Duell (West Ward) in the senior singles and senior mixed pairs and Whittlesey Manor's Steve Roden, who took the Champion of champion singles against Empingham's Jonathan Corby and the three-bowl triples with Roger Stevens and Peter Brown, having lost the two-bowl version to Parkway.

The blue riband men's singles went to Andy Thurston (Parkway), avenging his father's John's earlier defeat by Peter Cox and Graham Agger (Broadway, Yaxley),  who will be returning to compete at Skegness for the first time in six years, following a 21-8 triumph over Neil Wright (Parkway). However, Wright later claimed his second title combining with Howard Shipp to beat Nick Wilkie and Alex Emery comfortably in the pairs.
 
Sheila Craig (Conservative Club) made it to three finals but emerged with only one win – a runaway victory with Liz Hext in the ladies pairs, having earlier lost to Ann Cullingworth and Ann White from Langtoft Pearl in a one-sided Senior version.

One of the tightest finishes came in an entertaining Under 25 pairs where Blackstones' Nathan Rigby and Jay Travis-Jenner snapped up a single on the last end to force extra time against Jonny Hall and Tom Fielding (Mitchells), only to lose it when their last bowl finished agonisingly short of its target.

Blackstones bowler Rita Downes will be making her national championship debut at Skegness in the mixed pairs.

But she will have plenty of experience at her side. Jonathan Earl is the current two-bowl triples champion – a title he won with Martyn Dolby and Adam Warrington last year on the Suncastle greens.

Downes and Earl put on an outstanding display in the second half against the combination of Empingham's Jan Want and fellow Blackstones bowler Stephen Harris, who had earlier won the Under 25 singles for the second successive year.

After winning his Secretary's singles, against Andy Grief (Crowland), Want's regular partner Mike Ramsden was feeling unwell, so Harris stepped in and the pair took a 10-7 lead after 10 ends. However, Downes and Earl began to find their length and accuracy and finally ran out comfortable 20-10 winners with ends to spare.

The events were expertly organised by respective county competition secretaries Richard Montgomery and Janet Duffy with assistance from host club Whittlesey Manor who supplied refreeshments and a barbecue. In attendance were County presidents Malcolm Squires and Valerie Du'Kett along with umpires Alan Croxford and Les Sharp.

Results

Ladies 2-bowl singles: S Newson (Parkway) lost to  L Darani (City of Peterborough) 14-21; Men's 2-bowl singles: A Thurston (Parkway) bt P Cox (Langtoft Pearl) 21-9; Men's 4-bowl singles: N Wright (Parkway) lost to G Agger (Broadway, Yaxley) 21-8; Secretary's singles: A Grief (Crowland) lost M Ramsden (Empingham); Men's senior singles: M Duell (West Ward) bt J Martin (Peterborough & District) 21-13; Under 25 singles: J Corney (P & D) lost S Harris (Blackstones) 21-17.

Champion of champions singles: S Roden (Whittlesey Manor) bt J Corby (Emp) 21-17; Ladies Senior pairs: P Bussey/ S Craig (Conservative) lost A Cullingworth/A White (Langtoft Pearl) 9-20; Ladies Secretary's singles : G Edwards (Ketton) lost V Hatch (West Ward) 18-21; Ladies Senior singles L Darani (C of P) lost H Crow (Parkway)  10-21; Men's Senior Pairs: R Stevens/ T Mace (WM) lost to A Grief/ P Holmes (Crowland) 3-23. Under 25 pairs: J Hall/ T Fielding (Mitchells) bt J Travis-Jenner/ J Rigby (Blackstones) 18-17.

Ladies pairs: V Du'Kett/ C Warters (Ketton) lost to v L Hext/S Craig 4-27; Ladies Champion of Champions: K Browning (City of Peterborough) lost to P O'Brien (Deeping Assn) 21-14; Ladies 2-bowl triples: H Crow/ S Newson/P Reynolds (Parkway) lost to N Squires/L Darani/ F Richardson (C of P) 15-14; Senior mixed Pairs: J and D Hilton (West Ward) L Barr/M Duell (West Ward) 17-13; Men's 2-bowl triples: N Wright/ S Law/T Scarr (Parkway) bt S Roden/ R Stevens/ P Brown (WM) 20-10; Mixed pairs: J Want/S Harris (Empingham/Blackstones) lost R Downes/ J Earl (Blackstones) 21-10.

Men's Pairs: N Wilkie/A Emery (P & D) lost H Shipp/ N Wright 18-8;(Parkway); Mixed Triples: J Corney, S Green/D Corney (P&D) lost to K Martin/B Martin/ J Harford (Parkway) 25-22; Men's 3-bowl triples: S Roden, R Stevens, P Brown (WM) bt G Jinks/ F Richardson/ B Lawrence (WM) 29-20; Ladies 3-bowl triples: A Morton/ J Duffy/ J Masters lost H Crow/ S Newson/ P Reynolds (Parkway) 20-12; Ladies 4-bowl singles: S Craig (Conservative) lost L Darani (C of P) 21-11.

Northants Bowling Federation (and NWBF) stages its men's and women's county finals at Whittlesey Manor on Sunday (July 20) with places at the English Federation finals in Skegness at stake.

Several players will be bidding for more than one county title, with Linda Darani (City of Peterborough) chasing a double of two-bowl and four-bowl singles, as well as the two-bowl triples and the senior singles.

Sheila Craig (Conservative) is in three finals – two pairs events and the 4-bowl singles -  as are Sarah Newson and Helen Crow.

Whittlesey Manor's Steve Roden and Roger Stevens are in three men's finals, playing together (with Pete Brown) in the two and three bowl triples, while Roden challenges for the Champion of champions and Stevens joins Tony Mace in the Senior pairs.

Schedule:

10am: Ladies 2-bowl singles: S Newson v L Darani; Men's 2-bowl singles: A Thurston v P Cox; Men's 4-bowl singles: N Wright v G Agger; Secretary's singles: A Grief v M Ramsden; Men's senior singles: M Duell v J Martin; Under 25 singles: J Corney v S Harris.

12 noon: Champion of champions singles: S Roden v J Corby; Ladies Senior pairs: P Bussey/ S Craig v A Cullingworth/A White; Ladies Secretary's singles : G Edwards v V Hatch; Ladies Senior singles L Darani v H Crow; Men's Senior Pairs: R Stevens/ T Mace v A Grief/ P Holmes. Under 25 pairs: J Hall/ T Fielding v J Travis-Jenner/ J Rigby.

2pm: Ladies pairs: V Du'Kett/. C Warters v S Craig/ L Hext; Ladies C of C: K Browning v P O'Brien; Ladies 2-bowl triples: H Crow/ S Newson/P Reynolds v N Squires/L Darani/ F Richardson; Senior mixed Pairs: J and D Hilton v L Barr/M Duell; Men's 2-bowl triples: N Wright/ S Law/T Scarr v S Roden/ R Stevens/ P Brown; Mixed pairs: J Want/M Ramsden v R Downes/ J Earl.

4pm: Men's Pairs: N Wilkie/A Emery v H Shipp/ N Wright; Mixed Triples: J Corney, S Green/D Corney v K Martin/B Martin/ J Harford; Men's 3-bowl triples: S Roden, R Stevens, P Brown v G Jinks/ F Richardson/ B Lawrence; Ladies 3-bowl triples: A Morton/ J Duffy/ J Masters v H Crow/ S Newson/ P Reynolds; Ladies 4-bowl singles: S Craig v L Darani.

Raffle prizes are welcome and refreshments will be served throughout the day.

Northants Bowling Federation's hopes of improving on their previous season in the inter-county southern division of the men's Adams Trophy were dashed when they were beaten 192-172 by local rivals Hunts at Brampton Institute.

In heat that at times rivalled that endured in the Brazil World Cup, they never fully recovered from a poor start on an immaculate surface and won narrowly on only two rinks and drew on another to claim only five of the 18 points they needed to challenge defending champions Lincolnshire for second place.

League leaders Suffolk now need only six points from bottom of the table North Essex to claim their place in the national final at Skegness against Durham.

Northants' second string Newton Trophy team, however, finished the season in better spirits, beating Hunts 17-5 with an emphatic 175-151 victory at Somersham.

Northants' women bowlers secured two welcome victories at North Essex but after, for some, a 14-hour round trip to Norwich in which their coach suffered a puncture, they returned with only a total of eight points to show from their two matches against Norfolk.  

Results (Northants names only)

Adams Trophy (at Brampton Institute): Hunts 192 (17pts), Northants 175 (5). R Stevens, D Noble, M Welsford won 30-21; F Richardson, P Buckley, L Welsford won 37-35; N Wright, C Watson, J Harford drew 28-28; S Fenlon, B Warters, R Martin lost 30-32; S Roden, G Agger, P Brown lost 25-30; S Jinks, G Jinks, B Lawrence lost 22-46.

Newton Trophy (at Somersham): Hunts151 (5), Northants 175 (17) P Holmes, A Grief, F Addy won 33 – 14; J Corney, M Greaves, R Strong won 34 – 18; P Cox, R Montgomery, M Squires lost 34 – 37; J Ruddy, D Corney, P Jessop drew 30 – 30; J Clipston, H Shipp, R Maplethorpe lost 15 – 31; M Ramsden, L Sharp, M Linnell won 29 – 20.
 
Donald Steward Trophy ((at Haverhill): North Essex 120 (6) Northants 153 (16). K Martin, M Bussey, S Craig won 33-10; S Suffling, N Squires, L Darani lost 17 – 23; D Flowers, J Duffy, J Masters lost 22 – 30; G Edwards, F Thomas, P O'Brien lost 21 – 26; L Hext, J Ford, J Padley won 37 – 13; K Browning, S Moir, J Robinson won 23 – 18.
 
Silver Jubilee Vase (at West Hadingham): North Essex 127 (6), Northants 128 (16). J Needham, C Warters, A Cullingworth won 25 – 20; V Du'Kett, G King, M Linnell lost 14 – 28; S Green, V Hatch, L Toms won 26 – 17; M Randall, J Hill, W Harrold won 27 – 15; M Malton, W Stevens, P Collicott lost 19 – 26; A Hadley, R Collin, S Dale lost 17 – 21.

Donald Steward Trophy (at County Arts, Norwich). Norfolk 153 (16), Northants 130 (6) S Suffling, N Squires, L Darani won 25-22; D Flowers, J Duffy, J Masters lost 17-31; G Edwards, S Moir, P O'Brien lost 17-32; M Linnell, J Padley, J Ford won 22-20; K Martin, M Bussey, S Craig won 32-17; K Browning, H Bass, J Robinson lost 17-31
 
Silver Jubilee Vase (at Carters, Norwich). Norfolk 146 (20), Northants 110 (2). J Needham, C Warters, A Cullingworth lost 17-28; V Du'Kett, G King, A Cooper won 21-16; S Green, V Hatch, L Toms lost 15-24; M Malton, W Stevens, P collicott lostr 21-25; V Hempsell, J Hill, W Harrold lost 18-23; T Hanley, R Collin, S Dale lost 18-30.
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Ketton Bowls Club celebrated its 40th anniversary with a match between Peter Edwards' President's team against players from the Northants Men's and Women's Bowling Federations, to which the club is affiliated.

The visitors won a closely-fought match 124-103 and afterwards congratulated the club on its recent green refurbishments and Ketton Sports and Community Association on its efforts to establish a multi-sport centre of excellence for cricket, football, tennis and bowls.

More than 40 bowlers and guests attended Valerie Du'Kett's Northants Women's Bowling Federation President's Day at Ketton Bowls Club where she is a member.

Among the invitees were her daughter Natalie and son Tam, players who helped introduce her to the sport locally and fellow officials of the NWBF.

She also received a cake in the form of a bowling green scene, made by her son's partner Lesley as well as many presents from well-wishers.

(Pictures by Bob Warters – Click on each to enlarge)

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Northants Men's Adams Trophy team, enters the final phase of their English Federation Inter-County campaign, knowing that even maximum points against Hunts at Brampton on Saturday will not earn them a place in the national finals for the first time since 1959.

With Suffolk's defeat of Lincs at the weekend, it has put Northants' slender Southern section title hopes out of reach but captain Cliff Watson is confident the team is on an upward curve to achieving their goal next season.

"It's disappointing that we are only playing for second place now but the spirit in the squad is outstanding and we are maybe only two or three players away from finally getting there next season," he said.

The Newton Trophy team plays Hunts at Somersham.

Northants Federation bowlers kept their hopes alive of a rare visit to the English finals at Skegness in the inter-county Adams Trophy by defeating title holders Lincolnshire at Whittlesey Manor.

Following on from their narrow defeat at Suffolk last week, Northants were determined to make the most of home advantage, despite the disruptive influence of heavy rain mid-way through the match which changed green conditions and made gripping the bowls more treacherous.

With just six of the 31 ends to play they trailed by nine shots overall but a late burst of scoring as they approached the finishing line overhauled the title favourites and earned a rare victory against local rivals.

Great credit to the rinks inspired by vocal Whittlesey skips Pete Brown and Martin Welford who led their men to match-winning margins of 16 and 20 shots respectively while other rinks worked hard to keep scores as tight as possible.

With Lincs travelling to Suffolk this week, Northants, who have a week off before meeting Hunts on July 12, still have an outside chance of qualifying if results go in their favour.

Northants Newton Trophy team earned two wins  and a draw against the current title holders from Lincolnshire at Broadway BC in Yaxley with Jim Ruddy, Dave Corney and Phil Jessop taking the rink honours.

Results (Northants names only)

Adams Trophy (at Whittlesey Manor) Northants 165 (14pts), Lincs 156 (8).  S Fenlon, B Warters, R Martin lost 24-38; P Dalliday, G Jinks, B Lawrence lost 21-31; S Roden, G Agger, P Brown won 38-22; R
Stevens, D Noble, M Welsford won35-15; S Harris, AWarrington, J Earl lost 27-28; F Richardson, P Buckley, L Welsford lost 20-22.

Newton Trophy (at Broadway, Yaxley): Northants 130 (5)  Lincs 141 (17). J Clipston, H Shipp, R Maplethorpe  won 25 – 22; B Bassam, M Greaves, R Strong lost 19 – 29; P Holmes, A Grief, F Addy drew 24 – 24; P Cox, R Montgomery, M Squires lost 17 – 23; J Ruddy, D Corney, P Jessop won 24 – 20; L Sharp, M Linnell, J Hadley lost 21- 23.

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Northants Under 25s were hoping to reach the national finals for the first time in their history when they entertained chief challengers Norfolk at Whittlesey on Sunday after wins against Hunts and Suffolk.

But with their inspirational Junior international skip Hannah Overton unavailable, they found the task just beyond their reach and lost overall by 18 shots in the 2-bowl triples, 31-end format.

Norfolk who brought at coachload of vocal support and encouragement with them, always held sway on one rink in particular and with some talented young prospects in their side held on to take the points and a guaranteed visit to the national finals  in Skegness next month.

Said team manager Mike Ramsden: "It was disappointing to lose at the final hurdle but the players have been outstanding as have the parents and friends who have supported them. We will still have the nucleus of the side next year and hopefully a possible new format to reduce travelling will be to our advantage."

Result (Northants names only)

Reg Wright Under 25 Trophy. Northants 104 (3), Norfolk 122 (11). L Harris, D Middleton, J Harford drew 30-30; J Clark, D Randall, J Randall won 33-32; D Smith, J Corney, A Cook lost 17-33; N Rigby, J Travis-Jenner, S Harris lost 24-27.

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Northants Silver Jubilee Vase women's team secured the county's first win of the season when they claimed all 22 points in their re-arranged match against North Cambs at Wisbech on Saturday.

Ann Hadley, Ro Collin and Stella Dale narrow claimed the rink honours with a 32-10 victory over Ann Cullingworth's trio (30-9).

Against Lincolnshire at Ketton, Northants' Donald Steward team suffered a third successive home defeat in a disappointing start to the season.

Silver Jubilee Vase (at Wisbech). North Cambs 97 (0), Northants 165 (22). V Du'Kett, G King, M Linnell won 26 – 17; J Needham, C Warters, A Cullingworth won 30 – 9; J.Garner, V Hempsell, L Toms won 27 – 23; M Randall, J Hill, W Harrold won 19 – 16; A Hadley, R Collin, S Dale won 32 – 10; P Collicott, W Stevens, J Ford won 31 – 22.

Donald Steward Trophy: Northants 130 (4), Lincs 149 (18). P Bussey, S Moir, S Craig won 33-25; S Suffling, N Squires, L Darani won 28-24; D Flowers, J Duffy, J Masters lost 25-26; G Edwards, F Thomas, P 'O'Brien lost 11-27; L Hext, J Ford, J Padley lost 14-23; K Browning, H Bass, J Robinson lost 19-24.

 Silver Vase (at Whittlesey Manor) Northants 104 (5), Lincs 145 (17). M Malton, F Richardson, P Collicott lost 8-38; J Needham, C Warters, A Cullingworth won 20-16; V Du'Kett H King, M Linnell won 27-18; M Randall, J Hill, W Harrold won 27-18; A Hadley, R Collin, S Dale drew 22-22; V Hatch, J Garner, L Toms lost 16-21.

Northants' young bowling talent, have a great chance to reach the English Bowling Federation National finals in Skegness after beating Suffolk in the latest Reg Wright Under 25 Trophy match at Whittlesey Manor.

The county has never even reached the finals in the competition's 30 year existence but on Sunday (June 29) they face rivals Norfolk (who triumphed against Hunts), in the final home match at Whittlesey, with the winners guaranteed a place in the final against  the Federation's northern section champions in August.     

Among the stars of the show against Suffolk were Blackstones' trio Nathan Rigby, Jay Travis-Jenner and Stephen Harris who strolled to a 45-15 victory, while Stephen's sister Louise and fellow Blacsktone's bowler Darren Middleton helped Parkway's Hannah Overton to a 29-24 triumph.

Northants' Adams Trophy men's team had the chance to set up and tense qualifying tussle with Lincolnshire this weekend, but could not quite get the better of Suffolk at Stanton, conceding a narrow defeat by just six shots in an exhilarating 186 ends of two bowl triples.

Lincolnshire, meanwhile,  took all 22 points from Norfolk, so will be a tough nut to crack.

Always struggling to cope with the tricks and runs of the local green in Suffolk, Northants trailed overall for long periods but with a late surge managed to level the scores with three of the six rinks still to finish.

However, they dropped a couple of counts at the death, enough for Suffolk to take the overall points 17-5 with a 172-166 shots scoreline.

Roger Martin, partnered by fellow West Ward player Sean Fenlon and Bob Warters (Ketton) took the rink honours for the fourth successive week with a 40-21 win but reflected ruefully on dropping a maximum six count mid-way which could have proved vital to the overall campaign.

Northants second string Newton Trophy team brought in former Adams and Middleton Cup player Peter Cox (Langtoft Pearl) in a re-shuffled side for the visit to Suffolk but the home team still proved too strong, securing a win by more than 50 shots.

 Results (Northants names only)

Reg Wright Under 25 Trophy (at Whittlesey Manor). Northants 129 (13) Suffolk 91 (1). L Harris, D Middleton, H Overton won 29-24; N Rigby, J Travis-Jenner, S Harris won 45-15; J Clark, D Randall, J Randall won 30-27; D Smith, A Cook, J Harford  drew 25-25.

Adams Trophy (at Stanton) Suffolk 172 (17pts) Northants 166 (5). S Harris, A Warrington, J Earl drew 26-26; F Richardson, P Buckley, L Welsford lost 23-34;  S Roden, G Agger, P Brown lost 21-34; R Stevens, D Noble, M Welsford lost 25-27; P Dalliday, G Jinks, B Lawrence won 31-30; S Fenlon, B Warters, R Martin won 40-21.

Newton Trophy (at Haughley).Suffolk 185 (20), Northants 129 (2).  J.Ruddy, D.Corney P.Jessop lost 15 – 34; P.Cox R.Montgomery M.Squires lost 17 – 32;
J.Clipston H.Shipp R.Maplethorpe won 32 18;
L.Sharp M.Linnell J.Hadley lost 19 – 37; P.Holmes A.Grief F.Addy lost 23 – 24; B.Bassam, M.Greaves, R.Strong lost 23 – 40

Against local rivals Huntingdonshire, the Northants Women's Bowling Federation teams suffered another double blow in the southern section of the English County Championships.

On a slick Ketton green, the senior Donald Steward team shared the spoils with their visitors, winning three rinks and losing three but one ten-shot defeat was enough to swing the overall balance in Hunts' favour by a six point margin.

Northants had a chance to square the match in the closing stages when they trailed overall by only five shots but couldn't quite convert the extra shots they needed to secure their first win of a so far disappointing season.

This week's visitors to Ketton on Wednesday (June 25) are Lincolnshire.

At Whittlesey Manor, the Silver Vase team were hoping for improvement on their showing against Suffolk. But again Hunts coped with the firm, tricky conditions and claimed wins on four of the six 2-bowl triples rinks.

This week the team is due to host Lincs on Wednesday (1pm) then travel for a re-arranged match with North Cambs at Wisbech on June 28.

 Results (Northants names only)
 
 Donald Steward Trophy (at Ketton). Northants 126 (6pts) Hunts 134 (16). P Bussey, M Bussey, S Craig won 20 – 18; S Suffling, N Squires, L Darani lost 18 – 22; D Flowers, J Duffy, J Masters lost 17 – 27; G Edwards, F Thomas, P O'Brien won 27 – 22; E.Hext, J Ford, J Padley lost 21 – 25; K Browning, H Bass, J Robinson won 23 – 20.
 
Silver Jubilee Vase (at Whittlesey Manor): Northants 127 (4), Hunts 142 (18). M Randall, G King, J Redhead lost 20 – 28; A Hadley, R Collin, S Dale won 26 – 23; V Hatch, L Toms, J Garner lost 22 – 25; S Henshaw, V Du'Kett, M Andrews lost 15 – 28; M Malton, P Collicott, F Richardson won 23 – 15; J Needham, C Warters, M Linnell lost 21 – 23.
 

Northants bowlers have made a flying start to their Adams Trophy campaign and with a third successive win and sit at the top of the English Federation Inter-County (south) table.

Their latest victims were North Cambs at Downham Market where they returned with 20 vital points after claiming 36 from their opening home encounters against North Essex and Norfolk in the two-bowl triples, 31-end format.

North Cambs adapted quickly to their home surface but it didn't take long for Northants players to start peppering the jack on a surface that produced quite a few tricks and wriggles around the heads.

By the halfway stage the team was in complete command and piled on the pressure, giving no quarter in a bid to improve their shots aggregate ahead of this week's tough visit to Suffolk.

For the third successive week Roger Martin, showing great pace control and accuracy, skipped the best winning rink – this time aided in a 49-12 demolition by Sean Fenlon and Bob Warters. It leaves captain Cliff Watson with a selection headache this week when Lee Welsford and Jonathan Earl are due to return.

The Newton team , after successive defeats got back on the winning track at North Cambs' Tilney St Clements green with a 207-127 victory, securing 20 of the 22 points available.

Results (Northants names only)

Adams Trophy (at Downham Market): North Cambs 132 (2pts), Northants 210 (20) S Harris, A Warrington, M Dolby won 39-16; G Jinks, S Roden, P Brown lost 17-32; F Richardson, C Watson, P Buckley won 30-19; G Agger, P Dalliday, B Lawrence won 37-23; R Stevens, D Noble, M Welsford won 38-29; S Fenlon, B Warters, R Martin won 49-12.

Newton Trophy (at Tilney) North Cambs127 (2), Northants 207 (20). B Martin, D Corney, P Jessop won 47 – 9; J Clipston, H Shipp, R Maplethorpe won 34 – 16; J Corney, MGreaves, J Randall won 43 – 25;
L Sharp, S Irwin; J Hadley won 35 – 24; P Holmes, A Grief,  F Addy won 27 – 24; J Ruddy R Montgomery M Squires lost 22 – 29.

Despite leading by 20 shots with five ends to play, Northants Senior Donald Steward team slipped to a ten shots defeat in the first ever county match played at the refurbished Ketton green.

Suffolk who included national president Margaret Thorpe in the line-up, came with a late surge as Northants wilted under the pressure and ran out deserving winners, claiming 16 of the 22 points.

Both teams were highly complimentary about the conditions, facilities and catering at Ketton, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary and where further matches are due to be staged against Hunts (June 18) and Lincs (June 25).

At Whittlesey Manor, the Northants Silver Vase team, containing several local players making their debuts, were beaten by 40 shots by the Suffolk second string and managed to emerge with only two winning rinks.

Results (Northants names only)

Donald Steward Trophy (at Ketton): Northants 121 (6pts), Suffolk 131(16). P. Bussey, M.Bussey, S.Craig lost 22 – 27; S.Suffling, N.Squires, L.Darani lost 16-22; E.Hext, J. Ford, J.Padley drew 22 – 22; S.Moir, G.Edwards, P.O'Brien won 22 – 21; D.Flowers, J.Duffy, J.Masters drew 19 – 19; K.Browning, H.Bass, J.Robinson won 23 – 20
 
Silver Vase (at Whittlesey Manor): Northanrts 106 (4), Suffolk 146 (18) J Needham, CWarters, ACullingworth lost 19 – 24; S Henshaw, V Du'Kett,  W Harrold lost 18 -34; J Hill, P Collicott, J Dupree lost 8 – 30; V Hatch, L Toms, J Garner lost 15 – 25; M Randall, G King, J Redhead won 23 – 16; A Hadley, M Andrews, S Dale won 23 – 17.

The outdoor men's competitions for 2014 are now available and have been updated.

We apologies for the delay, this was due to an internal communications problem.

Thank you for your continued support. Good luck to all those still in competitions.