Spring Pairs

SPRING PAIRS 2014

The much improved weather attracted an excellent entry of 17 pairs for the Club’s latest competition, the Spring Pairs. For these events, the pairings are drawn randomly and with some of the Club’s top bowlers in the field, some strong pairs were formed.

In the top half of the draw Jim Finnimore was paired with Alex Rimmer, a losing finalist in this competition last season. Their first two games were close affairs but Jim and Alex eventually won through to the semi-finals with 21-20 wins against Mike Dunlop and Irene Nowell and Richard Rawcliffe and Jerome Wilson. The semi-final saw them make more comfortable progress, winning 21-13 against Joan Bond and Kevin Leddy.

In the bottom half of the draw, Joe Parker ( a former winner of the Chairman’s Shield pairs) was drawn to partner Eileen Rawcliffe, who won this competition with Margaret Langley in 2012. This was to prove a formidable pairing and Joe and Eileen won through to the final with wins against Margaret James and Ted Moule (21-18), Chris James and Jon Roberts (21-13) and Geoff Rimmer and Mavis Thompson (21-8).

The outcome of the final was difficult to predict but despite Alex and Jim counting with two at the first end, it was Eileen and Joe who took control of the final by winning 5 of the next 6 ends, including three 3s and a 4 to take a commanding 19-6 lead. Despite Alex and Jim fighting back to make it 11-19, Eileen and Joe were able to score the two singles they needed to clinch victory.