Welcome to The Delivery! This is our daily feature that brings you a round-up of action from Victoria Park plus a preview for the following day.
Day Four – Sunday 28th August
The first Sunday of the 2022 National Finals saw a huge turnout, as hundreds of people turned up to catch a glimpse of the action as the hot sun shone brightly on Victoria Park.
Men’s Triples Final – Winners: Cumbria
The first of Sunday’s action saw Cumbria and Derbyshire go head-to-head in the Men’s Triples final. Cumbria were represented by Kevin Harrison, Mark Irwin and Stuart Irwin of Aspatria BC. Stute BC’s Josh Grant, Dan Thornhill and Phil Broughton were flying the flag for Derbyshire. It proved to be a superb spectacle for the supporters in the stands.
A tight affair was the story of the first half of the match. The lead swung five times before being level at 8-8 after twelve ends. Cumbria strung three ends together to take a five shot lead in the closing stages. Despite a spirited effort from the Derbyshire triple to claw themselves back into the game, Cumbria held on and clinched the game 14-10.
Neither county scored more than two in an end resulting in a brilliant and tense encounter. It was jubilant times for Harrison and the Irwin brothers from Cumbria as they lifted the trophy. They were runners up in 2019 to Berkshire so were delighted to call themselves National winners in 2022.
Johns Trophy – Winners: Lincolnshire
The Johns trophy semi finals drew large crowds complete with flags, hooters and chants first thing as the final stages got underway.
Lincolnshire sailed through to the final of the John’s trophy, securing a convincing win against Wiltshire 149-85. Commonwealth Games Silver Medallist Amy Pharoah impressed the crowds after winning an impressive 36-5 on her rink, with Lin Mountain securing a similarly high score line of 32-13. In the final the highly decorated England player won 25-16.
They faced Surrey in the final, last year’s finalists, after they defeated Norfolk 126-89. Among the wealth of experienced players in the county, Debbie Souter represented the southern county after narrowly losing the Family Pairs the night before with son Charlie. She secured a one-shot victory in the semi-finals but lost in the final 24-15 despite getting off to a close start.
In the end, the final was rather one-sided in Lincolnshire’s favour. The county got off to a strong start and Surrey, who have reached the final of the John’s for the fourth consecutive year, were unable to claw back. Lincolnshire finished 142-88 and lifted the trophy for the first time since they defeated Kent in the final in 2016.
Men’s Pairs
Family Pairs winners Dan Holmes and Tom Holmes got off to a great start in the prelim of the Men’s Pairs overcoming a strong Norfolk pair consisting of Mervin King and Richard Summers, 17-15. The Holmes’ brothers then secured a convincing win in their second match in the Men’s Pairs, beating Durham 28-5.
European Men’s Pairs Gold Medallist Ed Morris (Essex), who is no stranger to Victoria Park, won just seven ends out of the eighteen with Christopher Muir but due to a couple of big counts they were able to force an extra end and win 22-21 against Mark Smith and Rob Hackwell (Middlesex). However, the Essex pairing lost in the second round to Gloucestershire’s Chris Blake and Ian Gauld 17-6 – a bit of an early upset in the Men’s Pairs.
A tight tussle took place on E green between Suffolk and Northumberland. Internationals Josh Minto and Chris Yeomans lost by one shot to Mark Euston and Mark Royal from Suffolk 15-14. Euston and Royal then beat Terry Perkins and Chris Spurrey (Somerset) 22-11 in Round One.
There was also a 22-11 win for Warwickshire’s Dan Box and Andrew Walters over Sussex’s Darren Anderson and Jack Fairhall plus a narrow 19-18 victory for Middlesex’s Andy Coombe and Colin Pink over Anthony Reynolds and Nathan Beeson.
You can find all results from the Men’s Pairs here
Day Five – Monday 29th August
Thirty-two competitors return to Victoria Park on Bank Holiday Monday for the closing stages of the Men’s Pairs which begins with the Round of 16 at 10am. Only four pairs will retain hopes of replacing Norfolk Bowling Club’s John Tufts and Wayne Willgress as National Champions by the end of play.
The Women’s Pairs gets underway at 10am when the 48 hopefuls facing the starter include Commonwealth Games medallists Sian Honnor, who along with Appleyard clubmate Stephanie Crates represents Kent, and Sophie Tolchard from King’s Torquay Devon who joins Harriet Stevens.
Some stars of the future also enter the fray in the form of the Men’s Junior Pairs which gets underway at 3.30pm. Devon’s Kieron Kniveton who last year lifted the trophy in the company of Harry Goodwin is 12 months later joined by Scott Eveleigh to defend his crown.
Social media coverage is available on Bowls England’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram sites.
Tickets to the National Finals start at just £4 for adults and £1 for Under 21s offer a full day of top-class sporting action. Tickets increase to £5.50 adults and £1.50 Under 21s at weekends. Event passes are available and all tickets are cheaper in advance.
Please note: U16s must be accompanied by an adult. Under 3s enter free of charge.