Winter League
Stephen Haigh of Lindley BC is the first winner of the new Winter Cup competition after beating Adrian 'Crafty' Cooper 21-11 in the final at Milnsbridge BC yesterday. Stephen plays in the Lindley club's 'B' team in this competition in the Division 3 section at Thorpe Green. His +4 handicap advantage was key in him reaching the Final but played no part in the final result as he played the long corner-to-corner mark very well to claim most of his points. Reverting to these tactics after 14 ends when he was just edging it then by 11-10. However Crafty was only to score one more point as Stephen won 7 of the last 8 ends to clinch the title.
Unfortunately, one of the strong contenders for the title, Graham Hirst of Lower Hopton and the bowler who topped the league averages, tested positive on the morning of the competition for Covid and had no choice but to withdraw from contention. That saw Colin Hampshaw progress by default through to the semi-finals where he faced Crafty Cooper who was now the competition favourite. He quickly established a 12-2 lead after 9 ends leaving Colin too much to do in the second half of the game to go down 9-21.
The second semi-final was the closest and possibly the best game of the day with the eventual Champion being pushed all the way by Mike Thornton, his club colleague, who came from 17-10 down to eventually lose out to 19 with Stephen's +4 handicap proving crucial on this occasion.
The Finals Day of the inaugural holding of the Cup was staged in typically un-winter like weather as the bowlers enjoyed a bit of sun on their backs and 17C temperatures. The players wore coloured armbands to help spectators identify which bowlers and which game they were watching and any feedback on this experiment will be welcomed by the League by email to jefftheref2000@yahoo.co.uk. A good day out and the organisers now have to decide whether playing the competition outside of the winter season as dictated by circumstances this year, should become the norm for future seasons. Again your comments are welcome using the same email address.
Quarter-Finals Adrian Cooper 21-16 Lorraine Hirst Colin Hampshaw (+2) bye
John Inman (+4) 11-21 Stephen Haigh (+4)
Mike Thornton 21-16 Neale Wallace (+2)
Semi-Finals Adrian Cooper 21-9 Colin Hampshaw (+2) Stephen Haigh (+2) 21-19 Mike Thornton
Final Adrian Cooper 11-21 Stephen Haigh
All the finalists along with competition sponsor Garry Senior holding the new trophy and Finals Day referee Ray Tunnacliffe in attendance. COMING SOON: The Winter Cup Final Video
