Fab five help Sussex to national semis

Joanna Watt, Darby Thomas, Alice Phillimore, Kira Donno, Lyndsey Jamison, all of whom represented the Sussex under-31 team

Five youngsters from Polegrove Bowls Club helped Sussex to their best showing in the Amy Rose Under-31 Bowls Tournament since 2004.

The team reached the last four of the Leamington Spa-based competition, which they lost in the final of nine years ago.

Making their Amy Rose debuts, both Darby Thomas and Joanna Watt gave steady performances, while the more experienced Kira Donno was able to really help the younger girls.

Lyndsey Jamison - who was part of the 2004 runners-up, captained a young team which played some excellent bowls against tough opponents. Alice Phillimore travelled as reserve.

Sussex started their campaign with a comfortable 53-31 win against Durham before edging a nailbiting quarter-final against Kent on an extra end.

The young Sussex team played admirably to only lose by one shot in the semi-finals against a strong Devon team that included Commonwealth Games gold medalist Natalie Melmore.

Each team member was awarded a national finalist badge and they shared a cash prize for their efforts.