Pavilion Bears on brink of retaining West Sussex Bowls League championship

Victory on three rinks and by 88 shots to 76 on aggregate tightened the Bears' grip on the championship while eliminating Tarring from the race.

The Bears now need only two points from their last game on Saturday to become the first team since 2019 to win consecutive titles. Southbourne are the one team that can deny them, if they win big at Pagham and the Bears earn no points at East Preston.

Fittingly, John Frew skipped the Bears' top rink against Tarring in his final match before he moves to Dorset. Ably supported by Jeremy Simpson, Barrie Evans and Paul Ward, the hosts raced into a 10-0 lead after three ends. Frank Tsang's rink fought back gamely but eventually lost 27-16.

Colin Davey, Russ Doherty, Jamie Dunk and skip Simon Davey traded threes at the start of their match against Stuart Shwartz's rink. The Bears gradually pulled clear, helped by a couple of fours, to lead 21-11 with five to play. Twelve shots were shared evenly on those ends in a 27-17 home win.

Kevin Yeo skipped Nour Dissem, Francis Fahey and Tommy Walker, who at the age of 14 was awarded his Sussex County cap on Saturday. Yeo's rink were made to battle all the way by Andy Clarke's rink. Neither side managed to take more than three consecutive ends and only one shot separated them at the finish, with the Bears winning 18-17.

Andy Smalldridge skipped Andy Peters, Dave Thomas and Mick Patching against Chris Ide's rink, who went ahead on the third end and were never caught. Two fours for Tarring quashed the Bears, who lost 26-16.

Pavilion Bulls delivered one of their best performances of the season in their final away match, defeating Tarring Priory 88-61 and earning eight of the 10 points on offer.

Keith Lyons, Colin Johnson, Ken Chapman and skip Simon Warr were in dominant form against Stuart Shwartz's rink, taking 14 of the 21 ends despite dropping a single on the first and two on the last. A five on the 17th end was the highlight of a 25-10 victory.

Tim Baldwin skipped George Rhodes, Barry Wood and Peter Tomley to a 26-15 win. They also dropped a single on the first before building a 15-4 lead against Chris Ide's rink after nine ends. The hosts twice narrowed the deficit to four shots but the Bulls made sure of the points by taking the last five ends.

The third rink win was a nailbiter. Roger Dutton, Peter Woods, Keith Wadhams and skip Derek Little went 7-3 up on the fourth end with a five before losing seven of the next eight ends against Richard Dray's rink. The Bulls regained the lead on the 17th end with a three and took three more ends for a 17-14 victory.

Tony Beale, Bill Muir, Jonathan Gauntlett and skip Richard Krupa started slowly against Frank Tsang's rink, dropping a five on the fourth end. The Bulls responded positively to go one up after 11 but then conceded nine ends on the trot, eventually losing 29-13.

What should have been the final Bulls match of the season, away to Norfolk A, was rained off after yet another downpour.

Pavilion Badgers travelled to the Maltravers club in Littlehampton for the final game of their inaugural season in Division Three.

Alan Cheeseman's rink of Terry Edmondson, Phil Carter and Bernie Homer gained the Badgers' only point after a hard-fought tie. They recovered from a shaky start in which they lost the first four ends. Trailing 12-3 after seven, they dominated the next 10 and were seven shots up with four to play against Alan Howe's men.

Unfortunately, the Badgers lost them all on a rink that was remarkably straight and suited the hosts' tactic of long jacks. The two shots they dropped on the last end made the result 21-21, though the tie did at least prevent a whitewash.

David Berry's rink of Barry Wood, Alan Fryar and Brian Jones took the lead three times in the first seven ends and were still level with Maltravers with four to play. Again the Badgers lost them all. They were holding three shots on the penultimate end and heading for a shoot-out when Bob Read trailed the jack with his final wood.

That made the score 18-12 to Maltravers and they scored two on the last to rub salt into the wound.

Barry Ledger's rink of Simon Ritter, Alan Crowter and Bryan Bodicoat kept the score tight for the first eight ends. They were only two down and putting Terry Carline's rink under pressure. A shocker on the ninth cost the Badgers seven shots and shook their confidence.

Maltravers pulled away to lead 24-6 with five to play. The Badgers registered a four and a two over the closing ends but were well-beaten 28-12.

An aggregate victory of 69-45 earned Maltravers seven points and the title with a total of 74 from their 12 games. They finished six clear of Marine Gardens. The Badgers were fourth on 47 points, one point below Arundel but ahead of Bognor B, East Preston B and Norfolk B.

Four days before the defeat by Maltravers, the Badgers played at home for the last time in this soggiest of seasons. Their opponents were Arundel, who missed no fewer than five fixtures because of the weather, starting with what should have been their match against the Badgers on May 22.

Gerry Goffin and Carole King must have known something when they wrote It Might As Well Rain Until September. They certainly knew more than Bobby Vee's management in 1962, who wouldn't release it as a single. Meanwhile, King's demo became her first hit as a performer.

David Berry's rink of Barry Wood, Alan Fryar and Brian Jones were the big winners for the Badgers against Arundel, leading from the off and pulling away whenever their opponents threatened to bridge the gap. The concession of four shots on the last two ends made the final score 25-19 to the Badgers and gave them their only points of the match.

Barry Ledger's rink of Terry Edmondson, Alan Crowter and Bryan Bodicoat scored successive fours on the third and fourth ends of their game but were unable to hold on to that advantage. Arundel took the lead on the 14th end and ran out 21-16 winners.

Alan Cheeseman's rink of Mike Lawton, Phil Carter and Bernie Homer took only two of the first 13 ends. Trailing by 10 shots, they fought back, winning five of the next six. Hopes of a memorable result foundered when the visitors scored two singles on the final two ends for a 19-13 victory. The aggregate result of 59-54 to Arundel gave them six of the eight points.

Pavilion's solitary Stracey Shield fixture in August, at home to Goring Manor, yielded all 10 points and narrowed the gap on Tarring Priory at the top of the table.

With Tarring finishing their season on 68 points, Pavilion need 13 from their final two games to overhaul them. The title chase is by no means a two-horse race. Maltravers, currently seventh and last, must play six times between August 29 and September 21. They garnered 37 points from their first six, so cannot be discounted as title challengers.

Pavilion won all four Stracey Shield matches in July to give themselves hope of retaining the trophy. The whitewash of Goring Manor, by 95 shots to 74, maintained that momentum on an express-speed B green. Playing east-west, one of the biggest challenges was judging the pace in a strong westerly wind.

Nour Dissem, Roger Dutton, Bryan Bodicoat and skip Ken Chapman solved that conundrum admirably, scoring consecutive fives on the third and fourth ends. Mick Mayes's rink were a player short and Pavilion made that advantage count. They tightened their grip with a seven on the ninth end. The visitors took 12 of the 21 ends but a four was the best they could manage as Pavilion won 27-17.

Pam Duffield, Peter Tomley, Phil Carter and skip Barry Ledger took every end from the second to the tenth and led 15-2. Tommy Tsoi's rink narrowed the deficit to five before three twos by Pavilion helped them to regain control and eventually win 23-16.

Linda Carter, Bill Muir, Barry Balchin and Jonathan Gauntlett were pushed all the way by Wendy Davies and her men. The visitors led four times before a run of three, four, two, three and one earned Pavilion a six-shot advantage with four to play. That was whittled down to a single shot by the last end, where Goring held three. Gauntlett drew shot with a perfectly judged delivery to seal a 23-21 win and earn another two points.

Barry Wood, Sue Bryan, Simon Ritter and David Berry were also involved in a tight tussle against Bill Porter's rink. The hosts were 9-3 up after seven ends but then dropped a five and two twos. They regained the lead on the 15th end, lost it on the 19th and scored a five on the 20th to give themselves a three-shot cushion. Goring took the last end with a single but Pavilion took the game 22-20.

Next up are Worthing at Field Place on Friday, September 13, followed by a trip to Maltravers four days later. Two big wins might just be enough for Pavilion to make amends for a decidedly dodgy start to the season.