News and results from the 2010 season

Lindfield bowlers star in Australian Pairs at Alvor

For the third year running the annual Australian Pairs tournament at the picturesque Santo Antonio club (Alvor, Portugal) saw an impressive display from a handful of Lindfield bowlers and supporters. Ian Watson resumed his successful partnership with former club chairman Alan Clarke, and they progressed steadily through the week, eventually losing to Jersey's Geoff and Liz Cole by a handful of shots. They regained their form in the 3rd-place playoff, picking up a good four on the penultimate end to beat local pairing John and Maggie Dance.

Meanwhile 2011 Mens' Captain Terry Hughes teamed up with former club mate Malcolm Peters, and they were unlucky to be knocked out of the main competition by a single shot, but they battled on to reach the semi-final of the Plate, and lost to the eventual winners in a closely fought match.
Fingers crossed that the new season will produce such good weather and fine bowling...

Grattons game selected

The match against Grattons on 27th March has been selected - click here to view it.

27th February: Lindfield enjoy success at Denton Island

Lindfield thoroughly enjoyed a close and absorbing game of bowls at Denton Island today. The six-rink mixed friendly was keenly contested across all rinks, and up until around the 15th end, the result could have gone either way. Wilf Atkins' rink fought back from an initial 9-1 deficit to make it 9-9, before falling behind again after tea, eventually losing 15-22. Chris Reynolds played well to guide his rink to a 16-13 win on rink one. Shirley Foxwell's rink enjoyed hugely varying fortunes, with some big scores going to both sides, but finally just missed out by 2 shots. Mick O'Donnell's rink never quite got the rub of the green, and ended up losing by 8 shots, while Carol Watson (with husband Ian at 3) enjoyed a 27-12 win on rink six. Peter Colbourne's rink went to tea 12-8 ahead, then found their form in the second half, claiming the "top rink" prize with a convincing 28-10 victory, helping Lindfield to an overall win, 117 - 98. Many thanks to Denton for hosting a fine game of bowls, and for providing an excellent meal afterwards.

There is just one indoor fixture remaining, away to Grattons on Sunday March 26th. If you haven't put our names down for it already, please pop along to the club house and sign up for it, or email Chris Sugarhood and let her know you are free to play.

Denton Island game selected

The match against Denton Island on 27th February has been selected - click here to view it.

Horsham host a fine day of bowling

Lindfield's annual indoor outing to Horsham IBC produced an intriguing game, with the results on three of the six rinks in the balance right up to the 21st end. Dave Richardson skipped Lindfield's top rink, battling hard early on, then breaking away after tea to win by 17 shots. Peter Colbourne's rink provided the other win for Lindfield, fighting hard to come back from 18-5 adrift, they clawed their way back into the game, and picked up an astonishing 6 on the last end to win 24-20. Sadly the rink featuring the "Three Geoffs" (and Lynne) saw their early lead dwindle over the closing ends, and they just managed to lose on rink two.
Shirley Foxwell's quartet bowled well throughout their game, but were unlucky to just lose by one shot on the last end. Mick O'Donnell's rink struggled throughout, but pulled back a few useful shots in the second half, but surprisingly it was Chris Reynolds's rink who suffered the biggest defeat, losing by 20 shots to a very strong Horsham rink.
Overall though it was an enjoyable match, played in very good spirits, and both teams enjoyed the excellent catering afterwards.

Horsham game selected

The match against Horsham on 30th January has been selected - click here to view it.

Tunbridge Wells game cancelled

Tomorrow's game against Tunbridge Wells Royals has been cancelled by them, as they are unable to raise a team.

Tunbridge Wells game selected

The match against Tunbridge Wells Royals on 16th January has been selected - click here to view it.

Eastbourne game cancelled

Due to heavy snow and dodgy driving conditions, the indoor game scheduled for Sunday 19th December against Eastbourne has been cancelled. Hopefully we will be able to re-schedule it for the New Year.

Jack Russells win the Australian Pairs

There was a nail-biting and unpredictable finish to the September Australian Pairs at Lindfield last week, with the final round of twilight matches producing some remarkably accurate bowling given the gloomy conditions and the dew-laden green. Just a couple of points separated the top teams, but it was the "Jack Russells" combination of Ian Wilson, John Foster, Alan Nicholas and Peter Treagus who just sneaked over the finishing line in first place.

Here are the top four teams in full:

1st place - Jack Russells: Ian Wilson, John Foster, Alan Nicholas, Peter Treagus.

2nd place - Phogs: Peter Gacsall, Ken Anderson, Jennie Holland, Sue Paterson.

3rd place - Allsorts:Dorothy Keogh, Stella Wellum, Steven Bollschweiler, Sue & Roger Willmott.

4th place - All Mouth & Trousers: Roger Green, Tom Palmer, Bill Colbourne, Arthur Mortenson.

The photo below shows the winning team being presented with their prizes by club stalwarts Elsie and George Long.
A new mascot was also presented "The Elsie & George Long Australian Pairs Kangaroo". The winners will keep this for a year and then return it. This was a complete surprise to Elsie and George, and was named after them in honour of their great support for everything the club is involved in.
The 2010 Australian Pairs winners
Many thanks to Terry and Alison Hughes for organising yet another successful and enjoyable Aussie Pairs tournament.

Firing Squad wins the Friday League

It's been a funny old season in the Friday League, Ken Anderson's "Aces" looked like being runaway winners early on, but a freak result and some steady bowling from opposing teams saw them lose their grip on the trophy, as they were just pipped to the post by Bill Colbourne's "Firing Squad". This prompted a first-place playoff to decide an outright winner, and today the Firing Squad's team of Paul Bloxham, Arthur Mortensen, Barrie Ranger and Bill Colbourne had a comfortable 24-5 win over The Aces (in the form of Lesley Dooge, Norma Smith, Jim Harvie and Ken Anderson). The game was so one-sided that they shook hands with 4 ends still to play.
So congratulations to the Firing Squad on winning the 2010 Friday League! The full team was:
Bill and Christine Colbourne, Dee Gardner, Paul Bloxham, Bill Hayter, Arthur Mortensen, Barrie Ranger, Graham Stanley, and Melanie Bastable.

Finals Day results

Lindfield basked in bright sunshine yesterday as the Finals Day competitors took to the green to battle it out for their respective trophies. Adam Harding won the Mens' Championship singles for the fourth time, beating Peter Treagus 21-14 in a game of two halves, after Peter had been comfortably ahead early on. Stella Wellum claimed the Ladies' Championship singles after a very close game against Sue Willmott, eventually triumphing by just a couple of shots.

In the pairs there was a convincing win for Roger Willmott and Dave Richardson, while Sue Paterson and Peter Gacsall teamed up to win the Mixed event. There was a pleasing first win for young Stephen Bollschweiler, who fought back impressively against Alan Price to win the Butfoy Singles 104-96.

Norman Sugarhood and Bryan Mills eventually completed their two and a half hour marathon Backbone singles, with Norman winning by two shots to cap a remarkable comeback year. Terry Hughes endured an unfortunate day, losing all three of his finals, despite bowling well, particularly in the excellent Handicap singles final when he was unlucky to come up against Tom Palmer at the top of his game. In the ladies pairs Janet Hawkins and Sue Willmott clung on and won 17-16 in an excellent showcase match against Audrey Kite and Meta Orchin.

The winners on the day were:
Mens Championship: Adam Harding
Mens Handicap: Tom Palmer
Mens Two wood: Peter Treagus
Mens Veterans: Wilf Atkins
Mens Backbone: Norman Sugarhood
Mens Pairs: Roger Willmott & Dave Richardson
Mixed Pairs: Sue Paterson & Peter Gacsall
Butfoy mixed singles: Stephen Bollschweiler
Ladies Championship: Stella Wellum
Ladies 100 Up: Chris Sugarhood
Ladies Two wood: Pat Whetstone
Ladies Backbone: Joan Corless
Ladies Pairs: Janet Hawkins & Sue Willmott.

Many thanks to Willy Bollschweiler and Sue Paterson for organising such a successful and enjoyable day!

Willmott and Richardson fall at the final hurdle

Sue Willmott and Dave Richardson won their National Mixed Pairs semi-final this morning against Somerset's Kevin Jones and his partner 27-17, with Sue playing a very consistent game at lead, and Dave relying purely on his drawing ability. It was a different story in the afternoon's final however against Wiltshire's Debbie and Graham Shadwell. Debbie just had the edge over Sue, and England's Commonwealth Games star Graham played a superb game, converting heads on a regular basis, and the combination proved too much for Lindfield's duo, who succumbed to a 14-27 defeat with two ends left to play.

Willmott and Richardson through to National Mixed Pairs Semi-Final!

There was excellent news from Worthing today as Lindfield's Sue Willmott and Dave Richardson won both their last 16 and quarter-final games by the narrowest of margins, 20-19 and 21-20 respectively. Their quarter-final triumph was particularly sweet, as they managed to beat England skip Sam Tolchard and his partner, who were fancied as the favourites at the start of the day.

Dave and Sue will play the semi-final tomorrow (Saturday 28th August) starting at 09:30 at Worthing Beach House Park. Entry is £4.50 each, plus parking fees, if you want to come along and support them. The Middleton Cup final is on in the afternoon, so a full day of good bowling should be on offer!

Finals Day order of play - Monday 30th August

The running order for the day is:

09:00 Mens' Pairs   Rink 1
  Roger Willmott & Dave Richardson vs Bryan Mills & Terry Hughes
09:30 Ladies Pairs Rink 3
  Audrey Kite & Meta Orchin vs Janet Hawkins & Sue Willmott
09:30 Ladies 100 Up Rink 5
  Stephanie Tuddenham vs Chris Sugarhood
10:00 Mens Two Wood Rink 4
  Bill Colbourne vs Peter Treagus
10:00 Mens Veterans Rink 2
  Wilf Atkins vs Ken Anderson
12:00 'Butfoy' Mixed Singles Rink 3
  Alan Price vs Stephen Bollschweiler

Afternoon session

13:00 Mixed Pairs Rink 4
  Peter Gacsall & Sue Paterson vs Terry Hughes & Janine Scola
14:00 Ladies Championship Rink 2
  Sue Willmott vs Stella Wellum
14:00 Mens Championship Rink 1
  Adam Harding vs Peter Treagus
15:00 Ladies Backbone Rink 3
  Stephanie Tuddenham vs Joan Corless
16:00 Mens Backbone Rink 5
  Norman Sugarhood vs Bryan Mills
16:30 Ladies Two Wood Rink 4
  Sue Willmott vs Pat Whetstone
16:30 Mens Handicap Singles Rink 2
  Tom Palmer vs Terry Hughes
18:30 Trophy Presentations Pavilion
  Trophy presentation by Club President Ken Eldred

Umpires for the day: Peter Colbourne & Mick O'Donnell.

Dress for all players, markers and scoreboard turners: Whites

Please note the early start time of 9:00am.

Would all competitors and markers please check in at least 15 minutes prior to the start of their match.

August 23rd: Jubilee Triples report

Lindfield Bowling Club held its annual Jubilee Triples tournament with 32 teams from all over Sussex. It was enjoyable and a great success. Thanks to the very generous sponsorship from Masters & Son, Lindfield Garage and Apex Windows, prize money totalling £450 was battled for. Winners were a team from Burgess Hill (Nick Cooke, Bernard Russell & David Fry) who beat Lindfield (Ian Wilson, Geoff Dee & Terry Hughes), who put up an outstanding performance to reach the final. Uckfield (Andy Corbin, David Brooks & Adrian Wainwright) narrowly overcame Hollingbury Park (Brian Hollis, Roy Cobby & Brian Pryke) for third place.

Jubilee Triples 2010 collage

August 22nd: Lindfield ladies in last-bowl disappointment

Carol Watson and Sue Willmott experienced bitter disappointment in the final of the Sussex County Pairs competition held at Haywards Heath yesterday. Holding a match-winning lie of 3 shots, the opposing skip from Worthing Beach House Park fired with the last bowl of the match and broke the head apart, and after an umpire's measure the shot (and game) was awarded to the Worthing duo.
Sue had further misfortune in the Mid-Sussex Champion of Champions singles, losing 21-13 in the semi-final. Things will hopefully look up for her on Friday 27th August when she partners Dave Richardson at Worthing in the National Mixed Pairs.

August 21st: Lindfield retain the Border Cup League

Lindfield beat Horley today on both rinks at a soggy Popes Mead, to retain the Border League Cup, after having won Division One for the fourth year running. Peter Gacsall, Ken Anderson, Tom Palmer and Ian Watson won by 12, and the rink of Chris Reynolds, Mick O'Donnell, Peter Treagus and Terry Hughes won by 11, to give Lindfield an overall winning margin of 23 shots.

August 16th: Newsflash: Ladies win the Nellie Mercer League

After some uncertainty over the number of points accrued this season, Lindfield's ladies have emerged as winners of Division One of the Nellie Mercer League for the second year running. Well done ladies!

August 13th: Lindfield win the Border League... again...

Lindfield have won Division One of the mens' Border League for the fourth year running, stretching our undefeated record to 40 consecutive games. The final match saw us beat Popes Mead 8-2 away in fairly damp and dreary conditions. Many congratulations to the regular team members, who have played with great skill, determination and team spirit. Lindfield face Horley in the final of the Border League Cup on Saturday 21st August, to be played at Popes Mead.

August 8th: Lindfield win the Sussex County Fours!

Graeme Geddie, Adam Harding, Keith Holman and Ian Watson stormed to the Sussex County Fours title with a resounding win against a strong Petworth team on county finals day, held at Popes Mead. With Graeme having an excellent game at lead, bowling Middleton Cup lead Matt Ives out of the game, Lindfield collected a 3 and a 4 on the first two ends and then added another count of 4 to open up a remarkable 11-0 lead after only three ends.
Things got even better for them when they picked up 6 shots on end four and another count of 3 on end five to find themselves, almost unbelievably 20-0 up. Petworth collected a good 4 shots of their own to open their account but Lindfield kept things tight during the middle period to stop Petworth scoring and despite a couple of good bowls from Petworth's Kyle McGowan it was to prove Lindfield's day and with the scoreline reading 29-6 after 14 ends Petworth conceded defeat.
It's only the second time Lindfield have secured the county fours title, the previous success coming in 1986, and it reversed the result of the county semi final between the two teams two years ago when Petworth won the game on the last end and then went on to win the title.

Pictured left to right below are Adam, Graeme, Ian and Keith:
The 2010 Sussex County Fours winners

August 7th: Caveman strikes again

Dave "Caveman" Richardson today tasted more success, this time with victory in the singles and pairs competitions in the Bexhill Open tournament. The two wins come just two weeks after he earned the singles and pairs titles at the Eastbourne open.
Well done Dave - but the drinks are on you now, for the forseeable future.

August 4th: Mid-Sussex Times report

Lindfield qualified for the final of the Border League Cup thanks to an overall 7 shot win against Redhill. The home rink of Peter Gacsall, Ken Anderson, Mick O'Donnell and Ian Watson secured a nine shot victory and with the away team of Frank Palmer, Alan Price, Peter Treagus and Terry Hughes keeping things tight, the defending champions now have the chance to defend their trophy in the final.

In the National Double Fours the club's excellent run came to end in the regional finals when they were defeated by Desborough. Following six earlier round wins to earn the right to play off for a place at Worthing, some telling conversion shots opened up a significant gap on one the games and the final losing shot difference of 25 confirmed that the club weren't quite good enough on the day to progress.

Sue Willmott and Dave Richardson continue to impress in the National Mixed Pairs following a 19-7 win against St Francis's Amy and Mike Truran, and have now reached the last 16 in England. They face England international Natalie Melmore next.

Lindfield hosted a Mid Sussex league open day last Friday with a West Hoathly team emerging as the winners but in addition £800 was raised for the Chestnut Tree House thanks to a number of raffles, prize draws and donations.

August 1st: Border League Cup semi-final

Lindfield men play Redhill today in the semi-final of the Border League Cup (two rinks, home and away). The team is:

Home:
Peter Gacsall, Ken Anderson, Mick O'Donnell, Ian Watson.

Away:
Frank Palmer, Alan Price, Peter Treagus, Terry Hughes.

Best of luck to the Lindfield team!

July 31st: Double-fours despair for Lindfield

Lindfield's dreams of reaching Worthing in the National Double Fours were dashed today, at the regional finals hosted at Cranleigh's Royal British Legion club. Facing a strong Desborough team, Terry Hughes's rink picked up 3 on the first end, then saw the wheels come off as they dropped 7, 4, 3, and at 18-3 down they were never likely to recover. Ian Watson's rink played an excellent game against Alan Price's four, with frequent telling bowls from Adam Harding and Ian himself, the rink result could have gone either way, but they shook hands at 14-12 down after 17 ends, when they agreed that the overall situation was beyond repair. Terry's rink finally called it a day at 31-7 down after 18 ends. This is the second time in five seasons that Lindfield's men have reached the regional finals of this competition, and they were again left to contemplate what might have been.

July 30th: Lindfield raises hundreds for charity

Lindfield hosted a hugely enjoyable Mid-Sussex League 'tournament day' today, with invited teams from 19 local clubs, who played each other in a two-division mini-league contest, playing five games of 5 ends throughout the day. Over £800 was raised for the Chestnut Tree House childrens' charity, and the eventual winners were Ron Adams' West Hoathly team.

Lindfield also raised over £350 for "Help for Heroes" at last Sunday's annual friendly against the local "Lindfield Club". This means that Lindfield Bowls Club has raised almost £3,500 for charity so far this summer - and counting!

July 29th: National Double Fours regional finals team

Lindfield have named their team for this Saturday's National Double Fours regional finals at Cranleigh BC (Surrey):

The rinks are:
Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman, Ian Watson.
Frank Palmer, Roger Green, Tom Palmer, Terry Hughes.
Travelling reserve: Peter Colbourne.

The game starts at 10am at Cranleigh (postcode GU6 7LG), please come along and support the team.

July 29th: Border League nail-biter and Mixed Pairs update

Lindfield's 36-match unbeaten run in the mens' Border League almost came to an abrupt halt this evening at Newdigate. On a wet and heavy green the Lindfield players struggled to compile decent heads, and found that the luck was often going in the opposition's favour. Ian Watson's rink was the first to finish, dropping 3 on the last end to record a 21-22 loss. Terry Hughes's frustrated rink finished second, losing 14-19 and being indebted to some accurate drawing shots from an in-form Peter Treagus. This left Tom Palmer's rink the unenviable task of needing to win by at least 7 shots in order to secure an overall victory. Tom's men held 4 on their last end, when the opposing skip fired and killed the end. With the head firmly against them, Chris Reynolds drew a front toucher, and Tom managed to cut into the head to rest the second wood, while the opposing skip fired and missed by the narrowest of margins with both his bowls, handing victory to Tom's rink by 7 shots, and an overall 6-4 win (54-53 on shots) to Lindfield. Phew!

There was good news for Sue Willmott and Dave Richardson, who beat Mike and Amy Truran of St Francis 19-7, in the National Mixed Pairs. Sue and Dave are now through to the last 16 in England, and face England international Natalie Melmore at Worthing in August.

July 25th: Open tournament updates

This weekend witnessed some 'very nearly!' moments for two Lindfield teams. Adam Harding, Dave Richardson and Ian Watson lost to Keith Laker's trio in the final of the Preston Open triples, having previously racked up a massive shot difference during the week. Meanwhile on the slick Chichester green Alan Price, Bill Colbourne and Bryan Mills had their first taste of an 'open' tournament day, skipped by an on-song Peter Colbourne they played four games, winning two, drawing one, and losing one on the last wood, thereby narrowly missing out on a shot at the prize money.

July 24th: "Dunkirk spirit" BBQ hits the right note

Lindfield's summer of themed barbecues continued in style today, as our memembers donned their WWII outfits for the "Dunkirk spirit" evening. Thankfully not too many gas masks were required to tackle the results of Ron Langridge's cooking efforts, and a convivial evening was had by all.

Dunkirk Spirit

July 22nd: Team selections updated

The John Spriggs and Mid-Sussex League selections for next week's games are now on the website - click here to view them.

July 21st: Mid-Sussex Times report

Ladies captain Chris Sugarhood staged a hugely successful captain's day on Saturday with over £1300 being raised for breast Cancer. Sue Willmott and Carol Watson qualified for the final stages of the national pairs and now travel to Lemington for a shot at the title. In the men's national double fours Lindfield came through a tight tussle away at Popes Mead winning by a mere 2 shots in a game that finished in the fading light, the final end not being completed until 21:30 on Sunday.

There was heartbreak in the men's county triples semi final as Adam Harding, Keith Holman and Ian Watson lost out to the last bowl of the match against Hove & Kingsway with the game tied at 19-19 playing the last end. In the county double fours Lindfield lost their quarter final match against Hurstpierpoint by six shots with the deserving winners now playing White Rock for a place in the final.

Ian Watson’s hopes of success in the county singles ended with a 21-17 defeat to Hove & Kingsway’s Scott Edwards in the semi final and despite a great run in the national champion of champions event Ian lost the last qualifying game before the latter stages are held at Worthing's Beech House Park during the national championships fortnight.

Dave Richardson proved he's at his most dangerous when there's prize money at stake when he collected both the singles and pairs title at last week's Eastbourne Open. It's the second time Dave has won the singles event at Eastbourne.

July 20th: Richardson strikes again

Dave "Caveman" Richardson has once again won the Eastbourne Open, beating Charles Wright 21-12 in the singles final to claim a £400 cash prize. Dave teamed up with Charles to win the pairs title as well, adding an extra £150 to his winnings, and he only missed out on a shot at the triples title due to a technicality with a substitute player. Dave is aiming to make it a double, when he enters the Bexhill Open starting on August 2nd.

July 19th: Mens' National Double Fours success!

Lindfield "B" scraped through to the regional finals (7th round) by 2 shots against Popes Mead last night. With the scores level after 10 ends, Lindfield broke away thanks to some big scores from Ian Watson's rink, but Popes fought back and took the lead in the closing ends. Geddie, Harding, Holman and Watson won 25-18, and finished 3 ends ahead of Terry Hughes's rink. Palmer, Green, Palmer and Hughes played on in failing light, picking up a crucial 4 on the 18th end, and despite a barrage of accurate driving shots from Mark Jones and Mick Law, the Lindfield rink clung on to lose narrowly, 17-22, handing Lindfield an overall 42-40 win.

July 18th: Ladies Captain's Day raises £1,300 for charity

Chris Sugarhood's Ladies' Captain's Day on Saturday 17th July was an outstanding success, with over £1,300 raised for a breast cancer charity. Well done to Chris and her team of helpers!

Ladies Captains' Day

July 15th: Updates

A bad week for Lindfield continued on Tuesday evening as Ian Watson lost his county singles semi-final 21-18 to Hove & Kingsway's Scott Edwards, in a fine display of drawing on the Lewes bowling green.

Lindfield went on to lose the quarter-final of the Abergavenny double-fours last night to Hurstpierpoint. The away rink of Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman and Ian Watson lost by 1 shot, while the home rink of Tom Palmer, Roger Green, Terry Hughes and Dave Richardson lost by 4 shots to a loaded rink featuring Dave Welsh, Dave Hesketh and Jim Morley.

There was one bit of good news as Lindfield's "Nicholas Soames" mixed Australian pairs team won 8-2 at home to Haywards Heath.

July 14th: Mid-Sussex Times report

Lindfield Mens' captain Alan Nicholas, with the help of a small army of willing volunteers, hosted another successful captain's day on Saturday in the blistering sunshine. The day began at 09:30 with the first set of round robin matches and concluded with a five end final between teams from Lindfield and Buxted Park, with the Lindfield squad of Jim Harvie, John Matthews, Peter Elford and Roger Green coming out on top.

But the real winners on the day were Alan's chosen charity, "Help for Heroes" with over £1000 raised due to the generosity of all the players.

Lindfield ladies are enjoying a good run in the Nellie Mercer with recent wins against Southwater and Hurstpierpoint and in the men's county competitions Ian Watson qualified for the singles semi final with a 21-11 win his quarter final. In the men's county fours Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman and Ian Watson edged a tense semi final against White Rock, winning 20-18 and will now play Petworth in the final on August 8 at Popes Mead. Mick O'Donnell's run in the unbadged singles came to end with a 21-12 quarter final defeat at Worthing and in the county triples Ivan Orchin, Graeme Geddie and Tom Palmer saw an early lead disappear against Tarring Priory and bowed out at the quarter final stage.

July 13th: Updates

Lindfield's county triples semi-finalists Adam Harding, Keith Holman and Ian Watson suffered an agonising one-shot defeat at Popes Mead last night. Holding match lie their dreams went up in smoke as former England star Dave Hubbard secured the shot bowl, handing victory to his team by the narrowest of margins. It was a reverse of their fours quarter-final, which saw Watson inflict the same last-bowl defeat over Hubbard's team two weeks ago.

Lindfield now have the following teams left in county and national competitions:


There was disappointment for Peter Colbourne on Sunday 12th July, playing the 4th round of the Lonsdale Singles against Mike Goord at Bromley. Goord got off to a flying start on a heavy green, taking an early 11-0 lead, before Peter got going and sent some useful bowls, but with the luck running against him and Goord on hot form, Peter eventually lost 21-8 after 18 ends.

Lindfield's London & Southern Counties Pairing of Graeme Geddie and Dave Richardson have conceded their 4th round tie, also against Bromley, due to a lack of available dates.

There was more disappointment last week for Mick O'Donnell, who lost 21-12 in the quarter-final of the County Unbadged Singles, to Bill Murphy of Worthing Pavilion.
Ian Watson also lost his Champion of Champions quarter-final on the same evening, but Ian went on to reach the last 16 in England in the National Champion of Champions, just losing by 2 shots in a closely fought game.

Adam Harding and Keith Holman lost their County Pairs semi-final to Darren Anderson and Andy Smalldridge of Preston at Seaford.

July 10th: County Fours update

Lindfield's semi-final rink of Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman and Ian Watson held their nerve and rode their luck to beat Steve Jeapes's White Rock quartet 20-18 at Lindfield on Friday evening. Lindfield went into the last end just 1 shot up, and Steve Jeapes played the last wood of the match looking to just move the jack back a foot for a winning count of 3. Incredibly although he made contact with the jack, it was at just the wrong angle, and it sprang sideways onto a Lindfield bowl, handing Watson's men a place in the final against Petworth on August 8th.

July 7th: Mid-Sussex Times report

Sue Willmott took Amy Truran all the way in the ladies' county Champion of Cchampions competition, holding a match lie at 20-19 but Amy played a firing shot with her last bowl and trailed the jack to snatch the win from Sue's grasp. In the Mid-Sussex Champion of Champions though fate was on Sue's side as a determined display earned a 21-18 win against Newick's Janet Birch.

In the over 55 pairs Shirley Nelson and Sue lost out to Victoria Park, Eastbourne 22-18 in a game that wasn't decided until the final two ends.

In the mens' National Double Fours Lindfield overcame a strong challenge from Tarring Priory with an overall 10 shot victory and in the county double fours there was a win against Buxted thanks largely to a mammoth 33-5 win by the home rink of Chris Reynolds, Roger Green, Terry Hughes and Dave Richardson.

Adam Harding and Keith Holman qualified for the county pairs semi-final following a 20-11 win against White Rock and in the county fours quarter final there was a nail biting 19-18 win against Hove and Kingsway for Adam, Keith, Graeme Geddie and Ian Watson with Ian drawing the shot with the final bowl of the game.

Ivan Orchin, Graeme Geddie and Tom Palmer defeated Uckfield to claim a county triple quarter final date against Tarring Priory and will be joined in the quarters by team mates Adam Harding, Keith Holman and Ian Watson who won away at Uckfield in the fifth round. Ian Watson continued his run in the men's county champion of champion singles with a 21-12 win over Peacehaven's Steve Ireland and now plays in the quarter finals at Worthing.

July 6th: County triples news

There were mixed fortunes for Lindield's triples at Popes Mead last night, in the county quarter-finals. Ivan Orchin, Graeme Geddie and Tom Palmer lost their match, but Adam Harding, Keith Holman and Ian Watson won 19-9 to take their place against Dave Hubbard's trio in the semi-finals next week.

July 4th: Double-fours update

Lindfield "B" have won through to the sixth round (Area final) of the National Double Fours, after beating Tarring Priory by 10 shots yesterday morning at Tarring. There was a solid win for Frank Palmer, Tom Palmer, Roger Green and Terry Hughes, who all bowled well to win by 8 shots. Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman and Ian Watson sneaked through with a 2-shot win on their rink, and Lindfield now face Popes Mead in the next round.

July 3rd: Fours update

County Fours quarter-final night at Lindfield yesterday evening produced some great games of bowls. There was success for the home team of Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman and Ian Watson, who won 19-18 against Dave Hubbard's Hove & Kingsway quartet, with Ian drawing the shot with the last wood of the match. Petworth, White Rock and Paul Gandey's Hove & Kingsway team also qualified for the semi-finals, to be held at Lindfield next Friday 9th July.

July 1st: Updates

Tunbridge Wells have cancelled Sunday's friendly, as they are unable to raise a team.

Lindfield won through to the quarter-finals of the Abergavenny Double-Fours last night against Buxted Park. Ian Watson's team had a narrow 4-shot win at Buxted, while Dave Richardson's rink won 33-5 at home.

July 1st: Mid-Sussex Times report

Lindfield enjoyed an especially successful week in the men's county competitions which began with Ian Watson beating Newhaven's Aaron Sexton 21-18 to reach the singles quarter finals. It's the fourth consecutive year the two players have met at Lindfield and Ian maintained his 100% record with some consistent drawing throughout.

Mick O'Donnell continued his march in the unbadged singles with a commanding 21-8 victory away at Newhaven against seasoned campaigner Ken Davis. Despite his home advantage Ken couldn't keep pace with Mick, who has yet to be taken the distance this season in the competition. He now travels to Worthing Pavilion on July 7 to make his county quarter final debut.

There was an all Lindfield clash in the triples with Peter Gacsall, Graeme Geddie and Tom Palmer edging a tight match 13-12 against Chris Reynolds, Roger Green and Terry Hughes with the victors now playing Uckfield with a quarter final place at stake for the winners. In the pairs Adam Harding and Keith Holman came through a hard fought game at West Hoathly against Terry Tiechan and Brian Goatman 17-11 to book a quarter final spot against Stuart Holland and his father tonight (July 1st) at Seaford.

Adam and Keith then teamed up with Graeme Geddie and Ian Watson and collected a 'hot shot' on the way to beating West Hoathly in the county fours and now face a tough looking quarter final match against last year's national indoor champion Dave Hubbard and his squad from Hove & Kingsway.

Peter Colbourne won his third round tie in the Lonsdale singles with a Lazarus style comeback against Peter Acott from the Loose bowls club, near Maidstone. Staring defeat in the face at 6-19 down Peter collected a count of 4 to go in to double figures and fought all the way to a 21-20 win and left his beleaguered opponent wondering where it all went wrong.

In the second round of the Edward Roland Frank Palmer, John Foster, Ken Eldred and Derek Heather went out by a single shot, 19-20 at Newhaven. The ladies made it through the second round of the Gladys Roland with a 25-10 win against Peacehaven and Shirley Nelson and Sue Willmott continued their run in the over 55 pairs with victory over Rottingdean, 27-10. Lindfield secured all 10 points in the Mid Sussex league away at Uckfield and also pipped Adastra in the John Spriggs. The men continued their good start in the Border league with victory over Newdigate.

June 29th: Updates

Both Lindfield's county triples won through to the quarter-finals last night against Uckfield. Ivan Orchin, Graeme Geddie and Tom Palmer beat Mel Woodhams' trio 20-18 having seen their commanding 16-4 lead be wiped out through some concentrated draw bowling from the men in the blue shirts. At Uckfield Adam Harding, Keith Holman and Ian Watson won 20-7 against Phil Soper's trio.

Lindfield men have the following teams still going in the county competitions:


There was good news from the ladies who won the second round of the Gladys Rowand against Peacehaven & Telscombe 25-10. Shirley Nelson & Sue Willmott beat Anne Sherwood and partner from Rottingdean 27-10 in the third round of the national over 55 pairs. They play Sheila Simmons at Saffrons, Eastbourne in the next round. Meanwhile Sue Willmott is still going strong in the Champion of Champions and plays Amy Truran of St Francis in the next round.

June 24th: County competition updates

Good news for Ian Watson and Mick O'Donnell as they have both reached the quarter-finals of a county competition, both at the expense of Newhaven bowlers. On Tuesday Ian took on England under-25 star Aaron Sexton in the county singles, and the game could have gone either way when Ian fired with his last bowl, disrupted a good head, and took 3 shots to win 21-18. Mick enjoyed a more comfortable 21-8 win against Newhaven's Ken Davis, who never came to terms with his own green.

June 23rd: Double-fours news

Lindfield men survived a close scare against Brighton this evening, in the second round of the County Double-Fours. With Brighton fielding a weakened team, their away rink of former Sussex star Geoff Maskell, Jim Catchpole, captain Peter Leigh and veteran Peter Fowle got off to a flying start to take a 12-1 lead after 9 ends. Lindfield's home rink of Chris Reynolds, Roger Green, Terry Hughes and Dave Richardson gradually fought back, and eventually finished up losing by just 4 shots, 16-20. With the result hinging on the Brighton game, Ian Watson's quartet picked up a crucial 6 to return a 21-15 win against Dave Hutson's rink, handing the overall result to Lindfield by just 2 shots.

The "B" team for the 5th round of the Mens' National Double Fours away to Tarring Priory has been selected - click here to view it.

June 22nd: Mid-Sussex Times report

In the National Mixed Pairs Sue Willmott and Dave Richardson are still going strong thanks to a 25-5 win away at Lewes, and Sue continued her good start to the season by reaching the ladies county pairs semi-final with Carol Watson, and then earning a good victory against Betty Turk in the county Champion of Champion singles.

In the ladies' double rink Lindfield lost out to West Hoathly by one shot and they also suffered defeat at the hands of Hailsham in the county Top Club competition. Carol Watson won the singles easily enough 21-4 but there were losses in the pairs, triples and fours.

Mick O'Donnell is one game away from a first county quarter-final after defeating Lewes's Tony Cook 21-13 and then beating Newick's Des Foord in the Unbadged singles. Ian Watson is the club's last survivor in the county singles following a 21-17 win against Maurice Awcock and must now beat Middleton Cup skip Aaron Sexton to reach the quarter finals, to be held at Lewes on July 6th.

In the county double fours Lindfield began their campaign with a comfortable victory against Newick, winning on both rinks and now play Brighton in the second round.

In the Mid Sussex league the club suffered a disappointing 8-2 reverse at home to West Hoathly but there was better news in the John Spriggs with a resounding 10-0 success at St Francis and also a solid 7 points to 3 win in the Border League against Horsham. In the Nellie Mercer the ladies came unstuck, slipping to a 4-2 loss at Henfield.

Peter Colbourne took on Dave Vanson from Maidstone in the London & Southern Counties Lonsdale competition and it proved a fruitless journey for the man from Maidstone with Peter recording a 21-3 win inside the hour. In the second round of the Tom Francis double fours Lindfield fell to a surprise defeat to Handcross by 4 shots. The away team of Chris Sugarhood, Sue Willmott, Mick O'Donnell and Chris Reynolds managed a 1 shot win, 17-16 but the home rink of Shirley Nelson, Carol Watson, Derek Heather and Terry Hughes went down 23-18.

June 21st: Team selections

The teams have just been posted for the Felbridge and Buxted Park friendlies for this coming weekend:

June 17th: Comfortable win in first Abergavenny game

Lindfield's men enjoyed a comfortable win in the first round of the County Double Fours (aka "Abergavenny") last night against Newick. The home rink of Chris Reynolds, Roger Green, Terry Hughes and Dave Richardson won 24-12 against Peter Carter's rink, while the away team of Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman and Ian Watson had a convincing 27-10 win. Lindfield play Brighton in the next round.

June 16th: Mid-Sussex Times report

The elder statesmen of Lindfield came up trumps in the Edward Rowland competition when Frank Palmer, John Foster, Ken Eldred and Derek Heather – whose combined ages total no less than 313 beat Hotham in the first round 26-21. Despite the damp conditions the home team built up a healthy lead to kill the game off and keep the clubs interest in the knockout tournament alive.

In the national double fours Lindfield travelled to their old rivals Preston and edged a close encounter 43-40. The rink of Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman and Ian Watson got off to a flying start, picking up a count of 7 on the way to building a 14-1 lead, however the game turned at the half way mark when Preston's number 3 Darren Anderson trailed the jack to hand his team a large count of their own and at that stage the whole tie could have gone either way.
Watson's rink managed to hold on to a slender lead until closing out their game as 28-20 winners. Meanwhile Frank Palmer, Peter Colbourne, Tom Palmer and Terry Hughes were involved in a battle of their own against Dennis Alderton, Don Kent, Peter Morgan and Adrian Finnie, with Adrian in particularly good form but the 15-20 result ensured the overall win.

In the county pairs Chris Reynolds and Roger Green face an intriguing match against 2008 winners Darren Anderson and Andy Smalldridge in the fourth round after beating West Hoathly's Bob Skipp and Roger Meacham.

The Border league and Mid Sussex league campaigns began with away wins at Redhill and Henfield respectively and in the John Spriggs there was an opening 53-45 victory against Buxted. Lindfield ladies followed their win against Royal Sovereign with a 49-23 triumph over Bexhill in the county double rink and now play West Hoathly. In the Nellie Mercer league the ladies defeated Horsham Park 45-22 thanks to Carol Watson and her team racing to a 32-11 win and Stella Wellum's rink supporting them with a 13-11 success of their own.

June 11th: News updates

Lindfield's ladies have enjoyed a successful few days, winning their first Nellie Mercer game against Horsham Park 6-0, with Carol Watson's rink recording an impressive 32-11 win. After beating Royal Sovereign in the preliminary round of the Sussex double rink, the ladies' team beat Bexhill yesterday, 49-23, and now face West Hoathly on the 17th of June.

Meanwhile Lindfield's league teams got off to a good start, the John Spriggs team winning 8-2 against Buxted Park (53-45 on shots), and the Mid-Sussex League team also winning 8-2.

In the county pairs Chris Reynolds and Roger Green are through to the fourh round after a recording a comfortable win against Bob Skipp at home. Adam Harding and Keith Homan are also through to the fourth round after beating Don Kent and Peter Morgan 20-12 at Preston, and now face either Preston Park or Dyke Road Park in the next round.
There was disappointment though for Graeme Geddie and Tom Palmer, who lost 24-16 to Brighton's father and son pairing of Dave and Jeff Hutson.

June 10th: Lindfield bowlers in Middleton Cup selection

Congratulations to Graeme Geddie, Adam Harding, Keith Holman, Dave Richardson and Ian Watson on their selection for the second Middleton Cup game at home to Buckinghamshire CBA on Saturday 19th June. Sussex go into this second of three matches needing as many points as possible to maintain their position near the top of their group.
The full team is here.

June 10th: Lindfield defeat Preston in National Double Fours

Lindfield "B" enjoyed a tense victory at Preston last night in the fourth round of the Mens' National Double Fours, winning 43-40. Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman and Ian Watson got off to a flying start, picking up a 6 and a 7 against Andy Smalldridge's rink, but they were pegged back later on, and eventually won 28-20.

Frank Palmer, Peter Colbourne, Tom Palmer and Terry Hughes played a tight game against Adrian Finnie's rink, at 14-14 it could have gone either way, but a succession of telling woods from Finnie saw the Preston rink win 5 of the last 6 ends, but with the scoring mostly in singles they couldn't overturn the other rink's defecit, and the eventual 20-15 win wasn't quite enough to halt Lindfield's progress.

June 10th: Mid-Sussex Times report

Lindfield destroyed Felbridge in the first round of the Tom Francis double fours competition with an overall victory margin of 43 shots. The home rink of Shirley Nelson, Sue Willmott, Chris Reynolds and Keith Holman racked up an impressive 37-13 win and it was as equally convincing from the away team of Chris Sugarhood, Carol Watson, Mick O’Donnell and Roger Green who won 28-9.

There was a narrow 2 shot defeat for one of the two Edward Roland teams in action when Alan Price, Peter Gacsall, Geoff Nelson and Terry Hughes lost 13-15 away at Steyning. In the mens' National Champion of Champions Ian Watson defeated current Sussex singles champion Andy Smalldridge 21-14 despite Andy making the better start, opening up a six shot lead early on.

Mick O'Donnell is the lone survivor in the county unbadged singles after winning his second game 21-8 and now faces a trickier match against Lewes's Tony Cook. In the county pairs there were wins for Graeme Geddie and Ivan Orchin at Buxted and Chris Reynolds and Roger Green at Mackie and the club still has two teams going strong in the fours with the rink skipped by Chris Reynolds winning at home against Woodingdean and Ian Watson's quartet surviving a closely fought match against Uckfield.

Ladies champion Sue Willmott earned convincing wins in both the national and the Mid Sussex champion of champion events thanks to 21-8 and 21-5 victories and she was also in action in the county pairs with Carol Watson where the duo beat Seaford 21-8 in the prelim round and enjoyed the luxury of a bye in the first round proper.

The club had five players representing Sussex in the first Middleton Cup match of the season against the Isle of Wight and they were all on winning rinks as Sussex secured an important first victory at Worthing on Saturday.

June 3rd: Mid-Sussex Times report

Lindfield ladies enjoyed a successful week including a win in the Top Club against Sidley Martlets. Carol Watson got the ball rolling with a 21-7 win in the singles and this was followed by a 29-5 pairs victory for Shirley Nelson and Sue Willmott and a tense 17-16 win in the fours by Joan Corless, Meta Orchin, Stephanie Tuddenham and Stella Wellum. The only defeat came in the triples when Chris Sugarhood, Jean Spooner and Shirley Foxwell lost by 2 shots, 12-14.

In the national double rink Lindfield ladies earned 35-30 win against Royal Sovereign (Eastbourne) and in the Gladys Roland competition the 'A' side eased to a comfortable 19-4 victory against Horsham Park. The only disappointment for the ladies was the defeat of their Gladys Roland 'B' team who fought back from 12-17 down to take a 3 shot lead in to the final end against Worthing only to drop a count of four to lose 21-22.

In the national over 55 pairs the all Lindfield encounter saw Shirley Nelson and Sue Willmott edge past Chris Sugarhood and Carol Watson thanks to a strong finish over the last three ends after their early lead had nearly been pegged back.
There was a surprise result in the men's county pairs when Chris Reynolds and Roger Green claimed the prize scalps of the 2007 champions Ian Watson and Dave Richardson. Chris and Roger seized the early initiative opening up a 7-1 lead and led all the way to win 24-17.
To add to Richardson's woes he, along with team mates Peter Colbourne and Peter Treagus went out of the county triples when they suffered an 11-17 loss at West Hoathly. In the men's national double fours the more experienced Lindfield 'B' side claimed a somewhat flattering 33 shot victory against their own 'A' team, with the winners now facing a trip to either Preston or Mackie.

June 1st: Lindfield bowlers in Middleton Cup selection

Congratulations to Peter Colbourne, Graeme Geddie, Adam Harding, Keith Holman and Ian Watson on being selected for the first Middleton Cup game of the season, they will form part of the 24-man Sussex squad to play against the Isle of Wight at Worthing Pavilion on Saturday 5th June.   You can view the whole team here.

May 27th: Mid-Sussex Times report

In the ladies over 55s national pairs Lindfield's Chris Sugarhood and Carol Watson met their own team mates Sue Paterson and Stella Wellum and in a closely fought game Chris and Carol took a four shot lead in to the last end and this was enough to secure them the victory. Also going strong are Shirley Nelson and Sue Willott who defeated West Hoathly's Pat Adam and Bernadine Philpot 14-12 in the first round and followed this with a more convincing 22-13 victory against Rottindean. The two Lindfield pairs now meet in the next round.

In the first round of the ladies county triples Stella Wellum, Carol Watson and Jean Spooner qualified after beating Barcombe.
In the opening stages of the men's county competitions Ian Watson emerged as a 21-9 winner in the champion of champions but the outcome was less favourable for those competing in the pairs. Derek Heather and Terry Hughes succumbed to Woodingdean and in their first season together Alan Price and Bryan Mills got off to a flying start against Dyke Road but eventually lost out on what would have been a memorable win, losing 24-17.

Congratulations go to Mick O'Donnell and Terry Hughes who have successfully qualified as level 2 coaches.

May 20th: Mid-Sussex Times report

In their opening game of the national mixed fours Shirley Nelson, Sue Willmott, Adam Harding and Dave Richardson travelled to Peacehaven and won a very one sided encounter 31-2. The game was over as a contest as early as the 9th end with the score 24-0 in favour of the Lindfield four and their opposition conceded after a mere 14 ends to leave Richardson’s team with a second round match away at West Hoathly.

Richardson then teamed up with Ian Watson on Sunday and the pair recorded a comfortable 16 shot win against a Maidstone duo in the London & Southern County pairs competition.

On Saturday (22nd) Watson and Graeme Geddie will be representing Sussex in the opening Home Counties League match against Kent which is being played at Popes Mead bowling club in Crawley, with Watson playing 3 to Popes Mead's Mick Law and Geddie playing with Eastbourne's Derek Dyer.

May 18th: Mens' Double-Fours prevail in West Hoathly re-match

Lindfield mens' national double-fours "B" team won through in their second consecutive match against West Hoathly, this time defeating their "A" team by 16 shots on their challenging green. Dave Richardson's rink scrapped hard and picked up 3 on the last end to sneak a one-shot win, 22-21, while Ian Watson's rink enjoyed a more convincing 25-10 victory.
Lindfield "B" now take on Lindfield "A" in the third round.

May 12th: Mens' Double-Fours enjoy first round success

There was double success for Lindfield on Saturday when both their National Double Fours teams won their opening matches. Representing the ‘A’ team against Uckfield were the rinks of Alan Price, Peter Treagus, Mick O’Donnell and Chris Reynolds who raced away to a 14-3 lead and maintained a healthy gap throughout to finally triumph 20-12. They were ably supported by Ivan Orchin, Ron Langridge, Peter Gacsall and Geoff Nelson who built on a good start to record a comfortable 26-10 win.

Lindfield ‘B’ were up against familiar opposition West Hoathly and with both rinks getting off to a good start the result was never in doubt. Peter Colbourne, Roger Green, Terry Hughes and Dave Richardson took control of their game early on and won 28-10 and it was a similar story for Adam Harding, Graeme Geddie, Keith Holman and Ian Watson who finished as 29-5 winners. In a busy weekend for the club they played host to Seaford on Saturday and edged a closely fought game 90-89 and followed this with a visit to Beach House Park , Worthing where the rink wins were shared in a 75-75 draw.

Lindfield B now travel to West Hoathly on Tuesday 18th (view the team), with the A team due to play the winners.

May 6th: Mid-Sussex Times report

The first round of the national Top Club competition was played in atrocious conditions as Lindfield endured a frustrating start to their competitive season when they visited Mackie. Some of their number felt the tie had to be played unnecessarily early because of the deadline date set by the EBA and the constant morning rain made the outcome something of a lottery.

With the two singles matches being shared and Lindfield winning the four bowl but losing out in the two bowl singles, the club then took a 2-1 lead in the tie thanks to a convincing win in the triples. However, with the rain falling ever harder, the pairs and fours teams both lost ground on their opposition and with the chances of an overall victory all but gone, both matches were conceded before the full allocation of ends had been played.

Lindfield will hope for better fortunes this Saturday when both their national double fours teams play at home against West Hoathly and Uckfield respectively.

April 26th: Team sheets available on this website

The teams for the friendly matches against Handcross, Godstone and St Francis have been uploaded to the website.
You will still need to tick your name off at the club-house to indicate your availability, and any subsequent team alterations may not be reflected on the website.

April 23rd: Mens' National teams announced

The team for the first round of the mens' Top Club competition has been selected. We play in the preliminary round away to Mackie on Sunday May 2nd.

2 wood singles: Peter Colbourne
4 wood singles: Dave Richardson
Pair: Graeme Geddie and Keith Holman
Triple: Peter Gacsall, Adam Harding, Ian Watson
Four: Frank Palmer, Chris Reynolds, Roger Green, Terry Hughes

Our two National Double Fours teams have also been selected. In no particular order, they are:
"A" team:
Ivan Orchin, Ron Langridge, Mick O'Donnell, Peter Keogh, Tom Palmer, Chris Reynolds, Alan Price, Peter Treagus.

"B" team
Terry Hughes, Roger Green, Dave Richardson, Peter Colbourne, Adam Harding, Ian Watson, Keith Holman, Graeme Geddie.

Good luck to all those involved!

April 21st: New season

Just a reminder that the new season starts this Saturday 24th April, the green will be open from 10am onwards.
The annual pre-season meeting is tomorrow (Thursday 22nd) at 7:30 in the King Edward Hall, and is a last chance to pay your annual fees, and sign up for the internal club competitions - please come along armed with your cheque books!

View the news updates from the 2009 season >