Eastbourne?s interclub roll halted despite claiming Victoria pairs
By Tim O?Connell
A shock singles loss by Gary Lawson and a narrow loss in the fours saw the Gough Shield-winning club come back down to Earth. Rounds five and six of Wellington?s Interclub Bowls Competition provided mixed fortunes for the previously unbeaten Eastbourne side on November 8. After sweeping past Silverstream in all three morning fixtures, the premier men?s team faltered in the afternoon against Victoria to lose 14-9. Playing at home, the Eastbourne selection would have looked favourably to continue their good form against Silverstream and Victoria, ranked third and fourth respectively. But the arduous double header eventually took its toll in the later match, allowing Victoria to edge closer to Eastbourne and Johnsonville at the top of the Interclub ladder.? The pair selection of Andrew Curtain and Bruce Henderson managed to keep their own winning record intact over their Victoria opponents. ? However, the fours combination of Goodwin, Gallop, Newman and Carroll lost their match at the last end. Then, in possibly the biggest boil over of the tournament to date, Victoria?s Ben King snuck home 25-24 against Eastbourne?s Gary Lawson in the singles match, gifting Victoria a vital away win. Club secretary Don Griffin admitted the loss was unfortunate after a good start to the 2008/2009 season. ?It didn?t go quite as we?d hoped.? Despite the loss, Eastbourne still hold second place behind the pace setting Johnsonville team, with Victoria narrowing the gap in third place. Eastbourne has an opportunity to climb to the top on November 22, when it travels to North Wellington to meet Johnsonville in an exciting top of the table clash. ?
