A total of 30 bowlers, the largest for any previous competition held at the club, were fighting it out for the Simmonds Trophy, kindly donated by Cath and Dean Simmonds.
Unfortunately injury prevented Cath from taking part, leaving previous winner Dean looking to emerge victorious again to ensure the trophy stayed ‘at home!’
Due to the high number of entries, a straightforward knockout competition was employed, with a ‘plate’ contest for those defeated in the first round.
Newcomers in the guise of husband and wife teams Barry and Katherine Smith, Mark and Rosie Swaffield and Mark and Jayne Delaney joined the other 22 hardened campaigners going into the hat for the traditional random pairs draw conducted by club owner Nid.
Duncan Kennedy was delighted to draw serial winner Sunee ‘Aon’ Sriraksa as his partner, while the latter’s winning teammate from last year’s competition, Roger Goodwin, was paired with reigning singles champion Worada ‘Nidnoi’ Collins and Dorothy Barker was breathing a sigh of relief as she was drawn to partner her nemesis of previous singles finals Ulf ‘Ue’ Egertstad.
Glenn Collins and Dean Lambert were the lucky pair who received the only bye of the first round to be guaranteed of a quarter-final place.
The standard of bowling across the field was of an exceptionally high standard, ensuring a high class and ultra competitive tournament where stamina and guile in the searing heat were paramount.
There were some major shocks after the first round, with Aon and Duncan dispatched by newcomers Rosie and Mark Swaffield, while Nidnoi and Roger were felled by Rob Knight and Doug Reid and Ken ‘Sammy’ Sampert and his partner Ray Austin lost out to Derek ‘Dr Rock’ Chalmers and Carl ‘The Mesh’ Mesham.
Pulsating contest
A pulsating contest in the first quarter-final saw Dot and Ue triumph against Rob and Doug, while Glenn and Dean Lambert rode their luck to beat Alec and Franz at the last end. In the other two ties, Dean Simmonds and Ian ‘Mintie’ Mintern overcame ‘The Mesh’ and ‘Dr Rock’ and surprise package Barry and Katherine Smith beat Frank Borni and David Dorsch to make the semi-final in their maiden bow.
However, the newcomers were unable to get past Dot and Ue in the first semi-final as the latter pair continued their scintillating form to cruise to a 10-4 victory, while Dean Simmonds and Mintie beat Dean Lambert and Glenn 11-6, despite throwing away a 6-1 lead at one point.
The final was therefore set and, once underway, the early exchanges were tight with Dean and Mintie holding a narrow 3-2 lead after four ends.
Realising they probably could not out bowl Dot and Ue, Dean and Mintie adopted a more fiery attacking approach for the next four ends, a decision that seemed to be sensible as they advanced to a five shot lead with four ends to go.
However, Dot and Ue showed their class to battle back to level the scores at 7-7 with just two ends to play, before Dean and Mintie scraped a point on end nine, meaning the overall outcome hinged on the very last end to be played.
The drama had the crowd whipped into a frenzy, with excited onlookers becoming increasingly vociferous and the pressure built for the two teams.
The final was decided by the slimmest of margins as Dot’s bowl sneaked past Mintie’s to leave the perceived underdogs holding the final shot, which they took to secure a 9-7 victory – a gripping and exciting final worthy of any stage!
Congratulations were betsowed upon Dean and Mintie with an understandably ecstatic Cath Simmonds presenting the trophy to the victorious pair.
For Dean it meant claiming back the trophy he won two years ago, while Mintie was triumphant in his first ever major final. However, Dot ended up disappointed as the bridesmaid, somewhat inexplicably given her form over recent years.
Last year’s overall champion Roger Goodwin and his playing partner Nidnoi beat Frank and David in the plate final - perhaps not the trophy Roger was aiming for but a trophy nevertheless!
All eyes now turn to the ‘blue ribbon’ event next month when the prestigious Phuket Open Singles Championship will be contested on Mar 14.
Kamala Lawn Bowls club is open six days a week and all equipment is provided. Members days are Monday and Friday and beginners day Wednesday from 2:45pm onwards. For more information please contact: Tel 099-130-7255 or 097-173-0221; email: galations1402@gmail.com or Gordonjenkins1963@gmail.com.