The tournament once again was fully supported by the club's members, with a few invited guests taking part (writes Sam Mac).

The weather, although a little dull, was ideal for bowling, with the green in excellent conditions, thanks to Chris Jenkins, our greenkeeper.

The first group set the bowling rolling at 9 am. This was to continue to the final ending at 7.45 pm that evening. All competitors had a minimum of five sessions of 45 minutes, with a similar amount of breaks.

From the four sections, the top two pairs went forward into the quarter-finals.

Among those was a good cross-section of bowlers, namely M. Crockford and I. Silcox; P. Diment and S. Williams; J. Evans and M. Evans; B. Barnikel and P. Barnikel; L. Guymer and J. Bancroft; C. Davies and J. Davies; G. Beynon and V. Williams; T. Cummings and M. Cumming.

The four winners went through to the semi-final stage, M. Crockford and I. Silcox v C. Davies and J. Davies, and J. Evans and H. Evans v P. Diment and S. Williams, with the latter eventually winning a hard fought final against the Crockford and Silcox pairing.

Total prize money of £400 was shared out, from £10 a pair to £200 to the winning pair.

Competitors also enjoyed an excellent buffet, kindly prepared by Alison and Alan Redman, Carol Waring and Betty McNeilly. Thanks go to them and also to Carole, our bar manageress; to Ron Hurlow, who kept all the score charts up to date; and our chairman, John King, for the rink layout and his general assistance throughout the day.

Finally, it was very kind of Bill Simmonds, area manager, Mrs. Judy Smith, Tenby manageress, accompanied by her daughter Melanie, assistant manageress of Corals, our main sponsors, to attend the prize-giving, especially after a long and busy day at their bookmakers, with Melanie presenting all winners with their prizes.

Well folks that's it. Hope to see you all next year.

Footnote: I must thank Mr. and Mrs. Kirkbride, Pembroke Dock, for stepping in, especially as I only telephoned them at 10.30 pm on Sunday night.

GOSCAR 70 (4 pts.)

ST. KATHERINE'S 98 (10)

It was the first game this season that Goscar had played in good weather when they entertained St. Katherine's at home on Saturday. With the sunshine we have had over the last week, both teams found the green running fast.

Alan Rootes' rink were outgunned against the rink led by D. Smith. Liam McDaid, playing lead, put in some good woods and is still catching the eye of the coaches, but overall the rink was no match for the opposing quartet.

Harry Meads' rink, playing with two juniors, Sam Meads and Joe Richards, put in a spirited effort, but never recovered from a bad start.

Reg Thake's rink, with Chas Beech having a good game at lead, had a tight match against the experienced Doug Joyce quartet. With Bill Bailey drawing some good woods into the head and Reg sending down a guided missile on the 21st end to pick up a three, they ran out five-shot winners. Reg was more than pleased with his rink's win, as it was the first rinks win he had had against Doug Joyce.

Captain Ted said it was because he was playing in his rink. Reg's reply was, with the captain in his rink, he expected to lose by at least 20 shots!

Rob Wilkins' rink had a right old tussle against the P. Harries outfit. It was neck and neck until the 17th end when they slowly pulled ahead, making a three on the last end to finish six shots up.

Rink scores (Goscar first, St. Katherine's skips only):

C. Beech, T. Brutnell, B. Bailey, R. Thake 25; D. Joyce 20.

S. Askew, D. Spencer, A. Vincent, R. Wilkins 24; P. Harries 18.

S. Meads, J. Richards, J. Hubbard, H. Meads 12; D. Buchanan 29.

L. McDaid, S. Paul, D. Rees, A. Rootes 9; D. Smith 31.

TENBY LADIES 34

PRIORY 39

Tenby Ladies played Priory Ladies at home recently. Rink scores (Tenby first, Priory skips only) were:

P. Jones, M. Skyrme, M. Morris, M. Marquiss 16; M. Evans 19.

P. Best, M. Burn, L. Evans, P. Barnikel 18; M. Manning 20.

TENBY LADIES 61

ST. ISSELL'S 17

The weather was perfect when Tenby Ladies played St. Issell's. So was the score.

Rink scores (Tenby first, St. Issell's skips only):

P. Jones, M. Draper, P. Barnikel, J. Dorling 28; B. Lawrence 7.

L. Evans, M. Burn, M. Morris, M. Marquiss 33; S. Spiller 10.

WHIST

Members of the Tenby Bowling Club whist circle were glad to welcome back globetrotters Mabel and Bill Whittaker from their Canadian tour. Highlight of their trip was the brilliant Niagara Falls.

Best wishes go to popular Eric Sutcliffe from all of his whist playing friends, with the hope that Eric will be back at the tables soon.

Results for Thursday, May 29, were as follows: top score - Bert Barnikel; first lady - Gerry Meaney; second lady - Muriel Griffiths; first gent - Roly Hughes; second gent - Joan Tester; first half winner - Pearl Thomas; second half winner - Joan Rees; longest sitter - Rosa Middleton; raffle - Bill Whittaker and Pearl Thomas.

Results for Saturday, May 31, were as follows: top score - Roly Hughes; first lady - Muriel Griffiths; second lady - Gerry Meaney; first gent - Peggy Fender; second gent - Elsie Breadnam; first half winner - Mair Marquiss; second half winner - Joan Dorling; longest sitter - Joan Tester; raffle - Joan Dorling and Muriel Griffiths.

NB. Tenby Bowling Club whist is played at 7.30 sharp every Thursday evening and at 2 pm sharp every Saturday in the club's function room, Sutton Street. New members are always very welcome.

ST. ISSELL'S 74 (9pts)

FIVE ARCHES 40 (5 )

They won on two rinks and drew on a third, but still the Arches could not taste the sweet smell of a win.

No one can doubt the support and commitment that Doug and Mike receive from the squad, but that elusive first win still has not been grasped.

Roy and his rink started well, but a drop of six shots just before tea was fatal, and the rink were always on the back foot from there on.

By the 14th end, Dave King Thomas and his crew were nine shots adrift, but they dug in and clawed their way back to finish all square with Dave Robb's foursome, which included former Arches player John Tyler.

Ron Hurlow, playing his first game of the season, slipped easily back into the groove, while Jim Taylor also performed well, as did Dai and Doug.

It was a ding dong battle between Ray Holly and John Dugmore's rinks. Neil Dickinson again delivered the goods, helping Maxie, who had brought the wrong woods - well that's his excuse anyway. Ray and his men eventually ran out winners by one shot.

With front men Craig and Gerald struggling to come to terms with the pace of the green, John Moffat and his rink fancied their chances against Mike and his crew. But a pep talk at half-time saw the whole rink change gear in the second half to come home by eight shots.

Alan Brace shone for the home side, as did John 'I'm a draw player really' Moffat (and I'm a naturalised Dutchman!).

It was a great game played in good spirit and in lovely sunshine. Pity about the parking, when the captain had to pay £2 to park, Tenby's parking problem is a mere bagatelle.

Rink scores (Arches first, St. Issell's skips only):

R. Hurlow, J. Taylor, D. Silcox, D. King Thomas 20; D. Robb 20.

M. Donoghue, N. Dickinson, G. Hill, R. Holly 16; J. Dugmore 15.

T. Powling, J. Best, G. Beynon, R. Powling 11; D. Roberts 24.

C. Guymer, G. Hewitt, P. Hooper, M. Crockford 23; J. Moffat 15.

Team to play Saundersfoot at home tomorrow (Saturday):

G. Hewitt, M. Donoghue, P. Hooper, M. Crockford.

R. Hurlow, T. Powling, G. Beynon, R. Powling.

J. Best, N. Dickinson, G. Hill, R. Holly.

B. Barnikel, J. Taylor, D. Silcox, D. King Thomas.

FIVE ARCHES 58

TENBY 113

Tension was running high as last Sunday was Local Derby Day, with the Jones and Jones sponsored Tenby team playing 'away' to the Five Arches.

Tenby were quietly confident, as some of their key players missing from last week were back to strengthen the side. One of the aforementioned was Terry Howells returning from Spain, who must have felt the climate change as he resorted to wearing two shirts and a tie (or was he trying to outdress Terry Preston?). After a warm welcome from both captains, both teams shook hands and got ready to do battle.

Terry 'Two Shirts' Howells was first up against Arches captain Mike Crockford. Terry's rink included Luke Guymer, whose opposite number was his twin brother Craig, so as can be imagined, the duo had a very close fought contest up front. Number two was Webby, looking slightly jaded after one week of marriage, but he still managed to have a rock steady game. Third was the elusive Dai Newth, who was hampered by a bad back, which amazingly improved whenever he put a good bowl down! Terry ran out a comfortable 14-shot winner, with the highlight a seven-shot haul on the ninth end. Terry had the chance to 'draw' an eighth, but was three yards short! The after-match quote was "I couldn't go for it, boys."

Paul Diment's rink was always in control against Roy Powling, ending up 21-shot winners. Sam McNeilly had another excellent game at lead and backed by the consistent play of Terry Preston and John Baggott, with Paul converting big shots regularly, this was an impressive display.

Next up was captain Pat against Ray Holly. Dai Spencer and Alan Redman had a tough battle up front against Billy Russell and Neil Dickinson, but the sheer class of Peter Day and Pat steered the rink to an excellent 20-shot victory. Pat was so in the driving seat he even had time to craft an African Ladybird whilst still on the green!

Andrew 'Jah Jah' Muskett's response after his 20-all draw against Dai King Thomas was "It was a game of two halves -Tenby had the first and the Arches had the second." Arches number two Jim Taylor did most of the damage, having a superb game, but Tenby's Lee Richards, Bill Bailey and Dave Morgan all contributed well to a very exciting finish, climaxing in a superb match-saving last bowl from Andrew.

Post-match, Tenby were more than content with their 55-shot victory, but Arches captain Mike Crockford summed it up by saying "Really the only winner from today's encounter was Tenby Bowling Club."

With the competition for the day ended, both sides adjourned to the bar for a well-earned drink and a post mortem on the game.

Rink Scores (Tenby first, Five Arches skips only):

Luke Guymer, Jon Webb, Dai Newth, T Howells 30; Mike Crockford 16.

Sam McNeilly, Terry Preston, John Baggott, Paul Diment 30; Roy Powling 9.

Dai Spencer, Alan Redman, Peter Day, Pat Currie 33; Ray Holly 13.

Lee Richards, Bill Bailey, Dave Morgan, Andrew Muskett 20; Dai King Thomas 20.

JUNIOR SECTION

The Juniors play their first friendly of the season on Sunday when they entertain Saundersfoot Juniors on two rinks and Pembroke Dock Juniors on one rink. All the juniors will play a part in the game which starts at 10 o'clock. There will be an official presentation of the playing shirts to the junior side, by Brian and Christine Diment. The squad captain for the ensuing year is Joe Richards.

Team to play Saundersfoot is: Chas Beech, Sam Ormond, Joe Richards, Aishleen McDaid, Alex Harley, Liam McDaid, sub Scott Meads.

Team to play Pembroke Dock: Lloyd Thomas, Tom Nicholas, Darryl Mansbridge, sub Steve Phillips.

All players to be at the club by 9.45 am.

Grateful thanks to Val James and Jean Salisbury for offering to provide refreshments after the match.

FIVE ARCHES 58 (1 pt) Tenby 113 (13)

I bet thousands of readers who avidly peruse Bowlers Corner must ask themselves why do they have two reports of the same game. Well for the Derby match of the year, both the Tenby and Five Arches squads have their own reporter on duty, and as the Arches were the 'home' side this time they like to mention their match sponsor, which on this occasion was Tenby Marine, with main sponsor being Stena Line.

There was only one word to describe this match - 'overwhelmed', with the exception of Dave King Thomas and his men who fought out a gallant draw.

It was a close encounter all match, with Jim Taylor starring for the Arches side, but all four deserve credit for the gutsy performance.

It was four big counts, during which Tenby scored 20 shots, that destroyed Mike and his crew. After that the Arches rink restricted them to eight shots over the next 17 ends. The rink spluttered and stuttered the whole game, with the Tenby fousome completely outbowling them for most of the time - although Terry Howells admitted that he saw two shots from Mike that he had never experienced before!

Terry also had his hands full trying to understand Pedro Newth giving the score in Spanish.

Neil Dickinson played well to try and stem the flow in Ray Holly's foursome and Billy Russell tried his hardest as well, but the rink went down eventually by 20 shots.

The powerful Paul Diment rink swamped Roy and his men, with Roy himself valiantly trying to stop the avalanche of shots against.

Unlike the Welsh rugby touring side, at least the Arches turned up for the match, with no arguing over money. Both Pat and Mike agreed after that the true winner was Tenby Bowling Club.

Rink scores (Arches first, Tenby skips only):

C. Guymer, G. Hewitt, P. Hooper, M. Crockford 16; T. Howells 30.

W. Russell, N. Dickinson, G. Hill, R. Holly 13; P. Currie 33.

T. Powling, J. Best, G. Beynon, R. Powling 9; P. Diment 30.

B. Barnikel, J. Taylor, D. Silcox, D. King Thomas 20; A. Muskett 20.