Wymondham 8 (64) v Connaught A 2 (55) - 29/01/2012

Wymondham have inflicted the first defeat of Connaught A's season and one that now puts clear distance between them at the top of the table with a fifteen point gap. The first session on mat 1 saw Wymondham's only defeat as B.Barker, A. Stratton and D. Phillips lost to C. Musk, A. Stratton and S. Parsons 13-20. The home triple only had themselves to blame for the defeat as they simply had no anwser to how all three Connaught players performed. Christine, Lee and Sylvia were all on fine form apart from the start where Wymondham had lead 7-5 after seven ends but from there Connaught mostly dominated. The damage was done on ends nine, ten and eleven where they scored 3,3,2 to take a commanding 7-14 lead, which led to the Wymondham trio changing as Deb swapped posistions with Andrew, as Deb could not quell the danger like she so often does. But the change could not overturn the seven shot deficit inflicted, as the Connaught triple deserved the win.

On mat 2 R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders made sure the teams went in level as they beat D. Adcock, R. Wells and B. Adcock 16-12. Roger had another steady game at lead which gave the home side the advantage on most ends while Melvyn did a steady job at two. Three 3's on ends one, six and thirteen gave the home side a boost in the scoreline as they limited the Connaught triple to very little, apart from end seven where Connaught looked to be scoring four or five shots untill Brian came in with his last wood to cut it down to one shot as he also had a good game at skip. After end thirteen the home side held a strong 15-6 lead and although Connaught won the last four ends, the Wymondham tiple made sure a comeback was not on the cards.

Second session on mat 1 saw  P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell beat M. Parsons, T. Musk and O. Allen 19-9. The scoreline refelcts a dominant dislay from Wymondham but in truth they were pushed all the way by the Connaught triple who never gave up. After four ends the scores were tied at 4-4 as the game looked to be too close to call but then the home side began to find their feet more as they scored the next three ends to lead 8-3 after seven ends with Pat, Mary and Mark all playing their part in the match. The home side further increased their lead to 16-7 after thirteen ends as Ollie and Tye swapped places in a bid to change fortunes and this looked to have happened as Mark on the penaltimute end  was facing a possible six down and with a forehand smash managed to take shot which sealed the win, much to the disappointment of the away side as that would have seen them back in the match with an end to go and only two behind but it wasn't to be for them.

On mat 2 M. George, A. Jackson and C. Mann just managed to beat G. Wilcox, J. Winup and S. Bragg 16-14 in what was a tightly contested match. The home side took an early lead with Chris playing a good last wood to take four shots after the first end. After five ends they further increased their lead to 8-1 as the triple looked in good form. But from there the triple barely looked the same as Conaught came back into the match with Gordon now outplaying Mikey who went from having his best performance at Watton to his worst performance at home, failing the majority of the time to get close to the jack. This put more pressure on Andrew who's performance fluctuated throughout as John for Connaught started to come into the match more as well. After tweleve ends the away side had managed to draw level at 10-10 with Connaught taking the last four ends. Chris had an indifferent match playing with far too much weight on occassions but managing to pull off some crucial woods when needed, so Connaught did not run away with it. The Wymondham trio started to play a little better towards the end with a 2, 3 and 1 scored on ends 13,14 and 15 to regain the lead at 14-12. But Connaught were not finished and scored two singles on end 16 and 17 to bring the scores level at 14-14 with an end to go with Shelia playing some vital woods in the match. But luckily for Wymondham, Shelia was short with her last wood which gave the home side two shots and a much relieved captain who was physically and mentally drained after the match!

Connaught will no doubt feel that this result is a massive blow for there title chances and they could of had at least four points but luckily Wymondham's nerve just about held on in the end and they will be relieved at the result. The Norwich Cup match between the sides tomorrow night will yet again be another tightly contested affair with both teams looking to improve on certain parts of their performances today.

Watton 2 (53) v Wymondham 8 (74) - 13/01/2012

Another tough away game met Wymondham but again the team got the result they needed. First session on mat 1 saw B. Barker, J. Barrett and D. Phillips beat B. Draper, J. Bebee and D. Braham 17-13. The away side came out the blocks fast and racked up a 7-1 lead after just four ends. From there the Wymondham trio kept the lead and with a string of braces on ends 12,13 and 14 made the game safe as they lead 17-7 after fourteen ends. Billie, Jack and Deb all played well in the match and deserved the result, as the home side couldn't quite deal with the pressure put on them. On mat 2 R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders lost 12-15 to M. Dibble, B. Dibble and R. Braham. Although the Wymondham triple took an early 7-3 lead after four ends, they failed to hold to the intiative as they relinquished their lead and fell behind after eight ends at 7-8. Ends ten to twelve saw them fall behind even more at 9-12 as by this time Melvyn was playing lead with Roger at two but both had inconsistant games, as one end they would have two good woods then the next end fall short. Brian had played some good attacking woods throughout the match to keep the away side in it. But this was not enough as Roger at skip for Watton had a very strong match answering what Brian had to throw at him. Another late swap to change Roger at lead again still failed to ignite the team as Roger's performance was the highlight for the Watton win.

Second session on mat 1 saw P. Saunders, M. Fisher and A. Stratton beat A. Hubble, J. Walker and M. Hunter 22-17. Most teams that win more ends than there opponent in a match will usually find themselves on the winning side but on this occassion Watton did not as the scoring power by Wymondham on the ends they won gave them victory. A 4,1 and 3 on ends 1,3, and 5 gave the away side a healthy 8-1 lead. Best was yet to come as ends seven and then twelve bought them five shots each as they then lead 19-7. Pat, Mary and Andy all played strongly, apart from end seventeen where Watton scored four shots. But they kept the home side to 1's and 2's as they crept over the finish line for a great result. On mat 2 things got even better as M. George, P.King and C. Mann handed D. Quadling, Di. Quadling and J. Hunter the biggest defeat of the night as they won 23-8. Mikey had struggled with weight issues recently but rarely showed it tonight as his performance was his best away from Wymondham this season yet. The away side gradually started to take control of the match as they lead 7-2 after seven ends. Peter had a strong match and when needing to produce a killer wood most of the time did so. Chris is now really starting to hit some of his best form as he quelled the danger that John posed at skip for Watton, as ends nine to fifteen saw them score thirteen shots to lead 20-5. Either playing drawing or attacking woods Blazer had done it well all match and all three players deserved the 23-8 scoreine at the end. With two tricky away games out of the way and eighteen points accumualted, Wymondham can feel in up beat mood as they now have three home games against Connaught A (league and Norwich cup) and Connaught B (county cup) to come.

Forncett 0 (43) v Wymondham 10 (81) - 05/01/2012

With the first defeat of the season coming in the last game of the year, from 2nd placed Connaught A, the Christmas break seemed to have come at the right time for the team as they got back to winning ways with a comprehensive 10-0 win against Forncett, who had recently dumped Hempnall out of the Norwich Cup.

The first session on mat 1 saw P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell beat L. Preece, J. Rumsby and D. Rumsby 14-12. It's fair to say that Pat, Mary and Mark have not had the best run of results recently so a strong performance at Forncett is just what was required against the strong Rumsby's who battled all the way through match. The home side were a tad fortunate to be leading 1-3 after three ends as Dennis had wicked through to cut five Wymondham shots into one Forncett shot. Both tems though were very patchy early on with not many woods on the mat but graduly the Wymondham trio forced there way into a 12-7 lead after twelve ends with Mark playing a selection of good shots along the way. As the game wore on Pat started to dictate the game at lead as Forncett only scored on three of the last ten ends for a good result. On mat 2 it was pretty much one way traffic as R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders beat D. Bories?, D. Girling and K. Humpreys 28-8. The Wymondham triple came out the traps flying as a 2,6,2 and 2 saw them lead 12-0 after four ends. A slight resurgance from Forncett saw them take five of the next seven ends to see the scores at 15-7 after eleven ends. But the minor blip in the mid part of the game was put behind them as they pressed on with the early dominance they showed as they reeled of the next six ends with a 4,2,1,2,2 and 2 to cruise into a 28-7 lead with an end remaining. Wymondham looked more like the home team with all players finding the mat early on, as no change in posistioning was required this time.

The second session saw little difference in the results on both mats as B. Barker, A. Stratton and D. Phillips beat M. Boulter, E. Coleman and Merv Boulter on mat 1, 18-15. The Wymondham triple had a scrappy match compared to their recent matches in which they have all played well and like the first match found themselves 1-3 down after three ends. Wymondham though did hit back and played their best ends on four and five scoring a three then five, but did not score any more than three shots after that. Andrew admitted he had his worst game in a Wymondham shirt but this did not show as much with Forncett not cashing in as woods went astray at times. Deb's was again called upon numerous times throughout and managed to quell the danger somewhat apart from end eight when a four was dropped. Billie had a sketchy performance but came on strong towards the mid part of the match where they did hold their own as they still held a healthy 15-8 lead after twelve ends. Forncett did finish on high scoring the last thre ends with a 2,2,1 but was not enough as Wymondham held on for the win. On mat 2 M. George, A. Jackson and C. Mann beat R. Humphreys, M. Humphreys and P. Lock 21-8. This was quite a convincing win which showed for the Wymondham three as they pretty much outbowled their opposistion who in all fairness loooked like they had not played for a few weeks and admitted they had their worst match of the season so far. Again the away side started strong going into a 10-1 lead after five ends. From there Forncett had threatened to come back into the match but Mikey and Andrew had played well throughout although having the odd wood short or off the mat. After eleven ends Wymondham still held a strong 12-7 lead as the Forncett comeback had stopped. Andrew inparticular found the precise wood when needed so Forncett had little chance of getting big shots as end twelve took Wymondham to safety with a four to then lead 16-7. Likewise Chris had a strong game and the new year will hopefully bring some much improved performances. The shot of the night was however played by Blazer with a wrong bias draw into the ditch which capped off a brilliant start to the year for the club as they chalked up their seventh maximum win out of ten matches so far.

Connaught A 6 (63) v Wymondham 4 (59) - 21/12/2011

Another match against Connaught A that was not short of drama which developed three tight matches. The first session was a game of four halves as both games swung dramatically from both teams who dropped sizeable leads. On mat 1 M. George, P. King and C. Mann lost 14-15 to R. Secker, L. Fallows and O. Secker. After a bright start from Wymondham and all players in good form they took a commanding 13-2 lead after nine ends. This prompted a change for Connaught as Lee went skip with Owen now second. This made a huge difference as all of sudden all three Connaught players started to click. Suddenly Rita was now more consistant at lead, Owen most of the time was building up the Connaught heads and was doing it well, while Lee was for the majority of the time consolidating. This caused a collapse in the Wymondham ranks as all three players failed to respond to the pressure, from winning ends 2-9 they then conceded from ends 10-17 accumulating in 13 shots for Connaught to lead 13-15 with an end remaining. Wymondham could only muster a single on the last end for what was a gut wrenching defeat to say the least! On mat 2 R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders beat C. Musk, R. Wells and S. Parsons 18-15. This was yet another match where the tide changed considerably, this time it was Connaught that got a stranglehold of the match when they scored a 5 then 3 on ends six and seven to lead 4-12 and it looked to have put Wymondham out of the match. But yet again Brian swapped Melvyn to lead and Roger to second and again the results started to show immediately as they hit back scoring the next six ends with twelve shots accumulated to lead 16-12. Much like the game on mat 1 the reverse happened to the Wymondham players as they started to gel well after a difficult start. Melvyn drew very well at lead while Roger played his part as well. Brian too played some good shots as Connaught changed posistions with Ray at skip and Sylvia at two but this made little impact as Wymondham ran out unlikely winners. The second session again saw two entertaining matches which were both shared. On mat 1 B. Barker, A. Stratton and D. Phillips beat D. Adcock, D. Liles and B. Adcock 15-13. This match was close affair throughout with little separating the sides. With the home side taking an early 1-5 lead Wymondham hit back, with Debs displaying a fine show of drawing and attacking woods, they then lead 6-5 after eight ends. After a single from Connaught the away side pushed on with Billie and Andrew playing steady they increased their lead to 10-6 after twelve ends. But then Connaught found a little bit of form as Diana and Derek played their best ends in this period as they scored a two then four to lead 10-12. But again Wymondham were not to be out done as they again hit back, cancelling out the four scored by Connaught as the away trio scored 1 then 3 to regain their two shot lead advantage with two ends to go. With a single scored by Connaught on the penaltimate end, it all made for some last end drama. Deb had already been in this posistion earlier in the season against Connaught B winning the match with her last wood and again history repeated itself as she hit the holding Connaught wood to send it back to Wymondham's back wood to see them win by two shots in the end. Yet another shining performance from Deb as this alone deserved the two points. On mat 2 P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell lost 12-20 to T. Musk, O. Allen and S. Bragg. This match was not going to be an easy one for the Wymondham triple, and this was made even harder as they found themselves 1-7 behind after just four ends. Although the result looks one sided Wymondham had showed some resilience with Pat, Mary anf Mark all putting in some good woods at times but never threatened enough as consistancy was lacking. Connaught deserved to win the match with Ollie and Shelia imparticular playing strongly throughout. Overall a 6-4 win for Connaught on the night is a fair result and shows that there is little to choose between the teams ,hopefully Wymondham can improve on this result when Connaught visit next month for the return match.

Wymondham 10 (87) v Watton 0 (44) - 11/12/2011

After some very strong home performances Wymondham came up against a stubborn Watton team who gave the home side some moments of concern especially in the second half. The first session on mat 1 saw B. Barker, J. Barrett and D.Phillips beat A. Hubble, Di, Quadling and M. Hunter 28-8. There were no real scares in this match as Watton never lead but the scores were tied after three ends at 2-2. After that Wymondham dominated, scoring the next eleven out of fifteen ends scoring 3 x 4, 1 x 3, 4 x 2 and 3 x 1 for an impressive result which saw Billie, Jack and Deb all playing confidently. On mat 2 P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell beat M. Dibble, V. Baldry and R. Braham 23-11. The result in the end looks pretty comfortable for the home side but after nine ends it was far from it as the scores were tied at 7-7. The home side took a 4-0 lead after the first end but then conceded back to back braces to see the scores level at 4-4 after three ends. After that a series of single shots from both teams in the next seven ends saw Wymondham regain the lead at 8-7 after Watton had taken the lead on two occassions as Pat and especially Mary seemed to struggle to get posistion. Mark had drawn in well a few times to save Wymondham concededing more shots as Roger had skipped well for Watton. But his pressure did not last as Wymondham began to find their feet as they reeled off the next four ends to lead 15-7 as the short jack was now reaping rewards as Pat, Mary and Mark had stepped it up a gear, a five on end seventeen gave gloss to the final score.

Second session on mat 1 saw M. George, A. Stratton and C. Mann beat D. Quadling, J. Bebee and D. Braham 16-13. This was a far from impressive performance from the home side as slack woods from all three players made the match more difficult than it should have really been. Mikey struggled with weight throughout, while Andrew struggled to get his bowls in the right posistions at times. Watton took advantage of this early on as they lead 1-5 after five ends. Chris also had a scrappy performance as hitting the block twice early on added to the frustrations which was unusual. The home side finally found a bit of form as they took ends six, seven and eight all with braces to lead 7-5. The away side though hit back as Daphne especially had a strong performance at skip for Watton a single then three put them back in front to lead 7-9. The big end for Wymondham came on end five when Blazer stunned the jack back into a pack of Wymondham woods to lay five shots and reclaim the lead at 12-9 after eleven ends. Although the home side did not carry on the high scoring they did enough to see the game out as they scored singles on ends 13,14,15 and 17 to see home the victory. There was to be more drama on mat 2 as R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders came from behind to beat E. Bebee, B. Dibble and J. Hunter 20-12. Watton started brightly and scored the first four of the opening five ends as they surged into a 1-8 lead. Brian then played a great weighted wood to score a tight three shots to reduce the arrears to 3-8. Mid way through the match Brian decided to swap Roger to two and Melvyn to lead to try and change the course of the game and again this worked as it did at Harling earlier in the season. Although Roger and Melvyn had not played badly, Watton had managed to make their woods count as John at skip for Watton was in good form. Melvyn at lead vastly improved his performance getting in and around the jack on most occassions. Roger was then most of the time concolidating and with Brian continuing his good form put the match on its head as Wymondham started to dictate. A 2,5,1 and 1 from ends eight to eleven put the home side in front at 13-9. A two then three on ends fourteen and fifteen made the match safe at 18-11 and again showed intelligence from Brian to make the switch just at the right time, which quelled the threat from Watton and saw Wymondham's fifth maximum points haul so far this season.

Wymondham 10 (108) v Forncett 0 (28) - 05/12/2011

Yet another mammoth home result which still keeps distance between us and Connaught A as the crunch game between us creeps ever closer. First session on mat 1 saw B. Barker, P. King and D. Phillips beat L. Preece, A. Coleman and K. Humphreys 26-5. With Pat unavailable for this fixture the team was slightly reshuffled as Peter came in to replace Andrew with Andrew then going in place of Pat in Mark's triple with Mary. The triple were very rarely troubled although the scores being level after end three at 2-2 gave the home side a little reminder that the match could be tricky as Forncett's lead was handy, having woods on the mat which caused problems at times. But this alone was not going to deprive the Wymondham triple as they reeled off seven straight ends accumulating seventeen shots with a five scored on end six. Forncett came back into the match late on scoring singles on ends fifteen, seventeen and eighteen but the damage had well and truely been done by then. On mat 2 R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders stormed to a 32-9 win against D. Barnes, E. Coleman and T. Ottewell. Another convincing performance again from Roger, Melvyn and Brian who quickly got into gear as they lead 11-1 after five ends. The mid part of the game was a little shacky from the home side conceding a 2,2,3 on ends nine, ten and eleven to see the score at 13-9, as Forncett's second player casued problems where the woods were in posistions that they hard to get to. But the home side quickly got back on track as they then cruised their way to the finish line with the last seven ends scored by Wymondham totalling nineteen shots for a convincing scoreline.

Second session on mat 1 saw M. George, A. Jackson and C. Mann beat R. Humphreys, M. Humphreys and P. Lock 20-11. This by far was Wymondham's toughest match of the night facing Forncett's strongest block. The away side took an early 0-3 lead and put pressure on the home team. With Chris not having his best season so far, he produced some very good woods to keep Wymondham in touch. After planting a Forncett wood out the head the home side hit back scoring a four on end three but then Forncett replied with a three then one to regain the lead at 4-7 after five ends. Mikey and Andrew had not bowled bad up to then but just found Forncett's woods in better posistions. As the match wore on Mikey started to draw better than Becky at lead and with Andrew concentrating more on the straight hand this paid dividence. After a series of ends which had been shared Wymondham found themselves level at 8-8 after nine ends. Forncett's two and skip had done a lot of damage early on but they couldn't keep the pressure on as the Blazer of old had returned and produced another four shots on end ten as the Forncett skip found himself attacking the head on more and more occasions. Another two on the next end saw a bit of daylight at 14-8 after eleven ends. From then the Wymondham triple had grown in confidence as the Forncett trio were limited to only scoring singles on ends twelve, seventeen and eighteen for a relived result after the start of the match. On mat 2 the home side rounded off the game with another crushing result as A. Stratton, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell beat M. Boulter, D. Girling and M. Boulter 30-3. With Andrew leading this gave a platform to build on as Wymondham soon began to rack up the shots with Mary and Mark both having strong games as well. 6 x 1, 4 x 3, 3 x 2, 3 x 3 and 1 x 6 piled on the misery for the away team as they could only muster singles on ends two, twelve and seventeen for a bruising scoreline. The Forncett team though were weakened without Dennis and Joan Rumsby and with them in action no doubt the scores would have been closer. The club though wishes Joan a speedy recovery from her operation which she has had recently.

Wymondham 10 (112) v Hingham Green 0 (22) - 27/11/2011

Another comprehensive home win for Wymondham which caps off a great week for the club. The first session on mat 1 saw M. George, A. Jackson and C. Mann storm to a 37-4 win against P. Roache, W. Tweed and P. Groombridge. This was a very one sided match in which Wymondham scored 3 x 6, 4 x 2 and 2 x 3 along with four singles from ends fourteen to seventeen to frustrate the home side a little towards the end. But credit to the Hingham skip who played some decent attacking shots to make sure Wymondham did not get into the 40's. On mat 2 R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders swept aside D. Mylechreest, J. Roache and G. Tweed 30-3. This again was another strong result for the triple who are now starting to gel even more as this result shows. Roger again was consistant and likewise Melvyn and Brian all played well. Two 4's on ends three and four set the tone for the match as they went on to score 5 x 2, 5 x 1, 1 x 3 and 1 x 4.

Second session on mat 1 saw an unorthodox triple consisting of J. Barrett, S.Foster and A. Stratton but all played well to beat the strong triple of B. Woods, Janet Higgs and John Higgs 23-6. Jack was playing his first league match at home this season while this was Shirley's first start for Wymondham. Both bowled relatively well considering this and with Andrew at skip all played well together. Again Wymondham flew out the blocks early with a four on the second end than a three on the fourth to lead 7-1. Hingham for a while bought themselves back into it scoring on ends five, seven and eight but could only score singles to remain behind 8-4. From there the home side pushed on, scoring the next six ends accumulating eleven shots to lead 19-4 after fourteen ends. One of the big factors in the match was Andrew's left hand which on the straight lines gave him more of an advantage than John who did struggle with them, but he had played some very good drawing woods to cut shots down. On mat 2 P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell beat T. Currysmith, M. Southgate and E. Herbert 22-9. This was another controlled performance from the home side but considering the other matches had only conceded singles in their matches the performance from Pat, Mary and Mark was maybe more highlighted in the fact they dropped nine shots in all. Never the less this was still a strong performance as the Hingham skip had played well to create the nine shots. After going 7-0 up after three ends, the home side then dropped a three only for Wymondham to regain the initiative to lead 11-3 after eight ends. Wymondham then picked it up a gear and surged ahead to lead 22-4 after fifteen ends. A slight lapse towards the end saw Hingham score on the last three ends (1,2 and 2) as the hipe of Mark's performance from Thursday night did not quite live up to expectation today but played well enough for what is still a sizeable result.

Wymondham 10 (96) v Carleton Rode 0 (39) - 20/11/2011

Wymondham's gritty performance earned them another maximum points hall at home thanks to Brian's excellent wood on the last end which denied Neil what would of  been a hard earned win. The other three matches all went the same way also but were a lot more convincing. First session on mat 1 saw R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders snatch victory by one shot to finish 17-16 against P. Rush, T. Newby and N. Davidson. The game started off well for the home side as a four on the first end then a single on the next saw them 5-0 up. But Carleton hit back with back to back brace's to reduce the arrear's to 5-4. But back came Wymondham with a three to increase their lead 8-4. But then after the away side got into their stride as Pam, Terry and Neil started to put the home side under pressure and this told. As a three on end ten put them ahead for the first time at 9-11. Roger throughout though had bowled very consistantly to the jack which always gave Wymondham a chance as they hit back straight away with a three to regain the lead at 12-11. The next three ends though went the way of Carleton as Neil had played some crucial shots throughout to keep them in the match and when they lead 12-16 after fourteen ends, must of thought they had it near enough won it. Melvyn got himself back into the match with some decent woods towards the end and with Roger still doing the business gave Wymondham three consecutive singles to cut Carleton's lead to one at 15-16 with one end remaining. Brian had played well throughout but he saved his best wood to last nudging the jack back to Wymondham's wood with his resting beside. With Neil holding last wood in his hand all he needed was a tight draw or heavy wood to take at least one or both woods away but luckily for Wymondham he bowled it wide which gave them the win. This in truth was hard to believe after end fourteen, but well played team for going right to the death! On mat 2 P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell beat R. Lorn, M. Baker and R. Baker 27-13. After a topsy turby start the home side finally got into gear after they trailed 4-8 after five ends, when the home side took the lead after the first end 4-0. Two braces saw the Wymondham take the lead again only for Carleton to score a brace themselves and level it again at 10-10. From there the home side scored a five the next end which effectively killed off the game for Carleton as another five on end sixteen gave them a strong looking scoreline in the end. Pat, Mary and Mark did not have their best afternoon to date but again they played well enough to win by that bigger margin which show's they can still improve!

Second session saw two comfortable wins. On mat 1 M. George, A. Jackson and C. Mann beat D. Robson, C. Robson and G. Coleman 24-6. This was a match where the home team got a little bit complacent at times which lead to a good win instead of a great win. That's no disrespect to Carleton who gave Wymondham problems at times, especially the skip who cut down several shots throughout and at times produced shots. Mikey was fairly consistant throughout and Andrew progressively got better as the match wore on. Chris had another match where he didn't quite hit the sweet spot all the time but conceding 6 x 1 shows how in control of the match they were. On mat 2 B. Barker, A. Stratton and D. Phillips beat J. Davidson, M. Newby and R. Davidson 28-4. This was a suprising result as Russell and Jill are usually confident on the slowish type of mats for Carleton but they never quite got going as Wymondham showed them no room for error. 5 x 2, 3 x 3 and 1 x 5 for the home side showed they were in ruthless form as Billie, Andrew and Debs had great games. Like on the other mat the home side conceded just four singles in four ends for another match they were in complete control of. Overall this was a very impressive result as Carleton Rode usually play quite well at Wymondham and a much tougher match was expected, but if the team can play like they did this afternoon then Hempnall will have to be on top of their game to beat us tomorrow night in the cup.

Harling Recreational 1 (48) v Wymondham 9 (71) - 27/10/2011

Wymondham kept their unbeaten record intact with a solid team performance on the tricky Harling mats. First session on mat 1 saw R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders draw against B. Potter, K. Boswell and P. Dennis. Roger had an "off night" at lead and struggled to get to grips with the line and weight of the mat, which put a bit more pressure on Melvyn at two who played slightly better at times although not doing enough as Brian found himself playing with weight on numerous occasions throughout to grind out results and keep Wymondham in it. With the home side leading 7-12 after twelve ends, Chris knew that things needed to change so on end fourteen Brian decided that Melvyn switched to lead with Roger now playing second. This as Chris thought changed things for the better with Melvyn now playing a more consistant game at lead and taming the Harling lead who was not as dominant in the closing stages as she had been. This now meant Roger had to play more directly at two and this improved his game as he got the better of the Harling two also who had been a threat all night. The most damage though was produced by the Harling skip who played a good mixture of heavy and drawing woods which kept Harling in the match. With Wymondham now playing better they scored six shots in three ends to lead the match with two ends to go at 14-12. But the Harling skip managed to grind out two singles on the last two ends to rescue a deserved point from his performance but disappointing from a Wymondham point of view. If the change had happened a little earlier though the team could have been looking at another 10-0. On mat 2 P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell beat B. Murphy, T. Murphy and M. Cunningham 15-9. This was a low scoring match in which neither side really took overall control of. Wymondham however got off to a better start leading 6-2 after six ends and from there the match was in a pendulum motion as both teams were scoring on seperate ends although making no headway as throughout bowls were going a stray and off the mat. Mark when called into action played decent woods and winning eleven of the eighteen ends showed the team played well enough. The second session saw Wymondham in competent mood as both games were comfortably won. On mat 1 B. Barker, A. Stratton and D. Phillips beat C. Jones, T. Jones and B. Knappett 22-16. The mat played a part in what was a high scoring match which Wymondham managed to take the better chances that came to them. Harling though battled well and scored a four on end two and a three on end six to threaten a comeback after the away side scored ten shots in five ends. But Harling did not hold enough quality as they dropped more shots throughout. Brian at skip would now and again bowl decent woods but found Billie, Andrew and Deb in solid form as they lead 22-12 with three ends remaining. On mat 2 M. George, P. King and C. Mann beat T. Hewitson, P. Lee and M. Frost 20-9. Again Wymondham had enough quality in their ranks to see off the threat from Harling who posed a threat at times with the Harling lead making Mikey work hard for posistion which he moslty did well throughout. Peter had a strong match against his number two which gave Chris an easier time at skip. The Harling skips Mike and Brian can have some heroic games but tonight they could not quite get the results needed. Chris had another match to forget as his pace was letting him down frequently at times but did not have the pressure to bowl the "big woods" and when he had to, he did what was necessary. Overall this was again another good away performance at a place that many clubs will struggle to get maximum points from as Connaught B have already found out. Harling's performance though has improved from last season as they have managed to pick up a point more than last season's encounter and also kept the shots relatively low which is a credit to how most of the Harling squad played.

Wymondham 10 (93) v Hingham Yellow (31) - 23/10/2011

The first home match of the season saw another dominant Wymondham performance and a deserved 10-0 win against a gritty Hingham Yellow side. The first session on mat 1 saw B. Barker, A. Stratton and D. Phillips comfortably beat R. Oliver E. Frary and J. Frary 25-4. If it had not been for Jane cutting down numerous shots throughout the match this result could of seen Wymondham in the 40's! Ends nine, ten and eleven when the home side were holding a 4,5/6 and 5 Jane managed to cut the deficit to just singles, in a match that saw Billie, Andrew and Deb in fine form. Hingham only scored on ends one, three and seven which showed how consistant the home side played. On mat 2 a similar story developed as M. George, A. Jackson and C. Mann cruised to a 27-9 win over B. Thomas, M. Potter and T. Fennel. Mikey as always had a very strong game at lead and was rarely troubled against Hingham's lead untill the later stages. Andrew likewise had a strong game which gave Chris less of a problem at skip. Chris though has had better games and no disrespect to Hingham but the scoreline should have been a lot bigger as he hit the block twice and numerous woods went a miss in an uncharacteristic display. The nine shots conceded were a factor to this, as was the Hingham trio who got progressively better as the match went on.

Second session on mat 1 saw R. Steele, M. Barker and B. Saunders win against M. Stevens, C. Harris and K. Thomas 18-12. Roger again had another strong match which gave Wymondham a platform to build on. Melvyn was steady throughout against his opposite number and played well enough to win that battle. Brian and Keith had a good battle at skip but Brian held the advantage most ends when coming to bowl. Keith though plays well with weight and had a lot of joy out of it, as Hingham scored the most shots out of this game and kept the pressure on the home side right up to the final end. On mat 2 P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell beat J. Baker, R. Naish and R. Stevens 23-6. This was another strong performance from the trio as Pat, Mary and Mark again played well. A special mention to Hingham lead Jackie Baker who gave Pat a run for her money at lead as both battled well against each other and gave Wymondham in the early stages little to play with as after seven ends saw the match tied at 4-4. Mark played a well controlled weighted wood on end ten to make four shots to give the homeside daylight at 10-4. From there Wymondham stepped up a gear and dropped just a single shot on end fifteen for a strong result. Overall Hingham Yellow have players capable of causing other teams in the Breckland league trouble but they found the Wymondham team high on confidence who gave them very little room for error. But the return game at Hingham will no doubt be a more difficult task to get a positive result from.

Banham 0 (33) v Wymondham 10 (98) - 12/10/2011

This was by far the best team performance since Chris took over as captain over a year ago, as he saw every player on the mats perform consistantly well throughout and deserved the 10-0 win. With the team knowing that Banham is a fixture we have failed to win since Wymondham entered the league, every player was on form as they knew the Banham side had been weakened with the likes of Bill and Shirley Francis and Tony and Julia Blackburn leaving the club, Wymondham took full advantage of this. On mat 1 R. Steele, M.Barker and B. Saunders came through a tough battle against V. Footer, M. Seager and J. Williamson to win 15-11. Wymondham got off to a good start taking three on the first end to steadily build up a lead from there with ends three to eight all scoring singles, the away side won five of the six ends to lead 7-3. On end nine Wymondham boosted their chances of victory with a four as Brian played a good last wood to get the maximum out of the end to see their lead increased to 12-3. Roger and Melvyn had been very steady throughout and gave their opposistion little room for error, as the home side were just scoring singles and gave Banham captain and skip, John very little to play with. John however is a talented player and gave Wymondham cause for concern when Banham picked up three shots on end fifteen to see the arrears reduced to 14-9. But the away side still played confidently with Brian closing out any danger towards the end against Banham's strongest block and eventually picked up the valuable win. On mat 2 P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell cruised to victory over E. Smith, M. Jessup and D. Gray with a 24-6 win. Again another consistant performance from Pat, Mary and Mark who played the mat superbly and simply outbowled their opposistion. Mary continues to improve on the faster mats and had a night to remember much like at Connaught B last Wednesday night. Pat was again "on it" and Mark played some very precise drawing woods throughout just to pile on the misery for the home side. Things were getting worse for Banham as on mat 3 B. Barker, A. Stratton and D. Phillips thumped G. Smith, D. Easthaugh, R. Kerrison 27-6. This was the best result by far for Billie, Andrew and Deb as a triple as all had a good nite and a six on end fourteen topped it all off. A result like this had been coming as all are talented players, along with the rest of the team, and this will hopefully see the triple push on with some more big results throughout the season. The best result though was saved till last, as on mat 4 A. Jackson, P. King and C. Mann comfortably beat R. Brewer, V. Hambling and J. Goodey 32-10. The only disappointing thing about the result was concededing double figures in a match the away side were in complete control of. Andrew at lead played consistantly well along with Peter at two as all three Banham players had a night to forget. On end eight the skip swapped with the number two and this certainly steadied the ship somewhat as the previous three ends saw them concede sixteen shots in all. Three 5's and one 6 along the two 3's summed up a pretty miserable night for Banham as Wymondham took full advantage of Banham's weaknesses.

Connaught B 2 (53) v Wymondham 8 (62) - 05/10/2011

The defence of the Breckland league title got off to shacky start away against Connaught B with three of the four games being decided on the last end. Connaught B have strengthened their sqaud this season and this definately showed at times. The first session on mat 1 saw the only defeat of the night as R. Steele, J. Barrett and B. Saunders lost 17-18 to L. Thurston, K. Lurcock and A. Marshall. Neither triple played particularly well but this result was definately dissapointing from a Wymondham point of view, with the same triple undefeated at Felthorpe last Monday week. With ten of the eighteen ends won and scoring seventeen shots should have been enough, but ends three to six saw them concede nine shots while a four and three were also conceded on ends eleven and thirteen. Each player had some good play and poor play but no one played consistantly well, Brian had a good spell to bring the match level at 9-9 when trailing 3-9 but could not keep it up as they conceded a four on the next. The match was summed up when Wymondham hit back with a four only to then concede the next three ends which ultimately ruined their chances of winning the match. On mat 2 P. Saunders, M. Fisher and M. Linsdell beat M. Eades, S. Hall and R. Ramm 14-12. Although the result shows a tight contest Wymondham were fairly dominant throughout. Only on two ends were Wymondham put under the most pressure when Mark drew in for shot when facing four down and the penultimate end when Connaught did score four shots when the away side lead 14-7. Pat and Mary both had very consistant games which made Marks job easier at skip, as he knows that he did not play at his best. The second session on mat 1 saw M .George, M. Barker and C. Mann beat H. Winup, J. Hazel and J. Li Rocchi 19-12. Mikey and Melvyn both got to grips with the mat straight away and carried on their form all the way through the match which gave Chris little to do at times apart from consolidating. End eleven saw Wymondham holding a strong six only for Joe to play a good wood to take shot. Conceding just seven ends in the match showed the dominance from the away side. But dominance is not a word that can describe play on mat 2 as B. Barker, A. Stratton and D. Phillips snatched a late winner to beat R. Maddern, P. King and  A. Rush 12-11. The game was very nip and tuck throughout and the majority of ends saw singles scored. Wymondham struggled to get a foot hold in the match with neither player playing consistantly well. Billie had a mixed game and Andy had a very inconsistant match which gave Connaught chances to score as Phil for Connaught played strong throughout along with their lead. With Wymondham one shot behind going into the last end, it was looking more likely a Connaught win was going to materialise with them holding first and second wood. Andrew played his last wood with weight which took off all Wymondham's back woods which left just one of their's on the mat. Alison came down with her first wood which played the jack closer to shot wood but with Wymondham's directly behind. With Deb's playing it wide with her first wood, her shot had changed to her back hand as she tried to play the jack back to Billie's but with a Connaught wood directly beside it was hard to see how two was going to be made of it. But her England qualities shone through when the shot came off perfectly with her wood following through with both woods nearly touching the jack and Connaught's barely an inch away. But Alison still had last wood and the way she had played throughout still looked like the away side were going to lose but luckily for Wymondham she was wide of the mark.

Overall this was a decent start to the season but every point will be crucial with Connaught A looking stronger than they ever have done before, while Connaught B will take some big posisitives out of the match as it looks like they will contesting the top half of the table based on this performance.