[<<] [>>] by Elizabeth Williams at Cheltenham
2nd May 2006 (AC - Championships)

I've had a couple of requests for a blow by blow and it was a good match so here goes...

Both me and Reg reached the final without losing a game. Jack Wicks put up the most resistance, in one game hitting Reg's sextuple leave, peeling Reg's backward ball to 3 going to 4b with a good leave, but Reg hit this lift in the middle and was never really close to losing a game.

The Final: Lawn 8 Cheltenham, Typical early season conditions, hoops in soft ground, easy pace, Dawson balls. Best of 5

Reg won the toss and chose to go first.

Game 1

1. U lays 14 supershot
2. R also lags to the middle a few yards to the east and south of U leaving about a 12 yarder from the end of A-baulk.
3. K shoots fairly gently at R from near corner 1 hitting. Goes to 3b with DL
4. Y misses 17 yard short lift.
5. U rushes poorly to 1 and takes off to short very angled position but makes great jump shot and then finishes with QP.

+26QP Bamford

Game 2

Fulford chose to play first

1. U supershot
2. R to maximum length spot on E boundary
3. K misses R to C4
4. Y misses R from A-baulk
5. U misses Y
6. Y nudges U into court rushes K to C4 then R to 1 but totally over approaches. Shoots back to join up in C4 but hits partner so they both end up on the E boundary.
7. U misses ball and a half target from 14 yards.
8. R goes to 1b with normal leave laying up in corner 3.
9. K 5 foot from the hoop attempts to hit U about 7 foot the other side by jumping over the hoop. Reasonably good effort that got over the hoop in the right direction but landed short and predictably cleared U on the first bounce.
10. Sextuple starts getting behind after 1b peel doesn't get through by far after 2 and then having put the hoop 4 pioneer near 2b Y doesn't obtain a rush south on the peelee. Break continues but peels go slowly and reach a position where Y's peel attempt of 3b rolling to U at 1b has bounced a yard E with K 6 yards N and 2 yards W of 3b. Y rushes U to near C4, sends U to 4b but rushing R to peeling position is slightly short so has to peel with Y missing the hoop on the right and flirting with the peelee. Disaster strikes and very unluckily for Reg the R goes through 3b by six yards and Y finishes an inch from R perfectly blocked from K. Zero chance of roqueting black. Plays as good a shot as possible, scattering R into K to leave all the balls in the middle of the court but at some distance apart.
11. K lifts and 8 yarder at U in front of 4b. Starts break. Peels Y through 2b leaving 3 yard rush to 5 but only clips it. Rolls up and runs longish hoop past the peg. Turns down 6 yard return roquet and hits hoop 6 pioneer. Ends up throwing together leave for 1b laying up in C4 with Y just the far side of hoop 4 wired and R near C2.
12. Y misses R (Reg is good enough at huge rolls that he would have had some chance of finishing by pass rolling R to 4b going to C4 and then doing an STP).
13. U peels 1b before 2, 2b before 4, 3b before 1b, 4b before 3b. Under cuts a rush pointing W on K to penult and rolling trying to place K in front of penult getting a rush to 4b puts K square behind the hoop. Having already left the other ball so it was reasonably placed to run 4b to the boundary to, Y rushed the 4b pioneer a yard E of 4b and tried to stop shot it back on top of K with the intention to play a close controlled cannon and then be able to rush the peelee straight in front of the hoop. This shot was over-hit but cannoned the peelee that shot! Finished with straight double.

Fulford +9SXP

Game 3

Bamford chose to play first

1. U supershot
2. R misses gentle shot.
3. K hits 14 yarder at U (with R another 6 yards in background). Fails hoop 1
4. Y hits K. Goes to 1b peeling both U and K to 2.
5. K hits tea lady shot. Goes to 1b cross wiring Y and R at 2 with R half way to C2 and laying up in C4 leaving R a single ball and Y a slither of the back ball.
6. R misses
7. U digs R half way to 4. The rush on K to 2 glances the peg and has to roll K to peeling position at 1b from about 8 yards N and a little W of 2. Jawses longish straight peel attempt after 2 but finishes with restricted backswing on rush on Y to R. Does well to rush to within 6 yards of R though unluckily right on line between R and 3. Makes 3 but can only rush to level with 1b on the side boundary and only has room to get R to 5 going to the south of K, when ideally R needs to be near 2b. Eventually gets K in front of 2b at the nice angle so the peel can be played with a take off going towards 5. Peel goes through and from then on relatively plain sailing. Peels 3b going to 1b, jawsed 4b going to 3b, played good touch shot to get peelee right in front of penult before 4b and finished with straight double.

Bamford +20SXP

Game 4

Fulford chose to go first

1. U supershot
2. R to maximum length spot on E boundary
3. K misses R to C4
4. Y misses R from A-baulk
5. K misses R to C3
6. R goes to 1b. Imperfect crosswire leaving about a 10th of a ball at 4 yards.
7. K nicks U, full blooded shot that moved U less than an inch. Peels Y to 3 going to 4b. Makes NSL type leave except with R in the jaws of 1b.
8. R misses 23 yard long lift.
9. U finishes

Fulford +18TP

Game 5

Bamford chose to go first

1. U lays 14 supershot
2. R also lags to the middle a few yards to the east and south of U leaving about a 14 yarder from the end of A-baulk.
3. K shoots fairly gently at R from corner 1 hitting. Goes to 3b with DL.
4. Y hits 17 yard short lift. Goes to 1b cross-wiring at 1 leaving U 3 yards out of C1 only able to see R in C3
5. U misses R.
6. R peels 1b before 2 going to pioneer near hoop 6, 2b before 4, 3b before 6, 4b before 2b. Rushes to 3b from near 4b with other balls set up for delayed double. Leaves rush short, doesn't get forward rush. Plays very bad roll leaving 5 yarder on peelee which gets rushed to 3 yards NW of penult. Fails to hit the hoop with pass roll going to 4b pioneer and peelee goes 4 foot passed. Plays good rush back to one foot straight peeling position after 4b and completes straight double.

Fulford +18SXP

Fulford won: -26QP+9SXP-20SXP+18TP+18SXP

Plate

Dave Kibble