GAME CALLED OFF AS IT DID RAIN HEAVY SO DOWN AGAIN FOR NEXT WEEK HOWEVER........
Below is a report from my mate Ron Lewis (Mt Gravatt).
He writes a better story than me about his District Pairs This Week....
------Original Message-------
From: Ron Lewis Date: 27/04/2012 10:52:24 AM To: 1 ST Group Subject: Who's bin a busy boy..?
Sorry Guys don't have time for a full blown report, but here's a quick update.
Last week started the District Pairs with a BIG win first game, easy win 2nd game, then a tuffer one for the 3rd.
The Semi final yesterday saw us ( me Skip and Mel Alderich lead) take on the Mt Gravatt (my Club) pair champions and much to their disgust, sent them packing by 3 points.
That put us into the final against last years winners (Ray Hodges and Don Meres) who are formidable opponents.
I won't do the entire game which had the score sea sawing back and forth for 15 ends, but as the game got older Ray had etched out a 5 point lead with 3 ends to go.
The 19th end saw a desperate attacking shot by me come off to take the point and drag the lead back by one. Which meant we had two ends to make 5 points to win the game.
Albeit I was tiring badly, I told Mel to roll FULL length and I'd give it all I had. He did and put his first bowl close enough to look very good. Don missed badly and I felt he was hitting the wall and not liking the extra length. Mel's next was also in the scoring zone and good value.
I got to the mat and was determined to nail my first which rolled nicely into Kitty and tucked her away behind Mels 2nd Bowl. We were holding 3 shots, two of which were fairly safe. I felt Ray would try and draw in to take our 3rd shot off us and then attack the front bowl shielding Kitty. However he ran at the front bowl with his first to miss by a fair margin.
I was left with the decision to draw another and risk making a bigger target, or put a front bowl in to try and make it difficult to hit. I chose neither of those options cos a little thought trickled in that if I blocked his line, he'd be forced to draw in and I felt we had a better chance relying on the bowling Gods to keep him missing.
Which he did and we now held four shots, albeit two were pretty ugly.
The leads now had the mat and I'd told Mel to build the head as Don didn't have an attacking bowl in his arsenal. Mel dropped short with his first. I urged Mel to get his next up here, anywhere but short as Don's bowled carried on through, to rest about a metre behind.
We still held the four shots and looked safe to hold at least two of them.
Mels last bowl was a shocker as it tumbled out of his hand and bounced up the rink like a drunken sailor and my heart started racing at the thought of two wasted opportunities.
Fortunately, Dons last carried on through to rest with his previous one. Remarkably we still held the 4 shots and I felt confident Ray would have to draw with his first to reduce the count.
With that in mind I decided to draw a closer 3rd bowl and do it on the other hand than the side Ray preferred to play. Logic being it wasn't likely to give him any assistance on line or leave a bowl for him to work off.
Unfortunately! just as I was about to bowl, Mel shouted to get my attention and lamented my choice of shot and we finished up in a bloody debate on the best option. I was FURIOUS as I'd consistently told him to SHUT UP as I needed complete concentration to play well. Anyway, after explaining politely my tactic and reasoning Mel apologized and let me get back on the mat.
To which I'd lost the plot and didn't much achieve anything.
Ray chose again to run at the head and as the bowl was leaving I felt he'd made a rash decision which was further confirmed as it travelled very wide of the target and into no man's land.
I'd turned to pick up my last bowl as I heard the ruckus up the other end and turned back to see the damn kitty sitting out on her lonesome on the near edge of the rink and about 3 feet from the ditch.
Bloody Hell, (I said) what the F**K happened?
Ray then apologised with a smirk from ear to ear and told me his out of control bowl had hit Don's wide front bowl and turned 45 degrees into the pack and missed everything but the hidden kitty. Sheet! To make matters worse, Dons two rear bowls were now holding the shot and I had only one bowl to play with Ray to follow.
I knew this was likely game over unless I could draw very close and take one shot out of it. I also knew I was tired and unlikely to make the shot better than Ray who'd be bowling without pressure.
I chose to delay the inevitable and for NO LOGICAL reason walked casually up the 34 metres to look at kitty and chat with Mel. I got there and the chat consisted of simply, DON'T say anything, I know what I'm doing. I then casually walked back as if I owned the very time of day.
The huge crowd of 5 were deathly silent as I took my place on the mat and lined up to let the most perfect bowl slide out on my hand and as if directed by GPS roll and roll in the direction of kitty and just ever so gently touch her and come to rest not millimeters away.
It was the perfect bowl for the occasion and I'm sure Ray was just so dumbfounded he let his go without conviction and came up metres short.
We were still in the game needing 4 to win and 3 to force another end.
The plan remained to roll kitty full length and Mel did it perfectly and to add to my joy he touched kitty with his first and moved her back another foot further. Don again came up short as did Mel with his second bowl. Dons next rolled heavily into the ditch to wind up on the bank.
I rolled my first out on the opposite side to Rays preferred hand and it travelled nicely to rest a foot behind kitty and we held two shots comfortably. Rays first came up short to not change anything. I'd played my first pretty well and with Kitty now closer to the ditch I decided to try and run her into the ditch and make it impossible for Ray to draw it.
I let go another perfect bowl as if I was as fresh as a daisy and I knew early in it's journey it would go damn close to target. It connected with kitty dead square and followed directly behind to land on top of her in the ditch and come to rest just to the left and almost still touching.
We were guaranteed one shot absolute, but needed three to tie or four to win.
Rays task now was to draw inside 4 feet from the kitty to cut our 4 shots down to one, which he failed to do and we left for the head with a four shot hold and only to knock a few of ours closer or draw for another.
I stopped Mel as we crossed and pleaded with him to make his last two bowls count and to play the same hand I played to avoid knocking the opposition bowls closer. He lamented he wasn't strong on his backhand and preferred the other side. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! I said OK, but don't touch their bowls, play wide.
As fate would have it his first bowl slams into one of Rays and it travels into the count to take us back to two shots. Not a complete disaster with three of our bowls to come. Don didn't change anything with his first and I insisted Mel play the other hand, which he did and came up short with his next.
Don's last was a desperate bid at making the length but had no direction, only to stop safely long enough to count had it been 8 feet narrower.
I had two bowls to win the game and felt confident as Ray wasn't handling the longer ends with the precision he had the medium. That said I felt a tad reserved at Mels poor effort, made worse when we crossed and he said I only had to knock one of ours up to get the four shots.
I'm sure that aggravation was still in my head when I let my first go and missed the timing and had it stop aimlessly short of it's target in a very poor effort given the circumstances.
Rays didn't manage any better and we still held the two and I decided to settle on a draw and force another end. This time it came out nicely and travelled to the target area with definitive purpose only to collide with Mels failed bowl which sent it off with a mind of it's own and no interest in kitty.
Ray didn't have to play his last, he'd won the game by a point and deservedly so.
We shook hands, picked up a megre 2nd place prize money and lamented what could have been as I drove back to the Club.
The weeks Calendar...
Monday Paradise Point for a $200 win.
Tuesday Continued Mens District Pairs.
Wednesday 3rd Place Logan Pairs $500 (LUCKY SODS - BEAT LAMBY AND ME BY 1 SHOT)
Thursday 2nd Place District Pairs $200
Today Is Logan again if it Stops raining... :-)
(Oh! Well, Lifes Like That Sumtimes!) Regards Ron Lewis My Comments - NO LUCK !!!!!!!!!