20 pairs gathered to contest the County Doubles at Bowring BC where the entrants and spectators alike were treated to very warm, sunny conditions throughout the day that saw the oldest pairing of the day, Alan Gaut & Steve Faulkner become the latest duo to earn the rite for their names to etched on the weighty John Bowers Challenge Cup as County Doubles Champions after defeating Scott Harries & Jamie King 21-14 in the final of the competition that brought the curtain down on over 9 hours of action at the Wellington venue.
Highlights of the action included
Pre-lims
Matt Beeston & Rob Roden, from 8-7 up on Simon & Graham Lane, quickly went on to win in 13 ends, finishing 21-8.
Chris Jones & Michael Hughes, from 16-18 down to Rob Jones & Lee Walmsley, ran out to win 21-18.
Rob Roden & George Williams found themselves 7-17 down against Darren Powis & Nigel Ferrington before running out to win 21-17.
Scott Harries & Jamie King went 17-0 up on Peter Grimston & Stuart Rutter and soon finished it off winning 21-07.
Round 1
Brian Price & Adam Jones raced to lead Sam Desborough & Ellis Griffiths 20-06 and ended as Sam & Ellis made double figures, 21-10.
From being behind all the way down the card, John & Rob Clarke edged out Carl & Ben Hinton as they scored a full house to win 21-20.
Alan Gaut & Steve Faulkner ran away to lead Chris Dodds & John Lear, 15-3 and ended it 21-9.
From 6-6 & 12-11, Gary Neal & Dan Wornell went on to lead Josh Cotton & Aaron King, 19-11 then ended it off 21-13.
Peter Griffiths & Charlie Hotchkiss tied with Harry Ryder & Alex Evans 5-5, 10-10 & 14-14 before Peter & Charlie took control and held on to win 21-17.
Chris Worthington & Dan Taylor from 13-14 went on to lead 19-14 against Peter Price & Andy Wiggington before winning it 21-16.
After trailing 4-10, Chris Jones & Michael Hughes almost ran out against Matt Beeston & Martin Gaut as it finished 21-11.
Scott Harries & Jamie King saw their lead cut by Rob Roden & George Williams from 17-6 to 18-14 but held on to win 21-16.
Quarter finals:
Brian Price & Adam Jones took control from 11-11 with John & Rob Clarke to go 17-11 up and kept the advantage to win 21-15.
Peter Griffiths & Charlie Hotchkiss saw their 13-6 lead wiped out by Chris Worthington & Dan Taylor but from trailing 13-15, Peter & Charlie went on and ran out 21-15.
After starting strong to lead 16-6 Alan Gaut & Steve Faulkner managed to hold off Gary Neal & Dan Wornell who cut the difference to 19-14 before Alan & Steve finished it off 21-16.
Scott Harries & Jamie King quickly opened up a 9-2 lead on Chris Jones & Michael Hughes and then from 9-4, they ran out to win 21-4.
Semi Finals:
Alan Gaut & Steve Faulkner from 3-6 down, opened up a 10-4 lead over Peter Griffiths & Charlie Hotchkiss who hit back to eventually level at 18-18 but with neither pairing able to hold the jack, the game was edged by Alan & Steve, 21-20.
Meanwhile, Scott Harries & Jamie King were having their 15-4 lead, cut by Brian Price & Adam Jones who closed the gap to 17-13 before Scott & Jamie regained control and ended it 21-14.
The final:
As the players struggled with the lightening quick surface that gave the impression they were bowling on glass, the final began with Alan Gaut & Steve Faulkner finding the weight better as they opened up a lead of 10-3(10ends) that prompted Scott Harries & Jamie King to change their playing order but with little change as Alan & Steve pushed on to 19-3(17ends). As a last chance attempt to alter their luck, Scott & Jamie switched the playing order again which did help them to close the gap that was to be too little, too late as Alan & Steve eventually found the chalks to give them the victory, 21-14(23ends) and the title as County Doubles champions 2025.
After thanking the members of Bowring BC for their hospitality and groundsman for the use of the superbly presented greens, Competitions Sec, Mike Potter invited County President, Simon Fullard to present the prizes to the deserving pairings and the Champions trophy to the delighted Alan Gaut & Steve Faulkner.
Well Done lads,
MP
Full scores are here.
