EXPERIENCE COUNTS

It was always going to be a tough task this evening for Janie Vickers as she endeavoured to reach, for the fourth time this season, the County quarter finals, on this occasion in the 4 bowl Singles. The luck of the draw saw her in the Northern Area Finals playing Alton Social's Margaret Holden who, with four previous wins and four times the runner up, is indisputably Hampshire's best ladies' singles player of the Bowls Hampshire era. Played at Cove it was a high quality match and at 10 ends Margaret led by just 8 shots to 6 but her greater ability to convert heads to her favour saw her, over the next 7 ends, extend her lead to 18 shots to 8. Try as Janie did she was unable to close the gap and went down to a 21-12 defeat. In the other Area Final, Basingstoke Town's Paula Haynes, after a slow start, had a comfortable 21-8 win over Farnborough's Sheila Andrews. Good luck to Paula and Margaret when they represent the North at Banister Park.