OAKLEY LADIES' DREAM COMES TRUE

What a great day for the Oakley Four competing today in the Last Eights of the County Fours. Mary,Varndell, Sue Dixon, Angie Rowe and Janie Vickers missed out, on Leamington, at the final stage a few years ago but not this time. Their dream of playing in the National Championships came true today. In the morning quarter-final against a Waterside rink skipped by Janet Ballard, Oakley began slowly, trailing 2-3 after 4 ends. However 4 successive successful ends saw them shoot into a 13-3 lead, only for Waterside to then win 4 successive ends and at 12 ends to have narrowed the lead to 13-8. A score of one and two doubles over the next 4 ends saw Oakley leading 18-9 with just two ends remaining. The game was seemingly won but a dropped 5 on the penultimate end meant the cushion was only 4 shots. That was enough. Waterside managed 2 but Oakley were through to the semi-final.

The semi-final against Boscombe Cliff, skipped by Sue Dadson, was a cagey affair and after 7 ends Oakley trailed 3-5. As in the morning, a successful 4 ends saw Oakley move 9-5 ahead, only for Boscombe to pick up a 3 and reduce the lead to just one shot. Astonishingly Oakley then put together another 4 end streak scoring 10 unanswered shots to leave them leading 19-8 with just 2 ends remaining. Again they dropped a big score of 4 on the penultimate end, but the gap was now too large and Boscombe conceded the game leaving Oakley worthy 19-12 winners. Oakley will, along with Alton Social, the other semi-final winners, now represent Hampshire in the National Championships in September.