Meersbrook Park Bowling Club won a vital home match (on June 27th) with Colley Park B to retain hope of avoiding relegation from Division D of the Hallamshire League.
It was a must win match for Meersbrook Park who, second bottom on the table started 8 points adrift of Colley in the place above them. The MP’s had been trounced 9-1 early in the season at Colley so there was no expectation of an easy night. To have any realistic chance of leapfrogging Colley and staying in the Division, Meersbrook Park had to win.
The fixture was incredibly tight – four of the 8 singles games went to either 19 or 20 points, including the final two games involving the Egginton boys, when all 3 results were still possible.
With Andrew’s and Terry’s games still on the green, the MP’s had set up a 4-2 lead.
Mick shrugged off his leg injury to play some brilliant bowls. The margin of his win, to 7 against a strong opponent, would prove vital when the aggregate was totted up. However, the drama had started before the first jack was sent. Butch was called away with a family emergency – we wish him and his loved ones well – but Steve S, answered a SOS call and, with no notice, arrived and played without any warm-up. He had played on the same green 24 hours earlier in the Social League, but after several showers, blended with warm, grass-growth enhanced sunshine, the green was playing much slower than the previous evening. Steve found himself facing an excellent, left-handed opponent, so it was a real baptism of fire into higher league singles. The Hallamshire debutant bowled well and although his score was no reflection of this, he too secured vital points towards the aggregate score.
Jon used some good fortune to set up a huge lead against another very strong player. He was 16-3 up at one stage but when his luck ran out his opponent produced a wonderful comeback and led 19-18 before Jon regained the jack and ran out 21-19 winner. By then Tucker had competently seen off a young challenger to 16 so that the home side carried a 3-1 lead into the change-over.
Rodney never looked in trouble and, despite Jim losing out to 19 in another tense battle, with Andy and Terry both leading, it seemed that the MP’s were bound to secure victory with their 4-2 set to expand. However, those Egginton boys insisted on making it painfully tense for those who had gone before them! Both saw their leads shorten, evaporate and then reverse. Suddenly the match looked to be going to a 4-4 tie in matches, and with Colley looking likely to steal both Aggregate points. The 4-2 lead now looked like becoming a 4-6 defeat!
Thankfully both Egginton bowlers held their nerve. Andrew bowled an incredible first wood at 20 across – so good that he was able to carry his final wood to shake hands. Terry lost out, but not before reaching 19, which was enough to secure the Aggregate for Meersbrook Park and cement a 7-3 win in a brilliant team performance where all eight players made vital contributions.
| Division D | |||||
| Matches | Pnts | ||||
| Pos | Team | Pl | W | L | For |
| 1. | Whiteley Woods B | 9 | 9 | 0 | 74 |
| 2. | Fogey | 10 | 8 | 2 | 66 |
| 3. | Hallam Grange A | 10 | 6 | 3 | 54 |
| 4. | High Hazels Park | 10 | 4 | 5 | 54 |
| 5. | Fulwood A | 9 | 6 | 3 | 50 |
| 6. | Nether Edge B | 10 | 4 | 6 | 40 |
| 7. | Colley Park B | 10 | 3 | 7 | 39 |
| 8. | Meersbrook Park | 10 | 3 | 7 | 35 |
| 9. | Crookes Social B | 10 | 0 | 10 | 28 |
The MP’s remain second bottom but the gap to Colley is now just 4 points and only one more to Nether Edge B, whom Colley play next week. That is a bad match up for us as 10 points will be split between our closest rivals.
Meersbrook Park will do well to keep the gap to a 4 point margin as they face a very tough trip to Fogey, who look well set for promotion; but with this victory we will travel with purpose.