News

16/09/19 Dorset v Devon Review

Devon travelled to Dorset on Sunday to start their ICC campaign in a match that they knew was going to be a tough match. For the Premier team it did  prove to be a tough encounter and in the first session they came away with just one win after 13-10 win in one of the Singles. The second round with the Triples and Fours followed a similar pattern with Devon only gaining two more points following a 16-12 win in one of the Triples. This left the half times score at 4-12 to Dorset. In the third session of the day Dorset pulled away further with Devon only recording 14-9 in one of the Singles. In the final session of the day Devon came away with another win with a 16-6 win in one of the Triples. With Devon winning the bonus points in the Singles and Triples the final score was Dorset 28 (211 shots) Devon 12 (153 shots)

The A team had a much better day than the Premier team and this was highlighted in the first session where they won both of the Singles confidently and drew one of the Pairs 14-14. The second session was a bit more even but with Devon only winning one of the Fours 11-4 and drawing one of the Triples Dorset came away with more points. This left the score at half time level at 8-8. Devon took the game by the scruff of the neck in the third session with maximum points from the Singles and one win in the Pairs. Devon completed the job in the final session with both triples winning and one of the Fours drawing.  With Devon winning the bonus points in the Singles and gaining one in the Triples the final score was Dorset 18 (182 shots) Devon 22 (212 shots). Devon next face Cornwall away on the 13^th October.

16/09/19 Irish Open Review

Over the weekend the Short Mat Players Tour hosted the Irish Open in Belfast and there were three players from Devon involved. Barry McPhillips (Bere Alston) finished third in the group stage after three wins and two defeat. Barry therefore entered the plate knockout where he was knocked out 11-5 by Nigel Norris. Also entering the plate after 2 wins and a draw in his group was James Trott (Musbury), James progressed all the way through to the final of the plate where he won 10 -7 against Lee Lewis from Wales. The remaining Devon player involved was Elliott James who topped his group with five wins. He therefore went into the main knockout stages Elliott James was able to reach the Quarter Finals before he was knocked out by William Boggas 10-5. The Irish Open was won by Gary McNabb who beat William Boggas in the final.

13/09/19 Dorset v Devon Preview

The County Team start their campaign on Sunday with an away trip to Dorset with both team attempting to improve on last season which saw them both struggle. The match starts at 10:30 and selected players are asked to be at the venue for 9:45. Details of the venue can be found here. The following players have been selected for the game.

Premier Team; Michael Avery (Yarnscombe), Benny Bass (Uffculme), Luis Inacio (Bere Alston),  Richard Ivings (Exeter Nomads), George Main (Yarnscombe), Rose Morrison (Totnes Creameries), Ian Nicholls (Christow), Carol Osborne (Sidbury), Caroline Pavey (Sidbury), Eric Pavey (Sidbury), Adam Perris (Wonford), Rob Phipps (Exeter Nomads) Margaret Smith (Wonford), Dave Summers (Totnes Creameries), Trevor Tregillus (Christow), Richard Williams (Exeter Nomads), Kim Wright (Sidbury), Nick Wyatt (Bow), Ray Young (Exeter Nomads), Sue Young (Exeter Nomads)

A Team; Rob Bartlett (Upottery), Ava Cattell (Christow), Elaine Clements (Great Torrington) , Gary Collier (Exeter Nomads), Barrie Goodchild (Exeter Nomads), Hilary Iley (Exeter Nomads). Rob Ivings (Exeter Nomads), Colin Palmer (Sidbury), Pamela Palmer (Sidbury). John Parnell (Wonford), Shirley Parnell. (Wonford), Brad Rundle (Christow), Chloe Rundle (Christow), Ann Summers (Totnes Creameries), Chris Thompson (Goodleigh), Marie Toleman (Wonford). Pam Toleman (Wonford), Oliver white. (Lodiswell), Richard White (Loddiswell), Rachel Wright (Sidbury)

12/09/19 Margaret Elliot Pairs Review

On Saturday saw the first County event of the season take place with the Margaret Elliot Pairs. This pairs competition is held for players who did not either represent Devon in the Inter County or win a County title in the previous season. As usual it was an early start with teams being drawn into groups of four for a round robin with the winners and runners up going into a main knock out draw whilst the third and fourth place teams in the groups go into a plate competition guaranteeing players at least 4 games.

After several knock out rounds in the Plate competition the final was between a Wick pairing skipped by Sharron Simmons and the Colebrook pairing skipped by Jenni Pitts. It was a tight affair with the Wick pairing coming through 8-7. In the main knockouts the final was between Yarnscombe’s Tony and George Main and Exeter Nomads Barrie Goodchild and Richard Williams. Yarnscombe had beaten the Winkleigh pairing skipped by John Horsham 11-3. Whilst the Exeter Nomads pair beat Geoff and Sue Cleave 9-6. In the final the Yarnscombe pair were able to maintain their form and won 13-8.

Margaret Elliot Pairs Winners Tony & George Main

28/08/19 DCSMBA Draw & Sign In Times

Details of County /National competition draw and sign in times is now on the competitions page. As mentioned earlier preliminary rounds are needed for the Singles, Pairs and Triples. Where necessary players have been drawn into morning and afternoon sessions and a draw will take place at the start of play to determine groups.

Due to the draw being done before start of play it is imperative that players turn up to events promptly at the designated time so that we can start promptly.

26/08/19 SMPT World Cup & UK Open Review

On Friday Devon’s James Trott represented England in the annual Short Mat Players Tour World Cup. In the round robin stage England comfortably beat Norway, United Arab Emirates and the Isle of Man. However despite James winning his Singles England suffered a defeat against Sweden leaving them to face Ireland in the semi finals. In the semi final James was able to win his match but defeats on all the other mats ensured Ireland won and booked their place in the finals. In the final Ireland continued their form and cruised to victory against Sweden claiming their 4^th successive triumph in the SMPT World Cup.

On Saturday James was joined by Devon’s Richard Williams and played in the SMPT’s UK Open. Richard finished fifth in the group stage and so entered the Plate Knockout. Richard made it to the second round where he was beaten 14-5 by Nigel Froud. James Trott won his round robin group winning 4 out of his 5 group games. In the main knockout stage, he was able to reach the Quarter Finals before he was knocked out 13-11 by Cornwall’s Nigel Nicholls. The UK Open was eventually won by Mark Beattie who beat Jonas Hager 13-6 in the final.

21/08/19 County Registration Reminder

 Just a reminder that membership registration expires on 31st August so can Club Secretaries please return any outstanding registration forms together with fees for members they wish to register by this date. This is very important for anyone playing in League Competitions, County Competitions (which start on 8th September) and members playing for either County Team. Secretaries can still register individual members during the season. The County Secretary’s details can be found on the Committee page

The treasurer would also like to ask people to ensure that any cheques paid to the association are done correctly. Recently there has been several errors on cheques which has led to the bank refusing them which has led to delays in the process.

07/08/19 Mark Allen Sadly Passes Away

It is with extreme sadness that we announce the passing of Mark Allen who sadly passed away on Saturday 3rd August, the funeral will be held at Mullion Church in Cornwall on 15th August at 10.30am, bowling attire is welcomed from anyone wishing to attend.

28/07/19 2019/20 County/National Draw Details

The Devon Competition draw will take place at ISCA after the County squad day on the 11^th August at 4:30pm. Preliminary rounds are needed in the Singles, Pairs and Triples due to the amount of entries. Players will be randomly drawn into the morning and afternoon session.  A draw will then take place at the start of play to determine groups. There is no need for a preliminary round in the Fours. On the 11th September there will also be a draw for the County team championship.

Due to the draw being done before start of play it is imperative that players turn up to events promptly at the designated time (9am for morning sessions and 1:15pm for afternoon sessions) so that we can start promptly.

22/07/19 DCSMBA Open Pairs Report

On Saturday Devon held the Open Pairs at ISCA which saw 27 teams split in to seven groups with the top two teams in each group progressing through to the main knockout stages. Teams that did not make it into the main knock out stages were entered into a plate competition. After several knockout stages he semi final stage was reached. The first semi final was contested between Benny Bass and Maddie Edmondson who faced Richard Williams and Barry Goodchild with Benny and Maddie winning 15-1. The second semi final was between Marie Toleman and Ava Catell who faced Graham James and Lorraine Axtell with Lorraine and Graham coming through 8-11. The final was nip and tuck but eventually Lorraine and Graham won 8-11 against Benny and Maddie to become worthy winners.

19/06/19 Ladies Pairs Cancelled

The new Ladies Pairs which was due to be held on the 13th July at ISCA has now been cancelled due to a lack of  entrants. The competition will be discussed at the next meeting and maybe held at a different time in the season.

03/06/19 County Trials & Squad Day

The county is always on the lookout for new players to play for Devon in the Inter County Championship. Initially round robin games take place against Cornwall, Dorset and Somerset and then there may be longer journeys to face other county sides later in the season. If you feel you would like to have a chance to be considered to play, then players can download and fill in a trials form which can be found here.

This season they will be a trials day at ISCA on Sunday July 21st. If interested please be ensure trial forms are received by the county managers by the 1st July. After the deadline county managers have received player’s trials forms they will be in touch with each trialist to confirm their attendance and start times. It is envisaged that it will be a full day. Please do not just turn up on the day without sending a trial form in and informing the county managers.

Throughout the day trialists will be assessed on their ability and by the end of the day each player will be informed whether the county managers would like them to attend the County Squad day. The County Squad day is to be held several weeks later on Sunday 11th August and will also be held at ISCA. If players do have any questions, then please do not hesitate to contact either Richard Ivings (Premier Team Manager) or Robert Ivings (A Team Manager). Their details can be found on the committee page

29/05/19 County Team Championship Changes

For the 2019/20 season the County Team Championship will be altered. From next season only 5 players per club will be required with players playing in two disciplines. Games will still be played on a home and away basis until the final stage which will be held at ISCA. In a change to previous seasons clubs can now enter a maximum of two teams instead of one. The entry forms for clubs with more details can be found here.

14/05/19 Extracts From County Meeting April 30th 2019

On the 30^th April, the new committee met and the following was discussed

• The committee feels we should be offering various competitions during the summer months.With this in mind we decided to trial two events. A Ladies Day and a Open competition. Details of both will be circulated to clubs and posted on the website.
• If the above competitions are successful, we should then be able to offer a fuller programme next year.
• As with many other sports the committee is concerned that many bowling clubs are experiencing falling membership, it was felt that the county had to do it's bit. We will be hosting a sausage & chips evening during the autumn to encourage families to take part. More details soon.

Other items discussed

• Changes to Tens Competition will be announced very soon.

• We will be introducing a dedicated information link on the website, upcomingevents, suggestions etc.

    In the mean time if you have any comments/ideas please contact any             committee member: Next Committee meeting 23rd July 2019

13/05/19 New Summer Competition Announced

Devon County are pleased to announce that alongside the Open Ladies Pairs (13th July), there will be another tournament held in the Summer months. On the 20^th July there will be an Open 2 wood Pairs Tournament which is open to any ESMBA member. The entry fee is £15 and will be held at ISCA. Entry forms will be circulated to clubs and can be downloaded here.

10/05/19 County/National Competition Announcement

The County and National competitions entry forms have now been released and have been sent to club secretaries. They can also be found on the competitions page on the website. Entry fees for this year have been frozen with the exception of Under 18’s who can enter both the County/National Singles and the County/National Under 18’s for free.

In addition to the County/National events the County association is also running a Ladies Pairs in July. This will be held at ISCA and is priced at £15 a pair. Please be aware that the closing date for this competition is 30^th June

15/04/19 National Championship Review

Over the last few days the National Championships have concluded at Melton Mowbray. On Thursday the National Singles was held and all 4 Devon bowlers progressed into the knockouts. In the first knock out stage Eric Pavey (Sidbury)lost out 7-6 to David Newsome (North Yorkshire), whilst Graham James (Yarnscombe) lost to Peter Hore (Cornwall) 7-8. Elliott James (Yarnscombe) Progressed a round further but lost to Kent’s Nicky Tresaden 11-10. Benny Bass (Uffculme) however continued on his way and progressed to the final where he beat Peter Hore 14-1.

National Singles Winner 2019

On Friday the National Pairs was held and Devon had three teams reach the knockout stages. Shirley & John Parnell (Wonford) were beaten in the first knock out round 11-5 by Dorset. Also going out in round one was Richard Williams & Benny Bass (Wonford/Uffculme) where they were beaten 9-7 by Gloucestershire. However, the strongest performance in the Pairs was Michael Ivings and James Trott (Musbury) who made it to the quarter finals before being beaten 8-6 by North Yorkshire.

On Saturday in the Fours two teams made it into the knockout rounds. The Bow quartet of Rita & John Redstone, Dan Escott and Nick Wyatt got to the first knockout stage where they were beaten 9-3 by Northamptonshire. Going one stage further was the Christow/Exeter Nomads hybrid team of Hillary Illy, Richard & Robert Ivings and Ian Nicholls who were beaten 9-4 by Derbyshire.

On Sunday in the National Triples took place with 2 teams reaching the knockout stages . The sidbury trio of Kim Wright, Carol Osborne and Eric Pavey lost out 8-9 to Avon. Reaching the last 16 was Ann & Dave Summers and Rose Morrison (Totnes Creameries) who lost out 12-3 against Herefordshire.

07/04/19 County Team Championship Review

Yesterday saw 6 teams from around Devon transcend onto ISCA to take part in the County Team Championship. Qualifying for the final was Christow (who beat Sidbury and Bow) and Totnes Creameries (who beat Wick and Exeter Nomads). The final was a tight affair with the Christow winning the Singles and drawing the Triples whilst Totnes Creameries won the Singles and Fours. However Christow won the bonus points for having the most shots and secured the title thanks to their superior shot difference.

Christow County Team Chamionship Winners

After the County Team Championship the Devon County AGM took place and the new County Committee can be found here. As you will see the South and West Area Rep position is vacant, if anyone is interested in discussing this position please contact a committee member.

01/04/19 DCSMBA AGM Nominations

On Saturday the Devon County AGM takes place at approximately 4:30 pm at ISCA once the County Tens has been played. The deadline for nominations for committee posts has now passed. The following nominations have been received:

Chairman – Trevor Tregillus

Vice Chairman – Eric Pavey

Secretary – Barrie Goodchild

Competition Secretary – Caroline Pavey

North Area Rep -Hilary Iley

East Area Rep – Brab Hallowes

South Area Rep – No Nominations Received

Committee Member (2 vacant positions as per Constitution)
Bill Crilly, Fred Oliver, Alan Gibb

Both the A Team and Premier Team Manager Positions are not up for election this season and have 1 and 2 seasons to run respectively.

01/04/19 National Mixed Fours & National Over 55's Pairs Report

This weekend saw the National Mixed Fours and Nationals Over 55 Pairs being held at Daventry IBC. In the National Mixed Fours on Saturday Devon had three teams involved. The Winkleigh Team of John and Rita Redstone, Graham James and Lorraine Axtell made it to the first knockout stage before they were roundly beaten by Hampshire. The same Hampshire team faced Ann & Dave Summers and  Mike & Rose Morrison in the Semi Finals where again they were victorious winning 7-9. In the final they faced Pam & Marie Toleman, Richard Williams & Benny Bass where Hampshire secured a hat trick of victories against Devon and secured the title.

On Sunday the National Over 55’s took place. Three Devon Teams progressed and made it to the knock out stages. Colin and Pam Palmer were beaten in the first knock out round where they were roundly beaten by Hampshire. At the same stage Rose and Mike Morrison were also knocked out after they were beaten 8-6. Graham James and Lorraine Axtell progressed one stage further before they were knocked out 8-6 by Norfolk. Hampshire were able to make it a perfect weekend when they beat Worcestershire in the final.

25/03/19 Devon Players Help England To Welsh Victory

As previously mentioned on Sunday several Devon players were selected for England under 21s match against Wales. England under 21s won the first session quite convincingly but the second session was a totally different ballgame and Wales came out and won quite a few games. England in the end won quite convincingly after a strong third session. It was a great performance by England who won 59-21 with all Devon players contributing to an outstanding win which saw England retain the Bill Jenkins Trophy

 

The Devon Players With The Bill Jenkins Trophy

22/03/19 Devon Under 21 Players To Face Wales

This Sunday the England Under 21’s face Wales in the annual international match. The game takes place at Tamworth. The following Devon players have been selected for the match Ava Cattell & Chloe Rundle (Christow), Benny Bass (Uffculme), Luis Inacio (Bere Alston) and Adam Perris (Wonford).

20/03/19 National Under 18's Report

This Saturday saw the ESMBA host the final of the National 18’s and Devon had two qualifiers in Benny Bass (Uffculme) and Ava Cattell (Christow). With only 16 finalists in total, the players were split into groups of four for a round robin with the top two entering the final knockout stages. Sadly Ava came bottom of her group however her results improved as the day went on.

Benny secured his passage into the knockout stages with two wins and a draw. He progressed through the quarter final and semi final before meeting Norfolk’s Ryan Fox in the Final. Despite being tight for much of the match Ryan pulled away and after 8 ends was 10-5 up. Benny was able to pull up so he was only one shot behind going into the final end, however Ryan was able to hold on and win the title.

14/03/19 Area Challenge

On Sunday  players from all around the county transcended on to ISCA who hosted the Area Challenge. The event sees each of the Area Representatives pick 1 Singles, 1 Pairs, 1 Triples and 1 Fours from their area, these players are all non-county players. These teams then play all the other areas as well as the Devon County A team. At the end of the day the East area finished 3rd with the North pipping the West area to the title.

13/03/19 Devon AGM Details

The annual DCSMBA AGM will be held on the 6^th April at approximately 4:30pm straight after the County 10’s has taken place. The AGM will be held at ISCA in Exeter. Details have been sent to all club secretaries and in addition the details of the AGM can be found online here.

As you will notice on the PDF file that nomination forms are now available if you are wishing to join the county committee .We will be posting a list of all nominations received soon after the closing date.

22/02/19 New County Secretary

Barrrie Goodchild has been co-opted on to the DCSMBA Committee as the County Secretary for the remainder of the season. Robert Ivings will however continue with the registrations. The new structure and Committee details have been updated on the Committee page.

11/02/19 English Masters Report

This weekend saw the Short Mat Players Tour host their annual English Masters at Chelmsford with several Devon bowlers attending. As is usual in an SMPT competition there is a round robin stage on Saturday and on the Sunday morning with the top 2 going into the main knockout stage,  3rd and 4^th spot enter a plate competition, whilst 5^th and 6^th place enter a shield competition.

Entering the shield competition was Adam Perris, Richard Williams (Wonford) and Benny Bass (Uffculme). Adam reached the second round before being knocked out 15-8 by Brent Nielson of Denmark. Richard and Benny both went one stage further reaching the third round, Richard being beaten 16-2 by Harrison Sheen and Benny being beaten 10-8 by Neil Davidson. Elliott James (Yarnscombe) was able to qualify for the plate competition and reached the third round before being beaten by 9-8 by James John Davies.

James Trott (Musbury) topped his group and entered the Main knockout competition where he reached round 2 before being beaten 9-7 by Stephen Williams. Steven Williams then dealt Michael Ivings (Musbury) the same fate the very next round by dispatching him 10-8. The Welsh supremo went on to win his second SMPT title in a row winning the final 12-10 against fellow country man Sean Hughes.

The SMPT rolls into Belfast next for the Belfast Open 2 wood Pairs and the World Masters on the 5^th-7^th April. Entries for these competitions are both now closed but information about further events can be found on their website.

03/02/19 County/National Under 18's & National Mixed Fours

On Saturday ISCA hosted the County/National under 18’s . With 6 entrants the players played a round robin with each player guaranteed 5 games. There was some tremendous matches showing how far the under 18’s have developed. Benny Bass (Uffcullme) was able to dominate the competition and won all 5 matches, his closest match was against Jack Gooding (Silverton) but he won through 10-9 thanks to picking up a 4 on the final end.  Coming in second was Ava Cattell  who produced some very strong performances throughout the day.

 

County/National Under 18's Winner Benny Bass

Alongside the Under 18’s, the National Mixed Fours also took place. This was won by the Wonford quartet of Pam & Marie Toleman, Benny Bass and Richard Williams with Totnes coming second and Winkleigh third.

03/02/19 DCSMBA Statement

The Devon County Committee have decided to withdraw the Premier team from the ICC Rinks final in April. A letter has been sent to the ESMBA to inform them of this decision and the reasons why we feel we have had to take this course of action.

29/01/19 National Allocations

Devon have received their allocations for the National Finals which are held in March and April. Devon have received 4 places in the Singles, Pairs, Triples, Fours and Over 55 Pairs. In the Mixed Fours Devon have 3 places. Which will be a concern for the sport the Under 18 numbers are down with only 16 players competing in the finals and Devon have two of these spots. The Under 18’s final takes place at Daventry on the 16^th March. The Mixed Fours and the Over 55’s take place at Daventry on the weekend of the 30^th/31^st March. The remaining Nationals takes place from the 11^th April at Melton Mowbray.

21/01/19 Devon Ladies In England Ladies Action

Caroline Pavey (Sidbury) and Sue Young (Exeter Nomads) joined up with the English Ladies team as they travelled to Dumfries to take on the Scottish Ladies. The first three sessions were rinks and England won two of the sessions. The final session was individual matches of Singles, Pairs, Triples and Fours. Sue Young was selected in the Singles in which she won 13-9. With the English team dominating their Scottish counterparts the final score was England Ladies 12 Scotland Ladies 4

Sue Young & Caroline Pavey Representing England At Dumfries

15/01/19 British Open Review

This weekend saw York play host to the Short Mat Players Tour British Open and saw a host of players from Devon participate in the event. After the usual round robin stage on Saturday and Sunday morning several players from Devon had done enough to secure passage into the main knockout draw.

Both Andy Thompson and James Trott were knocked out in the first round whilst Elliott James was beaten in Round 2 13-6 by Ed Sawbridge (England). Making his SMPT debut Tony Main, was knocked out 13-5 by Dom Reed (England) who had earlier beaten Andy Thompson. The plaudits however must go to Uffculme’s Benny Bass who made it all the way to the final. However he was beaten 10-9 in the final end by Welsh supremo Stephen Williams.

The Short Mat Players Tour next travel to Chelmsford for the English Open on the 9th and 10th of February.  More details of this and other SMPT events can be found on their website.

08/01/19 ESMBA Statement Regarding National Over 55 Pairs/Mixed Fours and ICC Rinks

The ESMBA last night issued the following statement:

Due to circumstances out of our control, the venue for the Rinks finals has cancelled our booking. We have struggled at this short notice to find a replacement venue for the proposed date in January.

The rinks finals have now been postponed until the weekend of 6/7th April 2019 and will be played at Daventry IBC.

Your county contacts will be contacted by the ICC Secretary.

Due to this cancellation and the fear of it happening with other dates the Association has taken the decision to move the National Mixed Fours and National Over 55s to Daventry IBC on the scheduled weekend of 30/31st March 2019. The Competition Secretary will be in touch with County contacts shortly.

If you have qualified for the National over 55 Pairs please be aware of the change of venue. The National Mixed Fours qualifier is due to take place next month. All players that had been asked to play in the ICC Rinks have been informed of the situation

20/12/18 County/National Singles Report

On Sunday ISCA played host to the County/National Singles. In the morning the usual round robin took place with the winners and runners going into the main knockout draw, and the third and fourth place teams going into the plate. In the first quarter finals of the plate David Tarr was in complete control against Mike Bellamy and won through 12-4. In the second quarter final Richard Ivings built a strong lead in the first three ends against Oliver White and this saw him win 11-6. The third quarter final saw Mikey Ivings beat ruthlessly beat Richard Williams 13-3. The final saw quarter final saw Geoff Cleave beat John Parnell 10-4. The first semi final was between David and Mikey with Mikey coming from behind to win 10-3. The second semi final against Geoff and Richard was a tighter affair with Richard winning 9-8 after an extra end. The final of the plate was therefore a sibling rivalry with Mikey dominating Richard and winning 13-3.

In the main knockout stages, the first quarter final saw Benny Bass beat Nick Wyatt 12-5 after taking an early lead. The second quarter final saw Graham James narrowly edge past Martin Sexton 7-6. The third quarter final was between Eric Pavey and Elliot James and saw Eric see off Elliot 10-5 thanks to a strong start. The final quarter final saw John Steer narrowly Beat George Main 8-7 on an extra end.  The first semi final saw Eric confidently beat Graham 12-3. In the second semi-final Benny pulled through after a tight start and beat John 11-5. The final between Eric and Benny started off tight and was 5-5 after 5 ends, however Benny then pulled away winning 11-6. Benny therefore secured the title and the number one national qualifier spot with Eric grabbing the second spot. The third spot went to Graham James who made it to the semi-finals, with the fourth spot going to Elliot James after a play off.

11/12/18 ICC Rinks Report

This Sunday saw both the Devon Premier and Devon A team travel up to Tamworth to participate in the preliminary round of the ICC rinks. Each squad consisted of 16 players (four rinks) and faced several other counties with the match being decided on three total shots on all four mats. In the first round Devon Premier faced Northamptonshire. Devon controlled the match and in the end lost only on one mat. With wins in three of the rinks Devon won by 30 shots. Devon faced local rivals Cornwall in their last match. Cornwall quickly established their dominance throughout the match and they eventually won through by 37 shots. In the final match up Cornwall faced Northampton with Cornwall eventually winning. The result ensured Devon finished second, enough to see them reach the final at the end of January.

Devon A also faced Northamptonshire in their first match. The team sadly struggled and were only able to win on one mat. Defeats on the three other mats gave Northamptonshire a 25 shot lead. Following Kent’s defeat against Northamptonshire Devon knew that a 2 shot win against Kent in their final game would be enough to secure 2^nd spot and a spot in the finals. Kent started off strongly and quickly established a confident lead. Devon at one stage cut the shot deficit down but Kent eventually won by 21 shots and secured their spot in the finals at the expense of Devon

06/12/18 ICC Rinks Preliminaries

This Sunday sees both Devon A and Devon Premier attempt to qualify for the ICC Rinks finals. Both teams travel to Tamworth Indoor bowls Club where they will face several other counties in their bid to qualify for the finals on the 26^th/27^th January. Details of the  venue can be found here. All teams must be signed in by 9:30. The following players have been selected for the matches.

Premier Team; Michael Avery (Yarnscombe), Martin Conabeer (Exeter Nomads), Luis Inacio (Bere Alston), Richard Ivings (Exeter Nomads), Barry McPhillips (Bere Alston), Rose Morrison (Totnes Creameries), Ian Nicholls (Christow), Carol Osborne (Sidbury), John Parnell (Wonford), Caroline Pavey (Sidbury), Eric Pavey (Sidbury), Margaret Smith (Wonford), Dave Summers (Totnes Creameries), Kim Wright (Sidbury), Ray Young (Exeter Nomads), Sue Young (Exeter Nomads)

A Team; Rob Bartlett (Upottery), Carol Dummett (Bere Alston), Hillary Iley  (Exeter Nomads), Robert Ivings (Exeter Nomads), Andy Kerse (Exeter Nomads), Colin Palmer (Sidbury), Pamela Palmer (Sidbury), Shirley Parnell (Wonford), Adam Perris (Wonford), Brad Rundle (Christow) Chloe Rundle (Christow), Ralph Rundle (Christow), Ann Summers (Totnes Creameries), Trevor Tregillus (Christow), Roger Wilson (Anstey), Rachel Wright (Sidbury)   

02/12/18 SMPT World Fours & Pairs

This weekend saw the Short Mat Players Tour hold their annual World and World Pairs. On Saturday several players from Devon participated in the Fours.  George Main and Elliott James (Yarnscombe) joined forces with ex Devon players James Smith and Paul Pomeroy. They safely negotiated their way through the round robin stages before being knocked out in the second round of the knockout stages by a Northern Irish rink. Mikey Ivings and James Trott (Musbury) were joined by ex Devonian Simon Pridham and Craig Burgess (Essex).  After winning their group they advance to the knockout stages where they reached the final and faced Dom Reed, Jack Pye, Stephen McAlister and Neil Davidson. Trott’s rink