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Web-Master Gary Bradley

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Web-Master Gary Bradley

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Semi-Final

Graham Hair & Russell Clark

 

 

Michael Stevenson & Hamish Ramsay

Gary Bradley & Alex Cunningham

17

8

Joda Reid & John Ellis

Final

Graham Hair & Russell Clark

 9

17

Gary Bradley & Alex Cunningham

 

It's not very often that I get the chance to do a report on a final that actually includes myself, but this time its different. So apologies if this report is a little biased, but I have certainly enjoyed composing this report for the Rose Bowl Championship Final for 2006.

This year's final paired Russell Clark playing as skip along with Graham Hair against Gary Bradley and Alex Cunningham. The game was played on Monday evening at Gourock Park with perfect evening conditions for all concerned.
                                                                    The start of the game saw Gary & Alex getting off to a great start, winning the first 4 ends to lead by 7 shots to nil.
                                                                                                          Russell & Graham then gained two singles in succession, only to fall further behind as Gary and Alex increased the lead to 11 shots to 2 with a single and then a treble at the eighth end.
                                                                                                        Russell and Graham were in no mood to give up the ghost and fought back with an excellent single followed by a double to reduce the deficit to 11 shots to 5 after ten  ends played.
                                                                                              The next end saw a 'no shot' declared as both teams had a bowl leaning up against the jack, which had someone from the banks shouting, " Do you want a cigarette paper to measure it!".
                                                                                                        With the number of ends remaining running out, this no shot more suited Gary & Alex and they then further increased the lead to 12 shots to 5 with another single at the 13th end and looking good for victory.
         Then just as you start thinking of collecting that trophy at the club dance, things suddenly were not looking so good.
                                                 Russell and Graham who had not been enjoying much good fortune up till now, saw their luck change and brought themselves right back into the game with a double and a single to reduce the score to 12 shots to 8 shots with three ends to play.
     The next end was an important one for both sets of players.
                                                                                         With only four shots seperating them, a winning end for Russell and Graham would have really put pressure on Gary & Alex and had them under the cosh, going into the final ends.
                                                                             After the two Leads, Graham & Alex had played their bowls, it was Alex that had gained a significant advantage with two fantastic bowls cradling around the jack as Graham's nearest being around a yard behind.

The aim for Russell was to disturb one or two of the shot bowls and take the jack back to the two back bowls that Graham had waiting.
                                                          Shot number one just missed its target by inches, as did the second.  Gary's two bowls also failed to reach their objective, which was to get a bowl or two around the back, both of which stopped around a yard shy.
                                                                                                    Russell's third effort was also close, but on route to its target, his bowl clipped a short bowl, displaying it at the same time.
              This gave Gary a different option and he decided to abandon going for the safety shot and instead went for a draw to thicken up the target.
                                                                               He played his bowl and it was looking great all the way and not only reached its objective, but also brilliantly tucked the jack neatly in behind Alex's two shot bowls making the task for Russell far more difficult.

Russell took aim and fired up to the head, but luckily for Gary & Alex, his bowl missed its target and all three shots remained intact giving Gary & Alex a great advantage of being in front by 15 shots to 8 with just two to play.
                                                           Gary and Alex just had to remain composed and ensure if they lost any shots at this stage, that it was no more than one or two. This they acheived and although the next end was lost the battle was almost over after losing just a single at the 16th end to go into the last end in a comforting 6 shot lead.
                                                                                                      Being 6 up was not a comfort for Gary, as earlier this season in another pairs tie, along with Hamish Ramsay against Robert Grant & Jim Crawford, had lost a six at exactly the same stage. so he was mighty pleased as his partner in this one, Alex, was now playing brilliantly and was lying two excellent shots after both Leads had delivered their bowls.
                                                                                  This once again meant that Russell had a tough job on his hands if he was to have any hope of rescuing the game and Gary only had to play his bowls safely to ensure any possibilty of losing a high shots tally were kept to a minimum.
               Russell tried in vain to keep their hopes alive but is was not to be as Gary and Alex held out to claim yet another two shots to claim the title of Rose Bowl Champions 2006
by 17 shots to 9.


The victory was sweet for both Gary & Alex for different reasons. For Alex, this was his first ever trophy in what has been an excellent season for him in his first ever year of competitive bowling and for Gary his first trophy of any description in five lean years at Gourock Park and its also the second time he has claimed this very trophy having previously winning it in 2000 along with the late Willie Reid.
                                         
                                                           


Rose Bowl Champions 2006
Gary Bradley & Alex Cunningham