2019/20 champion: Lionel Peacock

Championship sponsored by Subway, Butler

LIONEL PEACOCK, the former men's hairdresser from Oldham, Lancashire, has his name on the honours board 14 times but, apart from the novices in 2007, it always appeared with some one else, including his wife Christine. Despite numerous attempts, the one title he most coveted - the men's singles - eluded him, often falling at the final hurdle. His memory fails him when it comes to naming how many times he has reached the final but in recent years he has lost heavily to Les Mikowiec and Lindsay Marsh. He probab;y breathed a huge sigh of relief when Clive de Ridder, who appears alongside Lionel on the honours board, staged a remarkable semi final comeback to beat his nemesis, Lindsay Marsh. And in the final Lionel's single-minded determination to finally break his singles duck proved far too much for Clive, moving President Steve Appleton, who was marking the game, comment afterwards. 'I doubt that anyone would have beaten Lionel today. He played that well.' Lionel took 15 of the 20 ends needed to record a 25-7 victory and afterwards dispelled rumours that he might rest on his laurels. He intends to carry on playing championships but since leaving the area has no desire to resume competing in pennants except in emergencies. Clive, who had pre-match concerns about his stamina, needed to make a fast start but it was Lionel, who built up an early lead and never allowed his opponent a sniff of a fightback. Nevertheless, his ability to reach the final confirms that the transition to a bowling arm has galvanised his game. Plate final: Les Mikowiec beat Owen Thysse 25-14. THERE will be a new name on the honours board under 'Men's Singles' as Clive de Ridder and Lionel Peacock will battle it out in the final on August 23 and for tea-totaller Clive his victory over Merriwa legend Lindsay Marsh probably had him reaching for the whisky bottle... Nobody, least of all Clive, gave him a prayer as he trailed 19-8 against seven-times champion Lindsay. But, for the second time this season, a remarkable fightback was about to take place. Back on March 11, Marj Morton somehow recovered from 6-20 to beat Joy Gillian 21-20 and now Clive was about to do something similar. The difference was that Lindsay in his long and illustrious career has never thrown away such a seemingly unassailable lead. Octogenarian Lindsay did not put the monumental collapse down to physical fatigure but that for once his tactcal brain seized up. On 19 ends the game was over. Let's look forward to a rematch of the 2018 final when Lindsay made short work of Lionel, who continued to fall at the final hurdle. A couple of singles only seemed to delay the inevitable but then a three put him just about in touching distance. Five ends into the comeback Clive could now actually win it at 19-17. Instead it took him another three ends - making it nine in all - the most critical of which came on the the 27th of the 28 ends played. Having been too heavy on his backhand with his first two bowls, Clive went for broke with a weighted shot that nailed the kitty and gave him two shots that took him into the lead (20-19) for the first time since the second end. Unflappable Clive, coolness itself as excitement mounted in the crowd, then bowled supremely well leaving Lindsay with no option but to summon up all his years of experience for one death-or-glory shot. He did not disappoint as the bowl exploded into the head but when the dust settled Clive was still nearest the kitty. Earlier, Barry Whinfield's attempt to make it three wins in four days (after victories over Ian Edgar 21-17 and Brian Barron 21-17) just failed as Lionel's nagging accuracy saw him triumph 21-16. Had Barry achieved the treble - after Steve Szonyi's results were expunged - the final would have featured two players using mechanical arms - the sign of things to come no doubt, particularly as no medical certificate is now needed. Lionel and Clive have shared a lot of success in the past in the triples and fours and Lionel has been in several singles finals without emerging as champion. Clive has been transformed as a bowler by the use of a mechanical arm. Sadly, because of the coronavirus disruption, Lionel and Clive have only had to play two games in reaching the final. Nevertheless, both have had to defeat former champions to reach the finaal. Plate semi finals: Owen Thysse beat Bill Nicoll 21-16; Les Mikowiec beat Ian Edgar 21-12. ON the evidence of a superb performance against former champion Ian Edgar, Barry Whinfield is a quick learner. Only a few months into using an 'arm', Barry displayed perfect rhythm to win a high class revised first round game 21-17 and now meets Brian Barron in the quarter finals on Saturday and the winner of that faces Lionel Peacock in the semis on Sunday. All this after Steve Szonyi's victories against Barry, Ian and Brian were expunged from the record owing to his unavailability for the final. The early stages looked ominous for Barry as he dropped five shots in the opening two ends before bouncing back with five successive ends to lead 6-5. He had another dominant spell with seven wins between ends 12 to 21 to get within touching distance of victory at 19-14. But Ian's fighting spirit kicked in as he closed the gap to three shots before Barry finished the game in style with some impeccable draw bowling. The report below appeared after Sunday's quarter finals after which captain Bob Gillian met with his match committee when it was decided to make Steve's results null and void. ONLY one game lived up to its quarter final status as three players meekly surrendered before one was re-instated into the competition to prevent the latter stages ending in farce. Steve Szonyi demolished Brian Barron 21-4 but will be on holiday for the last two stages and does not return until the end of September long after the final date of August 23 for both men and women. There was considerable annoyance that Steve had not followed the example of Len Paterson and Wal Welyky in dropping out of a competition disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. In the end captain Bob Gillian, acting secretary Steve Appleton and match committee member Les Mikowiec declared the game null and void and put a somewhat emarrassed Brian through to the semi final to face Lionel Peacock. The organisers were anxious that Lionel should not have a walk through to the final, having already had one in the first round. The way the competition is shaping there could well be a repeat of the 2018 final between Lionel and Lindsay Marsh - the last of Lindsay's seven title wins. Lindsay made short work of Ronnie Futter (21-6) and Clive de Ridder had only a brief moment of concern before despatching Brian Wilkins, 21-9. Fortunately, there was one epic battle - between Lionel, several times a finalist but never a winner, and 2014 champion Steve Appleton. It was impossible to call a winner as Steve rallied from 12-18 (19 ends) to take the lead, 20-19 (25 ends). Both players held match-winning lies but Lionel's dogged determination paid off as he clinched the match 21-20 on the next end. Plate results: Owen Thysse beat Bob Barsden 21-7; Bill Nicoll beat Graeme Winter 21-3; Les Mikowiec beat Barry Whinfield 21-8; Ian Edgar beat Bob Gillian 21-15. THE first round was finally completed almost three months after the scheduled start and it has proved to be a graveyard for the top seeds, including defending champion Bob Gillian. The bottom half of the draw was littered with former champions but now there is only one left - Steve Appleton who knocked out twice-champion Les Mikowiec. But the real shock of the day was a decisive 21-14 win for Brian Barron over Bob Gillian. For 19 ends the players could not be separated with the score on 14-14. Leading 14-11, Brian took the mat up and played a minimum length - and played it appallingly - allowing Bob to draw level and he was lucky not to concede a full house. Bob did not score again as Brian wrapped it up in just three ends, including a four when he took out Bob's nearest bowl. He now plays Steve Szonyi, who took out another former champion Ian Edgar a few days earlier, as the competition reverts to Sundays. Steve Appleton, the 2014 champion, looked set for a surprisingly easy win over Les Mikowiec, who won the title in 2015 and 2016, when he surged out of the blocks to open up a 12-3 lead on eight ends and then a seemingly unassailable 19-7 advantage. But Les is nothing if not a battler and in four ends he reduced the deficit to four shots (19-15). Amid high drama, Steve refused to let the pressure get the better of him and scraped the two shots he needed with singles on the 20th and 21st ends. Steve now faces Lionel Peacock, who now probably ranks as favourite to lift the title. Several times a finalist, Lionel, who had a walkover, has never won it. In the top half of the draw there is only one former champion, the incomparable seven-times winner Lindsay Marsh. He needed 25 ends to see off the persistent Bill Nicoll, 21-14. Lindsay led 12-2 on 13 ends, taking singles in ten of the ends. A full house on the 16th end made the score 16-5 before Bill staged a spirited rally to get within five shots on 21 ends (17-12). Despite being well into his eighties, Lindsay had enough stamina to complete the job. The closest game of the day saw Ronnie Futter edge out Graeme Winter, 21-17. Played in an excellent spirit, the game could have gone either way as the lead constantly changed hands before Ronnie put in a powerful finish. Trailing 17-16, he closed out the match with a three and a two. Although he will start as underdog, Ronnie is likely to give Lindsay a run for his money in Sunday's quarter final. The other two players in the top half of the draw, Clive de Ridder and Brian Wilkins, both benefitted from their opponents, Len Paterson and Wal Welyky respectively, having to pull out. They make up the quarter final line-up. STEVE SZONYI has emerged as a genuine title contender after knocking out 2017 champion and last season's beaten finalist, Ian Edgar, in a first round match played three days before the scheduled date. Steve, a beaten finalist in the pairs and triples, demolished Barry Whinfield a week ago, another player like Ian to use a mechanical arm. But whereas Barry is still coming to terms with the equipment, Ian has been a considerable force with it and went into the game a clear favourite. The outcome was on a knife-edge for 21 ends with the score at 15-15 but then Steve made a decisive move with four shots to go ahead 19-15 only for Ian to immediately hit back with a three. All-round sportsman Steve, a golfer and table tennis player, bounced back with a two to clinch a 21-18 victory. The remainder of the round will be played on Sunday. THE alignment round was belatedly completed on Friday June 19 as competitive action returned to the club after the coronavirus lockdown that began in March. And the game was a runaway 21-7 victory for Steve Szonyi against Barry Whinfield, who is still getting to grips with a mechanical arm. Barry started brightly, going into a 5-1 lead on five ends. After that it was one-way traffic as Steve won nine of the next ten ends with some impressive forehand draw bowling with Barry constantly leaving his bowls short. The rescheduled competition will re-start on Sunday June 28 (1pm start). TWO leading contenders to win the singles, Brian Wilkins and Wal Welyky, made impressive progress through the alignment round against Bob Barsden and Owen Thysse respectively. Brian, who knocked out twice-champion Les Mikowiec 21-13 last season, was in superb form as he opened up a 20-4 lead on 14 ends. But getting over the line can sometimes be the hardest part of all - just ask Joy Gillian - and Bob clung on by taking the next four ends to at least get into double figures before Brian wrapped up a 21-11 success. Wal was almost as dominant against Owen, who has been described as a 'notoriously slow starter'. He was again as Wal went 19-8 ahead before Owen staged a comeback similar to last season when he trailed 9-0 and 17-10 against Joe Martins before taking the tie. In three ends against Wal he reduced the deficit to 16-19 to give Wal the wobbles. However, he held his nerve to take the two shots he needed on the 17th end. The draw has been kind to Wal and Brian, who meet next week in the first round. They are in the top half of the draw where Lindsay Marsh is the only former champion. In the bottom half there are three former winners - Les, Bob Gillian and Steve Appleton - along with LIonel Peacock who has lost in several finals. The draw for the first round is: Bill Nicoll v Marsh, Graeme Winter v Ronnie Futter, Clive de Ridder v Len Paterson, Wilkins v Welyky, Steve Szonyi/Barry Whinfield v Ian Edgar, Brian Barron v Gillian, Mikowiec v Appleton, Peacock v Laurie Sibson.