2023/24: champions: Pauline Wright, Veronica Thysse, Julia Barron, Joy Gillian
Ladder
Skips P W L D F A PtsMavis Price 2 2 0 0 31 23 4
Julia Barron 2 1 1 0 36 30 2
Maggie Edgar 2 1 1 0 31 38 2
Elaine Weskin 1 0 1 0 9 16 0
Ellaine Jopling 1 0 1 0 16 26 0
TWO brilliant bowls from Joan Bowey on the final end of a classic contest gave the Mavis Price rink a critical victory over the pre-tournament favourites skipped by six-time champion skip Julia Barron.
With the scores level at 14-14 on 17 ends, Joan produced the perfect time to conjure a piece of magic to give the team of Edwina Foster, Soly Batka, Joan and Mavis a one-shot win.
That gives the Mavis four two wins from two games and leaves Julia, Veronica Thysse, Joy Gillian and Pauline Wright needing to win their remaining games to give them any chance of retaining their crown. They started badly, dropping five shots on the opening two ends, but hit back to lead 11-7 on ten only for the opposition to claim five of the last eight ends.
MAGGIE EDGAR'S rink got off the mark with a comeback 26-16 win that looked a little unlikely as the Ellaine Jopling team won six of the firsst eight ends to lead 12-6.
But they did not score again until the 17th end when the game was well and truly lost as Maggie, Dawn Ferguson, Roberta Waldeck and Gail Kempton scored 20 shots without reply.
In the early stages, Ellaine, Tina Hay, May O'Neill and Marjo Besanger were well in control and only a count of five on the sixth end kept the opposition in touch.
Successive fours on ends nine and ten swept Maggie's side into the lead and their opponents were only able to muster a couple of consolation scores on the final two ends.
The Julia Barron-Mavis Price clash has been put back until Saturday (September 14).
SKIP Julia Barron, bidding for an unprecedented seven Fours title in eight years narrowly avoided a first round slip-up against the Maggie Edgar rink, which lost the last three ends to go down 22-15.
Maggie, who was in Julia's initial success in 2016/17 at three, and her team of Dawn Ferguson, Roberta Waldeck and Gail Kempton took the lead just once (15-14 on 15) but failed to score again.
The defending champions were forced into a last minute switch when Joy Gillian had to pull out. They had the ideal replacement in Ronda Macgregor, a former member of the team, who slotted in at two, linking up with lead Veronica Thysse with Pauline Wright stepping up to third.
In the round robin format, the other winning rink was that of Edwina Foster, Soly Batka, Joan Bowey and Mavis Price, 16-9.
On 13 ends, Mavis's four were just a shot ahead of Mary-AnnJackson, Helen Paterson, Lyn Sibson and Elaine Weskin (8-7) but got on top over the closing stages to double their score.