Winter League Season 2024/25

Match 10 - Highwoods v Langham 14/2/25
 
The Highwoods Team were in great form throughout their home match with Langham with their best performance of the season producing an 8 - 0 win.
It leaves the team in an outstanding position at the top of the League, 10 points ahead of the nearest rivals and whilst others have games in hand Highwoods remain in a strong position to be in contention to win the League.
 
It all started so well in the first session with the Highwoods Pair of Sheila Near & Greg King winning the first three ends and were 6 - 1 up after four ends and looking good. The fifth end was there only bad end losing 4 shots but after that showed their superiority winning comfortably by 11- 6 with excellent bowling by both players.
 
The first Highwoods Four of Christine Woodrow/David Rule/Irene Rule/Diane Orrin were involved in the closest match of the night.
They started slowly and were 2 - 5 down after end four. The sixth end saw some excellent bowling by the team and they took 4 shots to lead 6 - 5. but by the last end they were all level at 7 - 7. The early exchanges saw Langham holding shot until Irene produced the 'shot of the night' to move the jack with her bowl to the end of the carpet making impossible for the opposing skip to have any chance of re-taking shot and the Highwoods Four won 8 -7 in the best match of the night.
 
The second session saw Highwoods take full advantage from the outcome of session one with both winning their matches comfortably.
In the Pairs Marilyn Bennet & Peter Orrin soon built up a 8 - 1 lead after end four and from then on with some fine bowling by both players comfortably won their match 12 - 4.
The same applied to the Highwoods Four of Sue Miller/Brenda Kettle/Glenyce King/Martin Bennet who took 7 shots on end three and carried on with excellent bowling to win 13 - 3.
 
It was a night of celebration by the whole team & those supporting as reserves and the team goes into the next match in two weeks time away at Lawford full of confidence.

Match 9 Paxman v Highwoods Friday 7th February 2025
 
The Highwoods team played an away league match against Paxman.
It turned out to be the most even match of the season so far with a 4 - 4 draw seeing the Highwoods Team retaining their top spot in the league.
The games on the night, saw a large win in the Fours by both teams and a win each in the pairs both decided by the last wood of the matches.
 
The first Four for Highwoods of Brian Woodward/John Woodrow/Glenyce King/Martin Bennet never got into their match and were 0 -15 after just 5 ends. They eventually lost 2 - 18 against a strong experienced home Fours team.
By contrast the first Pair of Marilyn Bennet & Peter Orrin were involved in a close match which partly turned on the 7th end when they were holding three shots and the home team skip with the last bowl got a fortunate wick to take two shots, leaving the jack on the end of the carpet. Marilyn & Peter fought back on the 8th end taking three shots to leave the score at 8 - 9 going into the last end. However the home team were able to get in the important bowl to win the match 
10 - 8.
 
At 4 nil down at the half way stage it needed a good 2nd session from Highwoods to get the minimum result required.
The Highwoods Four of Irene Rule/Christine Woodrow/Sheila Near/Diane Orrin were all in outstanding form throughout their match, taking 7 shots on the first two ends. They progressed from there to win the match by an impressive 17 - 2 margin.
The second Pair of Sue Miller & Greg King were involved in the closest match of the night with the 'rub of the green' initially going the way of the home team, who were leading 6 - 2 after the 7th end. However some outstanding bowling by Sue & Greg saw them take three shots on end 8 to go into the last end 5 - 6 down. The early exchanges saw the jack moved near to the edge of the mat with Highwoods holding one shot. However with his third bowl and in attempt to take shot the home team skip took the jack off to give the Highwoods pair victory by 7 - 6.
 
Well done to the team who put up a further good performance and with three matches to go are still challenging at the top of the league.
They have a difficult match next Friday at Home to Langham who are challenging a few points back but with games in hand.
After this they have an away match at Lawford and home match with West Bergholt to complete the season.

Match 8 Langham v Highwoods Monday 27th January 2025
 
The Highwoods team were back in action last night at the difficult away venue Langham.
The mats/floor are always difficult to master but on the night the team played well and were left feeling that a draw would have been a fair result having just lost out on some close matches.
 
The first session saw the Highwoods Pair of Sue Miller & Peter Orrin up against a strong home team pair with the match close after five ends. However a poor end six saw the home team take five shots and Sue & Peter were never able to recover losing 5 - 11.
The first Four of Irene Rule/John Woodrow/Glenyce King/Martin Bennet took early control of their match leading 7 - 2 after five ends and with good game management thereafter they cruised to a 9 - 4 win.
 
The second session saw two close matches both decided on the last end.
The second Four of Christine Woodrow/David Rule/Brenda Kettle/Diane Orrin matched the home team throughout with the score 5 - 5 after seven ends. The home team took one shot on end eight and another four shots on the last end with Highwoods eventually losing 5 - 10.
The second pair of Marilyn Bennet & Greg King were involved in the closest match of the night with scores level at 7 - 7 after end five. Marilyn & Greg took three shots on end six but the home team pair took three shots on the next two ends with the match going in the last end level at 10 - 10. The advantage swung both ways as end nine was played and Greg's last shot clipped the jack but not quite enough which gave victory to the home team 11 - 10.
 
Highwoods remain top of the league but two teams below have a game in hand. However with four matches to be played (two at home & two away) they are in a good position to challenge for the title with Paxman away next up on Friday week.

Match 7 - Highwoods v Dedham - Friday 24th January 2025
 
The Highwoods team were back in home action against a strong (regular) Dedham team who as normal played one player short.
It turned out to be a mixed night for Highwoods with the Pairs in exceptional form and the Fours struggling all night but eventually leading to an acceptable 4 - 4 draw.
 
The first session saw two incredible results;
The first Pair of Marilyn Bennet & Peter Orrin were in exceptional form from the start to the finish. 
They won every end taking 8 shots in the first 3 ends and eventually winning by 20 shots to nil.
 
The first Four of Christine Woodrow/David Rule/John Woodrow/Martin Bennet were involved in a match with just one shot recorded on each of the nine ends. However the Highwoods Four only managed to win the third end and lost 1 - 8 against the three person Dedham team.
 
The second session was completely different with the Highwoods Four finding it difficult to get into the game especially in the early stages and the Pairs involved in the closest game of the night.
 
The Highwoods Four of Brenda Kettle/Heidi Woolley/Irene Rule/Diane Orrin struggled in the early stages of their match against strong opposition. They lost 3 shots on ends 2,3,5 & 6 and were 2-12 down after six ends. A late rally was a positive for them eventually losing by 6 - 14.
 
The second Pair of Sue Miller & Sheila Near were involved in the best and closest match of the night. Sue & Sheila had the best of the early exchanges and were 4 - 1 up after four ends. A bad 5th end saw them lose five shots but they recovered sufficiently to go into the last end all square at 8 - 8.
It was here that Sue & Sheila come good with some excellent bowling to take shot and win the match 9 - 8.
 
The Highwoods team are still in a strong position in the league in joint top spot with 33 points.
They go next to a difficult match on Monday at Langham hoping for further success to consolidate their challenge for the league title
 
Match 6 - Elmstead Market v Highwoods = played on Thursday 16th January 2025
 
The Highwoods team were back playing their first match of the year, a difficult match away against last years league champions Elmstead Market.
However an outstanding performance by the team saw them record an excellent win 6 - 2 and takes Highwoods to top of the League, a great start.
 
The first session was difficult with the first Four of Brenda Kettle/Heidi Woolley/Irene Rule & Diane Orrin taking time to settle into the match against strong opposition who know their mat so well. Highwoods were 6 - 0 down after 4 ends, but they rallied and kept in the match to eventually lose by 4 - 8
The first Pair of Marilyn Bennet & Greg King started well but the 3rd & 4th ends were more of a struggle and they were down 6 - 9 going into the last end. This last end saw exceptional bowling by Marilyn & Greg and they took 4 shots to turn the game round and win a close match 10 - 9.
 
The second session saw the team lifted by the results in session 1 and two further wins were recorded.
The second Four of Christine Woodrow/Brian Woodward/Glenyce King & Martin Bennet dropped 3 shots on the first end. However what followed was exceptional with the Highwoods Four rampant against a strong home team and they won all 8 ends to win 15 - 3.
The second Pair of Sue Miller & Sheila Near were involved in another close match with the scores level at 5 - 5 after 7 ends.
However the Highwoods Pair found outstanding form to take 6 shots in the final two ends to win 11 - 5.
 
Well done to the team, Highwoods are top because they deserve to be but this is only the half way point with six matches still to play starting with a home match against Dedham next Friday


Match 5 - West Bergholt v Highwoods 5th December 2024

The Highwoods team played their fifth match of the current season away to West Bergholt on Thursday 5th December 2024.
The team kept up their recent fine form coming away with a 4 - 4 draw at a difficult venue which takes the Team into second place in the league and only two points from the current leaders.
 
It started so well in the first session with the first Pair of Sue Miller and Peter Orrin, getting the mat immediately and within three ends had built up an 8 - 0 lead. From then on they played excellent bowls and with good game management never looked like being caught and eventually winning 10 - 5.
The first Four of Marilyn Bennet/Heidi Woolley/Brenda Kettle/Diane Orrin also started well winning the first two ends and by end five had a 5 - 2 lead. They continued to play well taking three shots on end 7 and went into the last end with a four shot advantage and eventually winning 8 - 6 
 
The team were hopeful of snatching an away win, but despite their best efforts this was not to be in the second session.
The second Four of Brian Woodward/David Rule/John Woodrow/Glenyce King started well leading 3 - 1 after just two ends. However end three was poor for the team dropping six shots followed by three shots in ends four & five and they never recovered eventually losing 6 - 15.
The second Pair of Sheila Near & Greg King were up against a strong home team pair who knew their mat. As a result and despite some excellent bowling they found themselves 1 - 6 down after four ends. However by end eight they were well back in the game just two points adrift at 5 - 7. On the last end Sheila & Greg were holding two shots for most of the last end and a draw looked a real possibility. However the home team skip was able to move the jack and they took four shots to record a win for the home team pair by 11 - 5.
 
The Highwoods team are nearly half way through the season having played five games with seven more to go in the new year.
After a break for Christmas & the New Year, the next game is away at Elmstead Market on Thursday 16th January 2025.
Well done to all who have played so far.
 

Match 4 - Highwoods v Lawford 22 November 2024

The Highwoods team played their third home match of the season, last night, Friday 22nd November 2024 and produced their best performance of the season so far.
Although most games were reasonably close Highwoods were able produce a 7 - 1 win to take them to top of the league.
 
It started so well in the first session with the first Four of Irene Rule/Christine Woodrow/John Woodrow/Martin Bennet taking 4 shots on the first end and leading 9 - 2 after end six. Their game management was good in the last three ends to record a comfortable 9 - 5 victory.
A similar pattern emerged with the first Pair of Sheila Near & Greg King who took 4 shots in the first two ends and were 10 - 3 up by end seven and again through some outstanding bowling won comfortably 11 - 4
 
The second session was much closer but again some excellent bowling produced the result required.
The second Pair of Marilyn Bennet & Peter Orrin made a good start against strong opposition to lead by 6 - 2 after end five. They went into the last end 7 - 4 up and again good game management restricted the visitors to two shots with Marilyn & Peter winning by the close margin of 7 - 6
The closest match of the night was the Highwoods second Four of Brenda Kettle/David Rule/Glenyce King/Diane Orrin. They were 3 - 4 down after five ends but were able to take 3 shots on end six to lead for the first and only time in the match. A poor eighth end saw the team drop 3 shots to the visitors to go into the last end trailing 6 - 8. However some fine bowling saw Diane draw in a second shot with her last bowl to even the match 8 - 8
 
Well done to the team who have one more match to play this year, away to West Bergholt on Thursday 5th December.
 
Match 3 - Dedham v Highwoods Tuesday 12th November 2024
The Highwoods team played their their first away match at Dedham on Tuesday 12th November 2024.
It is always a difficult venue to play at, and clearly gives a home advantage.
Additionally Dedham played 2 short with the 3 v 4 rule used in both fours matches.
However an excellent team performance from Highwoods saw them draw the match 4 - 4 and it could so easily have been a win.
Well done to all the team.
 
The first Four was changed through late unavailability with 3 reserves playing.
The changed Four of Irene Rule/David Rule/John Woodrow/Peter Orrin struggled in the early stages of the match and were 1 - 7 down after three ends. 
From then on they matched the home team winning three ends each but eventually lost 6 - 13
The first Pair of Sue Miller & Sheila Near were involved in an extremely close match and were leading 7 - 2 after five ends.
However the home pair came into the match over the next three ends to leave the score at 7 - 7going into the last end.
Despite their best efforts the Dedham pair took two shots on the last end with Sue & Sheila losing 7 - 9.
 
It was disappointing but matters picked up well in the second session for Highwoods
The second Four of Christine Woodrow/Heidi Woolley/Brenda Kettle/Diane Orrin were 0-3 down after two ends but then took a firm grip on the match with Christine & Heidi setting up the head, well supported by Brenda & Diane and by end seven they were leading 10-3.
A good finish saw them win the match 10 - 8, more comfortably than the score suggests 
The second Pair of Marilyn Bennet & Greg King were involved in a further difficult & close match. However they both bowled well throughout with never more than two shots between the Pairs. Like the first pairs match the score was 7 - 7 going into the last end.
This time the result was reversed with Marilyn getting the bowls in the right place and Greg able to move the jack to take the winning shot and win 8 - 7
 
The next match is a further home match against Lawford on Friday 22nd Nov.
 
Match 2 - Highwoods v Paxman Friday 8th November 2024
The Highwoods team were in good form in the second match of the Colchester League season recording a 6 - 2 win.
 
The first session saw the first Four of Irene Rule/Christine Woodrow/Brenda Kettle/Diane Orrin in excellent form, all playing well as a team. 
They built up an early lead and were comfortable throughout the match eventually winning 14-2 to give the team a great start.
The first pair of Sue Miller & Greg King started slowly and after 4 ends were 0 - 8 down. It was not looking good for Sue & Greg against strong opposition but it all changed on the next three ends when they they took 7 shots. A further shot on the 8th end meant that they went into the last end all square and after some excellent bowling on the last end were able to turn what looked to be a loss into further excellent win for Highwoods by 10 - 8.
 
With a good halfway lead the team were hopeful of recording their first win of the season.
This was soon established by the second Pair of Marilyn Bennet & Peter Orrin who immediately got into their stride and were 10-2 up after five ends. They finished with a comfortable 14 - 5 victory, bowling well throughout the match.
The second Four of Brian Woodward/David Rule/John Woodrow/Sheila Near found the opposition too tough on the night and despite their valiant efforts only managed to get on the scoresheet with the last bowl of the night to lose 1 - 12
 
The next match will be a difficult one, with their first away game of the season, next Tuesday at Dedham.
 
Highwoods v Elmstead Market - Match 1 - Friday 11/10/24
The Highwoods team started the 2024/5 season with a Home match against last years Colchester league champions and overall Essex winners Elmstead Market. In what was a close match, the visitors finally just got the better of the Highwoods team, winning the match 6 - 2.
The Highwoods team had played well and the result felt disappointing in a match that could have gone either way.
 
The first session looked good for Highwoods.
The first Pair of Marilyn Bennet & Peter Orrin were in outstanding form for the first 7 ends building up a 11 - 2 lead. They faltered with a bad 8th end but were far enough ahead to win the match comfortably.
The first Four of Irene Rule/Heidi Woolley/Brenda Kettle/Diane Orrin were involved in one of the closest matches of the night having played well throughout and went into the last end level on 5 - 5. In a tight final end, which went to the last bowl, they just lost out by one shot.
 
With the overall points score level going into the second session, Highwoods were hoping for more points but it was not to be despite their valiant efforts.
The second Four of Joan Clark/Brian Woodward/John Woodrow/Martin Bennet struggled in the first 4 ends and were 0 - 6 down. They played much better in the next 5 ends but could not catch up eventually losing 5 - 10. 
The second Pair of Sheila Near & Greg King were in the other close match of the night. 
The start was good for Sheila & Greg who were playing well & soon built up a 7 - 1 lead after 5 ends.
After 7 ends the home team Pair were still in a strong position and playing well leading 7 - 3. After a set back in end 8 they still went into the last end with a 7 - 6 lead. However the visitors rallied with an outstanding 9th end to take 5 shots and finish winning 11 - 7. 
 
The next league match will be a further home match against Paxman on Friday 8th November when they will hope for a better points outcome.