IT WAS a mixed bag of results for Kenilworth after they won one and lost another association match against two rival clubs.
The Kenilworth team of Adrian Morris, Philip Wood and Cliff Daniel recorded the first League victory of 2016 in emphatic style against Church Stretton as they ran out 4-1 winners.
But they were unable to make it a 100 per cent winning weekend after losing 3-2 against Shrewsbury.
In the opening match, Daniel faced George James who played consistently, running hoops at a standard which belied his handicap of 14 and despite two good breaks by Daniel, James sealed a clear victory.
In the doubles, Wood was in great form, reaching the penultimate hoop, but leaving Morris struggling.
Morris eventually came through this difficult period, only to play the wrong partner ball inadvertently, much to the amusement of those spectating. Wood then finished the game very impressively with a successful long ‘peg out’ shot.
In the three singles matches, Daniel faced John Wilkins who missed short shots and straightforward attempts at running hoops.
Daniel hit exceptional form, judging the pace of the lawn to perfection, and completed a resounding win of +17 inside the 90 minute time limit.
Morris won his game against Brian Christmas soon afterwards by the margin of +12, while Wood had a much tighter game against James but, with some long shots towards the end, won +3 on time, thereby ensuring a resounding 4-1 victory.
Kenilworth then played Shrewsbury and in the morning session the pairing of Alan Richardson and Philip Wood had great success, thanks to an exceptional break by Richardson of eight shots, which was a personal best, just before time was called. The final winning margin was +9 on time.
The other morning game paired Cliff Daniel with Sean Sheridan and despite some good breaks by both players, Daniel struggled with the surprisingly slow pace of the lawn, eventually losing by 11 hoops.
With the scoreline 1-1 at lunch, there was all to play for with three singles matches in the afternoon.
Richardson struggled against Robert Parsons and failed to make good use of his extra turns, eventually losing by 15 hoops.
Daniel, playing against the opposing captain Graham Colcough, seemed to be romping to victory after two hours of play. However Daniel made a tactical error and his opponent found form and good fortune that enabled him to peg out Daniels ball and aloe Colcough to clinch the game +6.
With a good start from Sheridan and time running out, Wood clawed his way back into the game, cleverly retaining the innings, and secured a win of +1 on time as Shrewsbury won 3-2.
