Senior men off the mark

Away trips have been problematic in the past for Lurgan but a strong start resulted in an early lead of 11 shots against Balmoral.

Balmoral regrouped on the club’s home patch and hit back to reduce the gap to a single point by the halfway mark.

Balmoral then moved two clear but a strong Lurgan push over the closing period left the visitors out in front.

On rink one, B.Boness, D.Dempsey, P.McGrail and skip A.Briggs enjoyed a superb start against a Balmoral quartet skipped by a former international.

Lurgan managed to secure shot counts of six and five in the opening ends. Overall, Lurgan won 11 and lost 10 of the 21 ends, with the bright start key to the 23-13 win.

Lurgan’s R.McCullough, M,Parr, D.McCabrey and skip RM.Montgomery featured in a thrilling tussle with another ex-international on rink two - suffering a narrow 19-15 reverse after 10 end wins.

On rink three, I.Mitchell, M.Bunting, J.Gilliland and H.Cosgrove secured early success then lost control of the jack as Balmoral changed the length and left the visitors struggling to get a shot.

Balmoral won four straight ends to claim control but Lurgan registered five shots late on in a 21-14 defeat to aid the overall tally.

The final rink of R.McClune, G.Bunting, S.Poots and skip A.Roberts displayed consistent scoring on the way to a well-earned 19-11 success.

FIXTURES

Lurgan A will now play host to Balmoral for a return fixture following last weekend’s success away to the Belfast club.

The focus on Saturday will be Irish Senior Cup progress past round two.

Lurgan B hit the road to take on Belfast’s Forth River in the Irish Junior Cup’s second-round programme, with play scheduled to start at 2 o’clock.

LADIES

Lurgan’s NIWBA Senior League test with Newcastle produced two points in a reverse by 69.75-61 - despite some positive passages of play by the ladies.

Iris Anderson, Gwen Hayes, Rosemairi Bingham and Genny Little enjoyed a six-shot victory by 21-15.

Angela Thompson, Beth Wilson, Molly McBarron and Jennifer McVeigh held control from the start towards the 18-10.5 triumph.

Irene Doone, Irene Cunningham, Eileen Robson and Catherine McGrail struggled on rink four - with disappointment also arriving for Winifred Kirkwood, Edith Hobson, Nora Johnston and Molly Ward.

Lurgan lost out across rinks four and five, respectively, by 21.25-11 and 23-11.