Valuable away points for ladies

LAST Thursday Lurgan Ladies travelled to Holywood in their first NIWBA Senior League match of the season and although they were two players short due to holiday commitments they put up a reasonable show to come home with two valuable league points.

While they were behind the winners at all stages during the match they succeeded on two rinks both which had only three players.

Winifred Kirkwood skipped her rink to victory on rink one, ably assisted by Edith Hobson and Dot McCoy. They made a great come back after trailing 5-1 after five ends by collecting twelve shots over the next eight ends to lead 13-7 after the thirteenth. However they suffered a temporary setback by dropping five shots on the next end to bring N Wilson’s Holywood rink within a shot of the visitors, but they held on grimly to eventually win the rink 16-14.

On rink two for Lurgan was Gwen Hayes, Jennifer McVeigh, Nora Johnston and Molly Ward, skip, against a strong Holywood rink skipped by L Bruce. Ward’s rink took a shot off the first end but was faced with a merciless barrage of sixteen shots from the home rink to trail 16-1 after the eighth end. Playing slightly more positively in the second half, Ward’s rink succeeded in adding another six shots; but to no avail with Bruce’s rink winning 28-7.

Iris Anderson, skip, Geraldine Tallon and Moira McGoldrick mastered rink three from the start against the home rink skipped by E Johnston and raced into a 10-0 lead after the fourth end. Johnston’s rink collected double and single shots over the next four ends to close the gap to 11-6 but Anderson’s rink was undeterred and produced a magnificent finish to win seven of the last ten ends and collect another eleven shots mostly from double-shot end wins. The opposition could only reply with a single shot with Anderson’s rink going home with a well deserved 22-9 rink victory.

On rink four of Lurgan were Molly McBarron, Catherine McGrail, Barbara Wilson and Gloria White, skip, faced M O’Flagherty’s Holywood rink. The Lurgan rink found the opposition somewhat overpowering and while there were some closely tight ends they only took one shot off the first twelve ends and trailed an unassailable 18-2. The Lurgan rink made some in-roads into the deficit by winning four of the last six ends and collecting themselves another nine shots, including an excellent four shots off the last, but they lost 23-10.

The Lurgan Ladies should not feel despondent about this result. Playing away home and two players but still taking two points from the match is good and they can look forward to better days ahead when they field a full team.