Double merit delight for Ashley Gregory
Ashley Gregory retained the Molson Coors Mid Shropshire League’s Under-25 Merit crown on a night of double doubles.
The 21-year-old Hadley USC bowler recorded his own personal double by coming out on top of 22 entries on a glorious evening at Wrockwardine Wood.
But in beating Sam Millward 21-16 in a final that finished just before 11pm on Saturday, Gregory sentenced the Newport bowler to double despair.
That’s because Millward had lost in the first final of the competition when it was launched in 2015 against current county star Tom Roden.
Gregory, a past winner of the Shropshire Junior Merit title, won the Under-25 title last year at St Georges when bowling for Donnington Wood.
Now back with his home club, he got his nose ahead against Millward at 9-8 and took control of the final in front of a decent size crowd after the score reached 12 across. He had beaten Aaron King 21-15 in the semi-finals with a run of four late doubles while Millward was racing past Aaron’s brother and fellow Bowring bowler, Jamie, 21-7.
Despite seeing both his sons lose in the semis, organiser Phil King declared: “I will be bringing this competition back here next year because Wrockwardine Wood have done such a great job.
“It’s been a beautiful night with some exceptional bowling. Commiserations to Sam, but it was Ash’s night again.”
League president Mike Potter said the quality on show highlighted the fact that there needed to be more competitions for bowlers who had just left the junior ranks on reaching 18.
