Shropshire Star

Castlefields have a unique double in their sights

Shrewsbury bowls powerhouse Castlefields have made one slice of county history – and another beckons at the weekend.

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Bowls

They became the first club to retain the Shropshire Cup with a 23 shot final victory over Wrockwardine Wood on Saturday night.

The Fielders dominated the showdown on the men’s green at Whitchurch club Chester Road from the off, putting the Mid Shropshire League hopefuls under a pressure that they could not overcome.

And now Castlefields have a unique Shropshire double in their sights as their Premier League side takes on Sir John Bayely in the County Cup final this coming Saturday back in Whitchurch at Bridgewater BC.

Former county man Keith Wall set the tone for Fields by winning 21-12 at No.1 after leading 11-0 and Anthony Gray rallied from 6-1 down to win 21-9 as they went 21 chalks off the first four.

Sian Skelton was Wood’s sole early winner with a 21-18 card and there were brief signs of a revival in the middle four of the KGJ Insurance sponsored clash as Tony Garmson (21-9) helped cut the gap to 18. But the last two in the 10-a-side match went on with Castlefields in the driving seat to keep hold of the trophy – and with Craig Elson winning 21-9 it meant Downs’ 21-14 reply was in vain as the Queen Street boys won by 23.

So it looks like Elson & Co will have plenty to celebrate come the end of the season as they are in dominant positions in the top flights of both the Tanners Shropshire and Shrewsbury divisions.

“Well done to Castlefields on retaining the Shropshire Cup, the first team to do so,” said County Cup committee spokesman Rob Burroughs.

“Thank you to Chris Sayers for refereeing and to Linda Potter for measuring, Chester Road for hosting and to Mike Potter for running the night with help from Dawn Gray.”