We have two new singles champions.

Linda Huntley won the Ladies’ Championship for the first time while Mark Gooch achieved the probably unprecedented feat of winning the Men’s title at the first attempt.

In a hectic weekend which was expected to be hit hard by the weather, the seven finals were all played on time with only two matches enduring rain of any note.

The titles were evenly spread around the club, with John Box and me picking up two apiece on the Saturday and Mark, Linda, Andrew Croft, Anne Bosman and Mark Howell all experiencing victory and defeat over the weekend.

Mark’s Championship success was testament as much to his mental strength as his evident bowls skills.

He had seemed weighed down by nerves during his defeat to me in the John Martin Shield, though still managing a decent performance.

But while clearly still nervous as he took on the might of twice-winner Basil Larkins in Sunday’s big final, he put in a controlled performance notable for his consistent long jacks, which finally shook off Basil’s tenacious attempts at clawing back Mark’s lengthening lead.

Linda, too, pulled away from a tenacious opponent as Dorothy Glasby recovered from conceding a four on the first end to lead by the eighth. But Linda’s calm approach stood her in good stead as she reeled off a crucial seven shots over four consecutive ends to establish a lead that Dorothy never quite managed to reach.

Anne lost two of the three finals she played but got the trophy her play – and form throughout the season – deserved, partnering Mark Howell to a 20-16 win over Andrew and Bill Mann in the Drawn Pairs.

She can also derive some reflected glory from the performances of two of her protegés – Mark Gooch becoming men’s champion and me winning my two finals.

It was third time lucky for me in the John Martin Shield, having been runner-up in 2022 and 2023. Earlier in the day I had picked up the Sam Farmer Trophy, beating Anne in her first final of the weekend.

Anne was beaten again in the afternoon – by John Box, who collected his second title of the day in the Veterans’ competition, having defeated Mark Howell in the Handicap in the morning.

Mark in turn secured his own redemption with a superb performance in the Drawn Pairs, alongside the equally impressive Anne, as they held off the challenge of Bill Mann and Andrew Croft, 24 hours after Andrew had collected the Mixed Pairs title with Gwen in an all-spouses final against Linda and Peter Huntley.

Photos supplied by: Nicola Coles, Tara de Silva and Neville Dalton

Results below and reports here:

Men’s Championship
Mark Gooch beat Basil Larkins 22-14

Ladies’ Championship
Linda Huntley beat Dorothy Glasby 21-15

Handicap
John Box (10) beat Mark Howell (9) 21-14

Veterans
John Box beat Anne Bosman 14-12

Sam Farmer Trophy
Neville Dalton beat Anne Bosman 21-13

John Martin Shield
Neville Dalton beat Mark Gooch 21-14

Drawn Pairs
Anne Bosman and Mark Howell beat Andrew Croft and Bill Mann 20-16

Mixed Pairs
Andrew and Gwen Croft beat Peter and Linda Huntley 21-12