Warwickshire 109 (13pts) Dorset 109 (9pts)

DORSET players and their manager were left with a bittersweet taste in their mouths following a draw in the first Middleton Cup fixture at Entaco Bowls Club, Warwickshire.

Dorset had at last put the brakes on several seasons of disappointment and matched a strong county on their own patch shot for shot.

In that sense the 109-109 draw was a creditable beginning for Dorset and their new boss Mike Stapleton. But on closer inspection the visitors had let the game slip agonisingly through their fingers.

In his pre-match briefing, Stapleton expected an early surge from the hosts and home hero Graham Ashby certainly put the pressure on Chris Lawrence, Jamie Lockwood, Martin Pavey and Stacey Dickinson who were 10-0 down at five ends.

Fortunately, the remaining five rinks balanced out and Dorset limited the overall damage after the first opening quarter. The second part of the game produced the response that was needed.

George Spracklen, Ryan Stone, Nick Voss, and recalled skip Adam Tidby began to hit form and had taken a 9-4 lead against Chris Horder, while at the same time the experienced Dorset rink of John Crabb, Dave Smith, Ken Hann and Barry Patterson were in charge against Warwickshire’s Andy Smith at 9-6.

The Dickinson rink had recovered to a manageable 10-6 down, and with the overall score giving Dorset a narrow lead at 51-50, the comeback was on.

The third quarter saw Dorset striving hard to push on and open up a sizeable gap. Steve Gait and his supporting players of first-time cap Chris Thorne, Pat Ravelin and Doug Rumble, made a move and were soon 18-10 ahead of Colin Jacox.

Tidby’s scorecard was still showing clear water at 14-8 but Paul Pomeroy, Mike Preston, Peter Willatts and Eddy Young let a healthy lead of 15-9 slip to 15-17, while Ben Paulley, Steven Huttley, Bob Atkins and Wayne Garnett were now five shots adrift.

Overall the cover was still there and Dorset led by 82 shots to 80.

The run-in to the 18th-ends mark was a delight for the visitors and it was game on for Dorset at 101-92.

It was now a matter of holding on to cross the finish line. But in a finale that went down to the proverbial wire Dorset saw their advantage disappear.

Tidby produced the best result of the day at 22-10, supported by a typically stoic performance from Gait at 21-16.

The four losing rinks kept the game close and just one more shot from any of the rinks would have changed the points tally for the day from 13-9 in Warwickshire’s favour to a more creditable 14-8 for Dorset.

Stapleton said: “My initial reaction was one of pleasure to have earned a draw, but a new day must tell us that we were the creators of our own downfall. We must learn from this bittersweet result.”

The next game will be against Cornwall at Greenhill on Saturday June 13 (2.30pm) followed by the final group match against Somerset on Saturday, July 4 at the same venue and time.

Full results (Dorset skips first): Stacey Dickinson 17 Graham Ashby 20, Wayne Garnett 17 Alan Apsey 19, Barry Patterson 15 Andy Smith 19, Adam Tidby 22 Chris Horder 10, Eddie Young 17 Martin Timms 5, Steve Gait 21 Colin Jacox 16.