Whitland 60 Tenby 106
May 16th 2015
The Giltar Hotel sponsored Tenby Carruthers Team went to Whitland last Saturday to face an extremely stern test against Whitland. Whitland who have a tremendous record at their home ground are arguably the team that the Sharks fear the most. With Carruthers Shield qualification on the line the Tenby team knew that there would be no second chances. Rink 1: The Guymer’s teamed up for the first time together this year. Being one of the most successful back end combinations in Tenby history, the two internationals are always a pleasure to watch when in full flow. They teamed up with team manager and Silver Bowl finalist 2014’ Dai Spencer and 2012 Club Champion Ashley Hooper to compete against the experienced Nigel Davies and Glyn Thomas rink. Nigel in particular having his usual good game ensured the Whitland four made life difficult for the Tenby rink. Although falling behind after five ends (2-5) they held a good lead at ten ends (10-6) and at thirteen ends (14-9). However, only scoring on a further two ends from a possible eight, saw them defeated by a single shot (18-19).
Rink 2: Internationals, Keiran Peregrine and John Roberts teamed up with former club champion Jon Webb and former welsh indoor fours winner, Mike Jackson, to compete against a Whitland rink led by Tim Thomas. The rink trailed by one at five ends (4-5) but led by one at ten ends (10-9). A sequence of one, two and three shots saw the lead extended at fifteen ends (18-12) when the Woodpecker kicked in! A further round of Woodpeckers saw another surge of shots (not from the bar this time) and the rather jolly four came off with big smiles and red faces (not from the sun) with a 26-15 winning margin. Rink 3: The Rolls Royce Rink of Gerald Hewiit, Aaron Lloyd, Peter Day and Andrew Muskett, continued their top winning rink sequence – now 4 out of 4. This equals the 1954 record set by Crofton Johns, J.J. Nicholl, Trevor Lloyd-Jones and Pat Currie. At five ends, Tenby led by 4 (7-3) and extended their lead at ten ends (17-5). A slight comeback by the Colin Wynn four reduced the scoring to nine shots at fifteen ends but then the turbo button was pressed and scoring over the last six ends, including a 5 on the final ends saw another big win of 30-10.
Rink 4: Paul Diment’s rink of International, Ryan Thomas, Captain, Joe Richards and Cameron White - 2 time Welsh Under 18 Champion (with Aaron Lloyd) saw them play against former Gold Cup winner, Steve Reese. The two gold cup winners exchanged blows early on, but Steve came out on top after 6 ends (3-7). Diment’s rink were playing well and the consistency of the front three became too telling for Reese to continue saving and making shots. Tenby levelled things up at nine ends (8-8) but then promptly dropped a count of three. However, a five, three, two, two and a six over the next few ends saw the Tenby rink safely home by 31-16. Another big win for the Sharks which means a winner takes all next week against Pembroke Dock. Tenby will naturally start out favourites, especially playing at home, but Pembroke Dock have players and a team spirit who are more than capable of causing an upset. It should be a great game to conclude the Carruthers group fixtures, with league action returning the following day with the very local derby of Tenby playing Five Arches.