WESTLECOT mixed team recorded a comprehensive victory over Gloucestershire neighbours Fairford in last Sunday’s first round of the Egham Trophy (national mixed inter-club championship).

They followed up a 69-53 preliminary round derby win over Carterton with a 47-shot success over Fairford as they ran out 98-51 victors, despite only taking the honours on two of the four rinks contested.

The win was built on two formidable home performances by the two rinks skipped by Kyle Anderson and Chris Cheesley who both registered 25-shot winning margins.

In Fairford, both rinks skipped by Steve Remington and Mike Titcombe were involved in see-saw struggles before being edged out at the finish.

In round two to be played a week on Sunday (November 13) Westlecot face a tough task.

They will meet Berkshire side Desborough (Maidenhead) who won the competition three times in a row from 2011 and were the inaugural winners in 1992/1993.

RESULTS

Home - Rink 1: Kevin Embling, Julia Hunt, Wendy Anderson & Chris Cheesley beat Tim Bloomer 29-4. Rink 2: Kay Webb, Sheila Kenny, John Anderson & Kyle Anderson beat Jim Luce 34-9.

Away - Rink 1: Judy Hallard, Val Coles, Craig Hatherall & Steve Remington lost to Ken Sawyer 18-19. Rink 2: Jayne Croston, Rosemary Nichols, Craig Morphet and Mike Titcombe lost to David Crookes 17-19.

Score: Westlecot beat Fairford 98-51.

WESTLECOT duo Neil Smith and Mike Titcombe missed out in their bid to win the Open Singles 2016 Grand Final last weekend, but did finish amongst the prize money.

Smith, who had lost in the OSC grand finals in the previous two years at Boston and Wellingborough was denied again by the eventual winner.

This year Smith won his opening three rounds at Northampton & District beating Bill MacJack (Palmerston, Fareham, Hants) 2-0 (6-5, 5-4), England international Stuart Airey (Cumbria) 2-0 (9-3, 6-5) and completed a trio of two sets to love wins with a 7-1, 11-2 success over Sean Gingell (Egham, Surrey).

But Smith’s passage to a third final in a row was halted in the semi-finals as he lost out to Gary Smith (South Shields) 0-2 (2-7, 1-6).

In the final Gary Smith defeated Mark Royal, the Westlecot Open Singles champion on a last end tie breaker 2-1 to the £1500 top prize.

“Obviously I was disappointed not to have won it,” said Neil Smith, who is the OSC administrator.

“It was a great day and I was very pleased with the way I played.

“Gary was incredible and deserved to win,” he added.

Westlecot’s Mike Titcombe, who had a brilliant run after Christmas to clinch his 2016 OSC grand finals spot for the first time, played well to reach the quarter-finals.

He beat Lee Rowland (Ipswich) 2-0 (8-4, 8-2) in his opening game and followed it up with a 2-1 success over Aylesbury’s Paul Maynard (Foxhill) but went out in the last eight to Welshman Martin Selway 1-2 (3-9, 7-3, 0-2) who had beaten him in the North Wilts Open final in Chippenham last March also in a tie breaker.