TENBY 100 shots (12 pts) WHITLAND 60 (2)
28 May 2014
The N. D. Toy & Partners Ltd. sponsored Tenby team returned to action in the league a week last Wednesday, hosting Whitland. Some tinkering by the Tenby selection duo saw some changes of not only personnel, but of positions. After having questions relayed to him by the media in the pre-match conference, captain Joe Richards explained that he was still unsure what his best team is in relation to the Carruthers Shield (Champions League). Therefore, there were opportunities for others to stake their claim in the 'European Squad.)
Rink one: New transfer signing Ryan Thomas, who has moved from Haverfordwest. has settled in well and was once again entrusted with a skips' berth, He was ably supported by Jon Webb, who is entering his testimonial year fur the Tenby club after 27 years’ service. Ben Simmons and Joe Richards made up the front end partnership. With an early score on the first end (5), followed by a number of 2s, the home side took control and at half-time led 13-7 against the Whitland rink led by captain Glyndwr Thomas. At 15 ends, the gap was narrowed to 15-12 and all of a sudden things did not look so good. John Baggott raced down from the directors' box to sort things out in typical Mourinho style and soon got things back on track - the rink winning five out of the last six ends to finish 21-15 up. Rink two: Andrew Muskett skipped against Cohn Wynn and had a comfortable night. apart from one end when his defending left a lot to be desired, hooking two clearances, to drop a count of four. Extra technical training by personal coach Gareth Humphreys has been requested.
However, with Chris Thomas, another transfer acquisition for an undisclosed fee from Llanelli having another great game, the Tenby four were always in control. This was emphasised by them winning seven out of the last eight ends, 14-1. The final score 25-12.
Rink three: The Guymers returned from pre-season a little late, but after accepting a club record fine were quick to show that the extra rest was well worth the wait, with both having great performances. Huw Nicholas, a free transfer from Whitland due to the Bosman ruling, had another very good game and is making his claim for a place in the Champions League team. With Paul making what is becoming a rare appearance in his twilight years, the Tenby four were always in control. Such was their superiority the maximum 'count' they dropped was a single - well, there was one count of a two dropped, but I claim poetic licence! In the end, despite good performances from John Rees and Liam Price for Whitland, it was a win for Tenby 31-8. Rink 4: Steve Reese, who as a former Gold Cup winner, has never taken up the option of joining the Tenby club, despite a special buy-out clause in his contract , had a great game, skipping Whitland's only winning rink, Steve was up against Tenby's record signing from Ammanford, Kieran Peregrine. As well as Steve, it must be said that his rink all played very well and secured a very good victory in light of the Tenby rink featuring three Welsh internationals - but the bigger they are and all that. However, an excellent performance by Kieran kept the game much closer than it could have been. Once again a very good performance against one of the main rivals for Tenby's championship crown. What is becoming more of a habit is that Tenby have constantly held a slender lead at the halfway mark, only to power away from their opponents during the second half of the match. Joe Richards is claiming credit for this as he recalled all the players early for extra pre-season training and their fitness levels are certainly showing.