ANOTHER SCRAPPY WIN NO BAD THING

27/6/22
Chorley& District League Div-3: Eagle & Child 'A' 133-132 Anderton St Joseph's 'B'
v JOAN ROSCOE W 21-19

For a second successive match I felt I'd somehow beaten the better player on the night. Joan's a good bowler and whilst after the game she was a bit despondent about her current placing in the league merit, saying, "I just can't seem to win this season", I later discovered when researching her form on bowlsnet that the games she has lost have been narrow defeats and against some tough draws. As if I wasn't already wondering how I scrapped through to win this match.
Joan took to our green immediately, which was running a bit slower after a good few showers in recent days.
In contrast, I spent most of the match cursing my inability to put two decent shots together. The red mist didn't descend, but I was flustered and frustrated with myself and seemed to be over-thinking everything I was doing. Like having to concentrate on trying to concentrate somehow. Tiredness maybe, or just a dip in form. Something wasn't quite clicking.
Joan played well throughout and was unlucky to be mainly the wrong end of over half a dozen tight measures that could have made a big difference. She led 11-8 at one point and kept her nose ahead taking me on long diagonals over the crown with some superb, very precise leads. I subsequently need to practice one of the marks she found because it was interesting and I just wasn't getting it at all.
A big end from me came on a less complex, yet long one, that Joan held two close ones on. I could feel the game slipping from my grasp here, but took a moment and finally landed a cracker. I win the next end I hear we are 16-17 so it was a big one. I must have got going a bit here because I hit nineteen first and then went all-but. Playing for the match, typically my lead wasn't good enough against this lady and a lousy second bowl paved the way for Joan to nip in for a single. It's now 20-19 and my opponent then lies game on the next end - a repeat scenario of four days previously.
It was a simple straightish thumb peg under normal circumstances, towards the right corner. But my first effort drifted a little to the right whilst Joan held two closer ones on the left.
Then... controversy. A stray bowl from another match clips the jack and one of Joan's woods.

Whilst Joan and a few watching agree on where to replace them, I stand there on the mat keeping out of it, yet starting to wonder if I'm entitled to ask for a void end? But then I quickly consider it wasn't Joan's fault, so that would feel rather unfair on her.
Instead I really felt like striking the jack off the green to void it fairly, but then if I more likely that not miss, I look a bit of a dick and by drawing my bowl instead I would have a much better chance of saving, maybe winning the match. All things considered, I just about saw sense in time.
Joan's repositioned wood looked closer to the target than it was to be fair, but in my line of sight created a larger target area to hit something if I overcook it. Overcook it I did, but you get nowt for rolling short and I clunked in to Joan's nearest bowl just thinking I'd saved one, when she offers her hand and I'm a bit confused that I'd actually won.
I got very lucky in the end, it's anybody's game when it gets that close. It wasn't a joyful win, I thought Joan deserved it really. But as Steve Wilson reasoned, grinding out a win against a tough opponent when not quite on your game is no bad thing.
Anderton St Joseph's came as close as any club to breaking our team's unbeaten run, with just one single chalk in it. But it's still intact at the season's halfway way mark, a big challenge ahead away at their place in the reverse fixture next week.