ROYAL WOOTTON BASSETT men have become Wiltshire’s first winners at the 2019 Bowls England national championships being staged at Victoria Park, Royal Leamington Spa, this month.

Their men’s double rink side won the men’s national club fours competition in a tense final that went down to a dramatic last end, with Bassett defeating Devon’s Kings BC from Torquay 40-39.

Bassett were two shots down overall going into the last end but skip Michael Snell drew to a ditched jack with his last wood for a crucial count of three to secure Bassett a last-gasp success by a single shot.

Snell’s rink of Kyle Anderson, Mel Biggs and Dave Godwin beat Sam Tolchard’s rink 21-17, while Bassett’s other foursome of Andy Blake, Graham Hatherall, Gary Morphett and skip Neil Collett lost to Jamie Chesteney’s rink 22-19.

In the quarter-finals, Bassett beat Sandwich (Kent) 39-25 after winning on both rinks, and in the semi-finals, they thrashed Harlow (Essex) 39-12 after again winning on both rinks.

Full reports in next week’s Gazette & Herald, Wiltshire Times as well as Swindon Advertiser newspapers.