This year’s Melton Bowls Club Invitation Pairs Tournament, sponsored by The Cake Shop, Woodbridge, produced one of the closest contests for several years.

The winners were the husband and wife team of Graham and Margaret Martin from the Newton Road Bowls Club, who finished just ahead of the host club’s father and daughter duo Mark and Elle Baker.

In third place were Richard Parker and George Hickinbotham from the Alderton Bowls Club.

This popular tournament uses the Australian pairs rules format and a progressively increasing points system. Played on Melton Bowls Club fast running green, it has become a firm favourite in the tournament calendar and attracted a full compliment of 28 pairs.

With all the teams having just one game remaining to be played, five teams were separated by only three points.

Tony Cocker and Alan Ramsey led the field but were beaten by D Howard and finished back in sixth place. The other four pairs all had good results in their last games but it was the Martins who had the best result taking 35 points in their game against K Cooper and finishing with 106 points.

The Bakers also had a good win picking up 33 points in their game against B Holmes to card 102 points and finish second.

Parker and Higgingbottom had a poor result in their last game against R Markwell, picking up only 26 points but this was enough to hold off last year’s winners Roy Prentice and John Sharman and take third spot by a single point.

After the games were completed, the tournament organiser Peter Moyes, presented the winners trophy and prize money, provided by the sponsors, to the first, second and third placed pairs.