Connaught Ladies in County Finals
In Essex, the Ladies County Championships are organised into eight areas and knock out rounds are played within each area to produces a winner to go forward to the County Quarter-finals at the Falcon Bowls Club in Chelmsford on July 9th.

The calendar started with the Fours competition and Connaught won their Area (D1) in fine style when Pat Watson, Barbara Low, Janet Carrington and Wendy Coldham defeated last year’s D1 winners, skipped by Maureen Austin of Halex, in the Area Final played at Woodford on May 17th.

Next was the Triples competition where two Connaught teams contested the D1 final resulting in a win for Carol Crafer, Maureen Pitt and Sylvia Bloomfield over Cathy Tredgett, Lynda Hawkins and Irene Carter at Aldersbrook on May 28th.

Currently the Pairs competition is in progress. Carol Crafer and Sylvia Bloomfield will play June Sorrell and Jean Sadler of Britannia at Wanstead Central on Tuesday, June 22nd to decide the D1 winners.

The Singles competition starts on June 25th, when Carol Crafer of Connaught will be defending her title as Champion of Essex.

In the national Top Club competition, the Connaught Ladies have reached the D area semi-final and will play Buckhurst Hill on Saturday, June 20th at home. The team comprises: Singles – Carol Crafer; Pairs – Pat Watson, Wendy Coldham; Triples: Cathy Tredgett, Barbara Low, Lynda Hawkins; Fours: Janet Gray, Gwen Sims, Maureen Pitt, Sylvia Bloomfield.

Whereas the ladies competitions are played with the fours first, then the triples, pairs and singles, the men’s competitions are played on different days of the week so that, for example, the Singles are played on Mondays, Pairs on Tuesdays, etc. Consequently the men’s competitions have not progressed as far as the ladies, but Connaught still has good representation in all events – watch this space!

Connaught Ladies in County Finals
Connaught Ladies had an excellent run in the Ladies County Championship this year where they managed to win the Area in the ‘Fours’, ‘Triples’, ‘Pairs’ and ‘Singles’.
This resulted in the ladies qualifying for the County Quarter Finals at Chelmsford on 8th and 9th of July. Once again the Ladies came up trumps and all managed to win and go forward to the Semi-Finals on Monday 11th July. Here, they all put on a good show but only the ‘Pairs’ (Sylvia and Carol) secured a win which entitles them to play at Leamington in August. They will play in the County Final on Thursday 22 July.

Connaught Ladies – Essex Champions
Yet another feather in the cap for Connaught Ladies!
At a tightly fought Essex final at Southend on Thursday 22 July, Connaught's Sylvia Bloomfield and Carol Crafer won the 'Pairs Competition' to become this year's Essex Champions!
Both Sylvia and Carol are previous Essex Singles Champions.