THE Rectory boys of Penarth Bowling Club were able to take a welcome break from the rigours of competitive bowls when on Tuesday last they ventured across the Channel to compete with Victoria Weston in the bi-annual friendly. This is a favourite trip of the cider, so-called, connoisseurs, namely Fry, England, Holdaway and Chandler. The lunch stop at The Windmill therefore gives them the opportunity to dive headfirst into the golden nectar, which they did with much gusto.

The game somewhat interfered with the quaffing of the local ambrosia but the effects did not seem to dull the ability to bowl as Nick Chandler (19-14) skipped one of only two winning rinks. Nick was ably assisted by Dave Holdaway, Mike England and Bob Lewis.

The ciderless Colin Grant discovered that cheesy chips was the obvious lunch delicacy as he skipped the other winning rink by one shot (16-15). Peter Needham, Ralph Mould and Dave Plank weighed in with consistent bowling, without the need for such delicacy.

Clive Fry fell short with his cider input which meant that his rink of Russell Daniel, Lawrence Brook and Phil Davies failed by one shot (22 -23).

The remaining rinks of John Bowen, Bob Willmott, Derek Musk and Dave Dalby (17-27), Ron Birkby, Mike Conway, Joe Ellis and Nick Thomas ( 11 - 26 ), Paul Church, Colin Hicks, John Whitfield and Haydn Trow (12-19) all surrendered to contribute to an overall loss of 97-124.

Despite the result, an excellent day out was enjoyed by one and all.

Back to reality on Saturday brought Pentyrch to the Rectory road green in the penultimate PG1 fixture. With Penarth hanging in there for a third place promotion spot only a comprehensive win would do. The team duly complied and all four rinks succeeded in bringing 14 points to the cause.The 94-60 result was achieved by concentrated efforts with rinks skipped by Clive Fry (26-14), Rob Grant (23-12), Nick Chandler (26-18) and Dave Dalby (19-16).

Capt Mike now has to ensure that a convincing win over Cardiff Athletic will be produced in the final fixture to maintain the narrow lead Penarth currently holds over Pontyclun, who have a rearranged fixture with Windsor on September 16. All eyes will be on this game as it undoubtedly will assist or destroy the fate of their loving neighbours. Nails will be bitten to the quick.