Tri Zone Charity Challenge

First Impressions

Mid Ulster have come up with a major curtain raiser to get their zone teams into early competitive action. This is the second year that they have hosted a tri-zone charity event which is primarily to raise money for charity. An amazing amount of over £2400 was raised over the two Saturdays and is a testament to the generosity of shortmat bowlers.

Armagh and North West were the two invited zones this season ensuring two highly competitive days bowling with none of the teams being regarded as a soft touch. North West Ladies took the plaudits winning both their games and have set down a marker to the other teams proving that they will be major challengers for the title currently held by Oriel ladies.

In the men’s competition the old adage of First Impressions are lasting impressions has to be disregarded on this showing as none of the sides reached the heights they would expect to play at when the inter-zone competition starts in earnest. North West fielded an under-strength team and were first up against the hosts. They got off to the better start with the Mid Ulster men looking rather lethargic and were forced into a change of attitude when the visitors went 19-10 ahead in the early stages. This deficit seemed to focus the hosts who soon levelled the scores at 20-20. By the middle of the game they had extended their lead to massive fifteen shots which added up to a turn around of twenty five shots. Despite their depleted ranks the NW team were not prepared to be steam rolled by their arch adversaries and fought back over the remaining ends to lose out by six shots. With some major names missing for NW it was clear that they do not have the strength in depth to overcome the missing quality but at the same time it did give some others an unexpected opportunity to stake a claim for a place at this level. They did win two out of the six rinks, lost badly in one and had narrow defeats in the others.

It is worrying times for NW who are not the team that they once were but at the same time if they can get all their players available and playing to their full potential they can defeat any team, the problem is they only have a few weeks to get the pieces to gel together. It was an even more disappointing result for the North West men in their second outing when they went down to Armagh who are regarded as a steady team but not title winners. NW won only one of the six rinks and it could be that their selectors will have to use this as a transitional period and blood some new younger players to give them the experience for future assaults on the title. 

Armagh were the surprise package of the day as they went about the job in hand in an efficient but unspectacular way. They are a close knit unit but again their strength in depth is questionable but a few new faces were impressive and the signs are there that this matter will not be as big a problem as it has in the past few years. Winning five out of six rinks is a success and should boost that unquantifiable commodity: confidence. That confidence took a giant stride forward in the next game against Mid Ulster which would decide the tri-zone challenge winners. Armagh showed immediate improvement but their opponents did not raise their level compared to the opening game. The visitors were prepared for the challenge while the hosts were definitely subdued. J Beattie and A Roberts rinks had convincing victories with R Hunter filling in at skip also had a comfortable win. Out of the remaining three rinks one was drawn and Mid Ulster got some consolation with their two rink wins. Not only was the Armagh victory a surprise but the manner in which they carried it out in addition to the size of the win will make other zones sit up and take notice. The major positive is that they can build on this display over the coming weeks and have the capacity to improve. If they can grow in confidence and keep a high level of performance then they could spring a surprise in a home quarter final tie. One point of caution is that it is an early season tournament and many of the opposition were clearly not near their usual standard of performance but Armagh should use this competition as a springboard for the season ahead. 

Mid Ulster will give anybody a difficult game but they are not the team that they used to be. They seemed to lack drive and perhaps have lost the killer instinct of ending a game early. To only win by six shots against a depleted NW team should be the jolt that they require to improve their performance but at zone level the least sign of complacency and lack of enthusiasm for the fight will be punished and may be their down fall. This was proved in their second game where they were beaten by a significant margin, a margin that should hurt their pride. Mid Ulster have the players to compete and challenge especially when you consider that Alan Paul and Liam McHugh were selected at third for a game each. They would be skipping in most other zones. The selectors will have to have a rethink and not be so loyal to some who have served them well in the past but who lack that edge that either Liam or Alan would bring to the skipping berth. Not only do the selectors have to work on their selections but they are going to have to increase the enthusiasm shown by the players who normally lead the way in this area. Perhaps it is a sign that the players themselves do not have the same confidence as in the past glory days. In conclusion it is early season and many of the players are not yet in their stride. It would be expected to be a far more competitive and vociferous atmosphere if any of these teams met each other again later in the season. Confidence can be taken by the winners and first impressions are that all three teams have a long way to go before they can consider themselves to be real contenders.