Sidmouth Bowling Club faced off against their rivals, Madeira BC in a series of matches, last week.

The week began with the Men's Over 60's National Double Rink, played over one rink at home and another away.

The home rink, consisting of John Deller, Allan Davis, Don Smith, and skip David Timms, secured a solid victory with a score of 14 - 11.

Meanwhile, the away rink, featuring Andrew Lowe, Paul Irvine, John Mason, and skip Ken Wheeler, found themselves in a tight spot.

They were just a few shots down and needed one shot to win overall in this knockout competition, where aggregate score is crucial.

Ken Wheeler, under pressure, with his final wood, trailed the jack into the ditch.

However, the jack landed closer to a Madeira toucher that had previously gone into the ditch.

This unexpected turn led to disappointment for Sidmouth, resulting in a final aggregate score of Sidmouth 23, Madeira 24.

Following this, Sidmouth's ladies played a friendly match at home against Madeira.

Unfortunately, the score reflected a challenging encounter, with Madeira winning on two of the three rinks.

The rink that managed to secure a victory for Sidmouth, albeit narrowly, was Mary Turner, Deborah Robertson, and skip Sue Clint, winning 18 - 17.

The overall score for the match was Sidmouth 40, Madeira 54.

The ladies look forward to more friendly matches against Madeira during the indoor season to improve their performance.

Next, the Sidmouth men took on Madeira men at home in another friendly.

The men performed better than the ladies, winning on two of the three rinks.

The overall score was Sidmouth 55, Madeira 31.

Notably, the rink of John Deller, Phil Meadows, and skip John Mason won decisively with a score of 23 - 7, while Bert Hague, Peter Mison, and skip Brian Smith narrowly won their rink with a score of 24 - 7.

The club then participated in the Denny Cup, a National Knockout four-rink competition.

This time, two rinks were played at home and two away.

The home rink of Wilf Radburn, Kevin Frickey, Clive Brook, and skip John Mason achieved a commendable win of 28 - 14.

However, it was not enough to cover the losses from the other three rinks, leading to their next game being in the 'Plate'.

In total, Sidmouth played four matches against Madeira, winning one, losing another by just one shot, and losing two by larger margins.

Finally, a mixed friendly against Chudleigh saw Sidmouth excel, winning all three rinks with an overall score of Sidmouth 67, Chudleigh 35.

The top rink of Brian Deam, Lynn Pike, Deborah Robertson, and skip John Mason achieved an impressive score of 29 - 10.