Merrien the magnificent
WORDS like magnificent, brilliant and outstanding were being bandied around at Belfast at the weekend to describe the exploits of Neal Mollet and Alison Merrien, newly-crowned world mixed pairs champions.
WORDS like magnificent, brilliant and outstanding were being bandied around at Belfast at the weekend to describe the exploits of Neal Mollet and Alison Merrien, newly-crowned world mixed pairs champions. The dynamic duo brought another world bowls title back to Guernsey when they beat Scotland's Joyce Lindores and Stuart Sloan in the final of the Alfa Romeo WIBC mixed pairs championship.
Only three years ago, Merrien led for Adrian Welch in landing the title, but this time she took centre stage at skip, playing the last two bowls of each end and dictating tactics, a role normally occupied by the man.
Merrien, 29, played brilliant bowls on the way to the final and was outstanding in the 10-4, 8-4 victory over the Scots.
Mollet, who occupied a support role at lead, was pleased with his form in the final but was the first to admit that his partner had dominated the final and had played great shots under pressure.
'It was good to feel I had made my contribution, but it was so easy to play with Alison following on in such good form,' said the Guernseyman.
Lindores, whom Mollet matched in the final, agreed: 'I wasn't able to put Alison under pressure, but whenever she was in trouble, she played perfect bowls and never let us get settled.'
Lindores, one of the world's top women bowlers, added: 'I'm pleased for Ali - she deserves this success, because she's a great player and has been threatening to win something big for some time.'
The Guernsey duo opened up a 7-0 lead after three ends and cruised to a 10-4 win in the first set, but they were sure that the Scots would come back at them in the second set.
'It was bound to happen,' said Merrien.
'Just as we expected, they dug in their heels hoping to force a tie-break and they took a 4-3 lead after four ends and it took three successive singles to get us to 6-4 with only two ends left to play.'
On the eighth end of that second set, after Lindores had put two bowls close to the jack, Merrien drew to within inches with both of hers, enabling the Guernsey duo to edge into a four-shot lead with only one end left to play.
And, because the Scots could only tie the set, even if they scored a full house, the Guernsey duo were declared the winners. Merrien had been masterful.
End after end, whether Guernsey or Scotland were holding shot when the leads had finished, she produced sizzling deliveries, rarely using force and always, it seemed, turning the screw.
'It was great to win the title here three years ago, when I was leading and I can still remember the disappointment at losing in the final the following year,' she said.
'In a way, it's even more special this time around because I was skipping. I have to admit I've hardly ever played better, but I have to pay tribute to the way that Neal played, especially in the final,' she added.
From Mollet's point of view, victory more than made up for his disappointment in the quarter-finals of the men's singles, in which he fell victim to Jersey's Allan Quemard.
