Guernsey Press

Dan's the man in world mixed pairs

THE WIBC world under 25 indoor pairs title stays in Guernsey after Dan de la Mare steered Ireland's Cliodhna Boyce to an exciting 8-4, 5-10, 2-1 victory over Welsh star Kerry Packwood and Jersey's Jamie Macdonald in Portsmouth.

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[caption id="attachment_39090" align="alignright" width="175" caption="The Irish-Sarnian partnership of Cliodhna Boyce and Dan de la Mare. (Picture by David Rhys-Jones, 0865802)"]

Last year it was Craig Dorey who did it for Guernsey, when he skipped Scotland's Lisa Barrett to the title in Auchinleck, but Dorey is now too old for the age-group and it was de la Mare's turn to take the honours.

'I brought the trophy back to England on Craig's behalf and now I'm bringing it back to Guernsey,' said de la Mare.

'Craig was chuffed to bits when I told him and of course I'm over the moon as well.'

IT worker de la Mare, 23, programmed the victory and, to be honest, had a lot to do himself, after Packwood had outplayed Boyce, particularly in the second set, and in the tiebreak.

The young Sarnian's white bowls - yes, white bowls are perfectly legal these days and are catching on worldwide - caught the eye, and raised a few eyebrows among the more traditional spectators.

But it was the way he controlled his blanched missiles, consistently propelling them to within inches of the jack, that really captivated everyone who was watching.

Indeed, it was wonderful to see two talented Channel Islanders doing battle in a world final and, to be fair, Macdonald was on top form too, so that the match was full of skill and fine touches.

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