DORSET 33

WILTSHIRE 29

YOUNG Dorset left supporters and their team manager holding their breath at the conclusion of another down-to-the-wire encounter.

Having escaped from a once looking likely defeat in the previous round against Gloucestershire, to snatch the spoils on the final end, Dorset were hoping for a smoother passage into the quarter-finals but it was not to be.

The game opened with great promise as Dorset’s 24-year-old England international Martin Puckett showed his class as he confidently skipped his rink of Anthony Hobby, Peter Best and his fellow Moonfleet bowler Ryan Nash, to take a 5-0 lead after the two opening ends of the game, against the Wiltshire four skipped by Mike Titcombe.

The second Dorset rink of Jack Corbin-Willetts, George Riddington, Ollie Thake and Dorchester skip George Spracklen, which had such a torrid start against Gloucestershire, began in better fettle against David Leighfield and his Wiltshire four.

Spracklen gained a single on the first two ends to leave Dorset showing a healthy combined 7-0 advantage, but this was to be the widest difference in the score of the game, as Wiltshire began to settle to the speed of the Poole Dolphin indoor carpet and began to put shots on the board.

After five ends, Spracklen and Leighfield were level at four shots apiece before the Dorset quartet regained the lead twice and then slipped to 12-9 down after 10 ends of tense play.

Using the same script as the previous game, Puckett and co continued to make steady progress and compensated for the struggling Dorset rink, to leave the game finely balanced at the mid-point with Dorset holding a narrow combined 20-18 advantage.

This reduced to 26-25 after 15 ends with Puckett ahead by 10 shots and Spracklen trailing by nine.

With three ends remaining, Wiltshire pounced to take shots on both rinks to take the lead for the first time in the game, and suddenly had a spring in their step as they led 28-26.

The penultimate end was a lifesaver for Dorset as the imperious Puckett collected five shots and the embattled Spracklen rink gained a vital single, but then lost one on the final end.

Puckett and co began their final end of the game with Dorset now 32-29 ahead, and Wiltshire requiring three shots for an extra-end shoot-out.

Confident deliveries from the front end pair set Dorset up for another grandstand finish, but Wiltshire skip Titcombe smashed the Dorset counting bowls and killed the end, requiring it to be replayed.

Once again, Puckett and co put their opponents under pressure and finally secured a single to record a second consecutive last-end match success.

The Spracklen final score was a 20-10 reverse, while Puckett carried the day with a sparkling 23-9 crushing of Titcombe.

Dorset now face a strong Devon side in the quarter-final, following their 45-20 win over Somerset.