Royal Mail Cart’s quartet are national runners-up

Royal Mail Cart’s Ruby Hill, Chelsea Tomlin, Ashley Caress and Martin Spencer represented Lincolnshire at the national championships in Leamington Spa in the mixed fours discipline.

The quartet played through a series of qualifying rounds throughout the season and booked their place with an impressive win against a set from Leicestershire which included former Commonwealth Games medallist and current ladies national singles champion Jamie-Lea Winch.

In the last 16 at Leamington Spa, they held off a spirited fightback from the qualifiers from Kent, skipped by Clive Burnham.

Hill, Tomlin, Caress and Spencer were always in control and eventually closed out a 22-15 win.

Tough opposition awaited the young Royal Mail Cart quartet in the quarter-final as they faced a rink skipped by Durham’s former world and Commonwealth Games medallist David Bolt.

They hit top form to comfortably despatch their opposition. Leading 19-5 after 11 ends, Spencer’s rink scored a count of five shots on the 12th end to take a 24-5 lead before the set from Durham accepted defeat.

Their semi-final opponents were Julie Hudson, Hazel Gabriel, Alan Geary and Chris Daniels from Hampshire.

The Royal Mail Cart quartet established an early 13-2 lead before the Hampshire four proved some resistance to fight back to 13-8.

Hill, Tomlin, Caress and Spencer soon took control again as they secured their place in the final with an impressive 25-11 win.

Hill, Tomlin and Spencer were looking to make it a career national mixed fours double after they won the indoor version of the competition in 2018 when they teamed up with Mathew Orrey.

The national final was against Gloucestershire’s Joan Surman, Penny Callaghan, Lee Williamson and skipped by current under 25 international Nathan Kitchen.

A combination of quality bowls from their opposition and bad fortune saw the Royal Mail Cart four fall behind 13-1 early on.

But some top-class bowls of their own saw them fight back to 20-15 with three ends to play to keep the crowd on the edge of their seats.

Unfortunately for Hill, Tomlin, Caress and Spencer, they had to accept they were second best on the day as Kitchen and his Gloucestershire mixed four won 23-15.

The Royal Mail Cart quartet collected the runners-up trophy and a cheque for £300.