23 Jul
Lunn Times His Run to Perfection to Claim Over-80s Crown
There are finals days that drift quietly by, and there are those that keep everyone engrossed from the opening bowl to the last. The Huddersfield Veterans Over-80s Finals at Waterloo certainly belonged in the latter category.
Played under glorious sunshine on a green that was both lightning fast and deceptively difficult to master, the competition produced three absorbing contests in which touch, patience and nerve were tested to the full. All under the watchful eye of our match referee Mr Ray Tunnacliffe.
The standard of bowling throughout the afternoon was a credit to all four competitors. The years may have added experience, perspective and perhaps a little patience, but they certainly haven’t diminished the competitive edge.
Greenwood Pushes Lunn All the Way
The semi-final between Roger Lunn and Frank Greenwood was a closely fought affair from the outset. On a Waterloo green where weight was everything, both players settled quickly and neither was able to establish a significant advantage.
Lunn held a slender lead for much of the contest, but Greenwood remained firmly in touch throughout, responding whenever his opponent threatened to edge clear. It was a match built on consistency rather than momentum swings, with every point hard earned.
By the 16th end Lun had managed to tease out a small lead at 13-9, but Greenwood stepped up a gear and produced his strongest spell of the afternoon. By the 22nd end, he had edged into a 16-15 lead, leaving himself within touching distance of a place in the final.
Champions, however, have an uncanny knack of producing their best bowls when the pressure is at its greatest.
Lunn responded magnificently. Displaying all the composure and experience that had characterised his afternoon, he dominated the final four ends, denying Greenwood another scoring opportunity while collecting the six points he required to complete a 21-16 victory.
It was a high-quality contest that needed Lunn to produce a flawless finish to see him through.
Walker Survives a Semi-final Thriller
The second semi-final, featuring Gordon Walker, runner-up in the Over 70s competition earlier this year, and Denis Garner, produced a wonderfully competitive encounter in which neither player could establish any lasting advantage. The fast conditions demanded complete concentration and both players repeatedly found the answers, exchanging scores throughout an absorbing contest.
As the match wore on, the tension continued to build. 15 across, 17 across. Neither man would yield, and the match deservedly went all the way to ‘All but’ across.
One end remained. One place in the final at stake.
And it was Walker who held his nerve superbly to claim the decisive point, edging through 21-20 after one of the closest and most entertaining matches of the competition.
Lunn Seizes His Moment
The final paired Roger Lunn against Gordon Walker. On such a hot day a break in play for the Julie Fuller final helped both players recover before their match – particularly Walker after his epic semi-final session.
With play underway, early on there was little to separate the finalists. After nine ends, the scores were locked at 6-6.
The decisive spell came over the next four ends.
Lunn found another level at exactly the right moment, collecting a single followed by three successive doubles to open up a 13-6 advantage. It proved to be the defining passage of the match and gave him the cushion every player hopes for in a championship final.
Walker, though, was far from finished. Showing tremendous determination, he steadily chipped away at the deficit and by the 19th end had reduced the gap to 15-13, putting the pressure firmly back on his opponent.
But just as he had done in the semi-final, Lunn responded with his strongest bowling when it mattered most. Walker could add only four more points as Lunn calmly closed out the contest, securing a 21-17 victory.
Congratulations Roger Lunn, our 2026 Over 80s Champion.
Also many thanks to Patricia and Alan Stephenson for their generous sponsorship of this competition, our match referee Ray Tunnacliffe, Waterloo Bowling Club for providing their green and facilities and last but not least our Competition Secretary Paul English whose hard work makes finals days such as this possible.
