County Arts duo Bryan Sadler and Brian Taylor were beaten in the final of the National Men's Over 60 Pairs title at the Nottingham indoor bowls club.
The pair, who were half of last year's winning Over 60 fours title-winning quartet, lost 15-8 to Wellingborough's Bob Fuller and Walt Winsor.
The final was an attritional affair, with no quarter asked or given, at least for the first 12 ends. Shots were so hard to come by that, by that stage, only 13 shots had been scored, and County Arts were 7-6 in front.
A treble for Wellingborough put them 9-7 ahead and they gradually took control, although Winsor admitted that he could never relax until the 18th end, on which County Arts needed to score six shots to tie – a task that proved impossible.
In the semi-finals, Sadler and Taylor beat Folkestone's Dave Merrills and Colin Elson, although their 7-0 lead turned into an 11-12 deficit, before a 2-2-1-1 sequence saw them home 17-13.
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