FORMER Keighley and Grafton Club hero, Arnie Ripley won the Skipton Merit title for the third time.

He overwhelmed Fred Pickles of Silsden Bowling Club 21-6 in the final.

Now nearing the veteran stage, Ripley, a one club bowler at Broughton road and a club stalwart of countless games, won with some ease in both the semi and the final after scrambling home agfainst Jocky Wilson in the quarter final.

Pickles had bowled well in the semi-final to defeat Keighley's Peter Deighton, but could not cope with Ripley.

The other losing semi-finalist was a well beaten Roy Sanderson who hasn't beaten Ripley for years.

Another Pickles featured in the final of the Valley Mixed Pairs at Cross Hills when county bowler Stephen Pickles (Cross Roads) teamed up with Oakworth's Margaret Hutchinson to reach the final of an event sponsored by Parkinson's Printers. However, it was not to be their day either as they were swamped 21-8 by the Cross Roads duo Garry Foster, also a county bowler, and Pam Wilkins.

There were some excellent games on a rare sunny day and the beaten semi-finalists were Derek and Vera Stone (Sutton) and Kevin Wordley, another county star, and Sue Finnie, a newly capped ladies county player, both of Whins Wood.

There was no real joy for the local contingent in the new Yorkshire handicap event at Shipley Bowling Club which was won by old hand Lance Graham of Tadcaster. Jocky Wilson and Alma Cornthwaite reached the last eight.

The Skipton inter-district team take to the green tonight in their final game of the current series when they meet Halifax in the deciding group game. The locals face a difficult challenge and only a dominant performance will see them to victory. The home leg is at Silsden PF could provide a win, but the away team travel to the notorious Mythomroyd WMC which could hit the local hopes.

The main event of the weekend involves the Skipton Association who host the Yorkshire Parks Doubles event, sponsored by R McDowell Haulage of Keighley. Preliminary rounds start at 10.30 on greens at Broughton Road, Sutton, Addingham, Silsden BC, Devon, Cononley, Silsden PF and Steeton.

The final is scheduled for Keighley BC when the final eight pairs take the field at about tea time.

The quarter-finals of the Lambert and Ellis Cups in the Skipton League take place on Monday at eight venues. Semi-finals and the final follow on consecutive weeks.

The Waterloo season is in full swing in Blackpool and there are a bevy of local qualifiers going into round three. They include Colin wortley, Trevor and Neil Hargreaves, Les Foster, Chris Slater, Gary Bowdin together with Jeff Bradley and Brian Potts from Oxenhope.

But spare a thought for Stuart Clayton of Oxenhope who was going well until one of his woods split in two in a colision with another -- and gave the scorer a headache. Should it be two down, one and a half down or three down!

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