BRIMFIELD bowlers defeated the national champions as they marched into the last eight of the Tony Allcock Trophy.

Brimfield and Little Hereford have came through matches against teams from Herefordshire, Bucks, Gloucestershire, Bristol, Oxford and Worcestershire and will now compete in the national quarter-finals at the Bowls England finals in Leamington Spa on August 31.

Up against holders Banbury Central, Brimfield came from behind for a famous win, urged on by supporters who had made the trip with them to the neutral venue of Hewell Bowling Club, near Redditch.

The two rink format saw Helen Skinner, Lester Bennett, Alec Tandler and Marian Wheatley taking the initiative after a slow start and there was never more than a couple of shots in it.

It was a different story on Rink Five where Karen Tandler, Dave Evans, Howard Turberfield and Barbara Griffiths dropped behind after a strong start.

With Banbury lying five it looked like game over but Griffiths trailed the jack for shot and Brimfield roared back, restricting Banbury to a one shot win and setting up a grandstand finish on the neighbouring rink.

Banbury needed three for a draw but Brimfield drew one and took the match overall by 4 shots.

“Reaching the national finals is a fantastic achievement for the club,” said team captain, Karen Tandler.

“We’ve shown great team spirit and have had to win six games to reach this stage. Everyone’s looking forward to competing at Leamington now and we hope to go all the way to the final.”

The team’s incredible journey started with wins against local rivals Ross and then Ledbury with round three resulting in a resounding 42-28 victory at home to Canford (Bristol).

Things got tougher on the road to Stroud but a four shot deficit saw Brimfield home against Victory Park.

In the semi finals Brimfield took full advantage of the home draw, seeing off St Dunstan’s, from Worcester, 36-31.