Shipton have bowled over the sporting fraternity with their most successful season in history.

Honours in 2004 include: winning the Tockwith League Knockout Cup after beating Dunnington in the final; earning promotion to division one of the Private Clubs' League - a feat emulated by the veterans; and finishing runners up in the PCL Champion of Champions Cup to Dunnington.

The ladies section, which only has 13 active members, won the York Ladies Evening League for the second year in succession - an impressive feat considering the small size of the team.

Sisters Barbara Maidment and Pat Foster won the Emily Barnard Pairs, while Judy Abel was crowned the 2004 York Tournament Ladies Singles Champion.

Ladies' captain Val Fort said: "We have great team spirit and enthusiasm and not a little skill. We all play for one another and I think the results over the last two seasons have shown this."

But the real high point of the season was winning the Marshall Shield, the Yorkshire County Bowling Association's Inter Club championship for the 94 affiliated clubs.

For the second year in a row, two York clubs were contesting the final and a new name was guaranteed on the silverware.

Shipton beat Marske 92-65 and Holgate defeated Northallerton 95-68 in the day's semi-finals before squaring up for the final.

A close first ten ends saw Holgate holding a four-shot advantage over the four rinks with John Backhouse trailing Peter Emmerson 5-10 and only captain Kevin Fort enjoying a daylight 11-8 lead over Mick Parker.

At 15 ends, Fort had increased his lead to nine shots, while Backhouse had reduced the gap to Emmerson to just two, despite dropping a five on the 15th. But with Tony Abbot falling eight shots behind John Walker, Holgate still held a six-shot lead.

The 16th end proved to be the turning point as Shipton dug in. Backhouse, with Peter Ransom, Reginald Baren and Brian Gray, scored a five, Abbot and Fort both mustered doubles and Hodge dropped a single to lift Shipton to a slender 58-56 advantage.

Fort nailed a five and Abbot a four in the next two ends to put the tie beyond reach so that even a Holgate four and two threes on the final end were not enough. Shipton won 79-69.

Secretary Ken Lippett said: "I am especially pleased that the club won this prestigious inter-club championship, while two of our founder members, Ernest Backhouse and Reginald Baren, both octogenarians, were actively bowling for the club.

"Both took part in the earlier rounds, and Ernest played the quarter-final and Reg the final."

Updated: 10:31 Thursday, September 16, 2004