A TRIO of Tockwith bowlers are celebrating a season of success.

The club’s ladies triples team of Pat Holmes, Gill Clark and Margaret Moss enjoyed a stunning run to the quarter-finals of the National Championships, before eventually bowing out to winners Derbyshire.

Holmes, Clark and Moss started their successful run in local elimination rounds against other Yorkshire sides.

They beat Poppleton, Boroughbridge and Nestlé Rowntree to come through the first stage of the qualifying competition.

The next hurdle saw them beat Kingston Hull and Shipton in a qualifier staged at Thirsk.

They booked their place at the finals of the Nationals at Leamington Spa along with Swinton, the other winning team.

At Leamington, Tockwith beat Hereford, Leicester and Northumberland to reach the last eight. However, their run was ended by a young Derbyshire team, who won by three shots and claimed the title the following day.

Tockwith were assisted along the way by bowls legend Tony Alcock, the former British men’s champion and now chief executive of Bowls England.

Holmes lost her bowls bag 20 minutes before one of the club’s key games and it was finally located just before the start after much searching by Alcock.

The Yorkshire teams were supported by county president Angela Hollingsworth and future president Janet Farnsworth.

Holmes said: “Tockwith is a small bowling club with only 12 lady members and, therefore, it was a great achievement for three of the members to reach the National quarter-finals.”