he 2008/09 shooting season got underway last Thursday when the draw was last year's league winners, Binton A vs Binton B; Knights vs MEB (shooting at Wilmcote) and Wilmcote vs Home Guard.

During the summer recess there were no great surprises, Will Troth, as rumoured, transferred from Knights to Binton A, Wilmcote welcome back Lyn Brookes and Gareth Morris, Home Guard see the return of Carl Villiers and Avenue-RBL will have Louise Price back.

Binton A took 2pts when they defeated Binton B 219 to 207pts. Andy Smith and Neil Beningfield got the season off to a good start when they shot 5 bulls to score 33 and although Jeff Smith started with a three, he went on to shoot 3 bulls and fours to end on 30pts. Will Troth seemed to find the target to his liking with 31 and John Parrot shot 30. Neil Bragg looked on for a good score with 2 bulls to his credit but then dropped a three to finish on 29. Alan Dyer kept away from the threes and with two bulls shot 30. For Binton B, Mike Perry and Rob Johnson shot 4 bulls and fours for 32 each but a smattering of threes kept the rest of the six man team from getting high score - Brian Portman, Bill Fleming and Roy Clarke all shot 29. Gordon O'nions shot 28 and the team also got an A N Other score of 28.

The match between Knights and MEB was reversed because of unresolved difficulties at the Knight's venue. Carl Rapson opened for the Knights with a solid 33pts and was followed by Paul Clingan using his new Walther 300 Alutec for the first time in competition. Paul dropped into the fours more than he would normally expect and had to satisfied with 32 which put Knights ahead by one for what proved to be the only time in the match. Chris Green (Knights) rang the bell twice but also got a three which marred what could have been a good score. He settled for 29 and was followed by Ray Warnock, for MEB, who shot a team best on the night of 33. Fran Westwood (Knights) had a disputed shot which rang the bell on what was dodgy target unfortunately she only managed to get a four with the retaken shot and scored 29. Kath Williams (MEB) then found the bell three times for 31, whilst Doug Dampier (Knights) who had shot well in practice failed to find any consistency when the pressure was on and only managed to ring the bell once but also hit 3 threes for 26. Sheila Clarke (MEB) rang the bell once for 29 and Ruth Dampier (Knights) was heading for the same score till she finished on a three for 28. Ray Hodgkins (MEB) scored all fours and Lisa Edwards (Knights) got the same 28 but with a bell and a dreaded three. Gordon Spencer (MEB) scored 29 though he rang the bell twice, he was the only member of the MEB team to shoot a three. MEB's anchorman, Fred Williams got a fast 31 to bring the MEB total to 213, after dropping their lowest score. Knights relying on an A N Other score of 28 as they lacked the seventh shooter totalled 201pts.

Richard Mills was first up for the visitors in the match between Wilmcote and Home Guard. He only managed a single bull and had to be satisfied with 29pts. The Home Guard middle ranks had difficulty locating the bull and threes were far too common to give them any real chance in this match. Anchormen Carl Villiers and Steve Hodges shot the highest scores for their team with 30 and 32 respectively but by then it was too late to pull the fat out of the fire. Home Guard finished on 194pts.

Andy Morris (Wilmcote) came close to a possible on his first visit to the mark this season. He shot 6 bulls and missed with his last pellet to give him 34pts. Lyn Brookes kept out of the threes and put away three bulls for 31. John Maycock did well with 4 bulls to his credit and 32pts. Brothers Gareth and Tom Morris both shot 30. Tim Stephens also shot well with a score of 32. Paul Boazman shot two bulls but also dropped two threes to give him 28. Alan Brookes finished off the shooting for the evening with a series of bulls followed by fours for 32 points. After dropping the lowest score Wilmcote amassed 221 pts which puts them at the top of the league.

Fixtures for tonight are: Avenue-RBL vs Knights; Binton B vs Wilmcote; MEB vs Binton A. Home Guard have a bye.

For more info about bell target shooting with an air rifle why not visit our website www.sagl.co.uk or give the chairman a call on 07749 192 364 . The League is hoping to run a treasure hunt on Sunday 5 October. Phone Dee on 07790 303 617 for details.

Report by Juana Everett, to be published on 18th September 2008