HEREFORDSHIRE Ladies bowed out of the second round of the EWBA Walker Cup national two-rink competition by the narrowest of margins with a single-shot defeat to Gloucestershire at Evesham.

Doreen Herbert's rink fought out a close battle in which there was never more than two shots separating the teams throughout the game which eventually finished at 20-20.

Val Pedlingham's rink went into the final end five shots down. They made a valiant effort and gained four but had to concede defeat by 19 shots to 18.

Result: Herefordshire 38 Gloucestershire 39.

n Herefordshire lost only one rink when they beat Dorset by 43 shots at Devizes in their latest South Western League fixture.

Herefordshire 151 Dorset 108 (county skips scores): Barbara Griffiths 28-16, Val Pedlingham 33-15, Eileen Turner 24-16, Ruth Millard 22-24, Joan Jones 21-17, Barbara Warburton 23-20.