LEOMINSTER pairing Tracey Powell and Linda Smith's hopes of a repeat success in the pairs competition at the English Women's Championship at Leamington Spa foundered at the second-round stage against the eventual champions.

The sisters, who won the title in 2002, beat a pair from Hampshire 24-22 in the first round before coming up against S Newson and C Popple, representing Peterborough and District, at the next phase.

The Huntingdonshire duo battled through to win 20-16 and carried their success on to capture the title with a 16-14 win over a pair from Kent in the final.

Herefordshire's other pairing, Sheila Ingram and Barbara Griffiths from Brimfield, also made their exit at the second-round stage when they bowed out by a single shot, 23-22, to P Clark and C Theedom from Crediton.

Griffiths and Ingram had previously marched through the first round in convincing style with a 28-9 success against a pair from Lancashire.

Pat Hoffman from Eastnor also reached the second round in the four-wood singles, going down 21-9 to an Oxfordshire representative after a first-round success, 21-19, against a Berkshire bowler.

Smith, Herefordshire's other qualifier in the singles, suffered a first-round defeat when she was defeated 21-15 by M Hendry, of Bushey.

In the National Express English Men's Championship at Worthing, there was a second-round disappointment, too, in the under-25 singles for Ross-on-Wye's Shaun Jones.

Jones beat S Law, of Parkway, Huntingdonshire, 8-6, 7-7 in the first round but lost to W Willgress, of Norfolk, BC 6-5, 7-5 in the second round.

The Hereford rink of Mike Ricketts, Phil Williams, Clive Benson and Clive Allen made a first-round exit in the fours championship, going down 27-18 to a rink from Falcon in Essex.