KENT'S bowlers bowed out of the Liberty trophy at the weekend when they narrowly lost to Essex in the quarter-finals at Desborough IBC in Maidenhead. Kent won on four of the six rinks but it was not enough to cover the damage inflicted on the remaining two rinks as they eventually lost 115-110.

A below par performance from many players meant that Kent went out of a competition to a team that they should have beaten quite easily after previous wins over Surrey and Hampshire.

The match was close until the halfway stage with only eight shots separating the two teams, but by the 15th end Essex had opened up a 19 shot advantage. At this stage it required the two heavily losing rinks to make inroads into the Essex lead, but sadly this did not happen.

Gordon Charlton's rink were the pick of the Kent team as they eventually won by 16 shots, and there were further wins for the Barnicott, Thomson and Hanmore rinks, all by two shots. This latest win for Hanmore meant that his rink of Gent, Cheeseman and Dunn remained unbeaten for the second consecutive year in this competition. On the national front, Kent now rely on the under 25s to progress in the double rink competition, and the senior selectors will be showing an interest in their play as they look to improve next year's team for the Liberty.

Kent return to Home Counties League action on Sunday when they face Berkshire. There will be four rinks in action at Mote Park IBC (Maidstone) at 10am and four more returning to Desborough hoping for an improved performance on this occasion.