The battling Jersey fours went neck-and-neck throughout the final, but dropped two shots on the extra end and had to settle for silver.
Having disposed of Guernsey in the quarter finals, the Jersey champs yesterday took the scalp of the legendary Weale brothers – Brian, Stuart, David and Robert – who have won the Welsh title six times and the British crown twice.
It was a never-say-die performance, with the result in doubt for the entire 21 ends, though Jersey’s prospects looked bleak when the Welsh Weales scored a four on the fifth end and a treble on the ninth to lead, 13-9.
Jersey replied emphatically with a four on the 11th end, and took the lead for the first time at 16-15 with a single on the 15th.
Wales replied with a double to lead 17-16, but some brilliant bowling, especially by Nixon at skip, enabled Jersey to snatch a four near the ditch on the 17th and they moved into a healthy 22-17 lead with a double on the 18th.
Tension was cranked up when Wales scored a treble on the 19th to trail by two shots, but a steady single on the 20th gave Jersey a cushion of three shots when the last end got underway.
Robert Weale, a former world indoor singles champion, put the cat among the pigeons when he struck the jack into the ditch with his last bowl, leaving Wales holding three to tie, and a possible measure for a winning count of four.
Fortunately, Nixon had plenty of room to draw to save, but it was still a relief when he trundled his last bowl into third place, and there were whoops of joy on the green and on the bank at Jersey’s 23-22 victory.
