THE Slimbridge Front Pin Summer Skittles League entered week 12 with league leaders Geriatrics having a bye, allowing the opposing teams the opportunity to close the gap at the top of the table.

Second-placed Snorts FC faced the Bowmen, who have been in good form of late having won their last two games and moved into third spot.

Becky Woodward hit a 14-spare and, along with two scores of eight and a seven, the latter opened up a 15-pin first leg advantage.

By the fifth leg their lead had increased to 34 pins as Chas Vincent hit an 11-spare.

Snorts FC fought back, Steve Brown hitting a 10-spare in the sixth leg and Peter Hill scoring 59; however with David Harrison scoring 51 the Bowmen held on to win the first half by five pins.

The second half saw the Bowmen take a slender early advantage; however by the third leg the teams were level.

Snorts FC then took a second half lead in the next leg, and coupled with a sixth leg score of 32, in which all four players scored eight, they opened up a 12-pin advantage.

Dropping two pins in the next leg, the game was tightly poised entering the final leg, the Bowmen hitting 27 to leave Snorts needing 23 to take the game.

This they managed to achieve with a final score of eight, ensuring four points as they closed to within two points of the leaders who they face next.

The Breezers remain at the foot of the table and winless after they fell to an 87-pin loss to Slimbridge RBL.

The former were competitive in the first half, however three low scoring legs eventually saw them trail by 27 pins despite Martyn Jones finishing with an 11-spare.

The second half saw Slimbridge RBL get off to a slow start as the Breezers opened up a 14-pin advantage after two legs, however Slimbridge RBL fought back; Sue Coole hitting a 15-spare in her total of 57 as they opened up a 24-pin advantage after five legs.

With two low scoring legs from the Breezers the eventual winners were able to extend their lead further, and despite Rob Green finishing with 36 for the Breezers, it was Slimbridge RBL who took the half by 60 pins to claim maximum points.

Shake Hands recorded their sixth victory of the season as they bounced back from a 33-pin deficit to defeat The Dons by nine pins.

The first half saw the latter take an early lead thanks to a 14-spare from Mark Stamp, who finished up scoring 57.

Anthony Ball recorded a 13-spare in the final leg for The Dons and despite a 10-spare from Andy Langdown and Robert Sims scoring 57 for Shake Hands they were left trailing by the end of the first half.

The second half became the reverse of the first as Shake Hands started to reduce the deficit. Peter Dykes recorded a 10-spare in the third leg as they took a three-pin advantage on the game.

The Dons pulled the lead back in the fifth leg, however a low-scoring sixth leg allowed Shake Hands to go in front again, winning the half by 42 pins and the game by nine pins overall.

Results: Bowmen 347 (2) (David Harrison 54), Snorts FC 351 (4) (Peter Hill 59); Breezers 236 (0) (Rob Green 36), Slimbrigdge RBL (6) (Sue Coole 57); Shake Hands 310 (4) (Robert Sims 51), The Dons 301 (2) (Mark Stamp 57); Geriatrics - Bye.