New strategy?

Men's 4 Woods quarter-final this evening. My opponent is the A Team captain. We've only played once before, when I beat him in a close match in 2015. His choice of rink. We're on three, where I won my semi-final match last Sunday. Can it be lucky for me again?

Biggest worry is my recent loss of form. But I've got a game plan. My jack, so I first try my dependable long length. He wins by one. And he continues to win. Within eight ends I'm losing 0-11. My line is perfect. Just can't get the length. And my supposedly saving drives are embarrassingly wide of the mark. Glad he's only getting single wins... until the fifth and sixth ends when he wins two and then three.

Finally I win an end on the ninth, one to me. The game plan comes into action. Move the mat right up the green for a very short jack. Both very close, but I win by one. And I continue to win by one. The strategy is working.

Have a long think before placing the mat on the thirteenth end. Decide it's time to try a long jack again and mix things up. Drat! It doesn't work and he gains two. I win the next by one. End fifteen and I'm back on strategy with a high mat and very short jack. My opponent asks for the tape and we measure. Drat again! I've rolled the jack a yard too short. Back to his favourite length and a disastrous four to him. It's now 5-17!

Win the sixteenth end it's back to a high mat and very short jacks. The next five ends are mine and the score is 11-17. On the twenty-first end my opponent again asks for the tape. Multiple drats! I've rolled the jack inches too short. Back to his favourite length and it's all over when he wins the next four ends, 11-22 to him.

I lost the match because my accuracy on long length jacks was nowhere to be seen. All too often my bowl was a yard short. And three times I handed control back to him, once choosing to go back to a long length and twice handing the choice back to him when I rolled the jack too short. All signs of an inexperienced player.

Come away from the match with some comfort. Learned some valuable lessons. And I won ten of the final sixteen ends. Just hope that means a return to form for the three semi-finals on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Maybe a high mat and very short ends should be my new strategy.

Here's this evening's scorecard.