ROB Paxton, of Taunton Deane Bowling Club, claimed the men's singles title at the National Indoor Bowls Championship Finals at Melton Mowbray this weekend.

Paxton, who had lost in the final of the competition in 2001, made no mistake this time, defeating North Cave's Stan Thompson 21-9 to secure the 2017 championship.

Referring to that previous final, where he built up a big lead only to lose it, the 38-year-old said: "I'm a different player now; I was very young and inexperienced then, but I wasn't going to make the same mistake again!"

He took three shots in the third end, and added two more trebles to take control of the final - his opponent Thompson simply unable to get back into the match.

Paxton's run to the final saw him defeat Martin Heitzman (Ipswich) 21-18, Sam Tolchard (Torquay United) 21-13, and Duncan Hanmore (Angel) 21-11 in the semi-finals.

The Taunton Deane bowler won gold at the World Outdoor Championships in Christchurch in December, skipping England to the triples title, and could well be selected to represent England at the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, Australia.

Somerset County Gazette:

LAST FOUR: Sue Evans and Kirsty Hembrow made the semi-finals in the women's pairs. Pic: courtesy of EIBA

Also from Taunton Deane, Sue Evans and Kirsty Hembrow reached the semi-finals of the women's pairs.

They knocked out the holders, Sue Kearsley and Janice Gower (Blackpool NH), by a 19-11 scoreline on Wednesday to make the quarter-finals.

There they saw off Julie Leake and Lyn Howard (Dolphin, Poole) 19-10 for a spot in the last four.

But on the Thursday they were undone by Carole Galletly and Katherine Hawes (Banbury), falling behind early on and never quite managing to pull it back as the eventual runners-up won the match 18-14.