ORPINGTON Excelsior Bowls Club suffered a narrow 98-96 defeat when they entertained Hayes Common last Wednesday.

There was an improvement three days later when the men's and women's teams secured victory at Petts Wood.

Denis Hamilton, George Hawkins, Brian Rolfe and Frank Bagge led the men to a hard fought 77-73 success, while Doris Greeno, Christine Perzyna and Brenda Bowles made sure things were slightly more comfortable for the women in their 72-20 win.

Inconsistency returned the following day as the men lost 83-71 and the women 41-34 in the home fixture against Swanley.