SECTION One leaders Boscombe Cliff took a 90-70 tumble at Knyveton Gardens.

Despite dropping a seven on the last end, Reg Davis, Trevor Smith, Eric Sole and John Kellow (40-15) assured the Gardeners of an overall victory. Fellow skip David Baxter (16-12) drew shot with his last wood after being five down and the only solace for Cliff came from Chris Daniels’s rink who won 28-15.

Southbourne’s championship hopes were kept alive despite a far from convincing 77-70 win at West Moors. John Riddington (20-13) and a last-end 18-18 tie by John Niblock were West Moors’ only rewards. Chris Dowding’s squad of Bob Read, Forrest Thomson and Richard Poole (27-15) were the mainstay of Southbourne’s success.

Alexandra Park’s progress was halted at Meyrick Park, where, despite winning on three rinks, Alex failed to cover Bourne-mouth’s winning combination of Colin Bingley, John Cuff, Vic Druce and Gerry Potts (28-11).

Branksome Park’s Nigel Heaney, meanwhile, collected three shots to win 23-20 at Poole Park. Adam Tidby (21-15) supplied the Squirrels with another winning rink but Dolphins’ Dave Eatwell, Clive Faulkes, Stuart Stephens and Bob Atkins (28-13) steered the hosts to an 84-73 win.

Elsewhere, Ringwood hoisted themselves to mid-table security with a 99-62 triumph over visitors Lymington. Dennis Seymour, John Stone, Steve Van Wyk and Peter Ward were the pick of Ringwood’s four winning rinks.

• The top-of-the-table clash in Section Two between New Milton and Southbourne A levelled off at 80-80, but visitors Milton collected nine points courtesy of three winning rinks, headed by Peter Wooller, Dave Morrison, Kevin Gilliver and Bill Wallace (25-15). Southbourne’s only success came from Malcolm Teagle’s rink (30-13).

Broadstone-Wessex closed in on the top two following a 13-1 win over Swanmore. Wilf Scott, Ashley Leaper, Clive Smith and Mick Abraham (23-11) scaled the heights to ensure the Wessex men banked a 75-56 win.

Wimborne, meanwhile, kept their hopes alive with a 10-4 (82-65) victory over Pelhams. The Minster men’s best return came from Jim Garrett’s crew of Brian Shepherd, Denis King and Eric Curry (29-9).

Fordingbridge got back on track after three successive defeats by turning over Kings Park 10-4. The 32-8 win from Geoff Phillips, Stan White, Brian Cuckson and Bob Mellors proved crucial in the Turks’ 81-68 tally.

Relegation now looms for Boscombe Cliff A, however, after they were given an 89-55 thrashing by Electric. The Sparkies’ winning rinks were headed by Noel Pennington, Bill Kerr, Peter Cutts and Rob Burchell (24-11).

• Braeside moved back on top of Section Three after disposing of West Moors on all four rinks. Top rink in the Carpetbaggers’ 98-55 win was Derek Baber, John Taylor, Brian Wrightson and Colin Seale (28-13).

Poole Park held on to second spot despite losing 80-58 at Richmond Park. John McAusline, Graham Shoots, Mike Lodge and Dave Snow (25-14) drifted in to take top honours in HQ’s 12-2 triumph.

Redhill Park’s three winning rinks failed to cover Simon Lapenne’s resistance group of Iain Fraser, Barrie Wellman and Ronnie Roberts (25-9), earning Knyveton Gardens an 8-6 (78-72) victory. Top return for the Rangers came from Terry Horgan’s heroes (22-16).

Braeside A, meanwhile, could only muster a single point at Iford Bridge. The main support for the Bridge’s 13-1 (99-68) win was supplied by Bob Moon, Ron Derkins, Bob Whitaker and Ian Underwood (30-18).

Elsewhere, Moordown shared rinks with Highcliffe but had to settle for four points. Keith Day, Brian Smith, Peter Loffler and Stan Patch let rip (29-9) to steer the Castle men to a 79-71 success.

• Section Four trailblazers Branksome Park A suffered a 10-4 home defeat by Wimborne A, but with just two games left, the Squirrels look favourites to gain a promotion place. Tony Matthews (22-17) topped Branksome’s efforts, while Percy Swinson (25-16) featured in Wimborne’s 82-77 win.

Poole Park B kept alive their slim chances of going up with a 12-2 victory over Milford-on-Sea. Ray Pugh, Dave Dean, Wal Winton and Jim Stainer (28-12) made their mark in the Dolphins’ 86-69 success.

Swanage, meanwhile, hit their first ‘ton-up’ when defeating bottom club Ferndown 10-4. Ollie Thake, Denis Bailey, Brian Beeston and Pat Ratcliffe (42-7) delivered the ‘Purbeck Punch’ as Swanage romped in to win 106-61.

Christchurch returned home from New Milton with 10 points. The main contributors in the 79-74 victory were Richard Reeks, Roger Thacker, Norman Webster and Mike Poore (19-14).

• Southbourne B’s 12-2 win over Broadstone-Wessex in Section Five leaves them requiring just seven points from their last three games to secure promotion. John Morgan, Colin Watson, Neil Ward and Larry Cox (29-11) paved the way for Southbourne’s 97-69 triumph.

Highcliffe also collected 12 points as they cruised to a 97-57 success over Boscombe Cliff B. Colin Evans, Terry Dowie, Douglas Blunden and Geoff Humphreys (25-9) top scored for the Castle men.

Lymington racked up four winning rinks as they crushed Ringwood 109-41. Les Ford’s crew motored in to win 24-8, but were eclipsed by team-mates Graham Munden, Geoff Jessop, Al Gouley and Frank Johnson (33-6).

After seven consecutive defeats, meanwhile, Knyveton Gardens B hit the jackpot with a 12-2 (91-65) victory at Pelhams. Roger Bazeley returned from a long break to inspire his squad of Keith Hansford, Pete Jupp and Ron Straw to a 23-8 win.

• The top two in Section Six, Argyll A and Branksome Park B, both registered 12-2 wins over Kings Park A and Poole Park C respectively.

Argyll hit their third ton of the season when winning 109-82, with John Memory, John Hancock, Eric Griffin and Mike Merridew (37-13) the main contributors.

Branksome, meanwhile, were a little more conservative, winning their match 82-62. The Squirrels’ main return came from Tony Wade, Richard Cooper, Wally Barker and Roger Aspray (24-8). Arthur Vincent (22-19) salvaged two points for the Dolphins.

Third-placed Swanmore kept in touch by overcoming visitors Iford Bridge 10-4 (92-76). Top flight for the Swans was Peter Bunce, Derek Ireson, Alan Leggett and Ron Prigg (26-12).

Ferndown A still have an outside chance of promotion after their 10-4 victory over Southbourne C. The top return in the Stags’ 95-68 win came from Bob Thorne, Les Blackburn, Jeff Davies and Eric Baker (35-10).

Elsewhere, Richmond Park A moved to mid-table security following their 12-2 success at Wimborne. Anson Westbrook, Dennis Dymott, Vitorio Gariano and Roy Milton (28-11) starred in HQ’s 90-59 victory.