Wymondham Short Mat Bowls Club's rising star Chris Mann indulged in some giantkilling to pick up a prestigious regional title.The 19-year-old was not originally down to play in the South East Championships as he had not qualified through the Norfolk singles competition.

Wymondham Short Mat Bowls Club's rising star Chris Mann indulged in some giantkilling to pick up a prestigious regional title.

The 19-year-old was not originally down to play in the South East Championships as he had not qualified through the Norfolk singles competition. But when some of the qualifiers pulled out a couple of weeks before the championships started, Chris received a phone call telling him there was a space available, and he took up the offer straight away.

When he was drawn against the top seeds from each county (Essex, Suffolk and Cambridge) in the singles his prospects of reaching the semi-finals didn't look too bright.

But he won his first match against the favourite from Essex and went on to win the next two games to become his group's winner.

He won his semi-final by some 10 shots then won his first big title with a 9-4 triumph in the final.