Richard Bryan, Gleaner Writer

MANDEVILLE, Manchester:

The Manchester Pistol and Rifle Club (MRPC) experienced one of its most competitive matches at the weekend's National Street Gun Championship, opening the possibility it could prove a very strong unit were a club championship to be organised anytime soon.

The club's internationally ranked Master Class shooter, Orville Henriques, triumphed by 12 points when the final scores were tallied, but unlike most tournaments at the Lincoln Range when he is involved, this time, it was anybody's guess who would have eventually emerge champion during the stages.

Second was E Dixon, who tallied 352.9 for a whopping 96.74 percent, his best ever overall percentage. Had Dixon won, it would have been a classic case of student whipping teacher.

In third place was female B class shooter, Sue Ann Henriques who, at 330 points, shot at 90 per cent. The top six places were completed by T. Jones (307 pts, 84 per cent), R. Mendez (287 pts, 78 per cent) and E Grant (266 pts, 73 per cent).

GREAT START

Henriques began with a bang, winning stage one, valued at 80 points, and which depicted danger threat posed when changing a vehicle tyre. However, he experienced magazine problems on the next two stages, which required unplanned changes. Against his high standards, he was slowed to seventh place and ninth overall on time at Stage two, and on stage three, fifth and seventh overall on time.

He began his recovery on stage four with a fourth-place finish, and probably escaped being beaten for the first time in two years here, when he slammed stage five, valued at 100 points, and the final stage, valued at 50 points, recording the fastest times in the process.

Despite the close call, Henriques said he was happy with his game, noting that the quality of the shooters pointed to MRPC's growing stature.

"I have no doubts about my own game, but I feel very pleased with the quality of the shooting. MRPC will do very well if we take anybody on."