In 2000, Reading's Newman captured the title for a record fifth time, but last year Stradling, who plays for Didcot, turned the tables to become Singles champion for the second time.
So an intriguing contest is in prospect in the County Finals at Maidenhead Town on Sunday August 11. Both Mike Lewis (Reading University) and Michael Linn (Lambourn) did well to reach the semi-finals with Lewis having an outstanding game in his quarter-final clash with Martin Chipper.
Playing on his own Wokingham green, and on what many consider to be a specialist home rink, Chipper was unable to match Lewis's accuracy.
Both semi-finals produced absorbing contests. In the match between Linn and Stradling, Linn held the upper hand when bowling on the backhand sides of the green, and it wasn't until Stradling forced him to change his hand that he lost the initiative.
In all of his matches, Newman again demonstrated his mastery at playing the big shot when it really mattered.
In the morning against twice champion Paul Ryman, Newman repeatedly turned the heads when shots down.
In the afternoon he dominated his quarter-final match against Robert Aitken by playing a higher percentage of controlled reaching bowls.
Singles last 16: G Wilson (Royal Household) 16 M Lewis (Reading University) 21; D Carrick (Tilehurst) 10 R Goodchild (Morland) 21; C Holliday (Wokingham) 18 M Chipper (Wokingham) 21; J Stradling (Didcot) 21 W Winstanley (Desborough) 13; N Haines (Thatcham) 21 P Swinn (Suttons) 19; M Linn (Lambourn) 21 K Hughes (Hungerford) 18; P Hawkins (Bracknell) 13 R Aitken (Maidenhead Town) 21; P Ryman (Hagbourne) 14 M Newman (Reading) 21.
Qtr-finals: M Linn 21 R Goodchild 19; J Stradling 21 N Haines 8; M Newman 21 Robert Aitken 7; M Chipper 9 M Lewis 21.
Semi-finals: M Newman 21 M Lewis 16; J Stradling 21 M Linn 17.
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REIGNING champions Reading crashed out of this year's Berkshire County Fours Championship after going down 22-16 to Peter Hawkins' Bracknell side in the semi-finals.
The game was brought forward as Reading's Robert Newman is attending the Commonwealth Games in Manchester.
And it was the Bracknell side of Hawkins, Dick Fowlie, Phil Roberts and Simon Greenwood who took an early lead, moving 10-5 up after nine ends.
But Mike Newman's Reading rink of son Robert, Vic Waite and Marc Rivoira took the next five ends and open up a 14-10 lead.
Bracknell bounced back to lead 18-16 with two ends to play and on the penultimate end they collected a vital single to go into the final end three shots up.
Bracknell then delivered a full length jack to reduce Reading's chances of registering a large score and Roberts effectively put the nails into Reading's coffin when he got two touchers, the second of which trailed the jack away from Reading's shorter bowls.
Fours qtr-finals: P Hawkins (Bracknell) 24 C Holliday (Wokingham) 23; W Griffiths (Abingdon) 13 M Morris (Newbury) 22; J Heapy (Hagbourne) 14 R Gardiner (Prospect Park) 24; S Wright (Maidenhead Town) 8 M Newman (Reading) 24.
Semi-final: P Hawkins 22 M Newman16.
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An all-Suttons final could be on the cards in the Berkshire Triples Championship.
If Duncan Christie's and Paul Cadman's rinks make the most of home advantage in the semi-finals due to be played at Suttons today, they would meet in the final.
And that set up the intriguing situation where father and son, Ken and Raymond Nash, would be playing on opposite sides.
Triples qtr-finals: P Mortel (Kingston Bagpuize) 5 P Cadman (Suttons) 28; A Burchell (Sunningdale) 16 J Clements (Maidenhead Town) 14; W Hancock (Hagbourne) 7 D Christie (Suttons) 28; E Hollinrake (Wantage) 13 D Lowther (Wokingham) 19.
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PROSPECT Park snatched a dramatic victory on their Pairs quarter-final clash with Abingdon's John Davie and Ron Davies.
Abingdon held a match-winning lie with just one bowl be delivered, but with his final delivery, Alan Brown fired the jack into the ditch to give Prospect victory.
In the match between Carl and Colin Brooks of Suttons and Wokingham's Paul Melhuish and Martin Chipper of Wokingham, the Suttons pair played superbly in the second half to haul themselves out of trouble.
After 12 ends the father and son pair trailed badly at 4-13, but they raised their game to draw level on the 19th end, then scored two and three on the last two ends to snatch victory.
Pairs qtr-finals: Keith Lavery & Tony Aubrey (AWRE) 14 Peter Holland & Ken Nash (Suttons) 16; Ralph Arding & Alan Brown (Prospect Park) 20 John Davie & Ron Davies (Abingdon) 18; Robert Newman & Mike Newman (Reading) 29 Mike Linn & Nicky Rackham 9; Paul Melhuish & Martin Chipper (Wokingham) 14 Carl Brooks & Colin Brooks (Suttons) 19.
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DAVE RICE from Suttons BC is one of 15 umpires officiating at this year's Commonwealth Games in Manchester..
