Salisbury 14th September 2024 The day started well with warm sunny weather but with a refreshing breeze. We were greeted at the club with a splendid buffet lunch, most unexpected and provided by the club so we tucked into a lovely selection of sandwiches making preparing us well for the battle ahead. A very hard battle it turned out to be for some of us. Salisbury has some very talented bowlers and fielded at least…
Friday 13th didn’t seem to be the bad omen it is reputed to be. We arrived at Pewsey in good time after an uneventful journey from home. The sign to the Recreation Ground was clearly marked and I was fortunate enough to get a parking spot near to the club entrance even though we certainly weren’t the first one there. So far, so good! The Friends had visited the club last year to celebrate their…
Sunday 8th September saw the Friends at Burford in Oxfordshire. A club that has been bowling for 93 years. The town of Burford is based on a hill and has a very popular high street, such that many of the Friends could be seen before the game enjoying the shops. The weather forecast was a bit suspect, however we were fortunate that there was only a light shower for a few minutes at the end…
Saturday 7th September 2024 The first of our 2 games in Oxfordshire took us to Charlbury BC, who were celebrating their 90th Anniversary. We were very lucky with the cloudy but dry weather ideal for bowling. President Karen welcomed us all at the club entrance and invited us to take tea or coffee with biscuits. The Captains sorted the cards for the game and we all assembled on the green for our traditional photograph and welcome. Charlbury…
Tuesday 27th August 2024 The National Championships at Victoria Park, Leamington Spa have been running now for 12 days, and today Friends challenge a BE select Team in their annual match. The weather, whilst a bit dull, was warm but blowy – thankfully not cold, like the previous weekend. This year we began the game earlier to allow BE to fit in more Championship games after we had vacated the green. Players met on D…
20th August 2024 With great anticipation Friends accumulated early at the ‘The Last End’ for the tournament draw; those who entered as an individual were also waiting to see who their partner would be. It was all down to Mike Bertrand – Friends’ Competitions Coordinator. The players were duly informed of the game plan, and players in the preliminary round made their way to E green, where the competition was to be played. 20…
Monday 5th August ’24 Little did I know that the helpful lady who stepped aside for me so that I could reach the mini wine bottles (my top rink prizes) was Club President Jenny, who I would meet again later. My diary from 2018 informs me that I played at Peninsula on Tuesday July 10th. The club I arrived at today looks nothing like the club I played at 6 years ago. The surrounding area…
Sunday 4th August ’24 Day two of our weekend in Kent, and the sun was out in full force. Our game today was at Canterbury Bowling Club, and what a magnificent venue, a lovely roomy clubhouse, and great facilities, with two greens available for play. Many of the Friends arrived early, and it was a pleasure to spend time relaxing in the sunshine with a cool drink, and filled rolls were available to keep the…