Finals Day 2026
Well done to all those players who tolerated the persistent rain on our Finals Day on Sunday (13th September).
The Men’s Pairs competition kicked things off with Ian Davies & Iain Russell up against Keith Davies & Darren Lewis. The strongly fought competition, watched by a small crowd of spectators sheltering under the pavilion (and multiple umbrellas!), was eventually won by Keith & Darren.
After a good lunch, provided by Competition Secretaries, Chris and Kaye Locke, the Mixed Pairs braved the weather, with Kathy Taylor & Chris Locke up against Anne Lowndes and Aled Jones-Pritchard. It proved to be another fascinating match, with Anne & Aled the eventual winners.
Another short break for a welcome afternoon tea, and it was time for the final match of the day – the Men’s Singles between Iain Russell & Aled Jones-Pritchard. The gripping match was cat and mouse all the way, with no-one able to predict a winner even in the closing stages. However, Iain did manage to cinch it at 21 – 19. Those watching all thought that the thoroughly engrossing match was a fitting end to a great season at Pentyrch Bowls.
Well done to everyone who took part in the club competitions this year, especially the finalists, who provided us with such an entertaining day despite the rain.
For reasons beyond anyone's control the Novice Cup Final was played at an earlier date and was won by Andy Butler.
A special congratulations to all the Winners.
An official presentation of the trophies will be taking place towards the end of the year.
Here are a few pictures of the event:
Mixed and Matched!
On Saturday 5th September, 2026, a beautiful warm and sunny day, we held a fun, end of season, Mixed Social club Match. Teams were chosen randomly by our Ladies Captain, Anne Lowndes, and three rinks of triples were set to play. Whilst one rink ended up being a little mis-matched, the other two were very closely fought games, and all players really enjoyed the competition and good company.
The match was followed by a 'bring a plate' buffet in the pavilion, where everyone had a chance to dissect their performance and chat while polishing off the delicious spread!
All in all, it was a wonderful way to spend an afternoon, and another demonstration of the lovely community of members we have. Here are a few pictures of the event:
Murder Mystery Night
On 4th September, 2026, Pentyrch Bowling Club presented their very first Murder Mystery Night - 'Murder at Blanket Hall', and were delighted that it proved to be such a success!
Once the cast of eight suspects were introduced by Inspector Twerp of the Bedfordshire Constabulary, the audience were given the opportunity to question each suspect for five minutes at their tables, and then decide 'whodunnit'! Everyone seemed completely engaged with the plot, and asked some relevant (and some very quirky) questions, while the cast improvised their way to answering them.
Our thanks to Chris Locke for writing, producing and acting (Inspector Twerp himself!) in the production, and the rest of the cast:
Melanie Mcleod; Tony Allen; Helen Blundell; Jonathan Wheeler; Richard Jones; Kaye Locke; Aled Jones-Pritchard and Laura Hallas, for giving their time, energy and talent, and helping to make the evening such a memorable one. Here are a few photos from the night:
Race Night
Although attendance was down somewhat on previous years, everyone present had a great time at our Annual Race Night held on 14th August. Here is a short video of the proceedings, with thanks to Ranjith Dodangoda!
The season so far...
Well, we're into August now and the season is drawing to a close. Whilst they have had mixed fortunes in the league matches, both the men's and ladies teams have performed well, having some very close tough games, as well as some excellent wins.
There were only four club competitions this year, and they have been fiercely fought. There is just one semi-final to be played before our Gala Finals Weekend on 12/13th September. The schedule is yet to be drawn up, but it will be widely circulated, and everyone is welcome to come along and watch, what promises to be, some fascinating games.
Our club, as always, has a busy social calendar too. Of course, there is always our Monday evening 'Spoons' sessions where all our members enjoy good company, a lot of laughs, and a relaxed game of bowls, and this year, we've enjoyed our regular coffee mornings - now back on track despite the electrical issues early in the year, and a fun quiz night. On Friday 14th August we are holding our, always popular, Race Night, and on 4th September it's our very first Murder Mystery Night featuring our own Chris and Kaye Locke, Aled Jones-Pritchard and friends.
Another opportunity to build comradeship has been our frequent ‘working parties’ to improve our facilities. Earlier in the year a group of men worked particularly hard to get the electrics up and running and the ladies had their own parties while painting the changing room. Volunteers also regularly work on the green, and surrounding gardens which visitors were able to view during the Village’s Open Gardens day. We thank everyone who helps in any capacity!
We were pleased to welcome several new members this year who have swiftly become part of the Pentyrch Bowling Club community. If you are not already a member, why don’t you come along and join in the fun.
June Quiz Night
I'm happy to report that the June Quiz Night, held on Friday 19th, was an outstanding success!
Sadly, our original quizmaster, Brian Ham, had to step down due to personal reasons but we were fortunate that Alan Lowndes was able and willing to stand in for him.
The questions were suitably varied in difficulty and Alan delivered them with clarity and humour. There was the usual picture round, which this time was 'Name the Logo' as well as a 'First Line' round which had us all humming to ourselves while we tried to work out titles and artists.
The Quiz was well attended by around 60 members and friends, and, including the raffle, we raised a healthy and welcome £412.52 for club funds.
After a close contest, the Quiz was eventually won by 'The Smart Alecs' - living up to their name!
May Coffee Morning
We were delighted that the May coffee morning was able to go ahead as scheduled on 29th May despite the ongoing lack of electricity. The lack of hot water in the club house was overcome, as per last month, with a supply of boiling water via the urn set up in the tennis club hut (our thanks to the Tennis club folk for permission to use it) and a couple of very large flasks!
The morning was well attended, with plenty of savouries and cakes to enjoy, and we raised a healthy sum of £176 to go towards our club funds.
Our thanks to all those who supplied cakes etc, the baristas for the morning, our doorman, and to all the others who are involved behind the scenes.
Lifetime Membership Award
At our recent 'Season Opener' event, the management committee were delighted to award Eileen Boddington with a lifetime membership of the club for her tireless services in fundraising and organising events. She was presented with a framed certificate, and a bouquet of flowers.
