CONTRIBUTIONS FOR FUTURE NEWSLETTERS SHOULD BE SENT TO OUR EDITOR: TONY BAKER (thetonybaker@gmail.com)
DIARY DATES:
2pm Tuesday 11 and Thursday 13February: Path to Progress Improving your Bowling Classes (see below)
7pm Saturday 1 March: Club Social
2pm Sunday 2 March: Indoor Bowls v Cambridge Park IBC
12.30pm Wednesday 19 March: Ladies Pre-Season Lunch
6.15 pm for 7pm Friday 11 April: Pre-Season Meeting
2.30pm Saturday 12 April: Opening Day Roll Up
Sunday 4 May 10 -12: Start of Beginners Bowls Course (see below)
Club Social – 7pm Saturday 1 March (Tony Baker)
A few places remain for our social on 1 March. It will be a mix of a quiz and bingo. At just £10 per head to include your meal and prizes.
We will also hold a bottle tombola on the evening with instant prizes! I’m sure many members will have surplus, unused bottles from Christmas so please do donate them. Please leave them in the box in the Committee room. Any new bottles (not just alcohol!) would be welcomed! Email me please if you want to attend but have not yet confirmed (thetonybaker@gmail.com). Please inform me of any dietary requirements. Also, we need some helpers on the night with food serving and clear up. Can you help please?
Surrey Competitions (Linda Pillman)
Just a reminder….entries to the Surrey competitions need to be made in the next week. Completed forms need to be sent to Linda Pillman (l.pillman2@hotmail.com). You cannot win if you do not enter, and anyone can win on their day!
Entries to the national competitions need to be in by end February so if you are interested go www.bowlsengland.com/national-competitions/. Some members of Ember have signed up to play!
Entries to the N W Surrey competitions are open until early April.
Ladies Pre- Season Lunch 19 March (Rosie Burges)
This year we are holding the lunch at the Albany in Thames Ditton.
Date : Wednesday 19 March at 12.30 for 12.45
Choices to be made from the Albany LUNCH menu. 2 or 3 courses priced at £21.95 or £26.35 respectively.
All ladies welcome! Send choices, please, to Rosie at roburges@gmail.com. There is a poster in the clubhouse with a printout of the menus. Payment to be made by bank transfer to Rosie or cash can be paid at the Bowls Social event on 1st March.
New Member Recruitment (Pat Cooke and Debbie Johns)
Wanted – New Members! You, yes you, are needed to help promote our Bowls Club and encourage friends, family, neighbours to come along and ‘Have A Go’ at bowls. Tell them about our super club where we play the wonderful game. Tell them to come along and try it out, once or twice or more.
It could be just what they need to improve their general health and wellbeing.
Sunday 4 May 10am – Noon is the first Beginners’ class with further sessions on
Thursday 8 May 6 – 8
Sunday 11 May 10 – 12
Thursday 15 May 6 – 8
Sunday 18 May 10 – 12
Nothing special is needed other than coming along with flat soled shoes, (trainers are fine) and outdoor clothing appropriate for the weather.
In addition to the usual local press, social media and poster promotions we will be emailing printable handouts to members later in March to help you spread the word. Whilst we will be advertising locally, experience has shown that by far the most effective method of recruitment is via ‘word of mouth’. Please tell your friends and neighbours about our friendly club and, nearer the time, we will send everyone a flyer poster to use or print off for anyone interested in giving it a go.
More Bowls Coaches!
Thanks, and congratulations to Chris Axton, Pat Cooke, Mary and Tony Baker who have taken (and passed!) the level 1 Bowls Coaching Certificate so are able and insured to teach our new intake of beginners.
Indoor Bowls – Match report Ember v King George Field 20 January (Adam Willson)
A remarkable performance by our team but sadly we came up just short losing overall by 48-41. Adam and his team of Mary Baker and late sub, John Rogers managed to turn a halfway score of 16-3 round to get a 17-17 draw. Ken Homewood’s rink was leading all the way but eventually had to win the last end to also get a 14-14 draw. Tony Baker’s rink got off to a flying start but eventually succumbed to their opponents by 7 shots. The game was played in great spirit, and we enjoyed a hearty 2 course meal with our opponents afterwards. Against a team of regular indoor bowlers, this was a very creditable showing by the Ember team, and I hope bodes well for our final game at Cambridge Park on 2 March. Do you want to play? Please let Adam know if you are free if you have not already confirmed (willsonadam1956@gmail.com).
Bowls Club 75th Anniversary 2025 (Tony Baker)
In 2025 we celebrate our 75th Anniversary. We have organised a number of ways to mark the anniversary. Highlights include:
> A match against a Team from Surrey Area 2
> A match against a Surrey Past Presidents
> A representative match against a touring team from South Africa.
Also a new Club competition to be supported by Leightons who join us in April as a new sponsor and who will also sponsor this new competition. Entries will be included on the list of Club competitions, and it will be played on Sunday 3 August. Totally new it will be the Leightons Cup – Three, two, One Drawn Triples. All entrants will be split into 3 pots strictly according to the handicaps list. On the day each team will play four 4 end matches. Each end will be scored 3 points for the wood nearest the jack, two points second nearest and 1 point third nearest; so, 6 points allocated each end. Three matches per team before a complementary lunch. One match for everyone after lunch starting around 2pm. At 2.45pm the four highest scoring teams for the four matches will each have a 4-end match. The two teams with the highest score will then play a 4-end final. At 4pm the winning team will be presented with the Leightons Cup by a representative of Leightons.
Finally, a commemorative pen will be given to all Ember bowlers. These will be handed out at the pre-season meeting on Friday 11 April along with your handicap card and fixtures list. So do come! Full details of the evening will be sent out nearer the date.
Improving your Bowling (Sylvia Jones)
Find out what you don’t know or have simply forgotten:
Tuesday 11th and Thursday 13th February, 2pm at the Clubhouse.
Do you understand the Rules, how and when they are applied? Are you confident Measuring long distances, or bowls almost touching the jack especially if one is tilting? How is your green Etiquette? Do you have any Queries or Concerns?
Don’t hold back, come along, as places are available, and Sylvia and Jenny are ready to help you. Contact Sylvia, indicating your preferred, if any, choice of date: sylviatheaker@ntlworld.com 01932 788701 or 07778 034793
Take a look at these websites to keep up to date with bowls at county and national levels.
www.bowlsengland.com
www.surreycountybowls.co.uk
www.ladiesbowlssurrey.co.uk
