Welsh Bowler Spring/Summer 2022

Visit our website www.welshbowler.com Visit our website www.welshbowler.com Visit our website www.welshbowler.com Visit our website www.welshbowler.com Visit our website www.welshbowler.com

NEW, ACCURATE STRING & LASER MEASURES.

01691 886444 SALES and information line:

TESTED AND APPROVED BY WORLD BOWLS

Email: secondhandbowls@gmail.com see advert inside for prices

NEW BOWLS & ACCESSORIES & taken in Part Exchange

USED BOWLS BOUGHT & SOLD NEW & USED SHORTMAT MATS & EQUIPMENT BOUGHT & SOLD For list of used bowls VISIT: www.secondhandbowls.co.uk

Or call by appointment: Mike Flanagan 5 Grove Cottages, Bagleys Lane, Llandrinio, Llanmynech, Powys SY22 6RP

bowlsmeasure.com

THE MAGAZINE FOR THE WELSH BOWLS SCENE ISSUE 62

Mike Flanagan, retiring Treasurer

SPRING/SUMMER 2022

A RETIREMENT AND NEW OFFICERS FOR MONTGOMERYSHIRE The new President of Montgomeryshire is Mike Morgan Carno B.C., he is also a well known umpire and is the umpires coaching co-ordinator for Montgomeryshire.

Mike is aiming to increase the number of umpires as currently there are just two left within the County. A number of Clubs have shown an interest and hopefully when the season gets underway the interest will come to fruition. The new Vice President is Martin Rhiffell, Welshpool B.C Montgomeryshire also has a new Treasurer, he is John Schofield and follows in the footsteps of Mike Flanagan (pictured left) following his retirement from the position.

Mike has given many years of service to the County Association and continues his interest as a Life Member of the Association, Mike Beloe, Veterans Secretary informed the last meeting of the County Executive that he would not be standing for re-election at the AGM due to health matters.

His will be large footsteps to fill as he has not only hugely improved the Veterans league but was also instrumental in encouraging many young bowlers from his former club Montgomery B.C.

Good luck to all for the season!

ONCE YOU HAVE READ YOUR LATEST EDITION OF WELSH BOWLER, PLEASE PASS IT TO A FRIEND OR COLLEAGUE OR TAKE THE TIME TO RECYCLE IT.

N E W & I M P R OV E D W E B S I T E F R E E P O S TA G E O N A L L B OW L S

DRAKES PRIDE MINI DOUBLE DECKER • Adjustable Shoulder Strap • Holds 4 bowls, shoes & some clothing

COLOURS: Aqua, Black, Green, Grey, Maroon, Navy, Pistachio

£33.99

P&P £5.95

TAYLOR HUNTER TROLLEY

The Taylor Hunter Roll-a-Ball offers the bowler a choice - wheel it or carry it.

Quite a large bag, room for all your gear.

The bag contains two by two bowls carry cases, plus another casefor accessories - or whatever else you fancy.

£84.95

COLOURS: Blue or Black

P&P £6.95

www.bowlsdirect.com

DRAKES PRIDE MIDI DOUBLE DECKER

NEW

• Adjustable Shoulder Strap • Large horseshoe end zipped pocket for shoes & waterproofs • Side zipped pocket for accesories • Holds 4 bowls, shoes & some clothing

Virtually unbreakable this bag is supplied with a large accessory bag, waterproof cover and garment bag.

Very strong pull handle, abundant room for accessories and shoes and 3 stunning colours

COLOURS: Aqua, Black, Green, Grey, Maroon, Navy, Pistachio

£38.99

£104.00

P&P £5.95

HENSELITE ARGYLE TROLLEY

The Prohawk Argyle Trolley Bag is versatile as it’s just as useful as an overnight travel bag. Expandable section is ideal for clothing, keeping it both clean and dry. Has three zipper pockets for additional storage. Bowls compartment at the bottom is ‘push-in’ so the bowls fit into the corners, leaving centre for shoes etc.

NEW

COLOURS: Black/Grey, Black/Royal Blue, Red/Grey, Royal Blue/Grey Dimensions: H47 x W34 x D25cms

£74.99

COMFIT PRO LX ULTRA GLIDE

P&P £6.95

COMFIT PRO CX ULTRA GLIDE

Made from 800 denier rip stop water resistant material with a unique lightweight moulded base, double wheels, extra strong chassis and two top quality registered design two bowls bags, it the easiest bag to wheel around when going to bowl.

Dimensions: W32 x H38 x D23cms

£74.00

P&P £6.95

P&P £6.95

WEY VALLEY IBC, LIDO ROAD, GUILDFORD, SURREY GU1 1HB Telephone: 01483 536337

Email info@bowlsdirect.com

www.bowlsdirect.com

OPENING HOURS: Monday-Thursday 10am - 2 pm Saturday 10am - 2pm

Follow us on Twitter @WelshBowler Follow us on Twitter @WelshBowler Follow us on Twitter @WelshBowler Follow us on Twitter @WelshBowler Follow us on Twitter @WelshBowler Follow us on Twitter @WelshBowler

MIKE FLANAGAN BOWLS/ SECONDHAND BOWLS

NEWS IN BRIEF

Welsh Learning Disability

Pairs

The new WBA President

Wayne Letman, from South Glamorgan CBA is the new Welsh Bowls Association President for 2022.

Wayne has represented South Glamorgan CBA 48 times and became SGCBA President in 2019. He has won the SGCBA Triples in 1986, the Pairs in 1990 and 2014 and the Singles in 1992.

Wayne also won the Welsh Senior Fours title with Penylan in 2014.

WBA Academy Programme

Academy dates for 2022

Sun 8 May Academy squad day, venue Llandrindod Wells BC Thur 2 June Barbarians BA, venue RTB Ebbw Vale BC Tues 26 July WBA President venue Penylan BC

Fixtures TBA (Subject to decisions around BIBC Junior Internationals)

Academy v WBA u25 Team Academy v WWBA u25 Team

WELSH BOWLER is an independently produced magazine for the benefit of all Welsh bowlers.

The editorial and advertising views expressed in any section of this magazine are not necessarily the views of the publishers. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the details herein, the publishers can accept no responsibility for such. No part of this magazine may be used,reproduced, stored and retrieved without prior permission of the publishers.

All correspondence and any views should be sent to: WELSH BOWLER, 3 Biddenden Way, Istead Rise, Gravesend, Kent DA13 9DE Tel: 01322 352648 Email: info@bljournals.plus.com Web: www.welshbowler.com

@WelshBowler

On Sunday 20th February, at Cardiff Indoor Bowls CLub, 40 bowlers took to the green at Cardiff Indoor Bowls Club to compete for three Classifications titles in the Welsh Learning Disability Pairs Championship 2022.

Well done to all competitors who took part in this competition, despite the awful weather conditions, all the entrants arrived safely. Some tremendous bowling was witnessed by over 90 bowlers, volunteers, coaches and supporters. Bowlers from Pembroke, Radnorshire, Islwyn, Rhondda and Cardiff Chameleons, took part in round robin competitions in three separate classifications. The winners and runner-up in each Classification going on to the Semi-Finals and Finals to determine the Welsh Champions.

The L3 Classification Semi-finals was an all Cardiff Chameleon affair. The final was between Sean Thackwray and Meilir Sion versus Paul Scott and Newcomer Mark Hosken with the latter pairing running out the Championship winners.

The L2 Classification final was between, Millie Campbell and her partner James O’Brien and Garon Owen and Anthony Burge (Islwyn). Millie and James were convincing winners in this Classification.

In the L1 Classification, Cardiff Chameleons bowlers Simon Bould and Alex Jones came out on top against Naomi Baelz and Harry Gwatkin from Radnor, after a very tight game with both pairs level just after the halfway point, the winners just edged ahead in the last two ends to take the title.

This was their second title after winning the L1 Classification in 2020.

The organisers would like to offer their sincere thanks to the Coaches and Volunteers from all the clubs, the Markers and Volunteers from Cardiff IBC for their support. A special thank you Mr. Howard Davies past WIBA and BIIBC President and Vice President of Cardiff IBC, for once again presenting the Trophy’s to the worthy winners.

BOWLING GREEN SURROUNDS

• DITCH UNITS in GRC and CONCRETE

• LOOSEFILL - infill material

• DITCHFILL - infill material

• BOWLERAMP

• ASTRO TURF

• RINK NUMBERS

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‘The complete supplier’

EMAIL: info@bowlsgreensurrounds.co.uk

Editor: S. Kane., Sales Manager: A.Puttock. Publisher: D. Peters.

Contributors: G.Hughes, M Flanagan, H. King

2

WELSH BOWLER SPRING/SUMMER 2022

NEWS IN BRIEF

LDIBIS, heads for Sophia Gardens

The Learning Disability Indoor Bowls International Series Management team and the athletes and volunteers are ready for a big event in Cardiff in April.

After the event being postponed, due to the Pandemic a total of three times, the LDIBIS event for the Munro Cup will be held in Cardiff on 26th, 27th and 28th April 2 (with some Covid-19 restrictions).

The team at LDIBIS have been working hard behind the scenes to give the athletes something to plan for and look forward to.

“Covid has affected us all and cancelling the previously scheduled events was the right decision but so heart wrenching for all involved,” commented LDIBIS Competition Manager Janice Gower.

Athletes from Wales, Scotland and England will descend on Cardiff IBC for what will be a show of team work and prowess.

Defending champions England will have to see off tough opposition from the home team Wales and also a very strong Scottish squad.

“This is great news for all involved,” said head official Dan Bluett, “We have some amazing volunteers who travel from all over the country to support these athletes and the athletes themselves do not disappoint. They are great exponents of indoor bowls.”

Barrie Jenkins Welsh team Head

WELSH BOWLER SPRING/SUMMER 2022

Coach added, “We are delighted to be hosts for this series, it has seemed a long wait but we are looking forward to welcoming the Athletes and their coaches, the event Volunteers and LDIBIS management team to Cardiff.”

The main play takes place over Wednesday 27th and Thursday 28th with closing ceremony and Medal Presentations Thursday tea time.

There will be a raffle to help support the event and it is hopeful spectators will be permitted, Covid restrictions allowing.

MIKE FLANAGAN BOWLS/ SECONDHAND BOWLS SALES AND INFORMATION

TELEPHONE 01691 886444

USED BOWLS, BOUGHT SOLD and PART EXCHANGED

www.secondhandbowls.co.uk

I am always looking for Sizes 00 to size 4 - good quality larger sizes also considered Visit

All new flat green bowls prices include delivery by EVRI 3/4 day service, a Comfit Pro Bowls Cloth and Tube of Grippo. Upgrade to EVRI Overnight for £5.95 or Parcelforce 24 hour £5.95 (neither service is a guaranteed 24 hour but normally no more than 2 days.)

BLACK BOWLS

Almark Sterling £205.00 Drakes Pride (most bowls models) £225.00 Henselite Classic, Tiger, Tiger II, Tiger Pro £289.00 Taylor Ace, Blaze, International Vector £285.00 Taylor Lignoid, Lazer, Legacy £249.00 Taylor Junior Ace £140.00 (phone for New Bowl Bargains on earlier stamp prices)

COLOURED BOWLS

Aero (most stock colours) £379.00 Aero (Premium colours) £429.00 (Any Doubts please ring for personal quotation) Almark Sterling Coloured Bowls £289.00 Drakes Pride Coloured Bowls most models £295.00 Henselite Classic, Classic II, Tiger, Tiger II, Tiger Pro £369.00 Slice £384.99 Taylor Ace, Blaze, International Vector Lignoid £319.00 Taylor Junior Ace Coloured £160.00 FULL RANGES OF BAGS & ACCESSORIES AVAILABLE Quantity Discounts available on most Items, to Individuals or Club Secretaries

Contact: MIKE FLANAGAN 5 Grove Cottages, Bagleys Lane, Llandrinio, Llanymynech Powys SY22 6RP Tel: 01691 886444, Mobile: 07474 274935 Email secondhandbowls@gmail.com Prices correct at time of press but subject to change

3

NEWS IN BRIEF

WBA Presidents

matches

This year’s WBA Presidents team matches are, as usual, many and various - and, of course, should provide some great bowls competition and entertainment.

The fixtures are as follows: Tuesday 31 May: Monmouthshire CBA Panteg House BC, NP4 5DN Thursday 16 June: Penylan BC Penylan BC, CF23 5BU Thursday 30 June: Cwmbran Park BC (90th) Cwmbran Park BC, NP44 7JH Thursday 7 July: Gelli Park BC, (Mal Evans 50th) Gelli Park BC, CF41 7NQ Thursday 14 July: Saundersfoot BC (60th) Saundersfoot BC, SA69 9NG Tuesday 26 July: WBA Academy Penylan BC, CF23 5BU Thursday 28 July: Barbarians Abercarn BC, NP11 5AR Thursday 25 August: South Glamorgan CBA Penylan BC, CF23 5BU Thursday 8 September: Pontymister Athletic BC (120th) Pontymister Athletic BC, NP11 6EJ All matches to start at 2pm

Summer bowling on

the English Riviera...

Fancy a trip to play in the English Riviera Open Bowls Tournament? With wonderful surroundings and ‘hopefully’ the best of the Summer weather surrounded by the indigenous palm trees, then this is the tournament to help you get back in the swing!

The tournament is held from 19th to 25th June, at three host clubs, Kings, Torquay and Victoria B.C.’s which are all located on the main Torquay sea front and within easy walking distance.

Over the years bowlers from all parts of the U.K. as well as from Holland, South Africa and Australia have all participated.

For more details visit: www.englishriviera.co.uk.

Pershore Bowls Centre for all your bowling needs

TEST AND STAMP GRIPPING POLISHING REPAIR CLOTHING SHOES AND MORE

OPENING TIMES:

Tuesday to Friday 9.30 to 4.00 Saturday 10.00 to NOON ALL OTHER TIMES BY APPOINTMENT

Unit 5, Pershore Trading Estate, Pershore, Worcestershire WR10 2DD

Telephone: 01386 552411

www.pershorebc.co.uk 4

pershorebc@gmail.com

WELSH BOWLER SPRING/SUMMER 2022

TOURS, HOTELS & HOLIDAYS

Tailored bowls tours to Bournemouth

Bowlaway, the Bournemouth-based bowls tour operator, have had another successful year and are raring to go for the coming season - indeed, they will be hosting plenty of tours this year and are busy taking bookings for 2023.

Bowlaway are well known for their excellent standard of customer service ensuring your tour is not only great fun and well-organised, but also very comfortable. They arrange bespoke itineraries of bowls matches to suit your timetable, making sure everything is smoothly coordinated so that you can have an enjoyable and successful tour with the minimum of fuss.

THE TEAM: Kirsty Speller is the experienced Manager of Bowlaway, bringing enthusiasm and working hard to maintain the excellent standards for which Bowlaway is known.

Geoff Jones, a well-known figure on the local bowls circuit, is the long-standing Fixtures Coordinator. Geoff has a wealth of experience, an in-depth knowledge of the vibrant bowls scene in Bournemouth and can arrange your tour itinerary and book match fixtures to suit your group.

BOWLAWAY HOTELS: Bowlaway work closely with some fantastic hotels in Bournemouth, all of which are known for their friendly and welcoming hospitality. These carefully selected hotels are conveniently situated within easy reach of the town and beach and have facilities to cater for bowling groups of all sizes. The company are also very attentive to any special mobility and dietary requirements.

BOWLS TOURS: Bowlaway organise both indoor and outdoor bowls tours. Together, Kirsty and Geoff take the hassle out of arranging accommodation, booking matches, and even coordinating transport. The all-inclusive bowls tour service is designed to be hassle-free for the tour organiser and great fun for the bowlers.

For more info call:

01202 446616

www.bowlaway.co.uk 6

BOURNEMOUTH: Bournemouth is a great destination for bowlers, with 30 outdoor bowls clubs in the local area, half of which are within a 10-15-minute drive of the partner hotels, with the rest within a 3045-minute drive. For indoor tours there are three clubs within a 15minute drive and many more slightly further afield.

There is also plenty to see and do around beautiful Bournemouth for non-bowling guests and on days off from bowling.

Tel: 01202 446616 Email: mail@bowlaway.co.uk

WELSH BOWLER SPRING/SUMMER 2022

NEWS IN BRIEF

WBA statement...

Below is a copy of the statement issued by the WBA in response to the recent criticism following statements from Bowls England and Bowls Scotland It is obviously readily available to read on the WBA website (www.welshbowls.co.uk), but we felt that it would be good to publish it for those who have not had the chance to read it.

WELSH BOWLING ASSOCIATION STATEMENT. BRITISH ISLES INTERNATIONAL SERIES.

Short Mat triumph

We would like to say a huge congratulations to Cwmllynfell on winning the national triples recently.

They will now progress to represent Wales in Belfast in November. Best of luck!

Under 19’s

pairs

champions

Congratulations to Cory and Emily from Merthyr in winning the Welsh U19 Pairs.

It was a truly entertaining day all around with Merthyr West End’s Elijah winning the Under 17’s Singles as well.🏆

WELSH BOWLER SPRING/SUMMER 2022

On Wednesday 9th February 2022 delegates from the WBA along with representatives attended a Zoom Meeting organised by Bowls England to discuss proposed BIBC Events for the 2022 season.

This was not a BIBC Meeting as at present this organisation only has one officer and is currently not functioning.

At the commencement of the meeting the WBA delegation asked the representatives of Bowls England and Bowls Scotland would they be prepared to take part in future BIBC Internationals as they are currently organised.

Both countries stated categorically that they would not, a pole of the other countries in attendance was then taken, the WBA and WWBA along with the IBA voted in favour of retaining the BIBC Internationals, the IWBA supported the proposal put forward by Bowls England with the Channels Island representatives not voting but indicating that they wanted to be part of whatever format was agreed.

The result of the vote undermined the WBAs position and left us with no alternative than to continue to work for the interest of Welsh Bowlers from within the group.

Following a discussion surrounding the legality of the meeting agreement was reached on setting a working group that would oversee the winding up of the BIBC in its current form, Barry Fleming will represent the WBA on this group.

Following this decision, the meeting then proposed the following, to put in place a programme of events for 2022 and to appoint a working group to look at events from 2023 onwards.

The following events were agreed for 2022 only.

Bowls England were hosting the Commonwealth Games this year and were also holding an invitational event at Leamington Spa on 9th & 10th June. Countries where welcome to enter teams if they wished to do so.

Scotland was hosting the European Championships.

The WBA & WWBA offered to host the Joint BIBC & BIWBC Championships at Llandrindod Wells from 1st to 3rd July, this was confirmed by the group.

It was also proposed that as Ireland did not have an event taking place in their country, they should host the Men’s and Ladies Under 25s Internationals this proposal was accepted, Ireland proposed that these events should be held on the same weekend and at the same venue, to accommodate this and for this year only it was proposed that the event would consist of teams of 12 players.

Moving forward into 2023 and beyond agreement was reached on setting up a working group to look at different structures for our events that work for all countries involved.

The WBA is not against change and will work alongside the other countries to put in place new events, but we firmly believe that these new events should be run in tandem with the existing International Events and should be used as a platform for expanding international opportunities for our players not as a cost saving exercise that restricts players opportunities to represent their countries and concentrates funding on a few elite players.

The grass roots bowlers of our wonderful sport are our bread and butter and the WBA Officer’s, Executive Members and Team Manager recognise this and will continue to do everything in their power to provide a career path for our bowlers to follow.

7

NEWS IN BRIEF

Review of Bowls in Wales

BowlsWales recently announced that they have commissioned an independent review of the sport in Wales.

This will be on behalf of themselves plus the National Governing Bodies for the Indoor, Outdoor, Short Mat and Crown Green forms of the game It will be a wide ranging and independent review, covering multiple areas including:

• GOVERNANCE • STRUCTURE • COMMUNICATIONS • SAFEGUARDING • DEVELOPMENT • PERFORMANCE • COACHING AND OFFICIATING • PR AND MARKETING • EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION BowlsWales have commissioned Counsel Ltd (www.counselled.com) to undertake the review on their behalf. The review is expected to take around 4-5 months to complete, although it may well need longer.

BowlsWales are committed to making sure that this review is both comprehensive and inclusive and to this end, they plan to run a survey of bowlers and other interested stakeholders followed by a series of interviews, focus groups and public meetings to hear your views.

To help make it as inclusive as possible, you can take the survey om their website www.bowlswales.com, look under the news section for the recent piece about the Review and the Survey link button is then at the bottom.

Swansea IBC Mens Over

60s Fours

After a very competitive tournament, this year’s City & County of Swansea Indoor Bowls Club, Men’s Over 60s Winners are Ivor Morgan BEM, John ‘Stan’ Parsons, John Morgan, Derek ‘Muto’ Smith (pictured above).

Dinas Powis Bowls Club

Dinas Powis Open Tournament 2022

The Dinas Powis Bowls Club Open Tournament, sponsored by Absolute Grasscare, is on Thursday 2nd & Friday 3rd June 10am start Sunday 5th June 10am start. The Semi Finals and Final are on Friday 10th June 4pm start.

The tournament is open to both Men and Women – the first 96 entries. The entrance fee is £8.00 Scoring will be 3 points for a win, 2pts for a draw, 1pt for a loss A full set of rules will be sent with confirmation of payment.

To enter, email either Paul Marks on pdmcaterltd@yahoo.co.uk or John Manfield on emjay1995@yahoo.co.uk The total prize money is £2900 Winner: £1500 Runner Up: £500 Losing Semi Finalists: £250 Losing Quarter Finalists: £100.

Format is: Groups of 3 will play a round-robin of 2 matches, with all matches consisting of 2 sets and 7 ends. If needed, 1 set of 3 ends, until the semi-final stage

8

WELSH BOWLER SPRING/SUMMER 2022

GREENS & GREEN MAINTENANCE

Deep aeration relief for

Broadway Bowling Club

Where once stood a croquet lawn and tennis courts, the Broadway Bowling Club opened its doors in 1919. It sits in an idyllic location in beautifully maintained grounds with scenic views towards the Cotswold escarpment and the Broadway tower; a ‘Saxon Tower’ folly that was the brainchild of 18th Century landscape designer ‘Capability Brown’. The gently sloping banks of herbaceous flower borders and hedging change through the seasons and come days when the weather halts play, the club’s pavilion offers a pool table and an indoor skittle alley for members to enjoy.

It was during 2021 the weather brought matters to a head for Dennis Hall, Broadway’s Greenkeeper of ten years. Increasingly, the green was suffering from standing water after heavy rain, with one area getting progressively worse. Even in dry periods, it was noted the ground was frequently mushy when the mower went through the area. Avonmore Associates, the highly respected South Warwickshire sports grounds construction and maintenance company, regularly maintain the green with a regime of spiking and aeration. They suspected a deeper problem. As happens with many older bowling greens, the sheer volume of play over the years, combined with the substrate of the original construction, leads to compaction at a depth not reached by normal aeration. In Broadway’s case, there are mixed areas of stone and clay with insufficient release of standing water built up over time.

Avonmore suggested using Terrain Aeration, with whom they have worked on a number of projects, to bring in their Terralift machine to provide one metre deep aeration. At this depth, the ground is usually so compacted it requires fracturing to open up fissures and allow drainage. Terrain Aeration’s Terralift system works on the principle of hammering a hollow probe through the soil using a JCB road breaker gun, and compressed air is released up to 20Bar (280psi). At the end of the air blast, they inject dried seaweed, which sticks to the fissure walls. This expands and contracts with the moisture in the soil to keep the area breathing. Working to a grid with approximately two metre spacings allows the Terralift to create interlinked cracks and fissures deep underground to carry away the water. The 1.5inch probe holes on the green are backfilled with Lytag aggregate and covered with topsoil, making it playable almost immediately. The work at the Broadway Bowling Club was carried out in November 2021 and Dennis Hall reports that they have had several periods of heavy downpour and the deep aeration has done the trick with no standing water to halt play. www.terrainaeration.co.uk

WELSH BOWLER SPRING/SUMMER 2022

9

GREENS & GREEN MAINTENANCE Dennis S500 Plus performs at Victoria Park

Mike Finch of idverde has praised the performance of the Dennis S500 Plus seeder which he uses on the five greens at Victoria Park in Royal Leamington Spa.

idverde was appointed by Warwick District Council in 2012 to undertake grounds maintenance and horticultural services within the district and has been doing so ever since.

Under their remit, idverde maintains a staggering 43 football pitches, 20 tennis courts, various hard surfaces and running tracks. All these sports facilities are overseen by the vastly experienced Mike Finch, who spent 24 years as head groundsman at Coventry City FC. Whatever the nature of the sports surface Mike has the knowledge to maintain it, but he admits that the bowling greens at Leamington Spa’s Victoria Park are particularly precious to him.

“My main interest is the bowling club,” he said. “Bowling greens are very precise animals – they need a lot of attention. Greenkeeping isn’t about time – it is about dedication and precision. I take it seriously every single day and I don’t allow myself to play second best. My drive is passion and excellence and I always

try and exceed expectations.”

This is certainly evident at the prestigious Victoria Park – the home of English Bowls. Always striving for perfection, Mike was pleased when he was recently offered the chance to purchase some new equipment and it is a process which he does not take lightly.

“Using the wrong equipment or using it at the wrong time can do a lot of damage and that is why I do a lot of research,” said Mike. “I make a point of listening to what other users have said and see what their experiences are; I will never rush into a decision. I’ve been doing this for 37 years and I like to think I know which equipment works best for the sites I am looking after.”

Mike chose the Dennis S500 Plus seeder. Ideal for bowls, cricket, golf and other fine turf and ornamental lawn areas, this dual-purpose machine has a 510mm (20") operating width complete with interchangeable spiker and slotter reels. The spiker reel punches through the ‘surface pan’ allowing air, water and fertiliser to penetrate the root zone, while the slotter reel creates ideal seed germination pockets thus reducing seed wastage. Using the optional seed box attachment will ensure grass seed is dropped onto the ground at the prescribed rate and brushed into the pockets.

“I was on the lookout for a good pedestrian seeder and I came across the S500 Plus. We looked at various machines, which included second-hand ones and hiring them, but it was the S500 which stood out.

“Jason Briggs (area sales manager for Dennis and SISIS) brought it to us for a demonstration and it imprinted really well – we purchased it straight away.

“I like the way the seed is dragged in with the brush which is also attached to the S500. It drops the seed into all the slots, which makes the perfect seedbed, therefore allowing the seed to get top dressed and filled in.

“For general overseeding on established greens, it works very well and I’m incredibly pleased with how it performs.”

For further information or a no-obligation demonstration, please contact Dennis 01332 824 777. www.dennisuk.com

Broadlands, Borough Lane, Gt Finborough Stowmarket, Suffolk IP14 3AS

10

WELSH BOWLER SPRING/SUMMER 2022

WEY VALLEY IBC, LIDO ROAD, GUILDFORD, SURREY GU1 1HB Tel: 01483 536337 Email info@bowlsdirect.com www.bowlsdirect.com OPENING HOURS: Monday-Thursday 10am - 2 pm Saturday 10am - 2pm

TAYLOR LAZER The Lazer is a slimmer profile bowl with a narrow precision bias. Designed for Indoor and fast Outdoor conditions.

Pro-grip as standard. This bowl has a narrower bias than the Vector.

£229.95

Medium Weight Sizes 0-5 Heavy Weight Sizes 00-5

TAYLOR ACE

The championshop-winning Ace bowl has a slightly wider draw than the Vector. It is perfect for players requiring a controlled swing onto the jack. Ideal wood for a Third or Skip indoors, and a perfect lead bowl on heavier outdoor surfaces. Medium Weight Sizes 0-5, Heavy Weight Sizes 00-5

£264.95 Colour £299.95

TAYLOR VECTOR VS

An attractive new cosmetic appearance has given the bowl a fresher, more sportier appeal. It remains perfect for all fast surfaces both Indoors and Out, and has a lenient, gentle draw to the jack with no hook at the end. This makes the Vector VS ideal for front end bowlers. Black only, Progrip only. Medium Weight Sizes 0-5 Heavy Weight Sizes 00-5

£264.95 Colour £299.95 HENSELITE TIGER PRO

The Tiger PRO is Henselite’s latest addition to their current range of bowls. With a slimmer profile, this bowl is designed to feel comfortable in the hand and has a line in between the Tiger and Tiger II.

£269.95 Colour £329.95 Heavy Weight Sizes 0-5

FREE POSTAGE ON ALL BOWLS TO THE UK

TAYLOR BLAZE

With input from world champions Andy Thomson and David Gourlay this bowl has been designed with a slender diameter for a more comfortable fit in your hand, enhanced with a deep dimple grip (Premier Grip) ensuring a confidant grasp to give a consistent draw and defining accuracy with every shot. Heavy Weight Sizes 00-5

£264.95 Colour £299.95 DRAKES PRIDE PROFESSIONAL

The most popular bowl produced by Drakes Pride, its slimmer more oval shape provides for excellent handling qualities. A predictable draw ideal for singles play, the banana shaped track to the jack allows for greater variation of shots.

Med Weight Sizes 0-5 Heavy Sizes 00-5

£234.99 Colour £279.99

ALMARK STERLING SLIMLINE

The Almark Slim Line bowl has been designed to feel more comfortable in the hand and has a midbias consistant draw. This makes it ideal for all conditions and for bowlers who want too play all year round. Recommended for all outdoor and indoor surfaces.

One weight only, Heavy/Medium 00 - 5

£209.95 Colour £279.95 AERO QUANTUM

Mid-Bias bowl perfect for both indoor and outdoor play.

An update to and improvement of the Revolution model

AERO MAXIM

Designed as a wide swinging bowl.

Ideal for slow UK outdoor greens.

Perfect for all back-end players

AERO GROOVE

NEW

Designed for the bowler who prefers less swing than the Maxim. Perfect for faster UK outdoor greens.

Unique ZIG ZAG grip gives you a perfect grip on the bowls in all conditions.

Colour only from -

£364.95

WEY VALLEY IBC, LIDO ROAD, GUILDFORD, SURREY GU1 1HB Tel: 01483 536337 Email info@bowlsdirect.com www.bowlsdirect.com EMSMORN LADIES & GENTS PROLITE TROUSERS £29.99

BIAS NORFOLK BLOUSE £19.99

BIAS SUFFOLK BLOUSE £19.99

EMSMORN UNISEX VALUE BOWLS JACKET £26.95 DRAKES PRIDE LADIES EVA BODYWARMER SIZES 10-24 £39.99

SUPERBOWL GENTS TROUSERS £34.50

DRAKES PRIDE PROFESSIONAL £234.99 TAYLOR LAZER £229.95

IN WHITE & GREY

HENSELITE TIGER PRO £269.95

TAYLOR VECTOR £264.95

DRAKES PRIDE LADIES ROSE BLOUSE SIZES 10-12 £26.99

AERO GROOVE from £364.95

TAYLOR ACE £264.95 TAYLOR BLAZE £264.95

ALMARK STERLING SLIMLINE £209.95

NEW

AERO QUANTUM from £364.95

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