THERE was a carnival atmosphere at Keynsham Bowling Club following the final fixtures in the Men’s Thursday Bristol and District League, as two of our teams celebrated promotion for the 2025 season.
Our C Team competed in the fourth division, where last year they finished eighth out of nine teams, so expectations were not high. They started strongly, winning their first 10 games, then experienced a slight late-season blip.
However, a match against Page Park in mid-August not only secured promotion but also made them league champions with a game to spare. Skipper Andy Abraham did a great job of bringing together a team of existing and new members, with six new players making their debuts during the season.
On the final Thursday, our B and C teams were playing at home whilst our A team travelled to Knowle, needing one point to gain promotion.
Before the game, our side was second in the league on 100 points, with Knowle third with 91 points. With two sides being promoted and 10 points at stake, there was everything to play for.
The team returned to Keynsham after the game having won on two rinks, drawing 51-51 on shots and picking up six points. Promotion was assured and our photo shows the A and C team players in the clubhouse celebrating.
The A team captain, Geoff Yorath, thanked all those who had played during the season, not least those who came in to play when others were absent.
Next season our A team will be playing in division 1, and our C team will join our B team in division 3.
With the leagues coming to a finish, activity on the green centred on club competitions. Our ladies played one another in the 2 woods, and Jan Iles and Maggie Davies became the winners, to face each other on our finals weekend.
The men took to the green to compete in their triples competition, resulting in Ken Gaull, Geoff Yorath and Steve Palfrey waiting to do battle with Brian Pearce, Andy Abraham and Roger Palmer in the final.
The annual Tom Pells Cup resulted in the team of Jan Isles, Jennie Crockford, Graham Cavill and Paul Matthews picking up the trophy.
Mike Barrow
FRY’S BOWLING CLUB
Bristol and District League:
Victoria Park made a successful trip to Fry’s as Fry’s threw away another good position. Fry’s held a lead heading into the final quarter, but with all rinks dropping 6 in quick succession, the game swung in Victoria Park’s favour and with Fry’s unable to recover, they only took 2 points from the 51-58 defeat. Fry’s visit to Knowle ‘A’ saw a continuation of the poor run of results. Poor starts on rink 1 and rink 3 set Fry’s behind. Unable to pull back the deficit, Fry’s fell to a 42-68 defeat with no points gained. Fry’s were left in trouble following yet another pointless evening against bottom side Ardagh. A wet night made conditions tricky, with rink 1 struggling, conceding multiple shots on lost ends, and only managing mostly singles when they did win an end. This set the game up for Ardagh with other two rinks tight. Both rinks came down to the final end, with Ardagh taking both rinks and a 52-37 win, leaving Fry’s in a precarious situation with Fry’s only having one game left.
Scores:
25th July: Fry’s 51-58 Victoria Park (Bristol); Rink 1: 22-20; Rink 2: 15-21; Rink 3: 14-17; (2-8)
1st August: Fry’s 42-68 Knowle ‘A’; Rink 1: 13-19; Rink 2: 13-25; Rink 3: 14-24; (0-10)
8th August: Fry’s 37-52 Ardagh; Rink 1: 12-25; Rink 2: 11-12; Rink 3: 14-15; (0-10).
Friday Triples League:
The latest game in the Triples League saw Avonvale travel to Fry’s. A good day for the home side saw two rinks record victory. Avonvale took a comfortable win on the third rink, but this was not enough to overcome the deficit as Fry’s took a 47-40 win along with 10 points.
Scores:
9th August: Fry’s 47-40 Avonvale; Rink 1: 20-8; Rink 2: 17-10; Rink 3: 11-22; (10-2).
Cups:
The annual Alsop Shield match against Keynsham took place at Fry’s, with Fry’s hoping to regain the shield that Keynsham won last year. The game started well for Fry’s with 3 rinks pulling out a lead at the halfway stage. Keynsham fought back with some big counts, with rink 2 and 3 taking a lead, which would briefly give Keynsham the overall lead, only for Fry’s to edge away again. As the game neared a conclusion, Fry’s would pull way again with some big counts, with rink 3 coming to back to record a win, which saw Fry’s wrap up a 95-75 win to regain the Alsop Shield.
In the Triples League Cup, after receiving a bye through the semi-final, Fry’s could not repeat last year’s success as Severn Vale would book their place in the final.
Scores:
26th July: Fry’s 95-75 Keynsham; Rink 1: 29-9; Rink 2: 26-16; Rink 3: 26-25; Rink 4: 14-25.