Club News
Well done you Reds - Champions
Potten End Bowls Club is lucky to have three Vets sides in the Watford & District League. Playing most Tuesdays home and away throughout the season our Red Team has come out as champions of League 3 and have gained promotion to League 2 for 2026 where they will be battling for bragging rights over our Blue Team.
Red Team:
Back Row L-R: Barry Drake, Terry Mitchell, Jon Mitchell, Eddie Rochford
Front Row L- R: Tony Dyde, Keith Newman, Chris Halls (capt), Ken Miller, Bill Marsh
Missing: Keith Gissing
Matches: Played 16 won 14 lost 2 .
Watford won 33-24 won 47-19
Garston won 41-26 lost 27-30
Chesham Green won 48-22 won 44-23
Nth Watford won 41- 25 won 36 - 22
Bushey Red lost 34- 41 won 45 - 24
Chesham Red won 37- 21 won 45 -24
Batchwood Yellow won 29 -26 won 33-30
Broadway won 41 -25 won 32 -24.
Fred Hawley Cup
The last Sunday of August saw a glimmer of sun and a change in the weather.
It did however see a fabulous day of bowling in our Annual internal competition with 36 participants and a waiting list.
The day saw the competitord draw cards and teams and then play three lots of 6 ends. The player with the highest score in their 3 matches is then the victor.
So well done to Ken Miller who can been seen accepting his prize from Zena Hawley who is kind enough to attend and present on behalf of her family every year.
Well done to Alan Jones our longest playing member for winning the spider, clearly years of practice.
The day was a great success summed up by our captain Chris Halls:
'Well done to everybody today for making today the best internal comp of the season' .
Title defence
It is rare for teams to win back to back finals or league titles and sadly that was the case when our Lionesses defended their title at Bushey Bowls Club in the Watford & District ladies pairs final.
The match, Croxley Guild v Potten End was an exact copy of the participants for the 2024 semi final in the same competition. On that occasion Potten End come out as victors, on this occasion they came across a very determined Julie and Avril. The Croxley Ladies both played extremely well with Julie playing a blinder. This was Julie's last Watford & District game and we wish her well as she moves back to her beloved Devon.
Coral and Lesley were a little disappointed, however keen to give it another go in 2026 and so pleased they had been able to defend their title and reach the final.
This year they will both be going to the presentation luncheon, something they missed together in 2024.
Well done ladies!!
Onto the Final
Congratultions to Coral and Lesley, winning the Watford and District semi finals in the Ladies Pairs. The current champions had a very close game with Met Bushey to come out victors on the day and whilst seemingly calm the supporters were on edge from the halfway mark.
They are now due to play Croxley Guild in the final at Bushey on Saturday 23rd August.
Their route to the final:
Round 1 v Herts Joanne Sculley & Mel Obee won 14-12 home
Round 2 v Berkhamsted Kay Lingwood & Alison Maddison won 15-9 home
Round 3 v Croxley Guild Claire Roffe & Virginia Rogers won 26-6 home
Round 4 v Herts Tessa Miles & Alison Hurst won18-17 away
Semi Final v Metro Bushey Ann Dix & Cathy Stamp won 21-20 at Herts.
Fingers crossed for next week for our two lovely ladies Mighty Mouse and the Toucan
Maurice Godden Plate
A fabulous Wednesday saw Ashridge GC V Berkhamsted GC play for the 2nd year for the Maurice Godden Plate.
Maurice has been a member of Ashridge for some 52 years, serving as captain, president and at Potten End for a little less but has again given up his time as chairman.
The aim of the day is of course to have fun and a bit of friendly competition and banter and to raise some money for charity.
This year was no exception beating last years total and raising £980 for The Hospice of St Francis.
Well done to the Potten End members who set up the green, oversaw bowling techniques and then provided a wonderful post match meal and atmosphere.
The winner on the day was Berkhamsted with Captain Greg receiving the plate from Maurice. It is now 1-1 in the series so we look forward to 2026.
What a great turnout
It's sunny, Sunday and August so must be the time for the ladies to see who will be crowned the top triples team of 2025.
Our ladies section has 28 playing members and with 15 attending this made for 5 teams of 3 and a round robin competition.
Lesley the ladies captain and her vice captain Rita organised the day with I am informed lots of chat and laughter.
The five skips were chosen but those playing 1 & 2 were out of the hat.
The winning team, not losing any games was Janice, Janet (head coach) and new bowler Chrissie.
It should be noted that all our three internal triple winning teams in 2025 (Mixed, men's and ladies) have had a coach in their line up.
Commiserations to the runners up Karen, Rita Daly and again new bowler Rita Drew, but we hope to see you alll at the presentation evening in October.
Now That's What I call a Gala
A sunny Saturday saw Potten End Bowls Club hold its annual mixed rink Gala.
- £500 Prize Money
- 16 Teams
- Lunch
- Blue Skies
- Cakes galore
- Endless raffle Prizes
- Laughs & Fun
- and not to forget the bowls
Congratulations to Blind Squirells Bushey who walked away top of the pile with £300 prize money. Thanks to Willow Financial Planning for their generosity in sponsoring the event.
Messages have already been received from other clubs such as Dunstable and Oxhey who thanked us for a wonderful day which was run so efficiently.
The day was organised by members Linda and Rob who were supported by a small army of club members assisting, selling, organising and umpiring. Well done to everyone and more photos can be found under about us/2025/gala on the website. There was also a little time to raise some cash for the Hospice.
If you want to book your team into the 2026 Gala please e mail your details to:
eatoncarol99@yahoo.com we will sell out fast.
Men's Triples
The first Sunday in August of an extremely busy bowls season saw 10 teams battle it out to become the mens triples champions of 2025.
The outstanding team of the day winning all their games was
Bill Marsh, Terry Grogan and coach Steve Weston.
We look forward to seeing you guys at the presentation evening on 24th October.
A fond farewell
What a wonderful send off.
Sheila and Alan Howling have been staunch members of the club, with Sheila joining in 2004 and Alan a year later.
This inspirational couple have put their heart and soul into the club for over 20 years. Sheila has alaways been integral to the running of the club having served as Vice Captain, Captain, membership secretary, assistant secretary and then secretary for 8 years.
Alan not to be outdone has been Captain twice, membership secretary, green team, fixtures secretary, and treasurer a post he held for 7 years and where he started the building renovation fund. He retired from the new clubhouse committee just last month.
Together they ran the Open Days and new bowler training for a number of years and the presentation dinner for 6 years in its current format, as it was previously a dinner/dance.
It was great to see the club packed with about 30 who were playing the Friday Night Aggregate aswell as a further 30+ who simply came to wish them well. Annie provided a lovely tribute and presented gifts to a couple who could answer any query on club related matters and have been more than integral in keeping the club going.
Alan continues as a Honorary member and we look forward to catching up with them again in October.
We wish them a wonderful new start close to family in Cambridgeshire and know they will soon be playing bowls locally and probably getting involved yet again.
Our 1st team winners
Our first internal trophy for the 2025 season was won on Saturday when a group of 8 teams played in two leagues for the Mixed Triples Trophy.
The winner in each leaguee then played off for thr trophy.
Congratulations to Karen, John and Keith shown here being presented with the trophy by our Vice Captain and organiser for the day John.
Well done one and all for a great sporting day and particular mention for Keith as this is the third year in a row he has won.
Golfers enjoying the sun
The annual Clique V Clique in Waiting (CIW) bowls match took place on a wonderful sunny afternoon.
The two teams are from Berkhamsted Golf Club and are seperate roll up groups who come to the club on an annual basis to see who will then play Ashridge GC for the Maurice Godden Plate in August.
The afternoon starts with a bit of coaching and practise followed by the competition with fixed short and long jacks. Each team is made up of four sets of triples, so 24 players in all.
This year there were a number of winners, the CIW who will now play Ashrdidge, PEBC for hosting the event and most importantly local charities for which £295 was raised.
Well done one and all.
Well done Keith
Volunteers at the ready - sign up now
The picture is of our member Keith Gissing volunteering in 2024 at the Aviva National Finals
For those wishing to volunteer the season has many opportunities and of course many rewards. The following events are at Leamington the Wimbledon of Bowls.
British Bowls Para Series requires volunteers between 27th and 29th June 2025
We are asking for volunteer support in the following roles:
• Tournament Office
• Wheelchair pushers
• Collecting bowls for players with limited mobility
• Scoreboard turners
• Spectator services including meet and greet, ticketing (free to enter but spectators must register for tickets), wayfinding, programme distribution and the giant hands will be making a return for the high-fiving!!
The Aviva National Bowls Finals are just around the corner, with nine weeks to go, and we are still on the lookout for volunteers to fill a range of roles at this year's event!
Darren Butler | 07767 423604 | volunteering@bowlsengland.com
Open Days 2025
Congratulatiosn to our membership secretary Sue who organised our three Open Days for 2025. Sue was assisted by many members but a special thnk you goes to Brendan and Janet for their efforts.
The three days attracted some 48 visitors despite the weather not being great. To date we have 17 new playing members and 6 additional non playing members of all standards. We were extremely pleased to have Rhys come and join us at just 15 and we wish him and everyone else a great future at the club.
Each new member will now be partnered with a mentor, is able to attend beginners coaching sessions and try out various types of bowls before they take the plunge purchasing their own. We look forward to seeing our new members taking part in our club nights, friendly matches and of course internal competitions if and when they feel ready.
The Open days also allow us to take our annual members photgraph which is attached and will hang above the bar.
Gold Medal Winner
Our Saturday Open Day saw gold medal winner Andrew Briden visit the club to assist with our prospective new bowlers.
Andrew won his gold medal at the European Championships 2024 representing England in the triples.
He was soon found on the green, coaching our new bowler Rhys and giving tips and insights into his career to both members and potential newcomers to the sport.
Andrew has now informed us he will be back in the future to run some more coaching sessions.
We wish him well for the season.
More than just a puddle
The driveway to the club has been transformed over the past two winters.
In 2024 the maintenance team took on the hedges and widened the path/driveway and even got to grips with having a tree at the entrance to the drive removed.
This meant the drive was now wide enough for an ambulance to get into the club and cars were not scratched by the foliage.
The last two years however have seen much heavier and shorter bursts of rain and the ruts in the driveway seemed to be permanent puddles. (see photos/2025/maintenance for the before and after pictures).
Then thanks to a grant from Herts County Council and local councillor Terry Douris the club was able to undertake important maintenance work. So whether your a hiker using the footpath or simply coming to the club you no longer need wellies or webbed feet.
What a team
The maintenance team have been hard at it all winter.
Not only have they continued with the normal maintenace, they also decided to tackle the out of control 20 foot high hedge. The hedge was causing all sorts of problems, not only was debris falling onto the green, the thick foliage stopped the natural flow of air. This meant that end of the green was always wetter, which inturn caused more moss to grow.
The guys tackled a bit at a time and were mindful of scaring the horses in the field whilst maintaining the privacy for the tenants who rent the land.
The result is outstanding providing a much improved vista for those visitng the club and watching the bowling aswell as those participating. It now means that the evening sun will stay with us much longer.
Edward the landlord was extremely pleased with the efforts and kindly gave the team an evening out on him as well as a donation to the club.
Well done one and all.
Pairs Winners
A thrilling evening of darts saw the winter timetable draw to a close.
The final game saw mother (Janice) and son verses reigning champ Paula Gillings and partner John Callaghan.
Paula retained her title for 2025 and I am sure will be first on the hockey when the closed season starts agin in October.
Well done yet again to Dougie for organising the darts, prizes weekly raffles and for John on the final evening sorting out the chippy!
The club looks forward to plenty more fun and laughs on a Friday when the nights draw in.
The Bob Simpson Classic!
Congratulations go to our first table Tennis winner at PEBC.
Carol pipped both John Callaghan and John Cahilane in the final.
The prize a bottle of Jamiesons was kindly donated by our Chair Bob Simpson and presented by Doug Howard who singlehandedly set up the new social event and ensured the purchase of a table.
Carol when interviewed confirmed the game had been run over several weeks and involved getting the table tennis balls into cups with different points values. All three finalists were on 300.
Table Tennis now continues on Thursday evenings.
Bezerk - No just madness!!
Potten End continued with their regular social entertainment evening's.
Members and guests welcomed Bella Beserk a unique Drag Act with 12 costume changes from Britney Spears to Marilyn Monroe, Tina Turner and beyond.
A fun sing along ensued with both stand up and visual humour. Along the way there were plenty of twists and turns as well as loads of laughter.
This was certainly NO Danny Larue.
The next act is now booked for a night of singing with tribute acts. We are again limited to 60 seats and like our April event I am sure this will sell out quickly.
Short back and sides
The maintenance team have started off 2025 with a bang!! or maybe more of a buzz.
Lead by Bill the team has got stuck into the hedge on the footpath clearing back and preventing debris landing on the green.
The team are now going to cut the hedge down to a height of 10 feet which will not only mean the green gets more sunlight later in the day but also that the air will circulate more.
A great job one and all!
Digging Deep
The Hospice of St Francis provides assistance and care to over 2000, patients and famalies per annum. To do this they require £6 million of which 80% is fundraising from the local community.
In 2023 PEBC managed to raise £1,130.00p for the hospice, this year we smashed that figure with a whopping £1,604.00p
Massive thanks to everyone at the club inparticular those who have supported us throughout the year and others like Ashridge and Berkhamsted Golf Clubs who donated wonderful auction prizes.
In November 2024, the club started its own Centenary Legacy Fund raising monies to rebuild /refurbish the clubhouse. If you can assist in any way with this new fund please contact secretary@pottenendbowlsclub.org