Forecast your Division 3 winners & losers

Winter League

Just to confirm that we are now offering a £50 Well Bowled Sales Voucher to the winner of our new Forecast Game for the Winter League season. All the details below.

Today we are looking at each of the 8 teams in Division 3, assessing their chances of topping the table or tumbling down a level. It is now less than a week until the Division 3 fixtures are underway at Springwood and just six days for you to complete the Division 3 entry form which is below.

To all those entering the competition I must emphasise that to have a chance of winning it you really must enter all 10 of the Division Forecast Games. It is your total score that goes forward to the total table, which determines your position in the table. Today we provide all the Division 3 guidance you need to select your Division 3 title winners and relegation losers. If you have missed some of the division competitions then here they all are. Click on the links, read the preview, select your winners and losers and add them to the entry form. If you can't remember which divisions you are missing, just do them all and your latest entry from each division will be the one added to your full entry.

Division 6 Division 7 Division 8 Division 9    Division 10

Division 5 Preview

Let's start with looking at last year's end-of-season Division 3 table and the 2026-27 line-up.

The Pts Column shows the number of points won last season

Mirfield Old Bank had a good first season in the Winter League as they ended up as the Division 5 Champions just 2 points ahead of Mirfield CBC (Community Bowling Club). They were rewarded with a helping hand up the tables with a two-division jump into Division 3. There may still be more in the tank as they will continue to look upwards but there are some formidable opponents lining up against them this term. One of them will undoubtedly be Milnsbridge A who suffered relegation from Division 2 after losing 4 of their final 5 fixtures as Meltham were propelled in the opposite direction after winning 6 of their last 9 matches to escape relegation on the final day of the season.

Coming down with the Milnsbridge team are Lowerhouses B after one season in Division 2. They were promoted from Division 3 at the conclusion of the 2024-25 season after finishing 3rd in the table as the Champions, Denby Dale, declined promotion. They can expect to return to a high mid-table Division 3 position, if not better.

With the withdrawal of the Primrose Hill Lib green as a host for Winter League matches it opens the way for the club's team to accept promotion after finishing second in the Division 4 table last season. However this will be the first season in the Winter League that they will not be playing on their own green so it is a case of seeing how quickly they can adapt their game to the bigger green. They come up along with Elland WMC who lifted the Division 4 title for a second successive promotion after taking 2nd place in Division 5 the previous season, which was their first in the League. It would be no surprise to see them amongst the title front-runners again this year.

Only three teams that were in Division 3 last season appear again this time around. Only four-points separated these four teams so a case could be made for all three to feature higher this season. Of the three Lockwood Con A are making it their fifth consecutive season bowling on the Springwood green, so that will be a big advantage, especially in the opening weeks as they come up against all the new boys to the green.

Almondbury BC B were the Division 6 Champions in 2024-25 with a massive 100 points accumulated. That achievement was rewarded with a three-division leap to Division 3 where they consolidated their position last season. A poor run of three straight defeats in which they only collected 2 points from their last three fixtures prevented a bigger final total which resulted in them missing promotion by 4 points. All the signs are that they will launch another attack on the promotion places this year, even better prepared and a major threat to any other contender.

Lindley Lib B are the third of the three mid-table teams still in Division 3 and if last season was about steadying the rocking boat after relegation from Division 2 then that was mission accomplished and it is all about moving upwards this season to reclaim higher standing.

In case you missed the previous entry forms you can still find them online along with the pre-season look at each team's chances. Follow these links. Division 6 Division 7 Division 8    Division 9    Division 10

Coming Next: The Division 5 Forecast Game

Entries are open until the day before the Division 3 opening round of fixtures are scheduled. Entries are only welcome from bowlers in the Winter League.

My two tips for the Division 3 title and to be relegated have already been entered using the form below.

So what are your top and bottom selections? ENTER NOW

Submit your best guess for both top and bottom and then Click on 'see previous responses' to see all the previous best guesses submitted so far.

If you hit any problems using this entry form then try this link direct to the online option