Life without Winter Bowling

Winter League

What would a world be like without crown green bowling? What would a world be like without Winter bowling?

Best not to think about such things but to just get on and do our best to preserve both seasons of bowling for future generations.

The biggest threat to bowling seems to me to be the threat of bowling clubs closing down. In recent years we have lost local greens at Newsome, Paddock Cricket, Milnsbridge Liberal, Greenhead Park and Canalside, it may be more than that. Is Jackson Bridge still in use? The Winter months are particularly hard on bowling clubs with reduced, or no, footfall and few cash raising opportunities and reduced club activity.

I know of many clubs that are very dependent of one or two key individuals keeping their clubs alive. The same can be said of some league competitions. Yet it seems to me that there are some leagues that just exist to raise money to cover honorarium fees for officials or to pay prize money out for team or individual playing achievements. I really do believe that some of these honoraria payments peaked with the earlier increase in team numbers and have never reflected the reduced membership that is more the normal nowadays.

Some leagues don't pay honoraria payments to officials at all. The Winter League is one of those. We also don't pay out any prize money for team successes or individual achievements either. Teams joining the League must appreciate that we are never going to pay them to play by offering cash incentives to win team or individual competitions. There are more important issues at stake here other than taking money out of the bowling world. It is also true that we also didn't start up the League to subsidise bowling clubs over barren days. It was initially all about extending the bowling season for the real enthusiasts to have that outlet. Things have changed as we quickly realised, and concentrated on, two other aspects which have become more important than the single reason excuse to form the League in the first place. They are the money-raising opportunities that have come for clubs to subsidise the Summer season activities and there is also the social impact that has become apparent as the League developed into a different beast to the one originally envisaged. Lets look at both in more detail.

It quickly became clear in the first season of the League (2020) that this could become a real money-generating move for clubs over the Winter months. We started with two clubs providing host green services - Milnsbridge BC and Springwood BC. Two very different clubs. Milnsbridge had a proper bar whereas Springwood had become a draught beer-free zone relying on cans and bottles to serve their members and guests. Springwood didn't have a life outside of the Summer season whereas Milnsbridge had socials events scheduled throughout the year and satelitte TV services to entice the sports fans into the club over the Winter months.

Springwood club officials have told me that the income generated over that first season of Winter bowling saved the club from closing down. Membership increased as bowlers were attracted to an all-year-round facility. They have not been the only saved club and that continues to be the case with some of the host clubs today. Even those that weren't in danger of closing have found that the extra income has provided bowling green machinery that the club could never have afforded without this cash injection.

But it is not just the financial welfare of the club that has benefited from the introduction of Winter bowling. There has been a side effect that we never saw coming and figures highly on our reasons to keep going and keep expanding. The social impact of bowlers and individuals getting out and about and visiting local bowling clubs has produced a community of, what some would call, bowling stalkers!

There are those who walk down the road or travel a long way to join in the weekly fix of bowling action and camaraderie. There are bowling fans that turn up each week at a particular venue to join in the banter and discussions and there are those that turn up to two or three of the bowling days at different venues. Many of them come along for a hot lunch at non-High Street prices or non-small portion sizes with fancy but irrelevant names. Give me the Milnsbridge stew in such generous portions or the home-made Springwood soup that borders on becoming a stew.

But it is not only the food that attracts the 'stalkers' it is the social interaction that cannot be priced up. It really hit me one day when a gentleman I didn't know made a point of searching me out at one host green specifically to thank me for my contribution to getting the League established. He told me that he dreaded the loneliness of Winter. He said that he would go days without talking to anyone all day and would end up like so many others do of being stuck inside talking to the television all day. Now he gets out to watch bowling 2 or 3 times a week, gets his lunch and has made a new number of friends just by attending a Winter League bowling day.

Then there is John from Barnsley who drives over to watch matches twice a week and to thank me every time I see him for the Winter League. Then Graham from New Mill who I will find greenside once or twice a week every week and makes a point of shaking me by the hand each time and asking for updates on developments in the League every time. It is really heart-warming to get that feedback. It wasn't even my idea in the first place. It was Tony Lockwood who bullied me into forming the League over an 18-month period of setbacks during which I would have given up long ago except for his determination to get the League up and running.

Some clubs now rely on that additional income to keep their club running all the year. Nearly all the clubs that offered to become host clubs did so because they needed the extra income to keep their club alive. That alone is good enough reason to keep the League going and capable of more expansion. To do both requires host clubs to offer their facilities for three hours a week for 14 weeks from October to February. In return we expect them to make between £3,500 and £6,000 profit to spend as they wish. We estimate that the 9 host clubs will produce a total of around £35,000 going directly to clubs this season That is new money staying within bowling. Not feeding the call for prize money but going direct to a more needy cause and one that stands a chance of supporting local bowling for many years to come.

We now need at least two more new host greens for the 2026-27 season. Any club or individual interested in learning what is involved is welcome to join us for an Open Day at Netherton Cons on Thursday this week (13th). This will include a 30-minute presentation on what hosting a Winter League season entails and what the benefits, financial and social, will be. No booking required. Just turn up at Netherton on a Winter League match day to savour the atmosphere evident around the green. The kettle will be on and we are pushing the boat out with chocolate biscuits and maybe even some fig rolls. The bar might even be open. The session will also be of interest to any club considering putting a team in the League next season. We look forward to you joining us then. You will be most welcome.

More details about the Open Day can be found here.