Bowling News
Have you ever heard of a version of bowling known as Roving Cot? Well it is alive and kicking in Thorpe Green. I am grateful to Alan Hobson for sharing this gem with us. Yes, I know that the accompanying picture is of a lawn bowls jack (or is it a snooker ball?) and there is a good reason for that, Alan picks up the story ....
Anyone who is interested in the history and development of bowls will find the book, “Bowled Over” by Hugh Hornby to be a fascinating read. In that book a version of bowls known as ”roving cot” is described. Indeed there are several versions of it described. This is a game still being played in Norfolk mainly in the Norwich area and in Worcestershire in the Kidderminster area.
A “cot” is the traditional term used in Norfolk to describe what we would call a jack or block (a Scottish term). In roving cot a flat green jack is used but the game is usually, but not always, played on a crown green and so the cot can “rove” all over the green unlike in flat green bowls and hence the name “roving cot.” However, unlike a crown green jack, a flat green jack has no bias to it and so the skill comes in reading the green as there is little to no help from the line of the jack. So to play roving cot you need a flat green jack. If you wish to be very careful with your money you could use a pool ball!
For scoring, it seemed appropriate to use the system described by King Charles the Second (apparently a very keen bowler) in 1670. In this a game is the best of three sets with each set or “rubber” to use Charles’s term, consisting of five, seven or nine points. We play to seven.
In order to score a bowl must finish within four feet of the cot. To judge this we have a stick that is four feet in length. The stick also is marked at one-foot intervals. This allows for a handicap system, if we wish, whereby different bowlers have to get the bowl to within different distances of the cot for their bowl to count.
Any bowl within four feet of the cot counts so that more than one player can score on any end. Score counting bowls in the order of those nearest to the cot first to determine how many points a player has obtained on an end. This can be important for determining which bowler reaches seven points first.
In any case of uncertainty remember and apply the motto of the Old English Bowling Association, “Biased woods for unbiased players.”
My thanks to Hugh Hornby, King Charles the Second and to David Frost and Dave McClean at Thorpe Green for the development of the Thorpe Green version of roving cot.
Its bowling Jim but not as we know it!
As Alan explained the Roving Cot version of bowls is covered in more detail in the excellent book 'Bowled Over' by Hugh Hornby. I have mentioned this book previously in these postings and I can recommend it to any keen bowler or historian. It covers many versions of bowls, primarily lawn bowls but the articles about many of the clubs makes excellent reading. It costs £10 including postage and is available here. Drop hints to the family about someone getting you a copy for Christmas, you won't be disappointed.
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