Dear members,
It is an honour and privilege to serve as President of the Suffolk County Women`s Bowls Association. I extend my sincere thanks for the trust and support you have shown during my Junior and President Elect years.
As we look ahead to another exciting year of bowls, I am reminded of the strength and dedication, and sportsmanship that define our association. Whether you are a long-standing member or new to the game, I hope this year brings you enjoyment, camaraderie, and success on and off the green or rink.
I look forward to meeting many of you throughout the year and celebrating the achievements and spirt that make our county so special. Let us continue to support each other and work together to promote and grow this wonderful game of bowls.
Wish you all a fulfilling and enjoyable year.
Warm regards,
Lesley Dyer, SCWBA President 2026.
By WebsiteCoordinator 22/10/26 0 comments
As we found last year, the Claydon Hotel was a welcoming destination. A delicious meal, presided over by SCWBA President Lesley Dyer, accompanied by Gayle Hart. There were no other official guests this year and overall fewer members attended. Following the meal, Lesley toasted the King and Tracy Webb, Junior President, proposed a toast to our guest. We were pleased to hear from Lesley that she had thoroughly enjoyed her Presidency.
Lesley was presented with flowers and a personal present from Daf Fane, President Elect, who was unable to attend the event.
President Lesley, Tracy and Sue Bryenton-Rochard, County Finals Co-ordinator, then presented the cups to the County competition winners. Area D players were presented with their badges and swingers for winning the Ellen Matthews. Lesley was presented with the Presidents Shield won on her Presidents Day
A very enjoyable event closed with the raffle, organised by Treasurer, Sally Smith, which raised 195 pounds for SCWBA funds. Our grateful thanks also go to luncheon organiser, Chloe Webb assisted by Mum, Tracy.
By WebsiteCoordinator 24/09/26 0 comments
Contact your Area Secretary to book a place. Last date is Monday 28th September!
By WebsiteCoordinator 03/06/26 0 comments
Entry forms for the 2026/2027 Indoor Competitions are now available below. The closing date for competition entries is 1st October 2026 .
For Singles competitions Click Here.
For Pairs and Rinks Click Here.
Donna Mills, Two Bowl Singles
Ann Lilley, Ixworth BC, Semi-finalist in the Senior Singles
Georgie Watson-Sharp, Stone Lodge BC, Finalist in the Under 25 Singles
Elaine Peck and Amy Finch, Pairs
Suzanne Deeves and Angela Mondon, Senior Pairs
Paula Gooch in the Mixed Pairs
Elizabeth De Vere Packford, Senior Mixed Pairs
Mandy Payne, June Alderton and Emma Last in the 2 Bowl Rinks
100 Years Celebratory Dinner
By WebsiteCoordinator 09/09/26 0 comments
For a photo gallery of ladies at the championships Please Click Here
The National Finals this year marked 100 years of the English Bowling Federation, covering 13 Counties of England. A celebratory dinner was held on Monday night, excellently organised by Paula Gooch, the EWBF Honorary Secretary. The quality of the bowling during the week largely complemented this celebration, although the greens at Skegness were found to be as problematic as ever. Fine weather early in the week unfortunately gave way to stormy showers on Thursday and Friday giving the bowlers difficult conditions to contend with as later rounds were played.
The lady competitors from Suffolk experienced the usual mix of triumph and disappointment, but all had done very well to reach the Finals and gave their best in representing their County.
Singles Competitions:
Donna Mills (Stone Lodge) made a strong start in the Two Bowl Singles against a Norfolk competitor, winning 21 shots to 10. However, in the second round, played later in the day, Donna was unable to find the lines and was overcome by her opponent from Lincolnshire who played strongly to win the match.
Suffolk was represented by Mandy Payne (Laxfield) in the Four Bowl Singles. Playing steadily, Mandy was initially a match her Northumberland opponent, but was unable to keep up in the later stages of the game and lost 21-13.
Ann Lilley (Ixworth) had an excellent run in the Senior Singles. In the first round, against North Essex, play started off evenly, with both players experiencing stronger phases in the game, but Ann pulled away to finish with a 21-16 win. The rink was a challenge for both players in the second round. The Derbyshire player kept up with Ann until the last few ends in which Ann found the green more accurately, with a 21-17 win seeing her into the semi-final. There was a delayed start to the semi-final against the Humberside player, but both players initially played evenly and skilfully, with the lead changing hands frequently. Unfortunately, a sharp storm hit when Ann was three shots behind and play was suspended. Ann`s opponent was better able to cope with the changed conditions when the match resumed and the concluding score was 21-13 to Humberside.
The Secretaries Singles competition commenced for Gillian Lamprey (Lowestoft Railway) with a second round match on Thursday. Gill went into an early lead in a match punctuated by halts for thunder storms. However, her opponent from Nottinghamshire managed the conditions better and pulled well ahead. A spirited comeback by Gill was sadly not enough and a loss by 21 shots to 17 resulted.
The Suffolk representative in the Champion of Champions was Jemimah Andrew-Smith (Framlingham). In a strongly-contended match against Durham, Jemimah played well on a very tricky rink, but was overcome in the later ends to lose 17-21.
The most successful campaign for a Suffolk lady saw Georgie Watson-Sharp (Stone Lodge) progress to the final of the Under 25 Singles. Georgie`s second round entry to the competition against Humberside proved to be a game of skilful play and excitement for the Suffolk supporters. It was a very level game throughout and it appeared that her opponent had been let off the hook when Georgie wasn`t able to close the match at 19-16. However, with the match poised at 19-20, she played two bowls close to the jack that couldn`t be matched and won 21-20. The rain-affected semi-final was shortened to a 17 shot win. This was a high-quality match from the start against Norfolk, with skilful play from both competitors. In the later stages, Georgie raised her game further and progressed to the final 17 shots to 13 ahead.
The weather improved for the Under 25s final on Saturday morning. After a strong start by Georgie, her Derbyshire opponent pulled back and was three shots ahead when Georgie fought back to 13-12 up. Strong play by the Derbyshire player took her to 17-14 up, but Georgie again pulled back and found herself at 18-17 ahead. At 19-17 Georgie was in a strong position, but her opponent won two shots to draw level in a nervy end when neither player was close. Sadly for Georgie and her supporters, the experienced Derbyshire player focused her nerves to gain another two shots on the last end and the Final concluded 21 shots to 19.
Pairs Competitions:
In the Pairs competition Elaine Peck and Amy Finch (Wenhaston) had a bye in the first-round bye and had to wait until Thursday morning for their second-round match against North Essex. While their opponents struggled to find the green, Elaine and Amy got off to a very strong start and were 13-2 up at 9 ends. In their next end they scored a 4 and went into an unassailable lead, progressing to the semi-final with a 21-8 win. Unfortunately, Friday brought a change in their fortunes. Against a strong pairing from Nottinghamshire, Elaine and Amy struggled with the rink and rapidly fell behind, ultimately losing by 27 shots to 6.
Angela Mondon and Suzanne Deeves, playing in the Senior Pairs, found their Northumberland opponents challenging. Although 16-13 up after the 19th end, the Suffolk pairing found themselves struggling to finish the game. An extra end was played in which Angie drew a shot right onto the jack, joined closely by a wood from Suzanne to secure a win by two shots, 18-16. Playing again later in the day, the ladies from Old Newton got off to a slow start. Changing over worked well for them, but proved too late and they went out of the competition 22-17.
Suffolk was represented in the Mixed Pairs by Paula Gooch and Andrew Burch (Wrentham). Although Paula and Andrew played a steady game in their first-round match, they were behind by 4 shots by the 17th end. However, a three, featuring superb play by Paula as skip, changed the mood and was followed by another three to bring them to 17-15 up after 19 ends. One shot dropped at end 20 increased the pressure, but our pairing sealed the match at 18-16 with a winning shot by Paula. In the second round Paula and Andrew got off to a strong start and were 12-10 up at 16 ends. Although level at 18 ends, they were not able to take their opportunities to progress to the semi-final.
The Suffolk bowlers in the Senior Mixed Pairs were Elizabeth De Vere Packford and Ian Parker (Peasenhall). Against Derbyshire they played a steady game and found themselves at 19-17 with two ends to play. A further three shots took them to a 22-17 win. On Wednesday morning their round two match against Nottinghamshire progressed well and they were two shots up at 13 ends. Unfortunately, their Championship hopes faded when the opposing skip found the green in the later ends and they lost by just one shot, 21-20.
Rinks Competitions:
The triple from Laxfield, June Alderton, Emma Last and Mandy Payne (Laxfield) took time getting into their first-round 2 Bowl Rinks match against Cleveland. However, they took the lead mid-way through the game and their skilful play in the later ends secured the match 23-15. Unfortunately, their match the next day proved too much of a challenge against a strong Northumberland triple. They were outplayed throughout the game and swapping positions made no improvement. The final result was a 5-23 loss.
The 3 Bowl Rinks played on Monday was the first match of the week for Suffolk competitors, although actually a second-round match against Durham. Our triple, Joanne Clements, Helen Sharp, and Donna Mills from Stone Lodge initially managed to keep their opponents in check, but due to the loss of an unfortunate three and some chancy wicks by Durham they found themselves well behind. With 6 needed in the final end, Suffolk went further behind and lost by 18 shots to 11.
The National Finals were a new experience for the triple from Haughley, Kim Davis, David Walker and Dean Tricker and their round 1 match against Lincolnshire in the Mixed 2 Bowl Rinks proved to be a challenge. A slow start was improved by changing round and there was a brief spell when the Haughley triple started to come back into the game, but their opponents accuracy overcame their efforts and they went out 22-13.
2 Bowl Singles - Donna Mills, Stone lodge
4 Bowl Singles - Mandy Payne, Laxfield
Under 25`s - Georgie Watson-Sharp, Stone lodge
Secretaries Singles - Gillian Lamprey, Lowestoft Railway
2 Bowl Rinks - Mandy Payne, Emma Last and June Alderton, Laxfield
President Lesley, President Elect Daf, Junior President Tracy and Co. Finals Coordinator Sue
By WebsiteCoordinator 20/08/26 0 comments
The County Finals were held this year at Wenhaston BC, a last-minute change for which the SCWBA is very grateful. Players were very well looked after over the weekend, both with respect to the green and facilities and also the catering provided by the club.
The semi-finals played on Saturday saw many experienced players returning to competition at this level, but, although the quality of the matches played was good, many of the matches were rather one-sided. However, an exceptional match was played between Gill Lamprey and Kylie Smith in the Secretaries Singles, won by Gill 21-20 and both semi-finals of the 3 bowl rinks were won by just one shot
The results of the finals are shown under `Competitions – County Finals`.
The stand-out match of the day, and certainly one of the closest and most skilful matches of the finals, was played by our Under 25 competitors. After 31 ends the players were level at 20 -20, but, in a very close last end, Georgie Watson-Sharp clinched the match against a talented young player, N. Drummond.
Mandy Payne and Joanne Clements had a close match in the 4 Bowl Singles, with Mandy coming out the winner by 21 shots to 19. In the Senior Pairs, last year`s National winners, Elaine Felgate and Jackie Whitlock never settled into the game and lost heavily to Angela Mondon and Suzanne Deeves.
SCWBA ladies also won County Championships in the SCBA mixed competitions:
Mixed Pairs - Paula Gooch and Andrew Burch
Senior Mixed Pairs - L. De Vere Packford and I. Parker
Mixed Rinks - Kim Davis, David Walker and Dean Tricker
Best wishes go to all those representing Suffolk in the EBF/EWBF National Finals week in Skegness, commencing Saturday 22nd August.
Senior Singles - Ann Lilley, Ixworth
Champion of Champions - Jemimah Andrew-Smith, Framlingham Castle
2 Bowl Pairs - Amy Finch and Elaine Peck, Wenhaston
Senior Pairs - Suzanne Deeves and Angela Mondon, Old Newton
3 Bowl Rinks - Helen Sharp, Joanne Clements and Donna Mills
By WebsiteCoordinator 20/08/26 0 comments
Lesley Dyer hosted her President`s Day with her usual friendly enthusiasm. Aided by weather which cleared nicely to give us a warm sunny afternoon, the pleasant surroundings of Blundeston BC welcomed players from across Suffolk. As participants arrived, they were treated to delicious cakes provided by club members and muffins baked by Lesley and Paula.
A fun social game was followed by a spider and a roving jack, organised by Kim Dyer, which was won by Soe Soe Cole.
We then moved into the Village Hall adjacent to the club to enjoy a superb meal organised by Lesley and the club members. Very welcome after the afternoon`s activities, a substantial salad was followed by a variety of delicious puddings.
In recognition of her Presidential year, Lesley was presented with a bottle of Malibu and a matching glass. There were also prizes presented to the winning rinks and numerous gifts from Lesley to those who had helped her during the year.
Of the two raffles on the day, the one organised by Lesley for Sandra Chapman of the cancer treatment centre at James Padget Hospital, raised 410 pounds. The other, for the SCWBA, drawn at the close of play, raised 206 pounds.
By WebsiteCoordinator 30/06/26 0 comments
The County Outdoor finals in 2026 are at Wenhaston Bowls Club on the 4th and 5th of July.
For the program to the semi-finals please Click Here
By WebsiteCoordinator 21/06/26 0 comments
Due to the expected Heat the match has been cancelled. It will only be played, at a later date, if it decides the area winners.
By WebsiteCoordinator 21/06/26 0 comments
By WebsiteCoordinator 03/06/26 0 comments
All Competitors, Officials and Supporters should note that it has been necessary for a variety of reasons to move the location of the SCWBA Semi-finals and Finals over the weekend of Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th July. These competitions will now be held at Wenhaston BC, IP19 9EW, from 9:30am.