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Royal Bowlers Wilt In The Heat - Weds. 1st July 2009
Beaufort B. C. 92 Rhymney Royal B. C. 57
Rhymney Royal bowlers visited table-topping Beaufort on a hot, muggy evening for this West Mon league game and found the form of the home side too hot to handle as they racked up a maximum 14 points in a convincing 35 aggregate shots and 4 rinks to nil triumph.
Beaufort skip Tom Daniel and his men led the way as they overcame the rink of skip K. Bartlett and his bowlers to claim a resounding 28 - 11 success restricting the visitors to just six winning ends during the game. Close on his heels was the home rink of skip Clive Williams in his tussle against Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins and his bowlers. The visitors trailed by just a single shot at 7 - 8 after 7 ends but a series of two shots dropped left the visitors wanting and they succumbed to another 21 - 13 defeat. Beaufort skip Dan Davies (Jnr) and his men set off at a blistering pace against the Royal's JC Evans and his bowlers by building up a 13 - 2 lead after 7 ends. Although the visitors came back into the game in the latter stages they could not close the deficit as the home bowlers registered a 21 - 17 victory. The tightest contest of the evening saw home skip Chris Klefenz and his men battle it out with the Royal's P. Cosh, T. Ryan, R. Withers and D. Lynch with shots difficult to come by in the early stages and the lead frequently changing hands. The home bowlers opened up a 8 - 4 lead after 7 ends only for the visitors to hit a purple patch and themselves establish a 9 - 15 advantage after 12 ends, but a slipshod final few ends saw the visitors drop shots and the home side claim the spoils with a 22 - 16 scoreline giving the Beaufort bowlers a clean sweep of the rinks as they maintain their pole position at the top of the West Mon league.
Sunday Best For Six Bells - Sunday 28th. June 2009
Six Bells B.C. 83 Rhymney Royal B.C. 79
Six Bells bowlers completed a weekend of double successes when they won this rearranged MBA game against the bowlers of Rhymney Royal but they were made to fight hard to secure the win against a determined side who always relish this encounter against old adversaries.
Royal skip K. Bartlett with his rink of D. Hann, W. Dearth and C. O'Brien provided the only success for the visitors in their contest against Barry Line and his bowlers. The visitors had opened up a commanding 9 - 22 lead after 12 ends but the home bowlers pulled back to 17 - 24 before the Royal rink secured a 20 - 28 solitary victory. Six Bells captain and skip Ray "Tinker" Taylor and his rink knew they were in for a close tussle against the visitors of skip P. Cosh, N. James, R. Withers and N. Protheroe. The lead constantly changed hands with the visitors leading 2 - 7 after 6 ends before trailing 12 - 9 after 12 ends before the home rink settled for the two points with a final 17 - 16 score. Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins with I. Prosser, H. Acreman and D. Morgan opened up an early 0 - 9 lead but the home side led by skip Mike Hart clawed their way back into contention to hold at 15 - 14 after 15 ends before they again took the points with a 21 - 18 victory. Home skip Dean Webley and his rink appeared to hold the upper hand throughout against the Royal bowlers led by skip JC Evans. An early 12 - 2 lead was extended to 18 - 12 before the home rink secured a fine 25 - 17 success providing the home side with a narrow 4 shots aggregate win and the 12 league points that go with it.
Royal Bowlers Win Derby Game - Sat. 27th June 2009
Rhymney Gwent B.C. 62 Rhymney Royal B.C. 80
It has been many years since the cohabitants of the War Memorial Park green last met in a league match but, after observing a minute's silence for Armed Forces Day, the contest served up a feast of close fought encounters with very little given by both sides.
The Gwent's Malcolm Siddle and his bowlers stood up to the challenge of the Royal's P. Cosh and his rink by opening up an early lead at 8 - 2 which they extended to 15 - 8 before registering a good 21 - 12 win whilst home skip Keri Denner and his rink fought back well to hold the Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins with KR Evans, young P. Smith and D. Lynch to a creditable draw at 18 - 18. Not so fortunate was the Gwent captain and skip Malcolm Evans and his rink who suffered a collapse over the closing ends against the Royal's K. Bartlett, D. Hann, R. Withers and P. White. The Gwent bowlers were very much in contention at 13 - 14 after 18 ends with lead D. Wilde playing well, but the Royal bowlers piled on the pressure to secure a fine 13 - 21 success. On the final rink Royal skip JC Evans with his rink of T. Ryan, N. Protheroe and D. Morgan were always in front against the Gwent rink skippered by Andrew Wysoczansky. The visitors built up from 6 - 12 to 9 - 17 before securing a comprehensive 10 - 29 success giving the Royal side their second rink success of the afternoon. 11 league points secured in an "away" fixture gave the Royal bowlers a great deal of satisfaction as they aim to consolidate their status in the Monmouthshire B. A. Division 2.
Convincing Win For Royal - Weds. 24th June 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 77 Abertillery B.C. 52
Rarely does any team take maximum points off an Abertillery side but that was what happened when these two MBA Division 2 sides met in a West Mon fixture at the sunny War Memorial Park.
The home side went into the game with confidence high following their Carruthers Shield victory the previous weekend but took a while before they started to make an impression on this game. Indeed, at the half way stage, just two shots was the difference between them. Royal skip P. Cosh with his rink of A. James, P. Smith and C. O'Brien were all square at 8 - 8 against Graham Mason and his bowlers. Likewise home skip K. Bartlett with J. Doyle, W. Dearth and P. White shared the honours at 10 - 10 against Richie Cook's rink. Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins trailed by a single shot against Gethyn Hucker at 7 - 8 whilst skip D. Hann with his rink of T. Ryan, R. Withers and D. Morgan led Abertillery skip Reg Bowdler with a 12 - 9 score. As the game progressed so did the confidence of the home bowlers. Skip A. Jenkins with KR Evans, N. Protheroe and D. Lynch built up a 20 - 9 lead by the 15th end with some accurate woods before securing a comfortable 23 - 13 victory. Similarly skip D. Hann went on to complete the task convincingly at 22 - 12 against Reg Bowdler whilst two close games came to tense conclusions on the other rinks. Royal skip Cosh levelled at 11 - 11 before gaining a 15 - 13 success whilst skip K. Bartlett held on to gain another fine win at 17 - 14 against Richie Cook giving the Royal a clean sweep of the rinks and a 25 shots aggregate victory. The 14 league points also gives the home side a boost before the face a tough few games during the next week.
Royal Bowlers Triumph In Carruthers Shield - Sat. 20th June 2009
Maesteg Welfare B.C. 72 Rhymney Royal B.C. 85
In this 1st. Round WBA Carruthers Shield match the Royal bowlers travelled to the Vale of Glamorgan section winners Maesteg Welfare to battle for a place in the next round of Wales' most prestigious club tournament. Good bowling conditions and a warm welcome awaited them as they set about their formidable task against a side with high expectations.
The opening ends are always tentative as both sides test out the run of the green but the visitors stormed into an early lead on two of the rinks catching their opponents on the hop. Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins with his rink of I. Prosser, KR Evans and C. Patten led Maesteg skip Alan Thomas and his rink by 5 - 13 before the enforced tea break after 9 ends whilst the Royal rink of skip P. Cosh, T. Ryan, A. James and N. Protheroe had also built up an impressive 5 - 15 advantage over the home rink of Phil Davies before the same interval. The break saw Royal skip JC Evans with N. James, R. Withers and D. Lynch level at 7 - 7 against Glan Evans' bowlers whilst visiting skip K. Bartlett trailed 10 - 5 against Shaun Hoare's bowlers. The Royal held a healthy 13 shots lead as they resumed after the break but it really was a tale of two halves as the home side fought back to narrow the difference to just a single shot at one stage. Captain A. Jenkins and his bowlers found themselves all square at 14 - 14 after 15 ends before recovering to win by a single shot at 20 - 21 whilst the Royal's P. Cosh and his rink were level at 19 - 19 entering the last end. The home bowlers put the jack in the ditch and claimed the contest with a 21 - 19 scoreline. The Royal's JC Evans and his men found their form after the break and dominated the second period advancing from 7 - 7 to win comfortably with a 14 - 25 victory. Although trailing by 5 shots on resumption of play, the rink of skip K. Bartlett, D. Hann, W. Dearth and D. Morgan battled strongly over the closing ends to secure the third rink success with a 17 - 20 result giving the visitors a 13 shots aggregate win and a place in the last thirty-two of this premier club tournament.
Close Call For Royal Bowlers - Weds. 17th June 2009
Six Bells B.C. 56 Rhymney Royal B.C. 67
It does not happen very often but it happened in this close fought West Mon league match when Six Bells hosted the Royal bowlers from Rhymney. Three of the four rinks tied with the visitors gaining the all important decisive victory on the remaining rink giving them 11 points out of the possible 14 points on offer.
Royal skip JC Evans with N. James, G. Morris and P. White had that distinction as they overcame the spirited home rink of Barry Paul and his bowlers by 14 - 25 in a game which saw the visitors lead throughout building up from a 5 - 10 early advantage which was extended to 11 - 25 before claiming the 11 shot win. Home skip Gary Heath and his rink kept their noses in front against Royal skip and captain A. Jenkins and his bowlers but a strong finish by the visitors clinched the draw at 14 - 14. The Royal's K. Bartlett with D. Hann, W. Dearth and D. Morgan had a close tussle against Six Bells' skip Mike Hart with shots hard to come by as they fought out a 12 - 12 tie after 18 ends. The final rink was skippered by Dean Webley against the Royal bowlers in what was again a very tight contest. The visitors edged into an early lead at 5 - 6 but the home side responded to gain a 14 - 9 advantage with 3 ends remaining, and with four shots needed on the last end, the visitors duly obliged and evened the match at 16 - 16 bringing the whole game to its unusual outcome of one win and three drawn rinks in Rhymney Royal's favour.
Royal Suffer Home Defeat - Saturday 13th June 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 69 Whiteheads B.C. 99
Newly promoted Rhymney Royal welcomed recently relegated Whiteheads to the sun drenched War Memorial Park for this Monmouthshire B.A. Division 2 fixture and found out just what is needed if the home bowlers are to make any impression in this division this season. Although winning on one rink the Royal bowlers suffered narrow defeats on the other two with the fourth rink capitulating in a 26 shots lose giving the visitors an aggregate 30 shots victory.
Royal skip JC Evans with T.Ryan, W. Dearth and D. Morgan bowled accurately throughout their encounter against M. Strange and his bowlers always having the edge to post a 25 - 18 winning score. Home skip K. Bartlett with his rink of D. Hann, KR Evans and C. Patten were made to battle against Whiteheads N. Berry's rink. The visitors built up an early 4 - 10 lead which was extended to 7 - 17 after 12 ends before the home bowlers came into the match. Despite finishing strongly the home side found the deficit too much and suffered a 17 - 23 reverse. Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins with I. Prosser, R. Withers and J. Doyle held the advantage over the over the opening ends with a 12 - 11 score but they were unable to hold on as K. Richards and his bowlers pressed on to register a 17 - 22 win. The fourth Royal rink found the bowling of Whiteheads' A. Bradford's men too much for them and went down by some 26 shots in their 10 - 36 defeat. The home bowlers picked up a meagre 2 league points in this defeat and know that they will have to raise their game ahead of their Carruthers Shield game next week at Maesteg Celtic.
Royal Well Beaten And Well Eaten In Cup Clash - Friday 5th June 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 47 Cross Keys B.C. 95
Rhymney Royal bowlers welcomed their Division One opponents to the War Memorial Park for this first round MBA Knock-out Cup clash and were soundly beaten by the better team. Perhaps the match will be remembered by all who bowled not for the quality of the bowling but for the swarm of gnats that tormented the bowlers throughout the game! Visiting skip Ian Slade opened up a quick-fire lead against the Royal's K. Bartlett by holding a 0 - 13 advantage after just 6 ends. Although the home rink made some effort to get back into the game, the deficit proved too great and the visitors won 9 - 23. Similarly Royal skip JC Evans and his rink were on the receiving end of a 9 - 20 defeat against skip Simon Bushell and his bowlers. Royal captain A. Jenkins and his rink battled well over the early ends against Cross Keys skip Paul Watkins' bowlers but the pressure exerted by the visitors told as they registered a comfortable 14 - 30 success. The final Royal rink, which included T. Ryan, KR Evans and N. Protheroe, put up a tremendous fight to prevent a whitewash against visiting skip Andrew Bushell and his bowlers. The home rink led 10 - 7 after 6 ends but again the all round bowling abilities of the visitors gave them the edge as they took the game with a 15 - 22 scoreline. The home bowlers had no complaints about the result realising that they were well beaten and well eaten on the evening.
The late Albert Moon
It is with great sadness that we have to announce the sudden death of our Life Member Mr. Albert Moon. "Bertie" as he was affectionately known by everyone was a loyal member of the club having served on the management committee many times. An accomplished bowler, he had been successful in many West Mon and club competitions and he will be sincerely missed by everyone. Our condolences and deepest sympathy goes out to his wife and family at this sad time. Bertie's funeral will take place at 10.15am on Friday 5th June 2009 in the Parish Church in Rhymney.
Rhymnmey Royal Successful Start To MBA Campaign - Sat. 30th. May 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 73 Abertillery B.C. 64
Newly promoted Rhymney Royal got their Monmouthshire Division Two campaign off to a successful start with this hard earned nine shots victory over Abertillery. On a glorious afternoon at the War Memorial Park green, the home side opened strongly with Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins aided by I. Prosser, W. Dearth and D. Lynch leading by example in building up a 10 - 2 lead after 6 ends against Abertillery's Wyndham Davies. The home bowlers extended this to 17 - 7 before registering a fine 21 - 13 win. In similar fashion the Royal skip K. Bartlett with D. Hann, KR Evans and P. White always kept their noses in front against visiting skip Richie Cook by adding to their early advantage of 8 - 4 to secure a good 20 - 14 success giving the home side their second rink victory. Abertillery's Gethin Hucker used his experience to secure a three shots win against the Royal's T. Ryan with N. James, R. Withers and C. Patten. The 14 - 17 scoreline reflected how close the match turned out to be with the home rink pulling back from 7 - 16 to eventually lose at 14 - 17. The final rink saw Royal skip JC Evans take on Reg Bowdler and his bowlers in another tight encounter. The home rink held the advantage throughout most of the game extending their score from 9 - 4 to 13 - 10 after 12 ends. With the scoreline showing 17 - 17 after 18 ends the last three ends were to prove decisive with the visitors holding at 18 - 19 going into the final end. The home bowlers held a two shots advantage as skip Bowdler sent down his final wood which was near perfect in length and line to claim the end by a single shot and deny the home rink their third rink success of the afternoon. However, the Royal bowlers did claim the match with a 73 - 64 scoreline giving them a good 10 league points in their division two challenge.
Lack-lustre Show By Royal - Weds. 27th May 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 55 Nantyglo B.C. 80
It was a case of "after the Lord Mayor's Show" for the home side as they suffered a massive hangover from the jubilation of the previous weekend's success of qualifying for the knock-out stages of the Carruthers Shield. Visitors Nantyglo soon brought the Royal bowlers back down to earth in this West Mon league game as they recorded a very impressive 25 shots victory and almost a clean sweep of the rinks.
Nantyglo skip Anthony Williams led the way with an excellent 11 - 25 win over skip K. Bartlett, A. Jenkins, R. Withers and D. Lynch with the home bowlers picking up a seven in their total. In similar fashion, The Royal rink of T. Ryan and including D. Hann, W. Dearth and P. White, suffered the same fate against Nantyglo's John Bray and his men although the home bowlers did pull back to 12 - 10 before slipping to a 14 - 21 defeat. Visiting skip Ken Titford opened strongly in his contest against his Royal opponents building up a 1 - 10 lead after 6 ends, extending it to 7 - 14 after 12 ends before recording a 13 - 17 win. The final rink to finish brought some comfort to the home bowlers in stopping the clean sweep of the rinks by holding their Nantyglo counterparts to a creditable draw. Royal skip J.C. Evans with G. Morris, N. Protheroe and D. Morgan pulled back from a 5 - 10 scoreline at midway to level at 10 - 10 against Nantyglo's Ty Jacob and his bowlers but the home men could not do enough over the closing ends and had to be content with a 17 - 17 result and a share of the honours. Three rinks lost with the other drawn and just one league point gained were the rewards for the home team as they suffered a reality check against determined visitors.
Mission Not Impossible For Royal Bowlers - Sat. 23rd May 2009
Cwm Welfare B.C. 63 Rhymney Rotal B.C. 81
Cup competitions are renowned for springing surprises and the WBA Carruthers Shield is not any different. When these two teams met a fortnight previously, it was the visitors, Cwm Welfare who triumphed by some 18 shots at Rhymney in a league match. This time around both teams were in with an outside chance of progressing in this prestigious competition but it was dependent on other results in the group so much was at stake, including the Ray Withers Trophy held over from last season.
Rhymney Royal bowlers opened purposefully and led by 4 - 15 after 3 ends with Royal skip JC Evans leading the way with a 0 - 5 score against Cwm's Andrew Price. The Royal's captain A.Jenkins showed up with a 1 - 5 lead whilst K. Bartlett held a 0 - 4 advantage over Jeff Williams. As the game progressed, JC Evans with T.Ryan, R. Withers and D. Lynch moved into a 4 - 13 lead after 9 ends extending it to 10 - 19 after 15 ends. This rink contest looked over and done with but Cwm's Price and his men battled back into contention but could not do enough to overhaul the visitors 18 - 21 final scoreline. Cwm's Dai Williams and his bowlers levelled the scores at 8 - 8 against the Royal captain's rink of A. James, KR Evans and C. Patten and built up a 15 - 16 lead after 18 ends but a four on the last end secured a 17 - 20 success for Jenkins and his men. Cwm skip Richie Price held an early advantage over the Royal rink which included N. James, G. Morris and C. O'Brien but sustained pressure by the visitors resulted in a good 12 - 20 final scoreline. The final rink to finish was that of the Royal's K. Bartlett with I. Prosser, N. Protheroe and D. Morgan against the home rink of Jeff Williams. Early pressure saw the visitors extend their lead from 0 - 4 to 5 - 13 after 9 ends and then 9 - 18 after 15 ends. A strong finish saw the home rink narrow the deficit but not quite enough as the Royal bowlers registered their fourth rink success of the afternoon with a 16 - 20 result giving them a clean sweep and an 18 shots aggregate winning margin. The bonus was that they retained the Ray Withers Trophy for 2008 and gave themselves an outside chance of progress in the Carruthers Shield competition.
* It was reported later that group leaders Pontyfelin B.C. had been beaten at Llanwern and that Rhymney Royal B.C. had qualified for the knock-out stages of the WBA Carruthers Shield competition.
Sweet Revenge for Visitors - Weds. 20th May 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 68 Llanhilleth & District B.C. 69.25
Rhymney Royal bowlers had high hopes of completing the double over visiting Llanhilleth after beating them on their own patch just nine days previously in the Carruthers Shield competition but a below-par performance from the one of the home rinks saw the home bowlers dumb-struck at losing out by 1.25 shots on aggregate although claiming a 3 - 1 rinks success.
This West Mon league contest brought together the respective captains and skips of both sides and although old adversaries, the competition was as keen as ever. The Royal's A. Jenkins with A. James, P. Smith and C. O'Brien took a while to settle against Llanhilleth's Tommy Tranter and his rink but soon turned a 4 - 7 deficit into a 11 - 8 lead at mid point of the game. The closing ends remained close but the home rink took the spoils with a narrow 18 - 17 win. Llanhilleth skip Brian Green also found his rink leading 3 - 6 after 9 ends against the Royal's J.C.Evans, N. James, R. Wither and D. Lynch but a strong fightback by the home bowlers saw them clinch the game with a 17 - 14 scoreline.
The third Royal success of the evening was the rink which included T. Ryan, K.R. Evans and D. Morgan who comfortably held off the challenge of Llanhilleth's Mike Blanche and his men to register a 26 - 15 success. The big disappointment of the evening was the failure of the last Royal rink to succeed against a three-man rink led by skip Les Bowd. The home bowlers put in a below-par performance in registering a 7 - 31 loss, which on adjustment showed as 7 - 23.25 leaving the visitors to claim the contest with an aggregate win of just 1.25 shots. However the Royal bowlers picked up 6 useful league points against the visitors 8 points but the home bowlers now realise that to be successful consistency in play is vital.
Royal Bowlers Weather Storm Against Steely Llanwern - Sat. 16th May 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 82 Llanwern B.C. 57
Rain, hail and sun could not stop the Rhymney Royal bowlers gaining their second victory against gritty opponents Llanwern in this Carruthers Shield group game at the War Memorial Park. MBA Division 4 the visitors might be in but they still managed to claim success on two of the rinks against their division 2 opponents before the elements brought a premature end to the contest with 17ends being played.
The visiting skip Don Barnes and his bowlers tasted success against Royal skip and captain A. Jenkins with G. Morris, R. Withers and D. Lynch before the downpour of hail and rain caused the contest to be ended with the score standing at 12 - 19. The visitors nudged ahead after 4 ends and remained in the lead throughout building up to 9 - 15 and then 12 - 19 as bowling became a lottery. Likewise Llanwern skip Mike Perrett and his rink took a 12 - 13 lead against the Royal's rink of skip J.C. Evans , N. James, C. Patten and J. Doyle before holding on for a 13 - 18 victory.
But try as they did these successes could not be repeated on the other rinks where the home bowlers "stormed" into unassailable positions before the elements took control. Llanwern skip and captain Brian Gatehouse and his men suffered an emphatic defeat at 29 - 6 against the Royal rink which included T. Ryan, N. Protheroe and D. Morgan whilst his colleague skip Alec Blair fell to a resounding 28 - 14 loss against the Royal's K. Bartlett, D. Hann, K.R. Evans and C.O'Brien giving the home bowlers an aggregate 25 shots victory in a match that will be remembered for the playing conditions rather than the bowling.
Full House For Royal Bowlers - Wednesday 13th May 2009
Ebbw Vale Welfare B.C. 54 Rhymney Royal B.C. 72
The number thirteen might be unlucky for some but certainly not for the Rhymney Royal bowlers who registered their first victory and a full house of rink successes in the West Mon league on the thirteenth day of the month against plucky opponents in Ebbw Vale Welfare.
The visitors found the going tough against the home rink of skip Ray Takel and his men who steadily built up a useful 14 - 8 against the Royal four after 12 ends but a six conceded on the thirteenth end brought the visitors back into contention at 14 - 14. It seemed to spur the Royal men, which included D. Morgan, KR Evans and T. Ryan, to greater things as they went on to register a 16 - 20 victory taking a two and a three on the penultimate two ends.
Royal skip JC Evans with J. Doyle, C. Patten and P. White always held the advantage against the Welfare's captain and skip Colin Salkeld and his bowlers. The visitors progressed steadily through the ends picking up the shots to again register a fine 10 - 20 win. Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins found his rink trailing over the early ends to the home rink skippered by John Ridley but a succession of winning shots brought the visitors to the fore and a 15 - 17 winning scoreline resulted. The final contest brought together Royal skip K. Bartlett with D. Hann, young P. Smith and C. O'Brien against the home rink of skip Ron Hayward. The early ends were tense as each bowler fought to gain an advantage but a four on the 7th end gave the visitors the advantage they sought and they went on to gain a close 13 - 15 winning margin. Success on all rinks gave the Royal bowlers a maximum 14 league points and they hope that their season has now taken off with the luck that all teams desire.
Royal Bounce Back In Shield Game - Sat. 9th May 2009
Llanhilleth & District B.C. 62 Rhymney Royal B.C. 76
Stung into action following their home defeat the previous week in this competition, the Rhymney bowlers were determined to put up a fight in this difficult contest against always tricky opponents. Llanhilleth,under the captaincy of long serving Tommy Tranter, shared the rink honours 2 - 2 but the visitors claimed the spoils with an emphatic 14 aggregate shots margin.
It was skip Tranter and his rink who claimed first blood with a 4 shot marginal win against the Royal rink which included N. James, C. Patten and C. O'Brien. Although winning 16 - 12 the result could have gone either way with the lead changing hands on many occasions in this fascinating battle. 7 - 7 after 9 ends and 10 - 10 after 15 ends, it was the home rink who claimed the win with some accurate woods over the closing ends.
A second home success came with skip Les Bowd and his rink against the Royal's skip T. Ryan with D. Hann, K.R. Evans and P. White by just 3 shots in another close contest. The home bowlers kept a few shots advantage throughout the game but the visitors kept in it by exploiting every advantage offered them. The 20 - 17 scoreline confirmed just how close the contest was. On the remaining rinks the Royal bowlers redeemed themselves by recording two victories against determined opponents. Firstly Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins with his rink of A. James, R. Withers and D. Lynch ground out a well deserved victory over the home bowlers skippered by Mike Blanche. Once the visitors had opened up a 6 - 11 lead after 12 ends there was no holding them as they built up a 11 - 24 winning margin. The final rink saw Llanhilleth skip Brian Green take on the Royal's county-trialist and skip J.C. Evans with his rink of J. Doyle, N. Protheroe and D. Morgan in another intriguing contest. The early ends were close with just single shots the order of the day but with the score standing at 12 - 11 after 15 ends in favour of the home bowlers, the Royal men dug deep and recorded a sound 15 - 23 success with some sustained and accurate deliveries. The 14 shots aggregate victory keeps the Royal bowlers in this competition but with the hope that others slip up in the remaining group games.
Opening Defeat For Royal Bowlers - Weds. 6th May 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 54 Cwm Welfare B.C. 72
Rhymney Royal opened their West Mon league season with a comprehensive 18 shots home defeat against Cwm Welfare Bowling Club. The visitors were in spirited form against a lacklustre home side who have yet to find any early season form. The Cwm rink led by skip D. Williams registered an emphatic 9 - 26 success against the home rink which included G. Morris, R. Withers and C. O'Brien with the visitors showing a 1 - 21 lead at one stage before the Royal bowlers pulled some shots together over the closing ends. Home captain and skip A. Jenkins with D. Hann, D. Morgan and debutant 15 years old Phil Smith battled hard against Cwm's Gareth Suter and his bowlers but they too had to endure a 11 - 19 reverse against some determined bowling. Visiting skip A. King and his rink found themselves leading 3 - 6 after 6 ends against the Royal's N. James and his bowlers but once the home side found their line there was no holding them as they ran out 19 - 12 victors. The closest contest of the evening saw Royal skip J.C. Evans with A. James, C. Patten and P. White involved in a tight struggle against Cwm's Justin Prior. The lead changed hands throughout the contest with the scores level at 11 - 11 after 12 ends. Try as they did the home rink could not break away from the visitors and the game ended all square at 15 - 15. Nevertheless it was the Cwm Welfare bowlers who claimed the honours with a 54 - 72 shots aggregate victory and 11pts to 3 pts tally as they start their West Mon league campaign.
Royal Upset in Cup Game - Saturday 2nd May 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 69 Pontyfelin B.C. 84
Rhymney Royal bowlers were hoping that home advantage would assist them as they got this season's Carruthers Shield group games off to a start with the visit of MBA division two side Pontyfelin, but the home bowlers soon realised that they would have to be at their very best against strong opposition. Try as they did the home side failed to hold the determined visitors who notched up a good 15 shots victory on an unpredictable bowling surface.
The solitary success for the home side came with the win against Pontyfelin's captain and skip Mansel Young and his rink. The Royal rink which included G. Morris, K.R. Evans and C. O'Brien found themselves trailing by 3 - 9 after 6 ends but fought doggedly back to tie the scores at 18 - 18 after 14 ends before claiming the honours with a 24 - 21 success.
Another Royal rink to find themselves still in contention was that of skip T. Ryan with N. James, R. Withers and captain for the day J. Doyle up against the Pontyfelin skip Jim Carr and his bowlers. The home rink held their own until the 15th end when the score was tied at 11 - 11. The closing ends saw the visitors edge slowly forward to gain the winning two shots advantage in a 14 - 16 win. Likewise the Royal skip J.C. Evans and his bowlers were tied at 10 - 10 after 9 ends against Glyn Parry's bowlers but despite going into a 16 - 11 lead, found themselves slipping over the closing ends and suffering a 19 - 22 defeat. The final rink saw the Royal's K. Bartlett and his bowlers lose out to Pontyfelin's Mike Banks and his men by a 12 - 25 scoreline. An opening defeat for the home side but they still have three group games left in the competition to make any sort of impression.
Rhymney Royal B.C. 93 Guest Memorial(Dowlais) Ladies B.C. 42 - Weds. 29th April '09
The lady bowlers from Guest Memorial found the Royal bowlers in uncompromising mood in this friendly fixture at the War Memorial Park on a very chilly evening for bowling. The Royal gave Ellis Lewis his debut on the eve of his 21st birthday making him the third generation of bowlers from his family to play for the club following in the footsteps of his father Mike and his late grandfather Rhys and he fitted in well on the rink skippered by captain A. Jenkins with D. Hann and D. Lynch. This Royal rink found themselves up against skip Lyn Hughes and her Guest bowlers and over the opening ends the contest remained close with the scores tied at 5 - 5. Gradually the home rink applied the pressure and opened up a 10 - 6 advantage before extending it to 19 - 6 and finally winning the contest with a 27 - 9 score. Bedwellty Park Ladies B.C. provided a rink on the evening and led by their skip Nancy Pugh they too found themselves at 5 - 5 against the Royal's T. Ryan supported by J.C. Evans, W. Dearth and C. Patten. To add spice to the contest was the fact that lead bowler Cyril Patten found himself bowling against his wife Maureen but he can rest easy as he helped his rink return another comfortable 27 - 9 success against gallant opposition. The third Royal rink to taste success was that of skip K. Bartlett with G. Morris, K R Evans and J Doyle against Hilda Leonard and her bowlers. The home rink built up steadily to register a good 19 - 7 victory. The closest contest of the evening saw Guest skip Karen Yeo and her bowlers up against the Royal rink which included I. Prosser, R. Withers and D. Morgan. The ladies were leading 3 - 7 after 6 ends only to trail 17 - 8 after 12 ends before finally going down to a 20 - 17 scoreline. Although the margin of victory was 51 shots, the score flattered the home side who were grateful to the visitors for providing them with some keen competition before their first W.B.A.Cup game on the weekend.
Bright Spots In Royal Defeat - Saturday 25th April 2009
Gelligaer B C 50 Rhymney Royal B C 38
It's been 16 years since Rhymney Royal bowlers last travelled down the Rhymney Valley to the play at Gelligaer and they were grateful to the hosts for providing them with the opportunity for a friendly match arranged at short notice this time. The visitors used the game as a development game with some players selected out of their normal positions and with the hosts only able to field just three rinks it meant that some Royal bowlers doubled up in some positons.
Old friendships were renewed but the competition on the green was as keen as ever. Royal skip J C Evans with his rink of G. Morris, W. Dearth, D. Lynch and P. White battled well against the host's Gareth Meredith and his bowlers. The visitors took a while to get used to the green and found themselves trailing by 11 -5 at mid point in the game. They rallied during the closing stages but were unable to close the deficit and succumbed to a 18 - 11 defeat. Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins was one who last played in Gelligaer but his rink which included J. Doyle, R. Withers, K R Evans and C O'Brien found it tough going against skip Carl Andrews and his men. Again the visitors were slow to start and were 9 - 1 down after 6 ends but they pulled back to 14 - 8 and then 17 - 10 before going down 19 - 13. Rhymney Royal gave Neil James the opportunity of skipping for the first time and the youngster seized the chance and put in an excellent personal performance in leading his rink to a single shot victory over Steve Amos and his bowlers. He led his rink which included T. Ryan, C. Patten and N. Protheroe by example in a very close encounter with shots hard to come by. The visitors kept their noses in front throughout leading 7 - 8 after 9 ends and 11 - 13 after 15 ends. With the score tied at 13 - 13 going into the last end, it was the debutant skip who put down the winning wood to claim the solitary success of the afternoon. Although slipping to a 12 shot defeat the Royal bowlers learnt a great deal about themselves in this fixture which they hope will be repeated soon.
Royal Bowlers Retain Collins Cup - Wednesday 22nd April 2009
Rhymney Royal B.C. 77 Rhymney Gwent B.C. 63
It was in 1979 that the then landlord of the Farmers Arms in Rhymney, Ron Collins, presented a magnificent trophy to be contested between the two clubs who share the bowling facilities of the War Memorial Park. Since this time the start of the season challenge has been hotly contested and this year's game was no different.
The Gwent opened strongly against the holders with captain and skip Mal Evans and his rink rapidly building up a 1 - 9 lead after 9 ends against his Royal counterpart skip and captain A. Jenkins with J. Doyle, R. Withers and D. Morgan. But steady bowling by the Royal rink saw them reduce the lead to 9 - 11 after 15 ends but the Gwent bowlers held on to register a close 11 - 14 success. Likewise Gwent skip Les Wooldridge and his rink opened up a 2 - 10 lead against his Royal opponents who included D. Hann, C. Patten and P. White amongst their ranks. But again the Royal bowlers pulled back to 10 - 12 after 9 ends and created a comfortable 19 - 13 lead with just three ends remaining. With a never-say-die attitude, the Gwent rink secured a 20 - 20 draw picking up seven shots over the last two ends to tie the scores. Royal skip J C Evans with his rink of I Prosser, W Dearth and N Protheroe were involved in a very tight battle against skip Andy Wysoczansky and his bowlers. Shots were hard to come by in this encounter with the scores remaining close throughout the game. The game was tied at 13 - 13 as they entered the last end but the Royal bowlers held their nerve to pick up three shots and gain a well earned 16 - 13 victory. The final contest saw the Royal's T. Ryan, K. Bartlett, K R Evans and D. Lynch up against the Gwent's Dave Thomas and his bowlers. The Royal men raced into a 8 - 0 lead after 6 ends but the Gwent men pulled back the deficit to 8 - 7 after nine ends. With the score standing at 14 - 13 after 12 ends a close finish was envisaged but it was not to be as the Royal bowlers more than doubled their score over the remaining ends to record a fine 30 - 16 success giving the Collins Cup holders a 14 shots aggregate victory in a match played in good, friendly rivalry.
Close Call For Royal In Opening Friendly - Saturday 18th April
New Tredegar B.C. 75 Rhymney Royal B.C. 91
Local derby matches are always close affairs with league positions meaningless when bragging rites are at stake. Newly promoted Rhymney Royal travelled to neighbours New Tredegar for this opening friendly fixture on bright, sunny afternoon and on a green that had stood up well to the winter ravages. The division four home side showed a few changes but were up to the task against a visiting side looking to get their season off to a flier.
Home skip Garry Hook and his bowlers made an early impression by storming into a 21 - 2 lead after just 9 ends catching their opponents cold as they struggled to find any true line and length, but the second half of the game saw the visitors begin to find their form as they clawed back the deficit to eventually finish with a respectable score of 30 - 19 giving the home rink an early and deserved win. New Tredegar captain and skip Brian Brown and his bowlers were involved in a close battle against the Royal's T. Ryan with N. James, K.R.Evans and D. Lynch. Although the home rink kept their noses in front for much of the game, the visitors pulled even at 14 - 14 with 3 ends to go but some accurate bowling by the home rink saw them edge a 17 - 15 final scoreline. The remaining two rinks were not such close fought affairs with Royal captain and skip A. Jenkins with A. Weaver, R. Withers and J. Doyle building up steadily thoughout their game against Archie Holpin and his bowlers to register a comfortable 12 - 27 success. Likewise visiting skip J.C. Evans and his rink of I. Prosser, C. Patten and N. Protheroe progressed steadily to earn a 16 - 30 win against skip Brian Simmonds and company. With the rink honours shared at two each after a match played in good spirit the Royal bowlers will be grateful to the home side for testing them so early in the season and restricting them to just a 16 shot win.
Pre-Season Meeting - will be held on Monday April 6th. 2009 at The Farmers Arms, Rhymney at 7.30pm. All members should make every effort to attend at this time.
Officers for 2009 - President - Ray Withers
Vice President - Glyn Morris
Chairman - Derrick Hann
Secretary - Kelvyn Bartlett
Treasurer - Cyril Patten
Club Captain - Adrian Jenkins, Vice Captain - John Doyle.
Selection Committee - Neil James, Adrian Jenkins, Phillip White, Neil Protheroe.
2009 Club Tour - once again our hardworking Secretary has organised an exciting weekend tour to Weston-Super-Mare where he has arranged two fixtures against Ashcombe Park on Saturday 15th. August and old friends North Petherton on Sunday 16th. August. We leave on Friday afternoon/evening and return on Sunday evening with the cost around £90 for two nights B/B and coach which could be less depending on numbers. The Secretary would like all members and guests to inform him of names etc as soon as possible.