On our hottest day this year, 17th June, Merrow welcomed Albury for a friendly, consisting of four rinks of triples. Due to injury and the heat, Merrow fielded two reserves; Calvin Haggis and Allen Mead, both of whom stepped in at short notice.

The match started well for Merrow, but once Albury got into their stride, there was no going back, with Albury winning on three rinks and overall 47 – 81.

Congratulations to Merrow’s Allen Mead (substituted by Richard Duddy at tea), Calvin Haggis, and Colin Mitchell, who won their rink by 22 – 12 against the run of play.

Here are some photos of the match:

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I’d like to welcome four new members to the club. They are David French, San Bashir, Derrick Charman, and Mark Hosking.

We all look forward to seeing you at club nights and in future matches.

On Saturday 10th June, Merrow welcomed Ewhurst to our green for a friendly of four rinks of triples.

On a lovely afternoon, the teams played their hearts out, resulting in a balanced result of two rinks each, but with Ewhurst taking the overall honours by 6 points, the overall score being Merrow 66, Ewhurst 72.

A special mention for Lesley Burburry, who played her first match for Merrow and came away with a  win on her rink, Well done, Lesley.

Unfortunately, Sunday’s match with Frensham was cancelled due to lack of players.

On Saturday 3rd June, Merrow hosted our annual match with Castle Green. On a bright sunny day, we played three rinks of triples.

I am pleased to report that Merrow were victorious, winning on all three rinks with an overall points score of Merrow 71, Castle Green 33. A great result by any standards and well done to those playing for Merrow: David Foster, Colin Mitchell, David Matthews, Rodney Morrison, Ken Burburry, Tony Fry, Sue Roberts, David Hughes, and Richard Duddy.

We have had a fairly successful season to date; let’s hope it continues.

On Saturday 20th May, Merrow entertained Pippbrook for our return match.

The weather threatened to rain on us but we were fortunate to enjoy a dry afternoon with some sunshine for good measure.

The match was hard-fought, with Pippbrook running out as overall winners on points. The rinks result was Pippbrook two, Merrow one, and one drawn rink.

We look forward to visiting Pippbrook again in 2018.

Saturday 13th May saw Merrow visit Shere Bowls Club for a friendly.

The day had started dull and wet, but we were fortunate enough to have a mixture of sun and cloud without rain for the match.

Each side won two rinks, with Merrow edging the overall score by just five points.

After the match we adjourned to the clubhouse for tea and cake, which was well received by all.

We look forward to hosting Shere at Merrow later in the year.

On Saturday 6th May, Merrow visited Horsell Bowls Club. This was our first visit to Horsell, so we approached the match not knowing what to expect. At least we had a sunny day which was reasonably warm.

We played four rinks of triples. The match was played in good humour on a green that had had some major work over the Winter, making it hard to read.

The result saw Horsell run out winners but credit must go to Allen, Lorna and David for coming back strongly to lose by a single point.

After the match, Horsell treated us to a lovely tea, which was enjoyed by all.

We look forward to welcoming Horsell to Merrow in 2018.

On Sunday 7th May, Merrow Village Bowls Club opened their doors to anyone who wanted to find out more about bowls.

A chilly morning meant that only a  few hardy visitors arrived, but a lovely afternoon saw a turnaround in our fortunes with a number of visitors coming to try their hand at bowls.

The day was a success and credit must go to those club members who gave up their time to help.

We look forward to welcoming the new bowlers into our club.

On Saturday 29th April, Merrow travelled to the Pippbrook Bowls Club in Dorking.

Although the afternoon was overcast to begin with, and a trifle chilly, the sun did make an appearance eventually, warming everyone up.

We played four rinks of triples, with one Merrow team reduced to just two players due to a late cancellation by one of our members. However, that just seemed to spur Rodney and Colin on, as they won their rink by a convincing margin.

The overall result was a points win for Merrow, 69 – 56. The teams were evenly matched though with each team winning on two rinks.

Special thanks went to Rita and Brian, who laid on a lovely tea for the hungry bowlers.

We look forward to the return match with Pippbrook at Merrow on 20th May.