For our first outdoor fixture of the 2018/19 season on Sunday, 22nd April, Merrow welcomed Liphook for a match of four triples. An unseasonably warm day was very welcome, and we had a good number of supporters to watch the match.

All players found the green difficult, although it did improve slightly towards the end of the match. However, with more rolling and cutting, we should see a noticeable improvement over the next couple of weeks.

The match was closely fought, with Merrow eventually winning on three of the four rinks, with an overall score of 64 – 56. Well done to all, and to our best rink of John W, Len M, and Bob C, who won by nine points.

Our next fixture is on Saturday, 28th April, when we host Pippbrook.

The photos below are by Ben Hosking and your correspondent, David R. Please contact me if you require copies of any photos.

On a cool, damp Sunday, club President Tony Oldland officially opened the Merrow Village bowls green for the 2018 season. Tony welcomed new members Mike, John and Sally to the club. Also given a special mention were Len, Andy and Bernard for their work on erecting the new equipment shed.

Twenty three members turned out ready to see how well the green was performing. Unfortunately, the recent wet weather had hampered the green’s preparation, meaning that the grass was rather long for bowling. Still, with the forecast for next week being for warm and sunny weather, we should be ready for our first home match on Sunday 22nd April, when we host Liphook.

Here are a few photos of the opening, with Tony delivering the first bowl of the season:

It’s the official opening of our bowls green on Sunday at 2:30pm. Do try to come along, meet your fellow bowlers, and maybe have a roll-up (weather permitting).

Our Spring jumble sale was another success. As usual, I was surprised by some of the items that sold and by those that didn’t.

You may think that jumble sales are a bit passé, but I get a lot of comments along the lines of “I love jumble sales”, and “I’m so glad you still have jumble sales”. Apart from anything else, it’s an opportunity to pick up a bargain (perhaps something you weren’t looking for) without spending loads of money. It also recycles items.

Remember, we have another sale in the Autumn and welcome any donations before then. Just contact us via the club’s website to arrange a drop-off.

Don’t forget, it’s jumble sale day!

We’ve got something for everyone, from power tools to children’s toys. We even have a snowboard!

Doors open at 10am until 12 noon, entry is 50p. Venue: Merrow Village Hall.

Our next jumble sale is on Saturday, 7th April at Merrow Village Hall.

Entry is 50p at 10am, £5 at 8:30am.

If you have any donations, we will be on hand to accept them from 8pm Friday, or on Saturday morning.

The new outdoor season is approaching fast. Do make a point of putting your name down for matches, so that we can field full teams. We have friendly matches on Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, together with Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday triples competitions.

The team sheets are in their usual place in the club changing rooms, so make a point of dropping by and adding your name. If you are unable to get along to the club but want to play, drop an email to merrowbowls@gmail.com with details of the specific match(es) in which you are interested. If we are oversubscribed for a match, the Captain will make a team decision.

Here’s to a successful season.

Great news! Thanks to the sterling efforts of a few members, we have a replacement equipment shed erected and ready for the new season. The shed was donated by a friend of your correspondent, and meant that we  did not have to find the funds for a new item. Once the shed has had a coat of preservative, it will look as good as new, hopefully giving us several more years of service. It’s also larger than the previous shed, meaning that we can store our pushers, scoreboards etc. much more easily.

Our thanks go to Len, Andy, and Bernard for all their hard work. Thanks also to Rodney for his help in dismantling the shed,  and to everyone for providing the muscle to move it from its original home in Horsell onto our site.

In addition to working on the shed, Andy made a great job of replacing the handle on our roller. That should make rolling the green a lot easier.

Here are some photos of the gang at work, plus the finished article:

Don’t forget, come and sign on for the new season. Monday 12th from 7:30pm in the club bar.

We look forward to seeing you again.

Just a quick reminder. Our signing-on day is fast approaching: Monday, 12th March at 7:30pm. Cheques should be made out to “Merrow Village Club Bowls Section”.

We will also be taking your entries for the Club competitions, £1 per competition. Do enter, it’s good fun.

Looking forward to seeing everyone on 12th.