BATCHWOOD HALL BOWLING CLUB – PRESS REPORT 6th July 2026

Sun screen, sun hats & hydration breaks have been the order of the day for bowls clubs. The recent heatwave has played havoc with the tight schedule required for some competitions at National and County level. Matches have also been re-scheduled or cancelled.

The Men played the 2nd round of the Jones Club at the weekend, it is a St Albans & District fixture. It is one rink home and one rink away, the opponents were Potters Bar. Batchwood home team were winning all the way, but then dropped 7 shots in 2 ends. The home rink won by 2 shots, the away team lost by 5 shots. The overall result was Batchwood losing by 3 shots.

Batchwood men played in the National Top Club at the weekend against Garston at home. Garston beat Batchwood comprehensively and should be congratulated on their win. Batchwood should also be proud of their achievement to get to the Area Semi-Final in this competition.

The Batchwood triples team of Chris Kelly, George Tutt and Brian Parkes played Herts Bowls Club at home in the Watford Vets Competition. They played a team skipped by Tony Smith in the second round and won 18 – 13.

Batchwood ladies played in the County League away at Harpenden. The team were Jackie Bell, Sandra Clark, Joyce Hopkinson and Skip Sue Swain. Batchwood lost 6 shots on the first two ends so were well down but they fought their way way back up only losing the game by one shot 17 – 18.

The start of the Integra League was delayed by one week due to the heatwave. Integra was introduce to Batchwood by George Tutt a few years ago. It is to encourage new members to get involved in playing competitive games. There are 20 games taking place on either Thursday evenings or Sunday mornings (to enable workers to take part). The participants keep their own score and the SIX BEST results go towards winning the trophy at the end of the season. Any member who joined since 2020 can participate.

Tricia Gascoine

Press Officer