Ladies Afternoon Bowling

Our ladies captain, Julie Woods and vice-captain Anita Feltham would like to encourage our lady bowlers, whether you are a novice or experienced bowler to join in a Tuesday afternoon bowling session 2pm – 4pm.
 
The idea being to encourage and bond the ladies section in preparation for a return to matches in the future.
 
Going forward all 6 rinks will be available, the format will be drawn triples, each team having an experienced bowler as skip to give help and guidance to anyone who needs it, however, depending on the number of ladies attending each week it may mean some weeks the format will be pairs or a mixture of both.
 
If you would like to join this group but have not yet done so please email Anita email hidden; JavaScript is required to say you are interested.
 
Julie and Anita will be pleased to see you.
 

Ladies captain Julie Woods (L) and vice captain Anita Feltham (R)

 
Any ladies reading this who are not members of the club but would like to find out more please email our centre manager Naomi at email hidden; JavaScript is required or ring her on 01323 506009 Mon-Fri 10am-2pm.

Members Newsletter – Summer Season

Dear Members

I am pleased to be sending you this email with information about the Summer Indoor Bowling Season. Please read it carefully as it contains all the information you need for a better experience when entering and operating within the club.

Summer Opening Times from 17th May to 24th September

The club opens every day at 9.25am Monday to Friday for bowlers. The Restaurant will be open for Breakfasts from 8.30am Monday to Thursday and 9am on Fridays.

Rink Sessions

Monday 9.45am – 11.45am, afternoon 12pm – 2pm, evening 7 – 9pm

Tuesday 9.45am – 11.45am, afternoon 12pm – 2pm, evening 7 – 9pm

Wednesday 9.45am – 11.45am evening 7 – 9pm

Thursday 9.45am – 11.45am, afternoon 12pm – 2pm

Friday 9.45am – 11.45am evening 7 – 9pm

Closed weekends

Bowling

The online booking system will go live on Monday 10th May.

Rinks are limited to six people from any household until 21st June when up to eight people may bowl on a rink. Please look on the website for rink availability and to book. Most morning rinks have been pre booked for the season but there are days where a casual rink is available, which are for anybody to book. Please be aware that other bowlers might be placed with you to make up numbers. There are more rinks available to be booked for the afternoon sessions.

Monday evenings will be returning to triples with drawn rinks on the evening. You must state that you want to be included in the draw prior to turning up by emailing Naomi on her email address email hidden; JavaScript is required for the Monday 17th May session. For future Mondays either ring or email into the club during the week or if you’ve played on the first evening back add your name to the booking list before you leave. Remember numbers are limited to 36 bowlers on a first come basis until 21st June when numbers may increase.

The bowls committee are looking into the possibility of running an “AUSSIE PAIRS” league on Tuesday evenings 7-9pm. If more than 12 teams enter then the league may be extended to Thursday evenings. Further information will follow, but email Naomi email hidden; JavaScript is required to register your interest in joining, so they can start to plan it.

Tuesday 12 – 2pm – Our lady captain Julie Wood and vice-captain Anita Feltham would like to encourage our lady bowlers, whether you are a novice or experienced bowler to join in a Tuesday afternoon bowling session 12pm – 2pm. The idea being to encourage and bond the ladies section in preparation for a return to matches in the future. If you would like to join this group please email Naomi at email hidden; JavaScript is required Julie and Anita will be pleased to see you.

Wednesdays – booked rinks and a chance to play Ladder League and other competitions.

Fridays – Bring a friend to bowl. Possible ‘CHASE THE JACK’ competition. Possibility of a once a month “DRIVE & WINE” event.

The Bowls Committee has agreed to relax the dress code for the Summer season.

The code is smart casual clothing, shorts may be worn but these must be tailored (no cargo shorts).

If you would like to join in with any of the evening suggestions email Naomi email hidden; JavaScript is required so we can gauge interest and numbers.

Health & Safety

When we return to bowls there will be a few changes that you may notice when entering the club to make your experience a little less daunting and more pleasurable.

MASKS will continue to be used until you reach your destination, for example on the green ready to play or at a bar or restaurant table.

ONE WAY SYSTEM– We have decided to remove the one way system around the club, the social distancing 2M rule still applies but we feel there is enough room for members to stand aside and let others by safely, ALWAYS keep to the left!!

You will be able to enter the club without queuing up, on entering please sanitise your hands before touching surfaces etc. There will be sanitiser at several points around the club, the entrance, both stairwells to the lockers and rinks and at the entrance to the restaurant. This should help with the flow of members arriving at the same time. A new temperature sensor will be wall mounted in the porch for you to use if required.

 

TEST AND TRACE will still be in operation, please scan the QR code on entry. If you haven’t booked to bowl, come into the bar or restaurant you will be asked to give details at the reception desk when entering the club. Booked rinks will be monitored by the management and booked rink leaders.

At the change of session, bowlers should not go down to their rink until all rinks have been vacated.

The Management Committee have asked all staff to carry out twice weekly lateral flow tests and will ask regular volunteers to follow suit. All these measures along with the vaccine programme will enable us to protect our members in the best possible way. We have purchased a commercial Anti-bac atomiser which will be used every 24hours to provide maximum sanitising throughout the club, this has been purchased through Greengauge -a national Bowling carpet specialist.

We ask bowlers, at the end of their playing session, to clean mats and jacks (anti-bac wipes will be on the rink tables), the scoreboards will be cleaned by the green steward. The lead bowler will be responsible for social distancing their group during play. Please read the information sheets on the rink tables to remind you of the rules of play.

Until at least the 21st June the toilets will remain one in, one out and the cloakrooms will not be available. Restaurant and bar tables are to be booked as before but we welcome members walking in but cannot guarantee a table straightaway.

EXIT– you will be able to exit the club through the front door, sanitiser will be available for you just before you open the door to leave.

Restaurant

Michelle is looking forward to welcoming you all back on Monday 17th May.

We continue to adhere to current Covid-19 guidelines by providing 2 tables in the restaurant which are hand sanitising stations , one to use as you enter the restaurant and another to use as you leave to go back to the bar area. Tables and chairs will be sanitised after each use.

The booking of restaurant tables will be as before, via the online booking system or by phone. All information for making a booking can be found in the restaurant booking area online.

It will be Table Service only, with a maximum of 6 people from different households and we will continue to provide a safe and comfortable environment.

The restaurant will open Mon-Thurs for pre booked breakfast for anyone who would like to eat before play starts at 9.45am, this can be booked via the online booking system under restaurant bookings or by phone.

Restaurant Opening Times:

Monday 8.30-2pm

Tuesday 8.30-2pm

Wednesday 8.30-12pm

Thursday 8.30-2pm

Friday 9-12pm

Due to staff taking annual leave there may be a few dates when the restaurant will be closed or a reduced menu offered. We will inform you in plenty of time of these dates so as not to disappoint.

Michelle looks forward to seeing you all and hope members will continue to support our restaurant as before.

Annual General Meeting

The Management Annual General Meeting will take place on Friday 28thMay at 6pm. This has been delayed from its normal time of November due to the pandemic. Numbers will be limited to forty attendees and as there will be eleven officials, we are asking you to register an interest if you wish to come along.

The agenda, financial statement and minutes of the last AGM meeting will be sent out by email in due course.

Finally, I know that many of you will be bowling outside, so I wish those who are, a warm summer. To those of you who are still worried about entering the club, come along and have a cup of tea, it will be good to see you. To all our members whether you are social or bowling members and even if you bowl outside, come and see us, we’ve missed you. There’s nothing like meeting up with old friends.

Best Wishes

Dave Parks

Summer Opening 2021

Dear Members

I am pleased to confirm our Summer opening times from 17th May 2021. They are as follows:

Monday. 9.45am – 11.45am, 12pm – 2pm, 7 – 9pm

Tuesday. 9.45am – 11.45am, 12pm – 2pm, 7 – 9pm

Wednesday. 9.45am – 11.45am, 7 -9pm

Thursday. 9.45am – 11.45am, 12pm – 2pm.

Friday. 9.45am – 11.45am, 7 – 9pm

The club will open at 9.25am for morning sessions and 6.40pm for evening sessions.

Naomi will be in touch with those of you that booked a Summer Rink last year to see if you would like to retain that rink slot this Summer.
If you do not have a booked rink and would like one, please collect a group of at least eight bowlers and reply to Naomi and she will contact you to discuss rink availability.

Please remember that until the 21st June only six members(any household) can bowl on a rink. From the 21st June fours can resume.

The Myclubhouse booking system will go live eight days prior to opening for all other bookings, including the restaurant and bar. Once again bar and restaurant tables may be booked for up to six people from different households.

Membership

Some bowling members did not rejoin last September, but may be interested in rejoining for the remainder of the year. If you know of anyone who wishes to join or rejoin, the membership cost from 17th May to 30th September is £50 (as per E&DIBA pricing policy). Please contact Teresa Hubbins at the following email address: email hidden; JavaScript is required

Collect your Bowls.

Members who are wishing to collect their Bowls for the outdoor season may do so on Friday 26th March between the hours of 10am and 1pm.

We will plan for the future to ensure a safe but more amenable environment for the members to enjoy.

Take care

Dave Parks
Chairman

Message from the Chairman

Dear Members

I’m sure your aware by now that the club will shut its doors after the last session of bowls on Wednesday 4th November and hopefully reopen on 3rd December, subject to Government approval. 

Rest assured we will be planning for reopening with a full agenda for the Christmas period including a couple of Mixed Drives and internal matches. Meanwhile detailed below is what will happen with booked rinks , leagues etc.

Leagues

The last league matches will be tonight and when they resume they will restart as shown on the schedule . Outstanding games from the period when we were closed will be played at the end of the schedule. i.e. If we resume on Thursday 3rd December, that will be the team you are already scheduled to play.

Booked rinks

Will stop from Wednesday 9.30pm and start again on the schedule under the correct week.

Ladder league

Will continue for an extended period when we re-open.

Club competitions

19/20 finals will still take place, being played at the beginning of January. The date is to be confirmed. This year’s club competitions will still go ahead from January. If you would like to enter any competition please email us and you will be entered. To remind you, the competitions are Singles, Novice singles, Pair’s, Mixed Pairs, Australian Pairs. If you are an individual player and would like to pair up, please us know and we will try and find you a partner.

AGM

The AGM will now take place on Friday 15th January 6pm

We will keep you updated on any changes, meanwhile please keep safe, follow Government guidelines and keep your fingers crossed that the rest of the Country follow suit and then we can all get back to bowling again. 

Take care

Dave Parks
Chairman 

Club Competitions 2020/21

Welcome to the new season and a brief intro to how we hope the new season will run. This year, the only internal Club competitions will be Singles and Pairs initially, with Triples and possibly Fours being introduced if the Covid situation allows. Last year’s competitions are still active, aiming for a Finals Weekend on November 7th/8th. However, the Bowls Committee have decided that the new national Rule of 6 means that the 2 Fours competitions, Mens and Mixed will both have to be cancelled totally.

As well as the regular Leagues, the Ladder League and the weekly roll-ups, players are encouraged to enter a variety of competitive knockout formats played over the whole season and culminating in the Finals Weekend in April 2021. Last year, over 200 players entered one or more of the Competitions.

There will be 10 competitions starting in November, 4 Singles and 6 Pairs. An Entry form is attached to this email, with further copies on demand. There is a closing date in early November so the early rounds can get under way soon after. There will be an entry fee of £3 per person for each competition and one person will be asked to be responsible in each pair for communication. As well as a handsome Cup or Trophy, (as currently displayed in the Restaurant), there will be prize money for both winning and losing Finalists.

The Singles matches are played as first to score 21 shots. Each player has four bowls, and an independent Marker needs to be arranged to keep score and do any necessary measuring. The Men’s and Women’s Championship are open to all full members. The Novice competitions are for all members in their first 3 years of playing indoors, but only if they have not won any Competition or other recognised award, either at Eastbourne or any other club either indoor or outdoor. The Mixed singles has not proved popular and is dropped.

Pairs matches are played over 21 ends, with four bowls for each player. The Leads play all their four bowls before the skips. In the event of the scores being equal when all ends have been played, an extra end or ends will be played until a decision is reached. There are 5 competitions, Men’s, Women’s, and Mixed, and 2 Senior competitions where both players must be aged 65 or more. We are also introducing a new Australian pairs competition, with a weekly Australian League to be introduced later in the year.

Full rules about arranging matches, substitutions, dead ends and play-by dates can be viewed by clicking here.

Winter Booked Rinks

Dear Members,

Now that we know what our guidelines from the EIBA will be next sesaon, I am now starting to put the schedules together for the Winter booked rinks. If you would like to join a booked rink or run a booked rink (min 8 players) please let me know what session you would like to bowl. Booked rinks will continue to be played as triples.

Due to Covid-19 guidelines and to allow us to clean between sessions the bowling times will be slightly different this season. The following sessions are available.

Monday to Friday 9:30 – 11:30am, 12 – 2pm, 2:30 – 4:30pm, 5 – 7pm

Saturday and Sunday 12:30 – 2:30pm

I look forward to seeing you all back soon,

Kind regards

Naomi

President’s 5’s Fun Day . . . And The Winners Were. . .

The Presidents 5s Fun Day saw 60 bowlers of all abilities come together in a friendly competition with each team playing singles, pairs triples and fours. The event was sponsored by Focus Investment Planning Ltd who kindly donated prize money for the 1st and 2nd place teams.

This was the first ever President’s Day and a first for the 5’s format.

Everyone enjoyed a day of bowling, mixing with friends and the rivalry of competition. The eventual winners were ‘Hit and Hope’ with ‘Jim’s Joker’s’ a very close 2nd. The winning players very generously donated their prize money to our Captain’s Charity, Children With Cancer Fund – Polegate which is a much respected local charity who support families of children who are under going treatment for cancer.

£120 was raised on a raffle and these monies will be added to our Junior Academy Fund

Thank you to everyone who made the day such a great success, the President’s Day will now be an annual event.

Phil Garrett
President.

President’s 5’s Fun Day

Dear Members,

I am really looking forward to our first President’s 5’s Fun Day on Sunday 23rd February, we have filled all the spaces for the teams, thank you to all of you who are coming along.

The format of the day is Singles, Pairs, Triples and Fours.

Please book in by 9.15am, the first game will start at 09.30am. 

Dress is greys with any approved bowls shirt, plain white shirt or club shirt.

The kitchen will be open from 8.30am serving bacon and sausage sandwiches or baguettes, and a full breakfast menu will be available from 10am, lunches will be available from 12pm and sandwiches will be served all day.

If you aren’t playing please come down to watch and support the club and your fellow bowlers, the draws for the matches have taken place and there is bound to be some great games to watch throughout the day.

Don’t forget we will also be showing the England vs Ireland 6 Nation’s rugby match kicking off at 3pm.

See you all on Sunday,

Phil Garrett,
President

Junior Academy

Fund raising efforts for our Junior Academy have reached an amazing £380 these monies being raised from the sale of used sets of bowls, sale of plants and marmalade at our open days and fayre’s and £145 donated by Waitrose who included our club in a token drop as part of their community matters scheme during October 2019.

This has enabled our Junior Coach, Dave Buttle, to purchase two new much needed sets of junior coaching bowls.

Congratulations to Dave and our junior players in their success this season in the Sussex County matches.

If you would like to join our Junior Academy or require more information about our junior academy please send us a message using our Contact Form.

 

Two of our Juniors play for Sussex U25’s

Congratulations to Freddie and Sophie who both played for Sussex U25’s on Sunday 12th January against Surrey.

It was Sophie’s 1st game for the league team and she played well, Sophie was in the same rink as Freddie, their rink won 25 / 16 and Sussex won on all rinks.

Sussex have now won the Inter County League with 2 games to play, Freddie has played in every league game this season and they are both playing in the next league game away to Essex.

Dave Buttle,
Junior Coach

Message from their team manager

“Just thought I’d let you know that both Freddie and Sophie played for Sussex on Sunday against Surrey.
Freddie has this year established himself as part of the main team.
Sophie played her 1st league game, getting herself a county shirt.
Keep doing what you are doing Dave, as it is helping the Sussex youth program.”

Barry