Green Maintenance Complete
Autumn is well and truly here and the green is slowly recovering from the extremely dry summer. The major work on the green was carried out on Thursday and Friday the 4/5th September. A very big Thank You to all the members who came along on Friday morning to complete the work started by Andrew and John on Thursday evening. Fortunately the weather was kind so the top dressing went down ‘in the dry’ which makes spreading the dressing so much easier. The grass seed has started to germinate and it is pleasing to see the small tufts of new grass growth across the green.
CHAT and Social Bowling
Weather permitting the two sessions of social bowling will continue over the winter months.
Thursday morning at 10am – CHAT & Social Bowling
Friday afternoon at 2pm – Social Bowling
Updates as to whether the sessions will be going ahead will be posted on the club Facebook page – Luneside Bowling Club and on WhatsApp – Crown Green Bowling. Please contact the secretary if you wish to join either of these groups.
Warm Space
During the winter months the CHAT programme will move indoors if bowling is not possible. The Club will provide a Warm Space on Thursday mornings and all members will be welcome to attend and enjoy socialising, playing board games, table tennis, snooker or darts. This might be extended to Monday mornings as well if the demand is there.
Fundraising Update
Since the last newsletter we have been awarded a grant of £1,800 from the Lancaster University Wind Turbine Community Fund. The grant is for replacing our current floodlights with modern LED floodlights. We are extremely grateful to the Fund for their support.
A number of other funding bids are currently pending and further bids will be submitted as new windows of opportunity open.
Local Leagues Summary
With the exception of the Lune Valley Floodlit League, all the main leagues have now finished. Here’s how the Luneside teams performed this season:
Lancaster League
Luneside A (Division 1): 9th out of 10 teams - Sadly relegated but some strong and encouraging performances
Luneside B (Division 3): 6th out of 8 teams - Avoided relegation – a disjointed season due to a team withdrawing
Ladies League
Luneside (Division 1): 6th out of 8 teams - Avoided relegation and now established in the top division
Morecambe League
Luneside (Division 4): 3rd out of 12 teams - Narrowly missed out on promotion
Veterans League
Luneside A (Division 2): 4th out of 10 teams - A solid season with some good results
Luneside B (Division 3): 2nd out of 11 teams - Achieved promotion. Excellent season – also winning the Vets Cup
In the Floodlit League, the Luneside team are currently 2nd in Division 3 with two more matches to play.
Forthcoming Events
Laws of the Game Seminars
Starting Monday 13th October and then monthly (2nd Monday in the month) at 7pm.
Starting soon and still time to get your name down. It cannot be emphasised enough how much players benefit from being fully conversant with the Laws of the Game. There is a one-off payment of £6 for the course which is being delivered by club members Linda Murie and Brian Cooke. As mentioned previously, the Club will pay the £3 for anyone wishing to take the exam at the end of the course. Details of the seminars are on the club noticeboard along with contact details.
Dominoes Evening
Thursday 23rd October at 7pm
A fun filled (and slightly competitive) evening of dominoes which anyone can enjoy, whether they have played dominoes previously or not. A nominal charge of £2 to cover prizes and participants are asked to bring finger food along to share. Open to members, family and friends – would be really good if we could get 24 taking part – 6 x tables of 4 for each round.
What the club offers in terms of social activities and events, away from the actual bowling, is really down to the members, so please come up with ideas and we can make them more regular if the demand is there.
AGM & Club Presentation Evening
Thursday 20th November from 7pm
The formal business of the Annual General Meeting will start at 7pm, with the presentation of accounts, the widely anticipated Chairman’s report and the election of the management committee for 2025/26. As far as the latter is concerned, a notice will be going up on the club noticeboard and anyone interested in joining the committee should register their interest. Alternatively, you can contact the secretary.
Following the conclusion of the AGM there will be the annual presentation of awards and a club social. Once again we ask that those attending bring along food to share in the form of a Jacobs Join. The bar will be open for the sale of alcoholic drinks.
Thank Yous
A special Thank You to Hilary Kennett who has taken on looking after the club flower beds and to Sam Walton, who has taken on the task of cleaning the club windows.
Recent Club Competitions
Alan Gardner Singles - Sunday 10th August
- Winner: Graham Brandwood
- Runner Up: Jan Aspinall
- Semi Finalists: Jon Hill & Andrew Gibson
Drawn Pairs – Saturday 23rd August
- Winners: Peg Herrod/Graham Brandwood
- Runners Up: Hilary Kennett/Nick Ridley
Social Scramble – Sunday 21st September
- Winner: Alan Tyson
- Runner Up: Howard Parkinson
Snooker at the Club
It is pleasing to note that more and more members are now using the snooker table at the club. Although it isn’t necessary yet to have a formal booking system in place, a WhatsApp group has been set up – Luneside snooker. This can be used by anyone looking for a game or to notify others when the table is likely to be in use. Please contact the secretary if you wish to join the group.
Club History and Some Quirky Facts
From the old minute books:
- 12th May 1831 – The Official opening of the Club
- 19/8/69 – We buy the premises from Yates & Jacksons. Cost was £2,500
- 14/3/72 – Agreed that Ladies could now join the club as full members. Annual subscription £1 per annum (Male subscription £1.50 per annum). May have been some resistance to this as an amendment was put forward suggesting that Ladies pay £5 per annum (overwhelmingly defeated)
- 30/10/72 – The Rosebank Association officially amalgamates with Luneside
- 6/9/85 – Sad and depressing times at the Club as a decision is made to try draft Lager (spelt larger in the minutes). In due course Carlsberg fit a pump – cost of a pint 82p
October/November Calendar of Events
(Home bowls matches shown in bold)
- Thursday 9th October - CHAT and Social Bowling (10.00am), Luneside V Skerton (7.00pm)
- Friday 10th October - Social Bowling (2.00pm)
- Monday 13th October - Laws of the Game Seminar (7.00pm)
- Thursday 16th October - CHAT and Social Bowling (2.00pm), Floodlit Cup at Lune Road v Bare (7.00pm)
- Friday 17th October - Social Bowling (2.00pm)
- Thursday 23rd October - CHAT and Social Bowling (10.00am), Dominoes Night (7.00pm)
- Friday 24th October - Social Bowling (2.00pm)
- Thursday 30th October - CHAT and Social Bowling (10.00am), Luneside Management Meeting (7.00pm)
- Friday 31st October - Social Bowling (2.00pm)
- Thursday 6th November - CHAT and Social Bowling (10.00am)
- Friday 7th November - Social Bowling (2.00pm)
- Monday 10th November - Laws of the Game Seminar 2 (7.00pm)
- Thursday 13th November - CHAT and Social Bowling (10.00am)
- Friday 14th November - Social Bowling (2.00pm)
- Saturday 15th November - League Presentation Evening (7.00pm)
- Thursday 20th November - CHAT and Social Bowling (10.00am), AGM & Presentation Evening (7.00pm)
- Friday 21st November - Social Bowling (2.00pm)
- Thursday 27th November - CHAT and Social Bowling (10.00am)
- Friday 28th November - Social Bowling (2.00pm)