Issue 2 April 2026
Our latest news, dates for your diary, match reports and more. PPBC Bowling Matters Issue 2 April 2026 At last, the time has come to dust off your thermals and wet weather gear in preparation for the start of the outdoor (summer?) season, although many of you have done this already (see match reports, below). News Work on repairing the clubhouse roof will (hopefully) start this month, disruption should be kept to a minimum. Reminders 1.0 Dates for the Diary: April – May Please find below a summary of events, friendly matches and opportunities to assist our club. Details concerning Southampton and District League matches are published in the annual fixture list and are not repeated here. PPBC Events 8 April Short Mat Finals 7:00pm Pairs Final, 8:pm Singles Final 11 April Opening Day Dress code Jackets and Whites, Club Photo 14:00, followed by the spider and the first competition of the season Chairman v Captain, Post-match tea, biscuits and cake £3. Sign-up sheet on the noticeboard. From 11 May Monday Morning Mixed Triples League A sign-up sheet will appear on the noticeboard later this month. Friendlies 17 May County (Away) Dress code Whites. 6 rinks of mixed triples. A sign-up sheet will be posted on the noticeboard 24 May Bristol v SDBA (Home) One full rink from PPBC Advance Notice – 7:00pm 22 August Southampton Salty Sea Dogs An evening of shanties and songs of the sea. Southampton’s equivalent of Fisherman’s Friends is a crew of thirty men that perform locally and raise money to support the Hamble Lifeboat. More details to follow 2.0 Match Reports Totton and Eling (outdoors away 25 March) Thanks to our reporter, Eddie, for the following well-balanced report: The first outdoor friendly of 2026 was held at Totton and Eling on their all-weather green, which was useful as over the course of the match our intrepid team of 24 experienced hail, wind, rain and sunshine. It was a very good performance by Pirrie Park considering it was our first time outside for quite a while. A special mention should be given to new bowlers Pat Lawtry, Martin Leach and Pete Galton, all of whom did very well. Overall, we finished second with an accumulative score of 95 to 114. Our best rink with highest score, was expertly skipped by Eddie and also included Lenny and Barry Digweed. Remember the art of good bowling is to treat it as a learning curve…(Eddie that’s enough – Ed) The Editors would also like to thank a ‘Mr John Smith’ who filed the following short but factual report: “It was cold, we lost, the bar wasn’t open”. Skittles Night (Pirrie Park 28 March) The first club social event this year was very well attended and everyone had the opportunity to demonstrate their prowess at skittles. Many players managed to knock over all nine skittles with their three balls but no one managed to do this with just two or one. However, after three rounds there were clear winners without the need for any further attempts. Congratulations to Wayne and Mia who are the new Champions and also a mention to Steve and Angie whose kitchen is now graced with two additional wooden spoons. The skittles were briefly interrupted for a fish and chip supper which was enjoyed by all. When the skittles resumed the pace of play definitely slowed. 3.0 Thank you The windswept bowlers would like to thank Eddie for organising the friendly at Totton and Eling last month. The club would like to thank everyone who helped with the Skittles night, specially Martin and Mo for collecting the fish and chips, Rachel, Lloyd and Keith for running the competition with the assistance from the team that returned balls and set up skittles. Not forgetting the team of volunteers that set up the alley and afterwards packed it away so efficiently. When we do get outside, we all will be grateful that Martin and Mark have repaired the sentry boxes -thank you both. If you want to thank someone for their contributions to the club please let the editors know. 4.0 And finally… Following an emergency committee meeting, the club has taken swift and immediate steps to ban the use of Australian Artificially Intelligent (AAI) woods, both indoors and on the Green. Garishly coloured, very straight, capable of responding to commands from the bowler, they officially retail at £500 each but are significantly cheaper if ordered from the dark web – where they are marketted under the tradename ‘Possion d’Avril’. The committee are also aware that during matches some bowlers can be heard calling instructions from the mat and then complaining that their woods refuse to listen to them; it should be assumed that although they have unfortunately made the bad decision to try to obtain ultra-straight AAI woods, they have inadvertently become victims of on-line fraud. Obviously, these members can continue to play and talk to their woods without sanction. All members should remember that ownership and use of AAI woods is like crime in multi-storey car parks – wrong on so many levels. Fortunately, AAI woods are easy to spot (see scorers report below). Use of AAI woods at a recent short mat game. Contact us All contributions, including better puns, welcome; the editors can be contacted via email (pll@soton.ac.uk) or letter placed on the mail noticeboard in the corridor by the entrance to the bar. Club Website
Issue 1 March 2026
Latest news, dates for your diary, match reports and more. PPBC Bowling Matters Issue 1 March 2026 As the start of the 2026 outdoor season draws near, this newsletter aims to keep our members informed of upcoming events, competitions, friendlies as well as opportunities to volunteer and help maintain our club and grounds. Embracing the electronic age To save paper and the costs of printing, this newsletter is designed to be available in electronic formats and can be viewed at pirriepark.com/newsletter/. However, if you are happy to automatically receive your news and other club information electronically then please complete the registration form at pirriepark.com/register-for-newsletter/. Legally, the club must be compliant with General Data Protection Regulations, by completing the on-line registration form you are agreeing that your personal information can only be used for specified and explicit club matters and will not be passed on to third parties. Going forwards, you can opt out of receiving information electronically at any time (your personal information will be removed from our database) and we will remind you of this option annually. News You may have noticed that Southampton has had 36 cm of rain since the start of the year (approaching half the city’s annual average), the green is waterlogged and more worryingly, the clubhouse roof is now leaking in several places. It is very clear that the roof needs urgent attention and the committee, having received quotes from roofing companies, have selected a contractor to carry out the necessary works. Reminders If you have yet to pay your membership fees for 2026, please do so as soon as possible. 1.0 Dates for the Diary: March – May Please find below a summary of events, friendly matches and opportunities to assist our club. Details concerning Southampton and District League matches are published in the annual fixture list available from the bar and are not repeated here. PPBC events 28 March Skittles Night £3.00pp Skittles and Fish and Chip Supper. Please sign up at the noticeboard near the main entrance, selecting your choice of meal. Please pay for your tickets at the bar and pay for your meal on the night. 8 April Short Mat Finals 7:00pm Pairs Final, 8:pm Singles Final. 11 April Opening Day Dress code Jackets and Whites, Club Photo 14:00, followed by the spider and the first competition of the season Chairman v Captain, Post-match tea, biscuits and cake. Friendlies 23 March Totton and Eling (Outdoor Away) Dress Code greys. 1:00pm start- this friendly is already oversubscribed. 17 May County (Away) Dress code Whites. Sign up sheet will be posted on the noticeboard. 2.0 Match Reports Once in the swing of the outdoor season our intrepid reporters will provide match reports. Here is a short summary of short mat activities over the winter break. Four teams have spent 18 weeks playing short mat triples and pairs, there have been several very close matches, a few draws and quite a few games that were not so close. With one round of games to go, Lloyd’s team had already secured the triples league title and the pairs title would be decided between Angie or Lloyd’s team. On the night Lloyd’s pairs team won their final match against Mike’s team and could not be caught. Both Leagues finished with Angie;s team as the runners up , Barry’s team in third place and Mike’s team in fourth. It was particularly pleasing to see some of our newer members consistently playing well with George (Lloyd’s team), Craig (Mike’s team), Andy and Pete (both Angie’s team) all having excellent games in theri first full season. The matches have been well attended, and the Short-mat organisers would like to thank everyone who has participated and played in good spirit and a friendly manner. March sees the singles and pairs short mat club competitions with matches from the 16th March and finals night on the 8 April. Details of the two draws and fixtures can be found on the Short Mat noticeboard in the corridor. All are welcome to come and watch the games, the bar will be open and as one regular attendee said, “It’s just like being at Potters”, mind you that was fairly late in the evening. 3.0 Thank you The bar committee would like to thank John Bambrough for his contributions to the work of the committee and specially for all the times over the years that he has volunteered to work behind the bar. The weekly bingo players would like to thank Keith Andrews for his great bingo calling. Keith Andrews would like to thank all the wobblers, coughers and quackers… If you want to thank someone for their contributions to the club please let the editors know. 4.0 And finally To help our women prepare for the outdoor season eco-friendly fitness equipment has been installed in the Ladies changing room. Only women can use the herbal dumbbells. Thyme weights for no man. Contact us All contributions, including better puns, welcome, the editors can be contacted via email (pll@soton.ac.uk) or letter placed on the mail noticeboard in the corridor by the entrance to the bar. Club Website https://pirriepark.weebly.com