Bowling Over The Competition: Welshman Ryan Takes Junior Title

Ashton Cricket Club's Rayner Lane played host to a prestigious competition on Saturday morning.

32 junior crown green bowlers, regarded as the best in Great Britain, went head-to-head to win the Junior Individual Merit title - a competition for male and female players aged under 18.

The competition served up some incredible performances, with bowlers travelling from as far as the Isle of Man, Cumbria and Shropshire for a shot at the title.

After the knockout rounds had been completed, the final took place between Ryan Williams and Thomas Scorah, with the former, from Wales, coming out a 21-15 victor. The victory has brought to an end Ryan's junior career and he has now qualified for the BCGBA Champion of Champions competition next month.

Ashton, who have a glittering reputation in the bowling community, were approached to host the event for a number of reasons.

Primar, it’s one of many competitions that Rayner Lane has hosted during the past few months, as Lancashire Ladies took on Wales Ladies earlier in the season, whilst a Greater Lancashire faced Yorkshire in a battle of the roses.

Stan Adshead, club official at Ashton Cricket and Bowling Club, was honoured to host the the event. Speaking to Reporter Sport, he said: “We’ve been working hard on the green for a number of years with steady developments and putting ourselves in the shop window.

“The green’s in good condition considering we’re midway through the season and it gets used four times a week.

“The British Crown Green Bowling Association were looking for somewhere to host the event that had a good green and facilities near by.

“Not many of the competitors have played on the green before, so it would make for an interesting game.”

Ashton are enjoying a decent season with eight teams playing regularly. However, they have been faced with some troubles in recent years due to the Covid-19 outbreak and the subsequent stoppage of play.

Thankfully, things are picking up again and there’s plenty to be optimistic about. Stan said: “It’s been a quiet couple of years with the pandemic, so some people have drifted away from bowls and we’ve sadly lost a few members as well.

“However, we’re picking up and things are returning to normal with around eight teams regularly playing.”

Ashton Cricket Club’s first team secured promotion from the Greater Manchester Division 3E at the weekend, marking an instant return to Division 2 following relegation last year. “It’s been nice to watch a winning team every week” said Stan.

“I can’t remember a team winning every game of the season at this stage, ever.

“Having said that, it’s a lower standard than what we’ve previously competed at. We decided to have a shake up and hire a professional for the first time in  six years. We previously used that money and reinvested into the facilities ,which is paying dividends.”

Picture of Ryan taken from Welsh Crown Green Bowling Association