OPEN DOUBLES 2026 – BERNARD O’MALLEY TROPHY

Entries are still being taken for our annual open doubles competition, held in honour of our late Honorary Vice-President and generous supporter of the club, Mr. Bernard O’Malley.

The competition will be held on Sunday 26th April and is again being generously sponsored by Birkdale Insurance Group.

The entry fee is £20 per pair with starting times at 10.00 am, 10.45 am, 11.30 am and 12.15 pm.

Total prize money will be £900.00, paid out as follows :-

Winners – £320.00 ;     Runners-Up – £160.00

Semi-Finalists – £90.00 ;     Quarter-Finalists – £60.00

To enter please contact Chris Harding (07761733024) or Mike Milne (07752352065)

All games will be 21 up, with 3 on the card.

CLUB COMPETITIONS

The first internal club competition of the season will take place on Sunday 19th April, when we will stage the Spring Pairs. This will be a random doubles event, with pairings drawn out on the day. To enter, please register at the green by 11.45 am, so that the draw can be made in time for a prompt 12 noon start.

The first individual competition of the season will be the Rose Bowl, to be held on Sunday 10th May. This will be a singles handicap, with a plate competition for players losing in their first game. The starting time will again be 12 noon, with registration from 11.45 am.

SUBSCRIPTIONS

Many thanks to those who have already paid their subscriptions for the coming season. A lot of work is involved in recording and banking members’ subscriptions, so it would be greatly appreciated if payments could be made before the bowling season starts. Also, as the bank has introduced charges, which are higher for cash or cheque transactions, bank transfers are the preferred method of payment.

The Annual General Meeting set the following subscription rates for the 2026 season :-  

Standard membership subscription – £35.00

Team players’ subscription – £55.00

Payment can be made online directly to the Club’s bank account :

Sort Code : 30 97 88    Account number : 01007849

If paying by bank transfer, please notify Mike Milne by text (07752352065)

or email (michael.milne1966@outlook.com)

Alternatively, subscriptions can be sent to Mike Milne (Treasurer) at the following address :-

Mike Milne, 20 Coudray Road, Southport PR9 9NL

AWARDS EVENING

The Club will be holding an Awards Evening on Saturday 7th March, when we will recognise those members who were successful in the 2025 season.

The event will take place at the Churchtown Conservative Club, starting at 7.30 pm. 

The evening will also include a buffet, quiz, and raffle.

Tickets are priced at just £5 and should be ordered as soon as possible from any committee member.

Alternatively reply to this email or text me on 07977500131

Donations of raffle prizes on the night will be very welcome.

GREEN CLEAN UP

I am looking to organise a green clean up On Saturday 14^th of March, Sunday 15^th of March and Monday the 16^th of March

9;30 until late afternoon.

I would hope one of these days would be suitable for you to lend us same time and labour to clean up the green surrounds from its winter debris

I will be hiring a skip and employing a contractor to tackle the garden, nettles, and other overgrown plants.

It’s your club and we need YOUR HELP

AWARDS EVENING

The Club will be holding an Awards Evening on Saturday 7th March, when we will recognise those members who were successful in the 2025 season. The event will take place at the Churchtown Conservative Club, starting at 7.30 pm. The evening will also include a buffet, quiz and raffle. Tickets are priced at just £5 and should be ordered as soon as possible from any committee member. Donations of raffle prizes on the night will be very welcome.

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Many thanks to all those members who attended the Club’s Annual General Meeting, held at the Churchtown Conservative Club. The Committee would also like to thank the Conservative Club for the use of their facilities.

At the meeting the Chairman, Chris Harding, thanked Bill Bloor for the work he has done over the past two years as the Club’s Vice-President, in addition to his role as Project Manager. During this time, Bill oversaw various jobs at the Club and ran a very successful Away Day last season to the Black Horse in Croston. Bill has decided to stand down from the Committee and there remains a vacancy to be filled. If anyone is interested in taken on a committee role, please speak to any Club Officer for more information.

After successfully captaining two of our afternoon teams, George Hitchmough has retired from running the Merlins and the Hawks. We are pleased that Dave White has volunteered to captain the Hawks in the Aughton & District Senior Citizens’ League on Wednesday afternoons. This league is open to any bowler aged 55 and over. We require additional players to make up the Hawks’ squad, so if anyone is interested in joining this team, please contact Dave or any Club Officer as soon as possible.

Many thanks to Janice Hobson and Noreen Lewis for again auditing the accounts this year. Janice and Noreen have undertaken this role for several years but have indicated that they wish to step down. At the AGM, Terry Corfield and Sue Davies were elected as the new Auditors and we thank them for accepting these positions.

SUBSCRIPTIONS

The Annual General Meeting set the following subscription rates for the 2026 season :-  

Standard membership subscription – £35.00

Team players’ subscription – £55.00

Payment can be made online directly to the Club’s bank account :

Sort Code : 30 97 88    Account number : 01007849

If paying by bank transfer, please notify Mike Milne by text (07752352065) or email (michaelmilne66@outlook.com)

Alternatively, subscriptions can be sent to Mike Milne (Treasurer) at the following address :- Mike Milne, 20 Coudray Road, Southport PR9 9NL

HESKETH ARMS BOWLING CLUB

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Monday the 2^nd of February @ Churchtown Conservative Club 8.00pm

The 2026 AGM Agenda and the minutes of the 2025 AGM are attached to this email

2025 AWARDS EVENING

Saturday the 7^th Match 2026 @ Churchtown Conservative Club 7.30pm

£5 inclusive of buffet.

NEWSLETTER – JANUARY 2026

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Members are reminded that the Club’s Annual General Meeting will be held at the Churchtown Conservative Club on Monday 2nd February, starting at 8.00 pm.

Any propositions must be submitted in writing to the Secretary by Monday 19th January.

LEAGUE TEAMS – PLAYERS NEEDED

The Club currently fields teams in seven local leagues, which are as follows : –

Afternoon Leagues

Southport & District Veterans’ League – games played on a Monday afternoon and open to all bowlers aged 55 and over.

Aughton & District Senior Citizens’ League – games played on a Wednesday afternoon and open to all bowlers aged 55 and over.

Southport Ladies’ Afternoon League – games played on Thursday afternoons and open to female bowlers of any age.

Evening Leagues – all evening leagues are open to any registered club member

Maghull & District Bowling League – games are played on a Monday evening.

Southport LV Bowling League – games played on Tuesday evenings.

Southport & District Parks Bowling League – games played on Thursdays.

Burscough & Lathom Bowling League – this is a Friday evening league.

Most of our teams would welcome some new recruits and we ask that if any member hasn’t tried league bowling before that they consider giving it a go. Or if anyone currently plays for a team, they may wish to join an additional team and maybe get to play on some different greens.

The teams in most need of extra players are our afternoon teams. So, if any member is interested in playing on a Monday or a Wednesday afternoon, please speak to a member of the Committee as soon as possible. The Ladies’ team, captained by Debbie Barnes, had a very successful season in 2025 but also needs a couple of extra players. Anyone interested should contact Debbie, they would be made very welcome.

If possible, we would also like to enter a second team into the Southport LV League, which would be aimed primarily at bowlers new to league bowling, with one or two more experienced players to provide guidance and support.

The Hesketh Arms’ league teams have enjoyed considerable success over the last fifteen years and numerous bowlers who had never played league matches previously have made huge contributions to this success. Playing for a team can be a sociable and rewarding way of enjoying the game, so we would urge all our members to help in keeping our league teams flourishing. Please let us know as soon as possible if you are interested in joining one of our teams.  

BLOWICK CUP – CHAMPIONS OF CHAMPIONS 2026

The Club will be staging the Blowick Cup for the sixth time in 2026. This is a Champion of Champions event for those members who won a club competition or team merit during the previous season.  A date has yet to be chosen but we hope to hold it as early as possible at the start of the season.

The qualifiers for the Blowick Cup 2026 are :-

Debbie Barnes           Buzzards Merit

Sue Davies                  Last Chance Cup

Andy Draper               Vultures Merit ; Owls Merit

Darren Edgerley         Vice-Presidents Trophy

Steve Goulding           Merlins Merit

Jim Halsall                   Championship Cup ; Last Chance Chance Cup ; Eagles Merit ; Ospreys Merit ; Kestrels Merit

Chris Harding              Chairman’s Shield

Alan Hatton                President’s Cup

Alan Lloyd                  Hobbies Merit

Pat McArthur             Sparrowhawks Merit

John McCabe              Spring Pairs

Steve McManus         Spring Pairs

Mike Milne                 Rose Bowl ; Blowick Cup ; Chairman’s Shield ; Kites Merit

Chris Porter                Vice-Presidents Trophy

Peter Smith                Hawks Merit

Fergal Wright        Coronation Cup

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of John Catherall on 23rd December. As a valued and long-serving member of the club, John dedicated many years to playing in the Southport LV League. Among his accomplishments was winning the Presidents Cup in 2010. He was highly regarded for his integrity and was well respected within the bowling community.

In his later years, although unable to bowl, John remained an active supporter and frequently attended matches at the club.

Funeral Arrangements

The funeral service for John Catherall will take place at Southport Crematorium on Tuesday, 13th January 2026, at 13:00.

SAVE THE DATES

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Monday the 2^nd of February @ Churchtown Conservative Club 8.00pm

2025 AWARDS EVENING

Saturday the 7^th Match 2026 @ Churchtown Conservative Club 7.30pm

AGM Agenda and further details of Awards Night early in 2026

AUTUMN NEWSLETTER

BURSCOUGH LEAGUE PRESENTATION

The Burscough & Lathom Bowling League held its Presentation Meeting recently and Andy Draper was presented with his award for winning the 1^st Division Merit. Andy is pictured being presented with the shield by League President, Duncan Crabtree . 

LEAGUE SEASON REVIEW – 2025

INTRODUCTION

The 2025 season saw the Hesketh Arms Bowling Club field eleven teams in various local leagues. A lot of work and commitment goes into running these teams and thanks go to the captains who take on this important role. Our captains this year were :- Chris Harding (Eagles & Vulture) ; Jim Halsall (Ospreys) ; Mike Milne (Owls) ;

John Townsend (Sparrowhawks) ; John Unsworth (Kites) ; Brian Sutton (Kestrels) ; George Hitchmough (Hawks & Merlins) ; John Hughes (Hobbies) ; Debbie Barnes (Buzzards). 

Below is a summary of our teams’ performances, along with their individual merit winners. Full tables can be found on the results website for each league. 

SOUTHPORT LV LEAGUE

The Eagles continued to compete strongly in the top half of the Premier Division, eventually finishing in 3rd place.

In the Knockout Cup, the Eagles were defeated 6-4 by Tarleton in the semi-final, played at Fleetwood Hesketh.

Eagles Merit Winner – Jim Halsall (14 wins)

BURSCOUGH & LATHOM LEAGUE

We continued to run two teams in the Burscough & Lathom League, one of the strongest leagues in the area. The Vultures again performed well, finishing level on points with Banks St. Stephen’s, nine points behind champions Bretherton ‘A’. Unfortunately, they lost the play-off for the runners-up spot and so had to settle for 3rd place.

Congratulations to Andy Draper, who had an outstanding season. He won 14 out of the 16 games to win the League Player of the Season award.

The Ospreys, under new captain Jim Halsall, were playing in the 2nd Division, having been relegated from the top-flight. They had an enjoyable season and ended the season exactly half-way in 5th place.

Vultures Merit Winner – Andy Draper (14 wins)

Ospreys Merit Winner – Jim Halsall (13 wins)

MAGHULL LEAGUE

With the Sparrowhawks having been promoted, both our Maghull League teams were competing in the 1st Division. The Owls welcomed several new recruits to the team to replace players who had moved from the area or couldn’t play due to work commitments. The team competed well and finished in a mid-table position. In their first season in the top division, the Sparrowhawks found wins hard to come by in what is a tough standard and finished in 11th place. They did, however, enjoy a notable success in winning the first “derby” fixture against the Owls.

Owls Merit Winner – Andy Draper (18 wins)

Sparrowhawks Merit Winner – Pat McArthur (8 wins)

SOUTHPORT PARKS LEAGUE

Our Parks League team, the Kites, were expecting to be relegated having finished bottom of the Premier Division in 2024 but got a reprieve following a restructuring of the league. The 2025 season saw a great improvement in the team’s performances thanks to impressive contributions from several new signings and they finished in a healthy 6th place, the exact half-way point in the division.

Kites Merit Winner – Mike Milne (15 wins)

AUGHTON SENIOR CITIZENS’ LEAGUE

Both our Wednesday afternoon teams were in the 1st Division for 2025. The Hawks had gained promotion by finishing as runners-up in Division 2 the previous season, whilst the Kestrels were placed above the 1st Division relegation places following a decision made at the League’s Annual General Meeting.

The top division of the Aughton League is a tough one and wins can be hard to come by. At the end of the season, the Kestrels had won six matches to finish in 8th place and the Hawks were one place below in 9th having won five games.

Kestrels Merit Winner – Jim Halsall (15 wins)

Hawks Merit Winner – Peter Smith (11 wins)

SOUTHPORT VETERANS’ LEAGUE

In the Monday afternoon Southport Veterans’ League, the Merlins were competing in the top-flight after winning the 2nd Division in 2024. They had a season of consolidation in the 1st Division, winning nine matches to finish the season in a comfortable 8th place.

The Hobbies were playing in Division 3, having been relegated at the end of the previous season. Several of the team were new to league bowling in 2024 but they ended the 2025 season strongly to finish 4th, having won an impressive 14 games out of 22 played.

The season ended on a positive note with both our teams reaching their divisional cup finals. The Merlins played against league runners-up Banks ‘A’, losing narrowly in the final, played at Fleetwood Hesketh. The Hobbies, however, won their final against Sandbrook ‘B’ at Crossens Bowling Club. This was despite having to concede a handicap of 89 chalks. This is their second cup win, having won the Dick Wareing Trophy in 2024. Congratulations to captain John Hughes and his team on winning the 2025 Joe Bond Trophy.

Merlins Merit Winner – Steve Goulding (16 wins)

Hobbies Merit Winner – Alan Lloyd (17 Wins)

SOUTHPORT LADIES’ LEAGUE

Having been relegated to the 2nd Division at the end of the 2024 season, the Buzzards were hoping to bounce straight back to the top division at the first attempt. With the help of some new signings, they achieved this emphatically by finishing as champions, three points ahead of Victoria Park ‘A’. They lost just one league game all season, winning thirteen out of their fourteen fixtures. Congratulations to captain Debbie Barnes, who led the way with 12 wins to finish top of the divisional merit table.

The Buzzards ended the season in style when they made it a double success by defeating their rivals Victoria Park ‘A’ by 11 chalks in the final of the Knockout Cup, played at Formby Sports & Social.

Buzzards Merit Winner – Debbie Barnes (12 wins)

Mike Milne

OCTOBER NEWSLETTER

Southport Veterans League

JOE BOND TROPHY

Congratulations to the Hesketh Hobbies on winning the Southport Veterans’ League Joe Bond Trophy. In the final, which was played at Crossens Bowling Club, they had to concede a handicap of 89 chalks against Sandbrook Park ‘B’. They got off to a flying start, winning all of the first four games and taking an aggregate advantage of 57 chalks. Three of the next four games were won, with a further 22 points being gained. This meant that with the last two games on the green and taking the handicap into account, the Hobbies were still ten chalks adrift. A 21-11 win by Andy Draper put the scores level, leaving the outcome of the final in the balance. The last Hobbies player on the green was Mike Burrill and he produced a tremendous fightback to come from 13-1 down to win 21-14, giving the Hobbies the aggregate by just 7 chalks. Congratulations to captain John Hughes and all of the Hobbies squad who have played throughout the season. 

Southport Veterans League

Fred Brockley trophy

The Hesketh Merlins the 1^st Division team were involved in the 1^st Division cup final. The game was won by Banks A by 14 chalks.

ROUND ROBINS

The popular Tuesday and Friday Round Robins have again been held throughout the 2025 season and given the better weather we have enjoyed this year, attendances have been much higher than in the last couple of seasons. These sessions are an integral part of the Club’s programme of events and are an ideal way of meeting other members of the club and gaining experience of playing against different players. Many thanks to Peter and Lynne Smith for hosting the Round Robins and to those who have helped out in any way or stood in for Peter and Lynne when they have been unable to attend.

GREEN MAINTENANCE

Members will be aware that the green is now closed for the winter and will reopen in Spring 2026. The annual maintenance work on the green has commenced and we hope that the green will be back to its usual high standard after a period of very challenging weather conditions. The Committee will endeavour to keep members updated on the work carried out on the green and progress being made throughout the course of the close season.

We will be looking for help from our members for out of season clean up work.

The club would welcome any donations of unwanted Astro turf to complete the lining of the bowling green gutters. Please contact George Hitchmough who can arrange collection.

CHAMPIONSHIP CUP

The final club competition of the season took place on Sunday, when seventeen members took part in the Championship Cup. This is a singles merit played off scratch. In the top half of the draw, Jim Halsall progressed to the semi-finals with comfortable wins against Laurie Townson (21-9) and Brian Sutton (21-13). In his semi-final, Jim faced tough opposition in Chris McManus and had to come back from 17-12 and 18-14 down to win a close match 21-19.

Jim’s opponent in the final was Steve McManus, whose hardest game was his quarter-final against Chris Porter, Steve just getting across the line 21-19. In his semi-final match, Steve comfortably beat Mike Milne 21-7.

The early stages of the final were close and when Steve led 12-10 after fourteen ends, it looked as though it could all the way. However, Jim hit form at the right time and won seven consecutive ends to take the title with a 21-12 win. 

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Congratulations to Jim on winning the Championship Cup for the second time, having previously won it in 2014.