This poem was composed for the Annual Dinner of the club. It was a year when several of our longstanding members were no longer bowling due to ill health or had passed away. The first part of the poem pays tribute to these members.
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Well here we are again, the annual bowls club dinner
Culminating in a raffle where everyone’s a winner
Time for celebrating all the years successes
Ladies get a chance to wear their lovely dresses
A gathering for experienced and newer bowlers too
A moment for reflection to remember the absent few
Those no longer bowling -
Always in our fondest thoughts they will surely be
Some have lost their battle and found their calm release
Those friends no longer with us – may they rest in peace
We welcome our new bowlers it’s always so very nice
That they listen with such humour to all our good advice
The kingpin of all bowling is of course the skip
If skip gives you some bad advice, best just bite your lip
There are certain phrases you will hear all the while
Each and every bowler has their own personal style
Always treat the messages as made with good intent
Your efforts are rewarded with “Exactly what I meant”
All that you aspire to is to hear the words “well bowled”
And less positive comments are better left untold
One call often heard that is so quintessential
A certain gent’s favourite phrase” Bowl it Wide and Gentle”
When your wood careers along and wobbles more than rolls
And achieves its main objective, takes shot -
Opponents look so aghast as if smitten by a lorry
The least that you can say to them “I’m really very sorry”
And then there are times when your bowling is really hot
Perfect pace, perfect line and yet gives your opponents “shot”
Keep on playing, trying, improving you’ll get chosen for a match
Sod’s law states this will cause your very first bad patch
Bowling can be complex and full of much intrigue
You never know one day we might even win the league