Longstanton at Northstowe Bowls Club

Thursday 4th June the M&D squad took to the green at Newnham, unfortunately losing heavily on 1 rink, and going down by 3 shots on another.

We were however, successful on the other 2 rinks, with the final total being 55-72 in favour of Newnham, giving them an overall 6-4 result.

The evening was rounded off with Tea and Biscuits, and a good old natter. Thanks to Newnham for your welcome and hospitality.

Next week we are at home to Histon.

Having a mid-match break for a glass of squash and a biscuit can either work for you or against you.

This afternoon we played Cottenham A, in the Ely & District League

On rink one, we were 13-2 up at the break, then proceeded to lose the next 5 ends, before recovering to finish 20-10 up.

Rink two, 7-10 down at the break but fought back to finish all square at 14-14.

Rink three 13-3 up at the break then then lost 7 of the remaining ends to finish 14-16 down.

Overall a Longstanton win of 48-40 (4 ½ to 1 ½ points) providing a lovely afternoon of bowls, full of twists and turns.

Wednesday evening, the C&D squad were in Gilbert Cup competiton action against Division 2 side Gamlingay.

The 2 winning home rinks provided a 27 shot advantage, although the 2 away rinks were less fortunate going down by 15 shots. However, an overall successful winning result.

We now go into the next round against Division 1 Sawston as our opposition, on Wednesday 24th June.

We are really looking forward to that one.

This evening (22nd) the C&D squad were hosted by Fenstanton A.

We were very lucky to achieve a 4-3 (61-54) win, with 3 of the 4 rinks suffering defeat, leaving rink 4 to bring home the spoils, which they did in style with a stunning (26-5) win, so it’s well done to Carl , Hazel, and her other half David, for putting this game in the bag.

It was such a pleasure playing on a true English summer evening.

Next Wednesday we meet Gamlingay in the Gilbert Cup, playing 2 rinks at home and 2 rinks played away.

On the warmest afternoon of the year so far, Longstanton worked hard to secure a 4-2 win (60-53) over Littleport Lions in the Ely and District afternoon league.

Of the 3 rinks, we won on one and lost on the other two, but thanks our 13 shot win, this covered defeats of one and five shots respectively.

A close match with some very enjoyable bowling and plenty of water.

Our next match is at home to Cottenham on Monday 1st June.

Last night (19th May) the C & D squad were playing at Little Shelford.

The very friendly hosts won the closely contested game by 5 points to 2 (65-61) with Longstanton winning on 2 of the 4 rinks.

The green played in favour of straight woods, and certainly not a night for bending woods

In mid-week we enjoyed a 5-1 win in the Business Houses Open League away at Fulbourn. On the first rink, we took control early and built a heathy lead throughout the match. It was a very different story on the second rink, and with 3 ends to go, we were 10 shots down, so clearly drastic action was needed. The lead and skip swapped and we adopted a strategy of long jacks. This worked and we picked-up 10 shots, to tie the score. We finished, just before the wind and rain arrived, decamping to their hut for a cup of tea and a biscuit.

On Friday, in the Ely and District league, we played West Row at home. West Row are a strong team with a playing membership of 65, many of whom had joined when Mildenhall Bowls Club folded a couple of years ago. We held our own on two of the three rinks but came unstuck on the third rink. They were simply too good for us. The final score was a 5-1 defeat and we now look forward to our next match, at home to Littleport “B”. Littleport were promoted, together with Longstanton, to Division One last season.

Last night (11 May), the Cambridge & District team put another win under their belts beating Melbourn 6-1 (69-47) just a one shot difference on the losing rink.

A well deserved victory and so close to a full house.

Next week we have two away games at Fenstanton and Little Shelford,so let’s hope the weather turns warmer, as last night was bitterly cold.

Our 2026 campaign in the Ely & District afternoon league, unfortunately got off to a poor start last Friday with a 5.5 - 0.5 points (45-35 shot) home defeat to Girton Tigers.

Girton are a good side and will probably finish the season towards the top of the table.

Today we travelled to Newmarket, where our fortunes improved and we came away with a win, 4.5 – 1.5 (53 – 40 shots). Our losing rink only lost by a single shot, which is disappointing but that’s bowls for you.

It wasn’t the warmest of afternoons hence, jumpers and jackets were the order of the day.

The matched finished with a very welcome cup of tea and a biscuit in their spacious clubhouse. Thank you Newmarket for your hospitality and a very enjoyable afternoon of bowls.

The CaD squad were in action Thursday evening, in their second game of the season against Great Shelford. The opposition came away with a 5-2 win, although it was a very close overall result of 58-54.

On the last end, on 3 rinks, we lost a total of 5 shots, so that shows how close the match was .

We now look forward to our next game, next week, on Monday 11th v Melbourn at home.