Seend Short Mat Bowls Club was formed in 1998, as a result of a Village Appraisal Questionnaire which indicated that a number of residents would be interested in some form of Bowls if it were available.
There being no bowling green in the immediate area, it was decided that the Short Mat version of the game would be a suitable alternative. 22 people signed on, and our membership numbers have fluctuated slightly around this figure during the 6 years of the Club's existence (including for several years some enthusiastic Under-18's).
Our quality of play has reached a level where we have been very successful in a considerable number of competitions held in Wiltshire, many of our members enjoying competition at the County's highest level.
Aside from the competition aspect of the game, the primary aim of our Club is to provide at its weekly sessions a regular sociable and enjoyable gathering for its members, and give those who perhaps would not otherwise participate in games an opportunity to meet and play with others in a very relaxed atmosphere. Give it a try!
For those who would like more information on the game itself, see below.
Short Mat Bowls (not to be confused with Carpet Bowls) is a version of the ancient game of Bowls and is played in village halls, social clubs, sports centres and even schools by an ever-increasing number of people - currently more than 30,000 in the UK alone. The game is said to have originated when an Irish Bowls team, travelling home after a rained-off match, decided that a public house en route had a back room of sufficient area and a carpet of suitable quality on which to play (this may be one of the reasons why Belfast and its surroundings has upwards of 70 Short Mat Bowls Clubs in existence)!
From those simple beginnings the sport has expanded so much that there are now International matches, inter-county championships and all manner of County -organised Championships, Summer and Winter Leagues and competitions comprising events for Fours, Triples, Pairs and Singles.
The game is played on a carpet or mat of standard dimensions of 6 feet in width by 40-45 feet in length. There are several manufacturers producing carpets of slightly different materials and therefore with slight variations in "speed". The biggest variable is produced by the floors on which the carpets are placed - naturally village hall floors are not usually "laser-levelled" and this of course lends interest and a challenge to determine whether the playing surface has a "wide" side and a "narrow" side determining the line to be chosen by the bowler.
The rules of the game follows more or less those laid down for the traditional game of Bowls (outdoor or indoor "rinks") with the difference that a block of wood 15" wide is placed in the centre of the carpet so that the bowler has to use the "bias" of the bowl to guide it around the block on either side in order to come to rest as closely as possible to the target "jack". The bowls themselves are identical to those used for the "long" game.
The sport's controlling body for Wiltshire is the Wiltshire Short Mat Bowling
Association, which is itself answerable to the English Short Mat Bowling Association.
Most of the bowling in the County is organised under the auspices of the WSMBA,
which itself arranges its own Championships, tournaments. Leagues and inter-County
events. There is a County "squad" of approximately 40 individuals
from the 30-odd clubs affiliated to the Association.
SEEND S.M.B.C.
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Founded November 1998 - Affiliated to Wiltshire SMBA |
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| SECRETARY | Colin Waldeck |
| FIXTURE SECRETARY | As above |
| VENUE | Irene Usher Pavilion, Rusty Lane, Seend |
| VENUE DIRECTIONS | Rusty Lane
is halfway along Seend High St. (A361)On the north
side almost opposite church (s/p Village Halls). |
| CLUB MEETINGS | Wednesday 19:30 to 21:30 |
| MEMBERS IN CLUB | 24 |
| MATS IN USE | 2 |
| ESMBA REGISTERED | 20 |
| MEMBERS WANTED | YES |
| MEMBERS UNDER 18 | 2 |
| VISITORS WELCOME | Check First |
| PLAY IN LEAGUE | 1 - Team Wiltshire Winter League |
| FRIENDLY MATCHES | Evenings |
Winner 2002 Warmans Holiday Trouville 4s Polly Hill +3
Winner 2002 Timsbury Open 4s Polly Hill +3
Winner 2002 County Triples Alan Saunders, Kate & Rhys Jones
Winners 2003 Cyprus Short Mat Festival Fours (Week 1) Polly Hill +3
Finalist 2003 County Singles Rhys Jones
Finalist 2003 County Under 18s Daniel Waylen
Winner 2002/03 Wiltshire County League Division 1
Winner 2003 Wiltshire League Cup Don Hatt, Alan Saunders, Rhys & Kate Jones
Winner 2003 Marshfield Summer Open 4s Jenny & John Stevens +2
Winner 2003 Hardwicke Charity Shield Open 4s David Tompkins & John Stevens +2
Runners-Up 2003/04 Wiltshire County League Division 1
Winner Wiltshire County Summer Open 2003 John Stevens, Colin Waldeck,Rhys Jones, Don Hatt
7 County Team Members :- Polly, John, Colin, Kate, Rhys, Alan, David
Some photographs of Seend SMBC activities can be found in the Picture Gallery pages of the website. Click on this link to take you to the Seend Short Mat Bowls Club Photos.