WELSH NEWS by Ceris Hewlings
12 BOWLS INTERNATIONAL November 2017LAUREN GOWEN
BUBBLY teenager Lauren Gowen
who burst onto the bowls scene
when she became the youngest
bowler ever to play for her
country in the British Under 25s
Championship is making headlines
again.
For the 14-year-old has become
the first to be crowned the Welsh
Women’s Bowling Association’s
Under 18 and Under 25 singles
champion in the same season.
The Ysgol Gyfun Cymer Rhondda
pupil beat Haverfordwest’s Sara
John Davies 21-10 in the final tolift the Under 18 title, while in the
Under 25 event, Lauren knocked
out two former champions in
Katie Thomas (2015) 21-10 in the
semi final and title favourite Mel
Thomas (2008) in a nailbiting 21-
encounter.
Lauren will now represent
Wales in the Under 25 Home
International Championships next
July.
Lauren started bowling in 2009
quite by accident!
“I came out of a swimming lesson
in the leisure centre, but we had
lost my brother,” said Lauren whowas seven at the time. “We found
him in bowls hall. We got talking
to the people there and one of the
coaches asked me if I wanted a
game.”
And the rest they say is history.
Her mum Tracy, dad Leighton and
brother Celyn also all now bowl,
with her mum Tracy receiving her
indoor international cap in 2015.
Lauren is a member of Rhondda
IBC and her first victory was
winning the club junior blitz and
the school tournament.
Outdoors, she is a member of
Porth ladies and Penygraig juniors.WHITCHURCH
BC MIXED PAIRS
WHITCHURCH Bowling Club’s
popular open mixed pairs
tournament attracted a strong
field of competitors for its second
year.
Defending champions Rhianne
Taylor and Mike Prosser made a
first round exit.
The semi finals were between
Angela Streetly and Robert Palser,
of Merthyr West End, against
Olivia Jackson (Whitchurch BC)
and her dad Steve Jackson from
Penylan BC. Fourteen-year-old
Olivia and former international
Steve won convincingly. The other
semi final was between Katie
Davies and Christian Eldridge,
both of Whitchurch BC, verses
Peter Frost (St. Albans BC) and
his daughter Hayley Frost (Cardiff
BC).The Frosts were holding game
until Christian put the jack in the
ditch to take three shots to force
an extra end. Then Christian won
the extra end to go through to
the final to play the Jacksons.
Olivia, sister of Welsh Under 25s
international Chloe, was playing
in her first ever open tournament
with her dad, and had never won
any money in bowls before! With
£125 cheque already bagged
after winning their semi final, the
teenager was very excited about
being in the final. The final was
however won by Katie Davies and
Christian Eldridge who received
£250 each.
Anyone interested in entering
next year is asked to contact Paul
Mitchell, tournament organiser,
at [email protected]
Whitchurch BC would like to
thank Sunrise Living for their loyal
support again this year.Katie Davies and Christian Eldridge won
the Whitchurch Mixed PairsM
ERTHYR West End’s
Liam Stone became the
first current member
of the host club to win the
Worthington/Merthyr West End
open tournament since Carl Lewis
defeated Aberavon’s John Price a
quarter of a century ago.
The popular 25-year-old Merthyr
player, who began his bowling
career at the Guest Memorial club
in Dowlais at the age of five, and is
a junior international indoor and
out and a full indoor international,
pocketed the Jack Lewis Trophy
and the first prize of £2,500, putting
the icing on a remarkable year
which has already seen him win
both the Welsh indoor pairs and
triples titles.
His recent record in the
tournament had been encouraging,
narrowly losing to Kidwelly’s David
Kingdon in the 2014 final and to
RTB Ebbw Vale’s Roger Harvey in
the 2015 semi final.
This year, however, was his
year and throughout the week he
played with a flair and confidence
which looked indomitable.
He marched to victory in this
year’s closing stages, defeating two
former tournament champions in
Neil Collett (1996, 2007), 21-12 in
the semi final, and RTB Ebbw Vale’s
John K. Evans (2004), 21-10 in the
final.
Earlier, he put paid to the
hopes of clubmate, Andrew
Mogford, a surprise quarter
finalist, who had himself defeated
the 2015 and 2016 champion,
Jonathan Tomlinson, and another
international, Mark Watkins of
Graig Merthyr, in previous rounds.
During the week, finalist EvansMerthyr West End Open
revisited his form of the early
2000s, when he won both the
Welsh singles and West End open
in two years, taking the scalps of
Harlequins’ Ross Owen, who was
recently nominated for Wales in
next year’s Commonwealth Games
in Queensland’s Gold Coast, 21-
in the semi final, and former
British Isles pairs champion, Ian
Henderson, 21-15, in the quarterfinal.
Owen had looked in invincible
form, particularly towards the
latter stages with outstanding
victories over friend and club mate
Phil Carpenter in the last 16 and
another former champion, Steve
Batten (2001) in the quarter final,
the latter who had eliminated 2014
champion David Kingdon in the
previous round.Gethin Morgan, of Molson Coors, main sponsor presenting Liam Stone with his
trophy and cheque for £2,RESULTS:
Last 16: Huw Davies (West End) 13 Ian Henderson (Caerphilly Town) 21; John K. Evans
(RTB Ebbw Vale) 21 Alex Davies (Thomastown) 18; Adam King (Beaufort) 16 Neil Collett
(West End) 21; Chris Jones (Ystradfechan) 21 Tony Magness (West End) 15 Steve Batten
(RTB Ebbw Vale) 21 David Kingdon (Kidwelly) 15; Phil Carpenter (Harlequins) 15 Ross
Owen (Harlequins) 21; Liam Stone (West End) 21 Alyn Williams (unattached) 16; Simon
Williams (Resolven) 19 Andrew Mogford (West End) 21.
Quarter- fi nals: I. Henderson 15 J. K. Evans 21; N. Collett 21 C. Jones 7; S. Batten 9 R.
Owen 21; L. Stone 21 A. Mogford 8.
Semi-fi nals: N. Collett 12 L. Stone 21; J. K. Evans 21 R. Owen 12
Final: L. Stone 21 J. K. Evans 10.11-13-BI_WELSHNEWS_Nov17_cc.indd 12 12/10/2017 14: