On a glorious sunny day South Lancashire’s Soroptimists took part in the closing rounds of the region’s annual bowling competition. A colourful event with the teams in their various club shirts, it was held at Nuttall Park, Ramsbottom, and hosted by SI Ramsbottom.
In the team competition semi-final SI Bootle succeeded in beating SI Leigh, while SI St Helens lost by the narrowest of margins to SI Crosby. The stage was set, therefore, for an exciting match between the Merseyside sister clubs. Each of the six games was closely watched by the crowd of knowledgeable Soroptimists – and a few members of the public who strolled by. The end result was victory for SI Crosby, 91 points to 78.
In the individual competition, the elimination rounds led to a final show-piece between Dot Massey and Paula Fox of SI Widnes. After a keenly-contested match, Dot emerged the winner.
Regional President Denise Baldwin presented the silver ‘President’s Rose Bowl’ to Shirley Smith, captain of SI Crosby, and congratulated the team on their hard-earned success. A delighted Shirley paid tribute to the Crosby squad of players and supporters who had entered so wholeheartedly into the friendly spirit of the competition. She looked forward to seeing the club’s name once again, after many years, engraved on the trophy.
Yvonne Atkinson, President of SI Crosby, then presented the ‘Tricia Fahey Cup’ to Dot Massey. Tricia – a former member of the club – founded the bowls competition when Regional President in the 1980s. In her memory her club donated this cup, for which the region’s high-scoring non-league bowlers can now compete. Dot is currently the co-ordinator of the regional bowls competition, and has many fond memories of Tricia – so she was particularly thrilled to win this trophy.
In conclusion President Denise thanked everyone for contributing to a great day’s play, complimented Dot on her efficient organisation, and commended the hard-working members of her own club – SI Ramsbottom – for their expertise in the kitchen throughout the event.