Third place Bustards made the shortish journey to Bournemouth to play 4th place Panthers. The weather was great, the green was small & it played pretty well.

Rink 1 – Tony, Steve & Geoff – Lost 13-19. Losing 2-9 after 7 ends, the boys came back well to make a game of it. We then won 6 out of 9 ends to lead 13-10. Sadly, we then ran out of steam & lost the last 4 ends, including a 5 on the last end, to lose 13-19.

Rink 2 – Dibbie, Ann & Ivan – Lost 17-20. 14-2 up after 7 ends, having just scored a 5 (we had 2 of these), we then lost a 4 & a 5 on ends 11/12 to only lead 15-14. After 15 ends it was 16-16. Over the last three ends they played well to snatch victory by 17-20. Only taking 3 shots over the last 11 ends really did for us & to say I’m not happy with that performance, is an understatement!

Overall match score – Bustards 30 v 39 Panthers. Bustards 0 points, Panthers 6 points. We’re still top half of the league, but if we continue to play like that, not for much longer!

Next week we are at home to our good friends the Swanage Dolphins, who are 2nd in the league. 10am start. All spectators are very welcome & don’t forget, the bar opens at midday.

Ivan Buss

14 June 2025.

Last weekends home match against Knyveton Kestrels was forfeited to us, as the Kestrels couldn’t raise a team. We were awarded 6 points & 10 shots.

Fortunately, the heavy rain that was forecast for today stayed away & we were able to travel to Bournemouth & complete our match against the Sea Hawks. Whilst the wet weather gear had to go on twice, we did manage to play a full match, on a very wet green that still played really well.

Rink 1 – Tony, Steve & Geoff – won 23-16. A terrific bounce back from last weeks poor performance. We won the first end, then were never headed, once we took the lead back again on the 5th end. Along the way we scored a 4, a 5 & a 7! Both teams won 9 ends. Well done boys.

Rink 2 – Dibbie, Ann & Ivan – won 23-12. We lost the first 3 ends & were trailing 0-6, before we got to grips with the conditions. Then we won 4 out of the next 5 ends to lead 12-8 & never looked back. Overall, we won 10 ends, including a 5, a 4 & 2×3 & apart from a 4 & a 2, they didn’t score anything more than a single on any end. Well played.

Overall match score – Bustards 46 v 28. Bustards 6 points, Sea Hawks 0 points.

With other results going our way, we are now up to 3rd with a +18 shot difference.

Next week we are visiting the Richmond Park Panthers, hopefully with an unchanged side & the sun shining!

Ivan Buss

7 June 2025.

The Bustards made the short trip to second in the league Flyers today. I’ve never know the Fordingbridge green to be so slow, but the turn was good, so it was like playing at Downton, but on a smaller green. Fortunately, the rain held off, so we managed to get in a full match.

Rink 1 – Tony, Paul & Geoff – Lost 32-7. Bloody hell, very unexpected! We took 1 on the first end, then only won another 4 ends in the entire match. It was 6-11 after 11 ends, then the wheels well & truly came off! We lost 6 out of the last 7 ends, by 1-21 shots, which inc 2×4, 2×3 & a 6 on the last end. Onwards & upwards, better luck next week boys.

Rink 2 – Steve, Ann & Ivan – Won 16-15. Bloody hell, very unexpected! Steve Tanner on debut, played really well, as did Ann. We started off hot, winning 4 of the first five ends to lead 11-1, which included a 5 on end 5. Then the comeback started, but we still led 14-6 after 12 ends. Sadly, we then conceded a 5, to make the score 14-11, but managed to regroup & hold on for a 16-15 win. Both teams won 9 ends.

Steve/Ann – excellent, well played.

Overall match score – Bustards 23 v 47 Flyers. Bustards 2 points, Flyers 4 points. We’re still mid table, but took a nasty hit to our shot difference & which now sits at -10. Ouch!

Next week we are at home to Knyveton Kestrels, with a 10am start.

All spectators are very welcome & don’t forget, the bar opens at midday.

Ivan Buss

24 May 2025

The B&D website is a haven for people who like stats. For each fixture they have a ‘view match insights’ section, which is produced using AI from the information they hold. Below is today’s match preview & below that is my match report, for you to compare.
The upcoming match in the Triples Section 4 league on 17/05/25 at 10:00 will feature Downton Bustards facing off against Ringwood B at the Downton venue. Historically, these two teams have not played against each other in the league. In terms of recent form, the Downton Bustards have had a mixed performance with a draw (32-1) against Downton Dragons and a loss (42-2) to West Moors Bees. On the other hand, Ringwood B secured a win (32-1) against Knyveton Kestrels but faced a defeat (48-2) against Fordingbridge Flyers. Looking at the current standings, Ringwood B holds the 6th position having played 2 matches, won 1, and lost 1 with a score difference of -10. They have accumulated 4 points with a winning percentage of 50.0 and points per game of 2.00. Downton Bustards, on the other hand, are positioned 8th, having played 2 matches, secured 0 wins, and 1 draw, with a score difference of -17. They have 3 points, with a winning percentage of 25.0 and points per game of 1.50. Based on the current form and standings, Ringwood B is considered the favourite to win the upcoming match against Downton Bustards. The prediction percentage favours Ringwood B with a higher likelihood of securing a victory.
Another lovely day for bowls on our vastly improved green, which is playing really well. Ringwood are trying to give lots of different people a game this season & credit to them for doing so, as this policy is clearly effecting the strength of their team.
Rink 1 – Tony, Paul & Geoff who won 23-9. Having lost the first end, the boys woke up & led 5-4 after 7 ends. A run of 6 ends in a row which included a 5, a 4, 2×3’s & a 1, increased the lead to 22-4 after 13 ends. A quiet finish saw us win 10 ends in total & the match 23-9. A very good display from our A-Team.
Rink 2 – Dibbie, Ann & Ivan who won 22-5. A 3 on the first end set the tone, as we then won 12 of the remaining ends, picked up 1’s & 2’s with a 4 thrown in. Our visitors won 5 ends, taking 1 shot each time. An excellent performance, well played.
Match score Downton 45 v 14 Ringwood. Downton 6 points, Ringwood 0 points. We are now in the top half of the table & have a +4 shot difference.
Next week we are off to Fordingbridge to play the flyers, who are top of the league!

Ivan Buss

17 May 2025.

First game of the Westbrook Mixed Triples League season & we started off with the long trek to Mere. We were one rink short, as we could only muster 8 players & in this league you aren’t allowed to play 2v3. That cost us 2 points & 9 penalty shots.

Lovely day for bowls & although the green didn’t look very nice, it played really well.
Rink 1 – Dave, Marg & Dibbie lost 9-14. A very good, even game that just slipped away when we lost 8 ends in a row (8 to 15) loosing 10 shots. After 5 ends we were 5-1 up & after 9 ends we were 6-5 up. Nice to see Dibbie back at skip & a very good team effort.
Rink 2 – Peggy, Janet & Ivan drew 15-15. We won 10 ends of this match & were 14-8 up after 15 ends, then we lost a 2 & then a 5, to go 14-15 down. Janet played two excellent bowls on the last long end & we just missed getting the winning second shot by a fraction.

An excellent match & probably a fair result.  Overall match score – Downton 24 v 38 Mere. Downton 1 point, Mere 7 points.

Ivan Buss

14 May 2025.

On a sunny Saturday morning on the 10th May the Dragons and the Bustards had to play each other at Downton Green in the Bournemouth and District Open triples league Division four.

The Dragons triple team led by their Captain Steve Allen, Dawn Allen and Colin Morris had to play Bustards triple led by Geoff Warr with Paul Tanner and Tony Mussellwhite. The game was very close but the Bustards won by 17 shots to 15 shots.

The Second Triple team led by Bustards Captain Ivan Buss with Ann Noble and Dibbie Emm played the Dragons triple of skip Nick Purkis, Paul Bromage and Lynda Hale. They also had a very close game with the Dragons winning by 17 shots to 15 shots.

The result meant that the match was tied and both teams received three points each. The Dragons are now fourth in the league and the Bustards seventh in the league.

A fair result, a friendly match followed by tea and biscuits.

First game of the season, the Bustards travelled to the lovely West Moors ground, to face the Bees, who were relegated from div 3 last season. We were promoted from div 5, so this was always going to be a tough match, made even harder as we only had five players.

Rink 1 – Tony, Ann & Geoff L12-14. We were ahead after three ends & won 10 ends to the Bees 8, but whilst we scored 2x 2 with the rest all singles, they scored 2x 4 on ends 5 & 9, which made all the difference, as the rest of their scores were also singles. A good effort though, on a lovely day, on an excellent green. Well done Ann on your first B&D match.

Rink 2 – Martin & Ivan L13-28. We were ahead after 5 ends, but once their strong trio clicked in to gear, playing 2 v 3, made this an impossible task. They won 11 ends to our 7, including 5×3 & a 5. We did score a lovely 2 followed by a 3 on ends 11/12, but in the end, keeping them below 30 & getting to double figures was a good effort. Well done Martin on your first B&D match.

Match score Bustards 25 v 40 Bees. Bustards 0 points, Bees 6 points. Not the best of starts, but we’re not bottom (8th out of 10), so we’ll take it.

Next week we make the long journey to Downton to face the Dragons! The match starts at 10am & the bar will be open from midday, so why not pop along to watch your teams battle it out.

Ivan Buss

3rd May 2025.