League Results & Information
If you're looking for information, fixtures and results from our leagues please visit our leagues pages.
The County Championships are the staple competitions on the HSMBA calendar and are held annually for each discipline throughout the season. The Championships always provide a very enjoyable and highly competitive days bowling and are open to any member and any combination of players from different clubs. The general format of these competitions comprises of a group “round robin” stage, followed by the knockout stages, taking place over the course of a single day at either Ross Bowling Club or The Larruperz Centre, Ross.
The pinnacle competition of the sport, The English Short Mat Bowling Association (ESMBA) hold National Championships for each discipline each year at a central England location. Each year, Herefordshire holds qualification events with the winners and, depending on the number of allocated places, up to three additional teams securing places. As with the County Championships, any ESMBA registered member can enter with any other member from either the same or different clubs. The Qualifiers are generally held over one or two weekends in December with the National finals taking place in April. Over recent years, Herefordshire have an improving record at the National Championships. In 2018, John Mills (Woolhope) and Shaun Mills (Ross) reached the semi finals in the Pairs, with Mills bettering this in 2020 by winning Herefordshire’s first National title in the Mixed Fours alongside Shirley Cox (Woolhope), Kate Williams (Ross) and Joe Loveys (Gorsley).
The LEH Trophy is best described as the HSMBA’s version of the FA Cup. A club knockout competition, entries are open to clubs in both Herefordshire and Gloucestershire, dating back to before the Herefordshire and Gloucestershire associations became separate entities in the late 1990s. Comprising of a home and away leg, clubs must field a team of 10 with players competing In Singles, Pairs, Triples and Fours.
The HSMBA’s largest competition, the Macmillan Trophy is a charity open fours tournament held at the Halo Sports Centre in Leominster. Dating back to 1992, the competition attracts forty teams each year from Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, Powys and beyond. The competition uses a randomly drawn ‘open’ format whereby each team plays 4 games across the day (one slot playing, one slot resting) and teams’ ranking in terms of points and shots won determines the competition winner. As part of the day, there is a large raffle, a Macmillan stand, homemade cakes for sale alongside generous donations from local businesses. The record total from a single competition was raised in 2019-a fantastic £2,600- and since its inception in 1992, the HSMBA has raised over £32,000 for Macmillan through this competition- something that every member should be incredibly proud of.
In addition to each of the competitions outlined above, there are many more open competitions held both in Herefordshire and beyond. For further information, speak to your club secretary or the HSMBA’s competition secretary (hsmbacompetitionsec@gmail.com).
Another competition with a great history behind it, The Bromyard Triples gets its name from having previously being held at Bromyard Leisure Centre. Now held at The Larruperz Centre in Ross, the competition is a one-day club competition with each of the HSMBA’s 16 clubs receiving a guaranteed place.
If you're looking for information, fixtures and results from our leagues please visit our leagues pages.