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Herefordshire Short Mat Bowling Association
County Team
Overview
Inter County Championship
The HSMBA runs a County Squad that competes in the English Short Mat Bowling Association’s Inter County Championships (ICC). Until 2020, Herefordshire entered two teams into the competitions two tiers- “Premier” and “A” before opting to have one larger squad in 2021.
Initially a regional competition, the County is drawn in a group of four with other neighbouring counties such a Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, Avon, Oxfordshire etc, playing home and away fixtures between September and January. From the group stages, teams either qualify into the Main Cup or Consolation Plate knockout rounds which are held at central venues over weekends in February and March. The County also competes in friendly games outside of the ICC, including the Bill Mackie Cup, a two-legged game held annually against Gloucestershire in memory of the late former Joint Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Association’s Chairman.
The county plays its home ICC matches at Leominster Indoor Bowling Centre, Bridge Street Sports Centre, Bridge Street, Leominster, HR6 8EA
The links below detail fixtures, results and scorecards for the current season. The full ICC calendar can be found in the Event Diary (use the search function to search “County Team Match”).
A Message from the Captain
County Trials are held in May of each year and are open to all members.
Please read the below letter from County Captain, Rebecca Cox for further information about the team and how to get involved:
Since taking over the captaincy of the County Squad in 2012, my aim has been to create a squad that is inclusive and competitive. Having spoken to many members over the years, I have lost count of the times I’ve heard someone say they “aren’t good enough”. I am proud to be able to say that I have also lost count of the number of those players who have subsequently trailed, made it into the team and proven themselves wrong!
The County Squad provides a friendly, social and competitive environment for anyone who is looking to improve their game. The squad is made up of players aged from 15-85, with 10 of the County’s 16 clubs represented. There is not a fixed number of players allowed into the County squad. From those who trial, 18 players are selected to form the core team, with a flexible number of places available in the wider squad For each County match, 20 players are selected across Singles, Pairs, Triples and Fours meaning that at least two squad players will be involved in each County match. We also play a number of friendlies throughout the year where all players are given the opportunity to represent their county. All County Squad members are invited to our practice sessions and my aim is to get as many people involved in the County Team as possible.
If you are interested in finding out more about the County Squad, please do not hesitate to contact me (hsmbapremcaptain@gmail.com) with any questions. We can also arrange for you to pop along to a county practice session or one of our matches to see what we are about. The best way to improve is to play both with and against better players and the County Squad provides that and so much more.
I look forward to seeing you soon!
Becci Cox
County Captain ,
Previous Seasons
Following the launch of our new website in 2023, historical County results have been archived into a PDF and are available via the link below.
