British Isles Bowls Council - History
The
British Isles Bowls Council was formed in 1963, by four of the home countries,
England, Ireland, Scotland
and Wales. Mr WJ
Griffiths was the first
President and Mr E Sussum the first Honorary Secretary and Treasurer.
The
International Series has been played since 1903, the first being held in London,
England. The series consist of 24 players
(6 rinks of 4 players with 2 bowls each) playing each other country,
each rink playing 21 ends. The country with the highest shots
after each match receives 2 points or 1
point for a match draw.
The International Series name was changed to the Senior International Series, when the Junior International Series were introduced in 1992.
The
Senior International Series was not played during the First World War 1915-1918
and the Second World War 1940-1945. The
Series is played annually rotating between England, Ireland,
Scotland
and Wales.
The
Junior International Series was introduced in 1992, with the first series being
played in Carlisle, Wales. The
Junior Series is played annually rotating between England, Ireland,
Scotland
and Wales.
All
the previous winners can be found following these links:
The
British Isles Championships began in 1959, with the national champions of England, Ireland, Scotland
and
The three events were
held in 1959:
Singles
(4 bowls each) first player to reach 21 shots
Pairs
(4 bowls each) highest score after 21 ends
Fours
(2 bowls each) highest score after 21 ends (or additional ends until there
is a clear winner)
In
1971 the triples knockout was introduced:
Triples
(3 bowls each) highest score after 18 ends
Then
in 1980 the Junior Singles was also introduced for the national champions under
the age of 25:
Junior
Singles (4 bowls each) first player to reach 21 shots
All the previous winners can be found following this link:
The
Natwest Trophy was introduced in the year 2000 for the country winning the most
number of championship points from all 5 events, 4 points for winning a trophy,
2 points for runner-up and 1 point for losing in a semi-final.
All
the previous winners can be found following this link:
In
1995 the Channel Islands
was introduced in both the Senior International Series and British Isles
Championships. In 2003 the Channel
Islands withdraw from the International Series, with Guernsey and