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Bowled over by Ringtons’ sponsorship

One of the North East’s longest standing bowling clubs Benfield Bowling Club has received a helping hand from one of the region’s most well-known companies, tea and coffee merchant Ringtons to help with upkeep of its bowling green at Benfield Sports Complex.

The future of the club was under threat following budget cuts which meant members were uncertain the club would be able to meet essential maintenance costs. Alongside stringent budgeting and members volunteering to carry out the work themselves, the donation from Ringtons will go towards maintaining the bowling green lawn, pavilion, surrounding pathways, shrubbery and trees, allowing the club to remain open to its 45 members aged between 16 and 90.

Ringtons founder Samuel Smith was well known as a supporter of local sports clubs, donating a large number of Ringtons Cup trophies to various sporting disciplines such as bowling, tennis, running, rowing and football. Benfield Bowling Club is even on the site of the Samuel Smith Sports Grounds, which were donated to the city of Newcastle by Samuel’s sons following his death in 1949.

In honour of the sponsorship, the club has also reinstated its own Ringtons Cup competition, with an original trophy dating back to 1929 being awarded to the winner of an all-day competition which involved eight local clubs including Byker, Fossway, Gosforth and Walker. The rare Ringtons Cup was won by Benfield Bowling Club itself with John Gardiner and Harry Titley being awarded the cup, which was originally donated by Samuel Smith to Heaton Park Bowling Club before it merged with Benfield Bowling Club in 2012.

Speaking of the sponsorship Nigel Smith Ringtons Chairman said: “We are delighted to be able to support Benfield Bowling Club with a donation towards the upkeep of its bowling green. My great-grandfather was well-known for his generous donations to local clubs and although we aren’t able to support every club we receive requests from, we were impressed by the long-term plans Benfield Bowling Club have in place, and in particular, it’s fantastic coaching scheme which introduces the game to a whole new generation of youngsters and adults alike. We are incredibly proud to be able to go some way towards continuing the good work Samuel Smith started.”

John Gardiner, Competitions Secretary from Benfield Bowling Club added: “During the bowling season the green’s grass needs regular treatment and cutting three times a week, while it also needs to be protected from damage over the harsh winter months, which as you can imagine is our biggest expense. The donation from Ringtons will help us to keep the green and surrounding area in perfect condition so we can welcome our many members, some of which have been part of the club for over 30 years.

“Our members enjoy the companionship and the health benefits associated with the sport, so being able to keep the club going through the donation from Ringtons and our own cost savings has a much wider and longer-term benefit to the community than you might initially think. Winning the Ringtons Cup alongside Harry is the icing on the cake for us and we’re delighted the Cup will stay with us for at least another year.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Hayley Ford .