Federation finals postponed until April

Post date: Jun 29, 2020 7:13:27 PM

With the government still reluctant to give indoor bowls clubs the green light to open in the foreseeable future, the English Bowling Federation has taken the unprecedented step to delay its 2020 national indoor finals until April 2021.

For local bowlers, who qualified earlier in the year at Peterborough IBC through the Northants Bowling Federation - all of them representing outdoor clubs and most also members of Stamford IBC - it means their places in the in EBF Championship finals are secure.

However there will be no 2021 Northants men's and women's indoor county competitions due to start in January.

Following the postponement of the finals which were due to take place at Newark IBC in April 2020, a September date had been provisionally arranged, because of the Covid-19 lockdown.

But with the opening of indoor clubs not included in the latest round of the lifting of restrictions, the Department for Culture and Sport could not offer any guarantes as to when indoor clubs will be allowed to open, and even then social distancing regulations may still apply.

With seven Federation counties still to play their 2020 indoor finals, the EBF had no option but to delay the national championships until next April, including the Derbyshire Trophy final, in which Northants are due to play Durham.

The National Championships of the English Indoor Bowling Association are also affected by the latest government restrictions but as yet no decision can be made on re-arrangement and they are still due to take place before the end of the year.

FOOTNOTE: Representatives of clubs who make up the Lincolnshire IBA - including Stamford, Spalding and Grantham - are due to meet 'virtually' next week to decide how clubs can meet social distancing regulations and whether county competitions and leagues might progress. BW