A BOWLING club in Holmes Chapel has honoured its former treasurer who strived to make the club a better resource for the community.

The Good Companions Bowling Club moved to its current site at Cranage Hall in 1993 after their green was sold from underneath them and turned into flats.

Their new green at Cranage had only a small, 60-year-old wooden hut for a clubhouse, which members struggle on with for 20 years.

But in 2013, then club treasurer, Roy Porter, led a project to knock down the old clubhouse and rebuild a more permanent brick-built one, which was more suitable for a club of the Good Companion’s size and stature.

The new clubhouse was completed in 2016, and Roy was able to enjoy the fruits of his labour for a few years before he died in 2019, aged 80.

Knutsford Guardian: Roy's widow, Ann Porter, said he would have been both surprised and delighted to have received such an honourRoy's widow, Ann Porter, said he would have been both surprised and delighted to have received such an honour (Image: Philip Carr)

Soon after, the Good Companions committee voted unanimously to name the clubhouse after Roy, and a ceremony took place to unveil a plaque, marking the official opening of the ‘The Roy Porter Pavilion’ on Sunday, May 28.

Roy’s widow, Ann Porter, who attended the ceremony, said didn’t realise how much work Roy had put into the project until she was going through his correspondence after her died.

Ann said: "It didn’t just happen overnight. It was over a period of years, rather than months.

"I realised that after he died when I went through all his letter and emails to pass on to other people.

"It wasn’t straightforward by any means. He had to get a lot of grants from all sorts of people, and dealing with Cheshire East seems to have been a challenge.

"But he was an accountant and company secretary, so account and the legal side were what he was trained to do.

"He would’ve been very surprised, but very proud, I've no doubt. You don’t get an honour like that every day.

"I was very emotional on the day because as a family, we’re very proud too, and also pleased people recognise how much work he did. There were at least 50 people there who had come to see the ceremony."

Since the new pavilion came into use in 2016, the club’s now excellent facilities have been in great demand, with twelve different bowling groups holding regular sessions.

Current Good Companions club member, Philip Carr, said: “It’s pretty much constantly in use now, and is a wonderful facility for bowlers across Cheshire.

“We get all sorts of teams playing, for the Women’s Institute to the Farmers League and U3A.

“The only thing we would like to see more of is young people wanting to bowl, but I think that is going to need more of a campaign to get them there.”

If anyone is interested in learning more about bowling, the Good Companions would be delighted to help get them started.