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A young bowler from Machen, who has been at the village club since the age of 13, has recently captained Monmouthshire County to an Under-25s title.

Ben Salmon has played for Machen Bowling Club for 12 years having first got into lawn bowls through his late grandfather, Stewart Kirton.

In a sport “frustratingly” seen as one taken up when you retire, Salmon is a great example of how the sport is changing, according to Machen’s chair, Lynda Newton.

She explained how most elite bowlers are in their 30s, with many players at the club in Machen having been at the club since they were teenagers.

Salmon is the product of that system, now captaining Monmouthshire’s U25s academy and recently winning the Welsh Super 9 title.

As well as that win, Salmon has landed several other pieces of silverware with Monmouthshire, including the U18s singles championship in 2017 and U25s singles championship in 2019.

He also won the Welsh Super 10 U25s title with the academy in 2021, and the County Championship with them that same year.

Salmon said: “It’s a great experience to play alongside such a talented squad in the Monmouthshire U25s academy, and I’m proud to lead the team as captain in my final year.”

Ms Newton added: “Machen Bowling Club is very proud of all that Ben has achieved playing both for Machen and the Monmouthshire U25s Academy and congratulate him on his captaincy of the U25 county team.”

With the bowls season just starting, Machen Bowling Club is encouraging younger people to get down for an open day and try the sport out.

The club has open sessions every Monday and Friday between 6pm and 8pm for the public.

The club also have men’s and ladies’ teams who play league games twice a week.

For more information and to get in touch with the club, you can message them via social media.