The West Barns Fower.

By the late Sam Mc Arthur.

 

 

Yin Thursday night way back in May,

The Scottish Bowling Championships had just got under way,

And as our rink was really packed wie power,

We hoped we’d make it tae Queens Park,

The West Barns Fower.

 

Ian, Johnny, Bobby and of course ma’sel,

The critics thou’ct we widnae hae a snaw’ba’s chance in hell,

But theres just nae wye ye can ever tell,

What can happen if the fower o’ye are aw playing kindae well.

 

Oor first roond opponents Prestongrange were at Queens Park jist last year,

But for the likes o’them we just simply held nae fear,

In fact as we said on the road tae Macmerry for the match,

If they’re there this year, they’ll jist be gawn through there tae watch.

 

Eight, Eight, the score wie twelve ends done,

The next end sae crucial tyae be won,

The taerteenth played then the score wisnae jist sae even,

For we stuffed them good and proper when we tane off them a seeven.

 

We held oor advantage frae then on and so,

We feeneshed ten up wie yin end left tae go,

For them the long hard trail wis ower,

But we were on the road, The West Barns Fower.

 

Longniddry were the next opponents oot tae try their luck,

And try awfy hard they did, as they were really foo o’pluck,

Eight nithin doon we fund oorselves that night,

But we battled on and won, although we really had tae fight.

 

Elphinstone in the semi-finals up tae gifford game,

Tae say the very least for them it really wis a shame,

We never gie’d them any chance tae get right in tae the game,

Tae tell the honest truth, they’d been better styed at hame.

 

In tae the distric finals then, the feelin wis sae braw,

Doogie and ma faither through, an Dennis Jeffrey there an aw,

But alas when aw the district finals games were ower,

There wis naebody left, except of course,

The West Barns Fower.

 

Pa’er Dennis wis the first tae bite the dust,

The pairs were weel up and tae get through looked jist like a must,

But suddenly disaster struck and they lost five shots aw at yince,

So they got beat and they’ve blamed each other ever bloody since.

 

Fower Scottish rinks we now had beat, wie the greatest o’ committal,

If that wisnae enough we even had tae play a bunch o’ English sassannch’s frae Spittal,

But like aw the Scottish rinks we’d beat, we sin learnt them how it feels,

For we gave them sich a bloody whappin’ through at Glalshiels.

 

Yie aw played weel, The praise then came frae mony different lips,

And now we were gye prood winners o’ the inter-district championships,

But still we werny feeneshed yet we now had tae set oor sights,

Away through tae Glesgy at Queens Park, where we’d playing, in the whites.

 

Now brother Ernie maybe thinks his triples no had a mention,

But to tell the honest truth they were jist never in contention,

At Gullane or North Berwick it wis they came a cropper,

Whapped oot in a prelim, never even made the first roond proper.

 

Jock Kennedy fae East Linton went, tae play in the senior singles,

Tae see the way he played yon night, ye’d thocht he had the shingles,

Supporters stood and scratched their heid’s and said oh deerie me,

When his opponent wis sittin’ on twenty yin pare Jock had only three.

 

Nae West Barns team at Queens Park had the first roond ever won,

But we were aw determined that this year it wid be done,

Aboot yin o’clock the third o’ August and we’d started wie a flyer,

At that time history was made, for we’d jist beat Guilshall frae Stirlingshire.

 

A Whitevale rink frae Glesgy wis the next we had tae face,

A guid advantage tae them as they kent aw the greens aboot the place,

But still they coud’nae beat us and the only consolation left for thame,

Wis that they had’nae awfy far tae gawn, when we sent them traiveling hame.

 

Rothesayin the semi-finals we scored a braw fower at the start,

And tais is true, each time their skip picked up his bool, he kept lettin off a fart,

A five we scored the second end, we were playing even better,

As for yon pa’er skip o’theirs, his farts were getting wetter.

 

A few ends later the Rothesay wis fifteen nithin’ doon,

Yon skips white trousers at the back were starting tae turn broon,

Twa ends tae gawn 27-6, he made a dash for the nearest urinal,

He roars I think I’ve shit ma’sel, aw the best tae yis in the final.

 

An aw Lothians final then it wis, tae see wha’d be Scotlands best,

West Barns fighting for the East, Winchburgh for the West,

Weel as yis ken by noo, it wis thame no us that done it,

But nae’body kens better than oorselves, we’re the fower that should’ae won it.

 

                  Aw the wimmen through wie us were standing quietly greetin’,

For it wis jist by twa damn shots the fower o’ us were beaten,

But still as we stood there firmly shakin’ oor opponents hands,We kent least

we’d take a wee bit honour back hame wie us tae West Barns.

 

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