Penybont brothers look back on lifetime of sporting achievement

Ken and Ray are well known across football circles from their playing days but perhaps even better known for their success on the bowling green.

The brothers, nephews of former Wales international Gordon Peace Jones, first donned their football boots in the 1950s.

Ray was just 14 when he made his debut for Crossgates under 18s and was still in school when he made his senior debut for Penybont in 1950.

Ray would go on to represent his home village club for two decades as well as spending two seasons at the now defunct Whitton Football Club.

While winning a host of league and cup medals, Ray never managed to win in the Boughrood Cup, losing five finals, though Penybont won the trophy the season after he retired and begun a career as a referee

Ray was an official for 15 years and took charge of more than 1,000 matches - including cup finals and national cup quarter-finals - before finally hanging up his whistle in 1985.

Ray was not idle for long and the following year he began his bowls career - winning the Llandrindod singles and would go onto win a raft of trophies in both outdoor and indoor disciplines while also serving as both captain and president.

Ray has also enjoyed playing darts, dominoes and quoits for the Severn Arms and looks back fondly at achieving more in sport than he ever imagined

Throughout his career, Ray has enjoyed the support of his brother Ken – who has also enjoyed a stellar sporting career.

Ken began his own football career at Crossgates juniors before progressing to Rhayader Town and Penybont.

In 1958/59 Ken earned three Welsh junior caps, playing against England at Porthmadog and coming up against Geoff Hurst and Nobby Stiles who would go on to win the World Cup less than a decade later.

In 1959 he joined Knighton Town and played more than 700 games for the Radnor Robins during a glorious 18 year career which included a host of cup trophies but never the elusive Mid Wales League title.

In 1961 Ken was a young member of the Knighton Town side which lost 16-0 to a strong Cardiff City team in the Welsh Cup fifth round at Ninian Park.

The host team included Derek Tapscott and the same eleven beat the mighty Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 the following week.

Ken then returned to play for home village club Penybont for three seasons until 1983, and was a member of the team which won the league cup.

After hanging up his boots, Ken successfully ran the Penybont Under 16 side for three years in the early 1980s.

He then graduated into senior football management with his beloved Knighton Town in the Mid Wales League for seasons 1984/85 and 1985/86, in the latter year finishing runners up in the league with an excellent side.

In 1985 Ken’s sporting career took a new turn when he joined his brother in taking up bowls.

He has now played for Llandrindod Wells Mid Wales League team outdoors for over three decades, and has been club secretary, treasurer and represented the county team.

Ken has made good playing progress over the years, winning the club singles championship several times and has also been club captain in 1988 and 2006.

The year 2001 was a good year for Ken winning the prestigious English Riviera Pairs at Torquay with friend and clubmate Brian Jones while also winning the county and Welsh over 60’s singles titles.

Ken has appeared in Welsh National competitions on a number of occasions, including the Welsh singles, triples, fours and between 2001 and 2012 Ken set a remarkable record, winning the Welsh Bowling Association Over 60’s singles on six occasions, including a hat trick between 2003 and 2005.

Bringing his impressive record up to date in 2019 Ken skipped the Llandrindod Wells rink of Paul Watkins, Dai Sims, Brian Jones and himself to the Welsh Senior Fours title.

Ken has represented the Radnorshire Indoor Stadium for many years and has won the club singles a number of times including on three occasions up to 2001.

After winning the 2001 Stadium singles he then represented Radnorshire in the champion of champions at Bodelwyddan in north Wales.

That year he also reached the quarter finals of the Welsh indoor singles, and also the semi finals of the National Over 50’s triples with Brian Jones and David Stephens.

Ken has been quoted in the past as saying that bowls has been a great bonus in his sporting career over the last three decades.

Of course the brothers have also played on the same side.

In many pairs competitions the brothers have teamed up and in April 2004 they made history by becoming the first brothers to win the Golden Charter Welsh Indoor Over 60s Pairs Championships.

Domestically they won the Radnorshire Indoor Pairs five times and the Austin Colcombe Indoor Pairs three times.

Ken and Ray have won the National Senior pairs three times in 2006, 2008 and 2016.

However pride of place for the Price brothers is their joint successes must be when they won the Welsh Bowls Association Open Pairs Championship in 2010 and went on to represent Wales at the British Isles Championships in Edinburgh in 2011.

It is well worth recording that this is only the third time in the club’s 100 year history that a national title open to all ages has come to Llandrindod Wells Bowling Club and the first time the open pairs have come to the Spa town club.

The Mid Wales Bowling Association competitions have also been dominated by the brothers over the years

Ken won the open pairs three times, in 2002 with Doug Rogers, with Ashley Morris in 2014 and with brother Ray in 2010.

The bowling brothers lifted the Mid Wales senior pairs title seven times in 16 years between 2004 and 2019.

Like the rest of the sporting world, the Price brothers are patiently awaiting the chance to return to the bowling green to resume their careers and, hopefully, more silverware.