BOLTON crown green bowling stalwart Keith Andrews is set to become the first man from the town to serve as president of the sport's national governing body.

The 73-year-old, from Heaton, was recently sworn in as deputy president of the British Crown Green Bowling Association and will step up into the top job next January.

Keith said: “It’s the highest attainable position that anyone can have in crown green bowling, so it’s a great honour for me.

"It will be the pinnacle of my career in the sport."

The current secretary of the Lancashire Crown Green Bowling Association is the first person from the Red Rose county to be put forward for the national presidency since 2003.

He added: “The presidency goes around every county and every 12 months they have to give a name of the person they would like to stand for it. This year my name was given."

Keith will spend this year supporting the current president – attending meetings, events and tournaments around the country – and will also be responsible for organising the British junior merit finals. Next year, as president, he will oversee the British senior merit finals, which features the best 64 players in the country.

It is a proud honour for a man who has been heavily involved in crown green bowling since the early 1980s, when he was first invited to play by a work colleague at Wadsworth Lifts in High Street, Great Lever.

They played at the green in Bobby Heywood Park.

"I started because of the company I worked for at the time. Some of the lads went and played at lunchtimes. They persuaded me to join them one day and I’ve been involved ever since," he said.

Keith has played at a number of local clubs over the years, including Horwich Public Hall, Horwich RMI and Kingshead.

He went on to become a senior county referee and coach, and was secretary of the Bolton Mills Crown Green Bowling League before taking up the same position with the county association.

During his more than 30 years playing the sport, Keith has seen a number of local greens close, and while he believes it's popularity is still strong bowling does need an injection of young blood.

“We always need more young players coming through so it is key that we attract them to the sport," he said.

"It’s mostly just middle aged and elderly people at the moment. We do have one or two juniors that play but we need more."