BARRY’S popular skittles team, the Hairy Lemons, have won their first ever trophy beating their nearest rivals by a staggering 40 pins.

The team, who play out of the King William pub, travelled to Newquay in Cornwall for the weekend competition that attracted 12 teams from Devon, Somerset, Bristol and Gloucestershire.

In a magnificent display, the Hairy Lemons left their nearest rivals, Brahms and Liszt from Yate standing as they notched up a final score of 432.

In addition team member Lee Russell scored 62 points, winning the trophy for the highest scoring man.

Team captain Keith Buckler said they knew they were ahead by 27 pins after the first two rolls, but even he was shocked when he realised they had won by such a large margin. Keith himself managed to notch up a very respectable 55.

"We’ve been entering these competitions for 16 years and this is our first win," he said.

"We got through to the final and then at the right moment, everyone played their best game. It was a fantastic moment. We’re still recovering."

The team, who compete in the Barry and District League Division 1, formed 16 years ago.

The original members took their name from a pub they visited in Dublin called the Hairy Lemon.

"The name has stuck," said Keith.

"It’s very much a team of friends, friends of friends, and family. It’s great winning but we are much more about having fun with our skittles."

The competition is organised by Serious About Events of Torquay who stage a series of around 20 skittles weekend tournaments every year.

They also run the British Skittles Championships which begin in the Spring with local rounds and culminate in a grand final in Torquay in September.