After a rip roaring inaugural PLB season, the dust has settled and the pins are slowly coming out of hiding. There were ups. There were downs. But mostly the lanes were pretty flat. Here's our take on a sensational 6 months that saw Riders of Rowan's ride away from Rowan's with the silverware.

After some organisational mishaps the opening game was moved to Riders home lanes at Surrey Quays. An intimidating first outing for Pinter Milan and their nerves were on show like a lonely skittle in the face of an incoming Wickerman spare. There was consistency in no strikes from Nae Strikes and absolutely no consistency at all from the Big Time. The 2 Pinter stalwarts, Hackett and Hickman, held their own whilst captain Pins Magee led with a pure hatred for the pins that’s only topped by his dislike of Riders of Rowans.

It was a different story on the other side of the lane with Riders captain Davie 2 Shoes reeling from a last minute dropout. But some quick thinking led to the introduction of Sticky Bowly. Arguably the only piece of patter from 2 Shoes all season immediately turned their lack of a full team into an incredible advantage. And so the Riders took to the lanes like a thirsty Moz takes to a pint. A new fan favourite was born with Davy Slapz showing off his sledgehammer right arm but it was the Sticky Bowly that clinched victory in a hard fought season opener.

Game 2 - home pins for Pinter at last. A chance for redemption that was swiftly shrouded in controversy thanks to a breaking news story 3 days before the first ball. The rumour mill started and fans were left bewildered by a late night pizza party between Nae Strikes and Moz resulting in covid dropouts for both teams. The two captains remained calm under pressure and offered a debut to 4 up and comers. Pins Magee turned to academy prospect Javier Pinetti and the nonchalant attitude of Max "Strikarr" Carr, whereas 2 Shoes chose to introduce a surprisingly impressive Yannick Bowlasie and the gentle giant Harry ‘Melon’ Lemon. The Wickerman continued his good run of form but, once again, it was the Sticky Bowly that stuck it to Pinter. Another few points to Riders.

As we approach the half way mark in the season the rivalry really started to heat up. We’re back at Surrey Quays with the Riders on home pins and an upgrade to the VIP lanes. Pinter filled the big Big Time shaped hole with a slow and unimpressive Nae Strikes whilst Riders introduced another 2 debutants - locker room loud mouth and chronically unreliable Albert “Balbert” Lew, and free agent of the year George “The Don” Lynch. The Riders onslaught commenced with The Don immediately seizing power over the pins who came begging for favours. He wasn’t giving any. The Wickerman did his thing and even Balbert managed to get a strike. A night to forget for Pinter Milan.

After 2 electrifying games the Riders extended their lead to 16 points in the season. But the press coverage focused on a different story. Following a raucous night in front of the Rohirrim ultras, the two captains exchanged words and erupted into a full on brawl on the floors of Surrey Quays. All games moved to Rowans.

Still in shock from the events at Surrey Quays, Game 4 of the season was relatively uneventful...in bowling terms. The two teams locked horns once again going strike for strike and the greatest rivalry in bowling history was born. The Tickler arrived on the scene with a new found confidence and became the first person to truly give the Wickerman a run for his spares. Melon continued as an unsung hero for Riders with the grace and ball control of a young Dimitar Berbatov whilst Javier Pinetti picked up a low scoring win against a shambolic Balbert. Points were taken on both lanes and the Riders remained 16 points clear.

Going into the penultimate fixture, there really was nothing to play for for Pinter Milan. The pressure was off but their new kits were on and the glorious black and blue seemed to inspire a new lease of life for the deflated Milanese. The Riders were so ashamed of their embarrassing lack of kit they didn't even take a team photo. This translated directly onto the lanes as they completely collapsed with Davy Slapz hitting the gutters and Davie 2 Shoes inspiring little to no confidence in the rest of his team. The Tickler put in a stand out performance as First Ball taking 2 points off the Wickerman, spurring on the rest of the Pinter boys to bring home the pins. Frame 1's total score was edged by 1 point but the second frame was never in doubt as The Big Time sent the pins running. The Riders lead was reduced to 8 points.

A momentous triple header for the season finale saw both sides bringing a substitute to help with stamina concerns. Riders dawned a gorgeous new kit with some impressive club sponsors but questions were raised by Davie 2 Shoes' decision to recall the struggling Moz "Moz" Morrison from a loan spell in the lower leagues of Amsterdam. Pinter, on the other hand, bolstered their squad with chronic journeyman Andrew "Cat Daddy" Gillespie.

The 8 point deficit wasn't the only challenge facing Pinter Milan on this evening of pin tumbling. The Nerazzuri's captain and poster boy of the sport, Pins Magee, was unavailable. That said, there was never any doubt as to who would fill that handsome void. Up stepped The Tickler literally oozing in confidence from Game 4 and the black and blues followed him into battle like a pack of Wargs heading for the Rohirrim.

Frame 1 was a nail biter as both teams went spare for spare but Pinter managed to edge it 5 - 3 thanks to some lovely stuff from Strikarr. Coming back from a 3 month break, the polarisong Pinter star left the Riders in shock with his laid back approach that had the pins falling before contact. Now only 6 points down, Pinter were marching into the comeback of the century.

But the Riders rallied and Frame 2 went down in the history books. Davie 2 Shoes replaced the disappointing Moz with a happy-go-lucky Yannick Bowlasie and the Wickerman found his form again showing off the perfect technique - a true inspiration for the beautiful game, the Wickerman's iconic silhouette is rumoured to become the new PLB trophy. With Bowlasie and Wickerman hitting pins the rest of the Riders followed suit and chalked up the highest ever team score - 751.

But the record busting didn't stop there. Pinter's resident hardman Adam "Zlatan Ibrapinovic" Hackett put up the most sensational solo pin slapping with a PLB all time high of 181. Hitting a strike or a spare on 9 out of 10 turns, this unbelievable feat drew applause from the opposition in an historic moment reminiscent of Ronaldinho at the Bernabeau. Unfortunately Hackett's relentlessness wasn't enough for Pinter as they were dragged down by the utterly hapless Cat Daddy who'll almost certainly be a stray next season. 5 - 3 to Riders and their lead was back to 8 points.

With only 1 frame left in this epic saga, all that Pinter could hope for was a draw. And that would need a complete white wash. Even with Moz back in the starting lineup, the Riders told Pinter where to go and sent them packing with the pins. Much like his acceleration, Moz took a bit of time to get going. But after a quiet word from Scotland Head Coach, Conor "Jose Smone" Ferrigan, Moz got his eye in and even shocked his own team mates by snagging a Turkey to close out the game.

The perfect end to the perfect season. Riders win by 12 points and Davie 2 Shoes went to bed with the trophy.