In 1886 the same two teams met each other again in the final of the same competition, this time Bowen was captain of Llanelli, having been given the position on the retirement mid-season of Frederick Margrave.

[6] In 1886 Bowen found himself back in the Welsh squad after Newport's Arthur 'Monkey' Gould, who had taken Charles Lewis' position, switched from full-back into the three-quarters.

After losing to England in the first game of the 1886 tournament, Wales and Cardiff captain Frank Hancock famously decided to trial the four three-quarter system.

[7] Although Wales were strong in their fast moving back-play, the power of the Scottish pack, now with a man advantage, began to dominate the forward play.

The Welsh forwards appeared loath to give the backs the ball, so during the game the four three-quarter tactic was abandoned and it was decided that Bowen would move into the pack to provide reinforcement, while Gould dropped to full-back.

In 1888, with his international rugby career behind him, Bowen played in his most notable game when he was part of the Llanelli team that face the touring New Zealand Natives.

In January 1889, Bowen left Llanelli to take up a teaching post in Bangor, North Wales, though he kept a close connection with the club.