YOU’LL LOVE
BIRRONG SPORTS FRIENDS FOR LIFE No matter how busy you are, there’s a way to make lawn bowls a part of your social calendar thanks to Birrong Bowls Club. Affordable, low impact and fun, lawn bowls at Birrong Sports Club is perfect for winding down at the end of a hard day’s work, for socialising and igniting your competitive spirit. “I started playing quite a few years ago to have a sport and a bit of an outlet after work,” says Allan Cain, Birrong Bowls Club organiser. “We’d go and have a few drinks and have a game of bowls – it was a relaxing afternoon and from then on I played in competitions and I’ve been playing bowls for about 30 years. “It’s rather inexpensive – our fees are $60 a year and you have to be a member of Bankstown Sports Club plus we charge $6 a game which lasts about three hours. So, for a very modest fee, you can have three or four hours of entertainment and a bit
of exercise whereas golf and all those other games are much more expensive than that.” With players ranging from 20 to 90 years of age and sessions on most days of the week, the game is known for inspiring long-lasting friendships. This year, five Birrong bowls couples will go on a cruise together because they’ve formed such a strong bond. “We’re always looking for new players,” Allan says. While lawn bowls has a stereotype as an older person’s sport, Allan explains that most of the top players in New South Wales are under 30. If that’s not enough to inspire fresh blood, a new version of lawn bowls, inspired by the success of faster format games such as Twenty20 cricket, is now being trialled.
“Bowls Australia has just introduced a new ‘Jack Attack’, a shorter version of the game, where it takes only a few hours to play and that’s something people have said about lots of sports – you need to get the game over and done with in a couple of hours so you don’t rob the family of their time.” Whatever time you do decide to spend on the green, the strong friendships and fun atmosphere will ensure it will be time well spent.
BIRRONG SPORTS TRADING HOURS Corner Rodd and Gascoigne Road, Birrong, NSW 2143 T | 9644 1600 F | 9645 2602 W | www.birrongsports.com.au 42
Bankstown Sports InTouch
Open 7 days – 9.30am-late* *Closing times subject to manager’s discretion.