Jack Hi - Edition 129 Spring 2022

jack hi

The last few months have been some busy ones as we headed full steam into the 2022-23 season.

Our WA representatives once again acquitted themselves well at the top level at all levels. You can read about the Under 18 National Championships on page 13, the Multi Disability on page 14. The Over 60’s State Series on page 10 and our Open team at the Sides Series on page 11.

We also have a wrap of the latest edition of the Bowls Premier League, BPL 16 on page 23 where our Perth Suns were in action against the best bowlers in the world.

Along with plenty of other events happening around WA reported in this edition we also touch on a new initiative by Bowls WA which is the Club Grants Program. It was fantastic to see a number of clubs take up the offer to receive Bowls WA funding for events and programs that look to increase membership and participation within their local community. You can read more on that and in particular a fantastic program Yanchep are running on page 27.

Until next edition good bowling to everyone.

ampbell design C

Jack Hi is produced for BowlsWA by Campbell Design.

PO Box 1061 West Leederville Western Australia 6901.

Greg Campbell: gregcam@iinet.net.au Phone: 08 9440 5863 • 0411 220 239.

©Copyright. No part of this publication maybe reproduced or stored in a retrieval system without the permission of the publisher. Opinions expressed in Jack Hi are not necessarily those of Bowls WA. Bowls WA believes that the material produced in this publication is accurate, but gives no warranty in relation thereto and disclaims all liability for claims against Bowls WA, Campbell Design, its employees, agents or any to her person which may rise from any persons’ action on the materials contained herein.

• Chris Ace-Watson in action.

Contents

President’s Report 4

Inclusive Practices 6-7

From the Umpires 8

Nationals – Senior Side Series 10

Nationals – Open State Team 11

Nationals – Championship Wrap 12-13 Nationals – Under 18s 13

Nationals – Multi Disability 14 Mixed Masters Fours 16

Mixed Masters Pairs

16 State Fours Men/Women 18

Pathway Coaching Day at Manning 19

Men's O60s Pairs 20

Women's O60s Pairs 22

Mt Lawley Consistency Singles 23 Jack Hi Rankings 23

1st floor, 158 Main Street Osborne Park WA 6017

PO Box 123 Osborne Park WA 6917

Phone: 9340 0800. Fax: 9340 0888. Website: www.bowlswa.com.au

President: Doug Kelly. CEO: Ken Pride

Editor: Aaron Delaporte

All issues of Jack Hi are available from our website: www.bowlswa.com.au

Bowls Premier League Wrap 25

Mt

Doug KELLY

Game on…2025!

Club Development and Modernisation Strategy [2023/25]

One of the last pieces of our Governance Review, which is a blue print of how Bowls WA optimally supports a thriving statewide network of member clubs to enhance clubs experience and grow bowls. Bowls clubs and Bowls WA need business models which enable them to thrive, not merely survive.

Side Series

In the Open Event we entered the last game in silver medal contention in both the Men’s and Women’s teams. Medals may have eluded us but we came away with a lot of respect and a solid platform to move forward from. There was a never give in attitude and some of the fight backs and nail biting last end victories helped develop belief. The selectors, coaches, managers and all involved are to be congratulated on moulding this group into an impressive outfit.

The Australian Championships followed on from this and Gold Medals were won by our Ladies fours and triples.

As a State we continue to achieve to a very high level despite our smaller numbers and timing of the event.

Club Development Grants

Our Club Development Committee headed by Vince Del Prete and Lee Bunney gave 22 of our clubs good news as they handed out $41,823.

These projects will see clubs embrace their local community and attract more people to our sport. We always talk of more feet on our greens, but Yanchep took this to another level getting more wheels on their greens.

Their $5,000 grant will see them run five separate events through October and November 2022, designed around being fun, family orientated and inclusive for all.

Well done to President Jodie Nikolic and her Yanchep Committee.

Another Jackaroo

Congratulations to Lisa Featherby on her selection in the Over 60’s Jackaroos, a well deserved and well earnt selection of our popular WA champion.

Consistently into the finals of many events, the latest being a win in the Mixed Masters Pairs with Bill Brandsma. Lisa is a great role model on and off the green for our game. Entering via corporate bowls in Dowerin, taking just two bowls to be hooked and the rest is history. We as a State continue to be noticed.

Pathways Australia

We had the pleasure of hosting BA High Performance Pathways Managers at Mosman Park in mid October. Gary Willis, Karen Murphy and team outlined their pathways programs for coaches, umpires and players as we plan the best ways to deliver these programs.

Our number of players involved in pathways continue to grow, and the impact Therese Hastings is having on this is very evident. Therese continues to lift the professionalism of our HP area and this will continue to be reflected in our performances. Pathways Australia is an exciting opportunity that I ask all to embrace and utilize to promote and foster all facets of bowls in WA.

Thankyou

Finally, a thank you to the Board of BWA on the last 12 months of hard work that has gone into our Governance overhaul. Judy Flanagan, Lisa Featherby, Glenda Cooper, Lee Bunney, Marc Abonnel, Vince Del Prete, Phil Manning, along with Brian Lucas and Ross Warburton who have put in lots of extra hours to get these road maps for the future of bowls in WA in place. To Ken, our hard working staff and Mike McLaughlin for guiding us through the process, thank you.

The acceptance of our updated constitution will be the final piece of the jigsaw. Larry Bandy would be really proud of our efforts. Stay safe and stay involved.

• Gary Willis, Doug Kelly and Karen Murphy.

Changes seen in response to Forum

Suns perform at BPL #16

So near and yet so far – a statement often made in the cut and thrust of the Bowls Premier League competition. And in the washup of BPL #16, that was again the case for our own Perth Suns.

With an 8 win – 10 loss record, 7th place saw us a single game out of the finals, an outcome that could have gone either way on the final day of play. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but a couple of games we would like to have our time again, with a single bowl the difference between a win and a loss. But that is the thrill of the format, every bowl counts and given the standard of players, you are punished for any error of judgement or tactics.

We should be proud of Kristina, Cody, Blake and Pieter they played great and certainly matched it with the world’s best –bring on Moama and BPL #17 in February.

Along the same lines six WA sides had the pleasure of playing in the BPL Cup – surely one of the best prizes available to club players from WA. Free airfare, free accommodation and free car hire all awaited the teams from Doubleview, Mt Lawley, South Perth x2, Goomalling and Augusta.

Again, we fell short of the ultimate prize but all players attending more than enjoyed themselves at the magnificent Club Pine Rivers – it is an event that is a qualifying must for teams, particularly when the value is so significant for those of us in the West.

Get involved with your club as a host club and set up your team for the off-season qualifying.

Committee restructures

Following the Governance Review in 2020/2021, the Board has approved a revamp of the Bowls WA committee structure. A more streamlined set up with less volunteers required and focusing on the projects outlined in the strategic plan will be implemented immediately.

Three key standing committees will oversee the areas of Game Development, Club and People Development and Finance and Risk Management with smaller advisory committees feeding from that. It should provide a more forward-thinking structure which will have Club Development at its heart.

A formal structure is shown opposite.

Well deserved Lisa F.

A fantastic announcement with Lisa Featherby forcing her way into the national Over 60s side. Arguably the hardest worker in bowls received the ultimate accolade in WA, winning last season’s Connie Hicks Brooch as player of the year, which led her to selection in the national side.

No doubt just reward for all the hard work in practice and the number of events entered – great stuff Feathers.

National movements

The recent Bowls Australia AGM saw Matt Burgess installed as the new Bowls Australia President, taking over from South Australia’s Bob Boorman. This coincides with Matthew Kennedy filling the role of CEO, following Neil Dalrymple’s move to World Bowls. Some significant changes for the national body with a new Strategic Plan recently released.

And in terms of National news, stay tuned for some exciting announcements to come from Bowls Australia.

Welcome – Aaron Clark

We are pleased to welcome a new staff member in Aaron Clark who will take on the role of Digital Marketing Officer. Aaron commenced on 14th November, with a role that will include BowlsLink support, social media generation and the formulation of a new newsletter format and potential Podcast on all matters bowls.

It will take a little time for Aaron to work out the bowls (not balls) lingo, but we certainly welcome the support in the office for what will be a very busy period ahead.

BowlsWA Proposed Structure

Denise McMILLAN

2022 Bowling Arm Sides Championships

The Eighth National Bowling Arm Sides Championships was hosted at Warnbro Bowling Club between the 5th to 9th of September. This event was supposed to have been run in 2020 but that tricky little bug Covid-19 got in the way proceeding to cancel two years of the event!

This is the first time Western Australia hosted this national event and it proved to be a fantastic experience with the weather ‘sort of’ being good – but lots of jackets and hats were worn – and wonderful comradeship, meals, and high levels of competitiveness.

A State Representative Side consists of 15 players plus three reserves. Format of play is five-a-side with Singles and Fours and then Pairs & Triples played between each state.

This event is a mixed gender tournament with a minimum requirement of two female bowlers, three females from 2023 onwards, with one female player in every set of games played.

Six states, 108 athletes, vied to win the Championships – in particular, to oust the ‘Armed Vics’ from their spot at the top since the games began!

It looked close to happening and then the Vics stormed through the last two days to come out on top once again!

WA thought they had Silver for the first time, and it came down to the last score cards on the last day of play to find out we had been pushed out of second place by Queensland by aggregate points! Both states had a score of 109 with QLD winning the total aggregate with 150 compared to WA’s 84.

Bowling Arm Sides Championships is endorsed by Bowls Australia who provide the 'National Perpetual Trophy' to the winning state while the host state runs the event and provides Gold and Silver medals.

The states also play for interstate Shields during the Championships for a total of 15 shields! This made for quite the presentation on Friday night ably supported by Ken Pride (Bowls WA CEO), Doug Kelly (Bowls WA President) and Deb Hamblin (Mayor of Rockingham).

WA won 4 of 5 possible Shields – one up from the last games in 2019!

The amount of work that it takes to run a national event is huge and the commitment made from the state, the host venue, and the players is phenomenal!

A huge thank you to Warnbro Bowling Club who, after two years of starting planning only to have to stop mid-way through, came through the challenge like stars.

Striving for Personal Achievement from Grass Root Inclusion Programs to National Events…

• 2022 Bowlings Sides team.

2022 Bowling Arm Sides Championships

From the WA Sandgropers to the other states –…'we look forward to seeing you there!'

The compliments from other states on how this event was run were a huge testament to how the club addressed running the show – from the Opening Ceremony through to the Closing Presentation dinner Warnbro shined. There was no job too small from the volunteers in the club, on the greens, in the kitchen, at the bar, on the grounds, and at an executive level The 2023 National Bowling Arm Sides Championships will run from the 4th to the 8th of September next year at Devonport Bowling Club in Spreyton Tasmania.

Striving for Personal Achievement from Grass Root Inclusion Programs to National Events…

From the Umpires

Sue HOGG

Vale Michael Garratt

This report commences on a sad note with the recent passing of our former State Chair of Umpires Michael Goble Garratt.

Mike held the position for a number of years and contributed so much to the development and training of umpires throughout the state during that time.

Our sincerest sympathy is extended to his family and the Willetton Bowling Club.

Mike was succeeded as State Chair of Umpires by Peter Barnett. Since the last edition of Jack-Hi, Peter has relocated to Victoria and resigned his position as Chair. Peter was conscientious and committed to improving umpiring in Western Australia and he will be missed. We thank him for his contribution to umpiring and wish him all the best in the next chapter of his life in Victoria.

Peter’s position as State Chair of Umpires has been taken over by Sue Hogg.

Umpires' Courses

In the latter part of the year, metropolitan area courses for New National Umpires and Marker/Measurers have been conducted at Willetton, Warwick and Manning.

Courses for reaccrediting umpires have also been conducted at Sorrento, Willetton and Fremantle. In addition to these courses, forums for players and umpires were held at Warnbro and Warwick. Our appreciation is extended to the clubs who make their facilities available for the courses.

Country Presenters and Assessors have also been busy accrediting New Umpires and reaccrediting existing Umpires to maintain the existing pool of officials required for their areas.

Many thanks to the Presenters and Assessors, who voluntarily make themselves available to ensure these courses are available.

Congratulations to those who have recently accredited as a ‘National Umpire’ or a ‘Marker/Measurer’.

Online Courses

On Tuesday 18th October, Bowls Australia launched online training for officials under the National Officiating Accreditation Scheme (NOAS).

Three options are now available for the delivery of training for new ‘National Umpires’ and Markers/Measurers’. These are:

(a) Face-to Face training.

(b) Online/Video Training.

(c) Self-Paced Learning via BowlsLearn.

The most effective and preferred method of delivery is still ‘Face-to-Face Learning’, however the new online learning will assist the training of Umpiring officials, especially those in country W.A.

After completing the online training, participants will still be required to undertake on-green training and assessment by an accredited ‘Presenter and Assessor’ to complete their accreditation.

In WA, intending umpires who wish to accredit using ‘SelfPaced Learning’, should complete an application form before completing the online course.

The ‘Officiating Manual’, current 'Laws of the Sport of Bowls’ and a ‘Code of Ethics’ form will be sent to applicants and should be brought to the ‘On-Green Accreditation’ component. The ‘Self-Paced’ Online Learning, must be completed at least two weeks prior to the ‘On-Green’ component.

International Technical Official

An International Technical Official Accreditation (ITO) is available to National Umpires who wish to umpire at a higher level – nationally and internationally. We would encourage existing umpires who are interested, to investigate the possibility of becoming an ITO.

For Country umpires, distance difficulties can be overcome to allow you to achieve this accreditation.

Anyone interested should check the World Bowls website and then contact the Bowls WA Umpires Committee for further details.

Crystal Mark 4 (Laws of the sport of Bowls)

After a thorough and extensive appraisal of Crystal Mark 3.2, World Bowls met after the Commonwealth Games and approved changes to the laws – resulting in Crystal Mark 4. Crystal Mark 4 and a list of the changes to Crystal Mark 3.2, are available on the World Bowls website. World Bowls has mandated that these changes must take place no later than April 2023.

This allows Member National Authorities time to make adjustments to their Domestic Regulations, alter their index and thereafter print new law books.

Bowls Australia is yet to make a decision on the date to change to Crystal Mark 4.

Mental Health and Wellbeing –You Can’t Have One Without the Other

BY THE REGIONAL MEN’S HEALTH INITIATIVE October 2022

Google the word mental health and you’ll find numerous organisations and groups promoting the importance of mental health, but how it is described and the context in which it is discussed can vary significantly. We think understanding the difference between mental health and wellbeing and mental illness is important as this is one area where definitions can become blurred and language may disempower people by putting them in a box.

Mental health and wellbeing encompasses all aspects of our emotional, psychological and social wellbeing, so it affects how we feel, think and interact with the world around us. A good definition which encapsulates this is summarised by the World Health Organisation (2007) a state of wellbeing in which an individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with normal stresses of life, can work productively and is able to make a contribution to his or her community. In summary we think that having good mental health is the ability to deal with life’s challenges and changes, maintaining positive relationships, enjoying life and getting the balance right.

Mental illness on the other hand is a health problem that affects how we think, behave and interact therefore significantly affecting our mental health and wellbeing. It is diagnosed according to standardised criteria. Some of the major types of mental illnesses are anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar, personality disorders, and depression. However, what if I was in a period in my life where things were not so great, I’m not coping, and the challenges and changes are starting to become overwhelming? Does this mean I have a mental illness? I think not.

I say this because sometimes it seems in society, we are almost not allowed to feel pain, show weakness, or not cope as this may be interpreted as there being something wrong with us. Unfortunately, the system provides the word depression as an answer for a whole range of situational stressors which occur in society and need to be discussed. We need to normalise a person’s response during a difficult or abnormal life event and a phrase we coin for times like this is being in a state of Situational Distress.

There are numerous life challenges that come our way that can cause us distress such as separation, illness, injury, trauma, financial worries, grief, adolescence, fatherhood, midlife, change of job, redundancy and transition into retirement. When it comes to our mental health and wellbeing it’s important to remember none of

us are exempt from hard knocks! Just as we’re given the vulnerability to experience tragedy, we’re given the human resources to heal and deal with it. As T. Green (2008) states “We don’t get memory erasures, but we’re given stamina, resilience and fortitude to see the world hasn’t stopped.”

• Identify our mates (build a support network of people we feel safe to confide in i.e. peer, partner, mentor);

• Program time out from work and normalize the problem;

• Maintain social opportunities, take time to laugh with others;

• Take a break, a holiday, go fishing, try something different, explore our passions and interest;

• Exercise, keep active and maintain a healthy diet (this includes reducing alcohol use);

• Make sure we are getting enough sleep;

• Be willing to talk to the appropriate people i.e. family, mates, work colleagues or a professional (accountant, lawyer, psychologist, helpline or GP).

Maintaining a balance and aiming for positive mental health and wellbeing is something we all need to do, this includes acknowledging that we are all susceptible to the stressors of life. Our health and wellbeing are our responsibility, be proactive, address our distress early and don’t let it get out of hand.

What can we do to assist and manage situational distress and get our mental health and wellbeing back into balance?

2022 Nationals – Senior Sides Series

WA perform well at national titles

The Over 60’s National Side Series was conducted at the Broadbeach Bowling Club for the first time since 2019 and Western Australia was in the thick of the action.

The Western Australian Over 60’s Women started the week with the two wins in the first two rounds. Against the strong New South Wales team 57-51 and Tasmania 71-42. A loss to South Australia 41-71 in round three was disappointing for our ladies and then a round four winners Victoria 55-69 put our ladies on the back foot.

A strong win in round five over Northern Territory 68-53 was followed by a heart breaking 54-57 loss to runner up Queensland. Our ladies finished the week strongly with a 56-40 win over Australian Capital Territory to finish a very creditable fourth on the final ladder with four wins.

Leading the way for the WA Over 60’s women was Noelene Abe, Beverley Davidson, Sharon Whana and Irene Leahy, they finished with five wins which was good enough for the third best rink of the competition. The rink of Lee Poletti, Kerry Anderson, Lexie Webster and Irene Arndt finished with four wins, while Kaye Blackwell, Rhonda Prosser, Liz Matthews and Pauline Bourne finished with three wins.

The Beryl Brennan trophy for the Over 60’s Female Bowler of the Interstate Side Series was won by Irene Leahy for her outstanding performances all week.

The Western Australian Over 60’s Men’s side had a strong week despite finishing out of the top four on the ladder. A round one loss 51-52 to New South Wales after leading for a majority of the match was not the ideal start, where, in hindsight, a win would of lifted them into the top two calculations.

Australian Capital Territory 71-50.

Finishing the week in fifth position on the ladder may not have looked like the best result but only one win from second position shows how close this competition can be.

The rink of Eric Johannes, Neville Stevens, Ross Bolton and Jerome Clayton had an outstanding week finishing third on the rink ladder with six wins.

Chris Lander, Gary Keep, Grant Nicol and Greg Taylor finished with three wins and John Goddard, Kevin Pickering, Steve Cerff and Gordon King had two wins.

Taking out the McKenzie/Barns Over 60’s Male Bowler of the Interstate Side Series was Jerome Clayton with an outstanding leading display.

• The state senior side that represented WA in the 2022 Australian titles at Broadbeach.

• Photos courtesy of Bowls Australia.

2022 Nationals – Open State Team

Tough competition for Open teams

The Australian Side Series was held at the Broadbeach Bowling Club in Queensland for the first time since 2019.

Both the Western Australian Women’s and Men’s sides performed admirably throughout the week with both sides having a chance to finish second going into the final round.

The Western Australian Women’s side won their first four rounds with aggregates wins over the Australian Capital Territory 75-38, North Territory 100-33, Tasmania 59-49, and South Australia 67-55. It wasn’t until round five against Queensland where the ladies were unable to put it together with a 41-72 aggregate loss, with all three rinks going down.

Round 6 was a cliff-hanger against the strong Victorian outfit. While only being successful on one rink by five shots, it was enough to win the aggregate due to the other two rinks only going down narrowly.

When the dust settled WA came out on top 54-53. Up against the undefeated New South Wales in the last round, the WA ladies could finish either second or third depending on theirs and Queensland’s result.

Unfortunately, it was not to be as New South Wales proved stronger than everyone with a 78-33 win over WA. With Queensland also winning round 7, WA finished third with five wins in a very encouraging result for future National Side Series.

Leading the way for WA was the Lisa Featherby, Robyn O’Brien, Denise Kelly and Shari Solly with five wins from seven games. Kristina Krstic, Chris Ace-Watson, Shaan Saunders and Linda Warburton finished with four wins.

While Laura Merz, Hailey Packer, Kaitlin Tyrrell and Jenny Parker finished with two wins. Taking out the much-deserved Beryl Godfrey trophy for the best player at the National Side Series was Kristina Krstic, with a number of players only just behind her.

The Western Australian Men’s side started the Men’s National Side Series with three straight wins over Australian Capital Territory 67-42, Northern Territory 86-32, and a stirring win over Tasmania 65-50.

The Men’s first loss came in round four up against South Australia 47-56 and then a second loss to Queensland 42-73 in round five both on the same day. After a night to regroup, it looked likely another loss was on the way as Victoria started strongly but with renewed determination, the WA men fought back strongly and won going away 54-41.

The last round was against New South Wales, where a win would see the men finish in second position. Unfortunately, it was not to be, going down by only four shots on the aggregate 52-56, with a drawn rink and the other two rinks losing by only two shots each. With other results not going our way, the WA men had to be satisfied with fourth position with four wins.

The rink of Anthony Williams, Shane Knott, Bill Brandsma and Russell Bates finished with the best figures for WA with four wins. Also with four wins were Blake Nairn, Clive Adams, Dale Marsland and Jack East. The rink of Cody Packer, Dave Rankin, Warren Holt and Cameron Harris finished the series with three wins.

The Alan Eddy-Rod Wishart player of the Side Series was Anthony Williams with a host of other players in the running with terrific series.

After a very competitive series, both the WA Women and Men are looking forward to the next series in October 2023 as they strive for National Side Series success.

• Cody Packer.

• Photos courtesy of Bowls Australia.

2022 National Championships/Results

Success at the championships

WA was again strongly represented at the Australian Championships which was part of the Nationals on the Gold Coast at Broadbeach Bowling Club. All the state and territory state champions compete against each other for National glory. WA once again proving extremely competitive in all nine disciplines however the highlight were without doubt the Gold medal victories in the Women’s Triples and Women’s Fours. Here is a quick review of every event.

Mixed Pairs

The Championships got underway with the Mixed Pairs with WA represented by the talented South Perth pair of Justin Opie and Helen Morss. A narrow one shot loss in the middle round of section play against the ACT saw WA just miss out on a chance for a major medal. In the bronze medal play off they were defeated by exceptional Queensland duo of Nick Cahill and Kelsey Cottrell 21-5.

Gold – ACT • Silver – NSW • Bronze – Queensland

Triples – Men

The combination of John Slavich, Lee Such and Justin Opie faced some tough competition in this event, they went down 16-21 in their opener to Victoria followed by a 14-22 loss to a powerful Queensland team. They were able to finish with a good 22-17 victory over South Australia but missed out on finals.

Gold – Victoria • Silver – Tasmania • Bronze – Queensland

Triples – Women

Kaye Blackwell, Rhonda Prosser and Kerry Andersen provided one of the biggest upsets at the Australian Championships when they defeated the NSW trio of Karen Murphy, Ellen Ryan and Jamie-Lee Worsnop 20-16 to claim the Gold Medal. Set up by some brilliant leading by Andersen and followed by good bowls from Prosser and Blackwell when needed the WA trio was simply sensational in the final. They qualified for the final in the most remarkable circumstances after losing a sectional match by 20 they were reliant on NT drawing with Victoria to squeak through with two wins and -4 shot margin.

Gold – WA • Silver – NSW • Bronze – Tasmania Pairs –

Men

The talented Men’s Pairs champions Dale Marsland and Blake Nairn struggled in the early stages playing home state Queensland in the opening round of competition, the locals made the most of their home ground advantage winning 24-7. That result came back to haunt the WA pair as despite winning 17-12 over Tasmania and 15-11 over Victoria their poor shot margin meant they failed to qualify for a medal final

Gold – NSW • Silver – Queensland • Bronze – Victoria Pairs –

Women

Like their male counterparts the WA Women’s Pairs also started slowly albeit they also faced quality opponents in the opening round, losing to NSW 4-14. They did bounce back winning 1310 over Queensland but a disappointing 4-13 loss to Tasmania put them out of the finals race.

Gold – NSW • Silver – South Australia • Bronze – Tasmania

Fours – Men

After WA claimed Gold in this event last series there was a bit of weight on the shoulder of Dave Rankin, Dale Marsland, Clive Adams and Blake Nairn to defend the title. Unfortunately a mixture of good opposition and opportunities not falling the right way saw them suffer defeats in the opening two rounds losing to Queensland 13-16 and NSW 11-16. A very good win 18-7 over South Australia did see the side walk away with their heads held high.

Gold – Victoria • Silver – NSW • Bronze – Tasmania Fours – Women

The second of the major success stories was in the Women’s Fours with Amanda Masters, Shaan Saunders, Shari Solly and Jennie Bruce claiming another Gold for WA.

A tight 17-16 win over South Australia was followed by a surprise 10-11 loss to NT however WA still had a chance to qualify if results fell their way in the last round.

The second of the major success stories was in the Women’s Fours with Amanda Masters, Shaan Saunders, Shari Solly and Jennie Bruce claiming another Gold for WA. A tight 17-16 win over South Australia was followed by a surprise 10-11 loss to NT however WA still had a chance to qualify if results fell their way in the last round.

That was exactly what happened as NT defeated South Australia and WA got home with a nice margin 14-6 over the ACT to claim the section.

In the final against Victoria it was a close contest throughout, scores were locked at 4-4 and 7-7 before Victoria stretched out to a 11-8 lead.

– continued page 13…

• Women's Fours champions.

• Photo courtesy of Bowls Australia.

2022 National Results

Fours – Women – continued

Shari Solly then stepped up with a great conversion shot and when the Victorian skipper fell short Bruce added two counters to see WA hit the lead 12-11 with just a few ends to play. Another great end set up by the sister combo of Masters and Saunders saw WA grab another three shots to take the biggest lead of game with two ends to play 15-11. Steady play over the last few ends saw WA claim the Gold medal to their huge delight.

2022 Nationals – U18s

Under 18s team do WA proud

Congratulations to the WA Under 18 Boys and Coach Blake Butler on their efforts at the Under 18 National Championships at the Broadbeach Bowling Club.

The fours team of Segan Pasalich, Tom Brooks, Brock Kilmurray and Cam Wellington topped their section went into the Gold Medal game.

Singles – Men

Manning’s David Downey found himself on the National stage for the first time in open competition. Unfortunately, he struggled to adjust to the Broadbeach greens on the day and found the opposition a bit too good. It was tough going for David who the scores being 15-25 to NSW, 13-25 to Victoria and 12-25 to NT however he is sure to have gained some valuable experience at this level which should stand him in good stead next time. In a rare Tasmania v NT final Robert McMullen from Tasmania had a dream match leading 19-0 before winning 25-2 hardly bowling a bad one to claim a massive victory.

Singles – Women

Hailey Packer was the WA Women’s representative. Her results were a 12-25 loss to NSW, 25-14 win over Tasmania and a 1725 loss to South Australia. Like her Manning teammate David Downey she will take a lot from her performances knowing she isn’t far away from the best in Australia. The final was won by arguably the in-form player in Australia in the Women’s game in Kelsey Cottrell.

Unfortunately, under the lights and in the rain, they were unable to overcome a strong Tasmanian outfit but a silver medal at the Nationals is an amazing effort.

The pair's combination of Cam Wellington and Brock Kilmurray finished second in their section to set up a bronze medal game. But it was not to be for the boys on this occasion as they went down to Queensland to just miss a Medal.

The Triple's team of Segan Pasalich, Tom Brooks, and Callum Alberti were not able to put it together on the day. A last-round win over NSW was not enough to make the medal rounds but it was a great way to finish the day.

The Boy’s Singles is always a difficult event to win, with the boys around the country playing at a very high level.

Callum Alberti stepped up and never stopped trying as he battled hard and with pride for WA but was unable to advance to the medal rounds.

A special mention to Alex Wasley who was very close to WA selection. When a state was unable to provide a team, Alex stepped up and played in a composite team performing very well under the WA colours.

Congratulations to all our boys, you have done WA proud.

• Under 18s Fours side. • Photo courtesy of Bowls Australia.

Gold – WA • Silver – Victoria • Bronze – Northern Territory

Gold – Tasmania•Silver – Northern Territory•Bronze – Victoria

Gold – Queensland • Silver – South Australia • Bronze – NSW

• Blake Nairn.

• Photo courtesy of Bowls Australia.

Bowls Australia hosts their first National Multibowl

For the first time in the 30+ year history of physical disability bowls at a National level, the 2022 Multibowl was hosted by Bowls Australia.

Six States and one Territory played Open Triples and then gender specific Singles and Pairs in B5/6 and B7/8 classifications. Each side is allowed up to ten para-bowlers of six men and four women.

What does a classification mean? Under the auspice of International Bowlers with a Disability (IBD) players go through a medical and technical classification process that groups players of equal balance and ability to play each other on the green – even though they have quite varied disabilities.

IBD bowlers compete at National level at the Multibowl and then have a chance to play at International Level at the Commonwealth Games and IBD specific events.

Western Australia couldn’t field a complete side falling one player short with six men and three women. Five new players from Pingelly (Michael Garrett and Clem Nottle), Yanchep (Jodie Nikolic), Kardinya (Diana Nixon), and Morley (David Stephen) combine with prior event players Wayne Allsopp (Dowerin), Eddie Gollan (Thornlie), Steven Murray (Scarborough), and Maud Taylor (Eaton).

WA started strong on the first day of Open Triples with all three teams winning. Following on from that the team of Murray, Allsopp and Nixon made it through to the quarter finals but unfortunately did not go further as they went down to the VIC side of Thorton, Barry, and Protopapas who went on to win the Open Triples for the 3rd consecutive year.

Our women’s singles started with very close losses across the board in the first round and then total wins in the second round with Diana Nixon winning 18 to 14, Maud Taylor winning 21 to 15, and Jodie Nikolic winning 21 to 8.

The third game of the day the players level of tiredness was showing with the women going down. So, no semi-finals for our ladies – but an excellent level of representation from our WA ladies.

While the women were contesting the B7/8 singles our men partnered up to participate in the B7/8 pairs.

WA was not fortunate in the pairs with only one win during the three-game day by Eddie Gollan and Clem Nottle against TAS 22 to 8. The men’s B7/8 singles brought mixed results with close games not reflected in the scores with Wayne Allsopp, Clem Nottle, and David Stephen going down by small margins and played mostly to the time limit of 2 hours and 15 minutes.

Mick Garrett, Eddie Gollan, and Steve Murray all pulled out wins. Of these three it was ‘Mick’ Garrett who took on New South Wales and Tasmania to win his section, then the quarter finals proved to be too tricky, and he too lost to David Minns from Tasmania.

On the final day of the 2022 Multi-Disability Nationals WA was not in any of the semi-finals but they have had a fantastic week.

Entering the competition with five new players learning the ropes and playing three games a day over 5 days left even the most energetic player tired.

In a wonderful achievement WA came out ahead with Jodie Nikolic, from Yanchep, winning the Clover Lester Encouragement Award. This award is presented to the player who shows the most promise for future para-bowl play.

Congratulations Jodie!!

• Photos courtesy of Bowls Australia.

• WA's Multibowl team.

BowlsWA 2022 Multibowls Side

Name Club

Wayne Allsopp Dowerin

Michael Garratt Pingelly

Eddie Gollan Thornlie

Steve Murray Scarborough Clem Nottle Pingelly

David Stephen Morley

Jodie Nikolic Yanchep Diana Nixon Kardinya Maud Taylor Eaton

Bill and Lisa too good in Masters Pairs Mixed Masters Pairs

Mosman Park’s Lisa Featherby and Kalamunda’s Bill Brandsma have combined to win the Stirling Mixed Masters Pairs in the most dramatic circumstances. This event played primarily on the indoor green at Stirling Bowling Club from October 14-16 saw an amazing finish unfold.

Sectional play began on Friday night with four sections including Featherby and Brandsma who were lucky to survive a very tough section.

They won their opening match 14-5 over Stewart Gosstray and Belinda Lehman (Doubleview) but then went down to Scott Walker (South Perth) and Linda Warburton (Mosman Park) 10-13 which left an anxious wait hoping Gosstray would defeat Walker in the last match and fortunately for them that is what occurred allowing them to move into the Sunday finals.

Another 6 sections were completed on Saturday with tournament favourites Cody Packer (Osborne Park) and Kaitlin Tyrrell (Manning) losing their section on a count back and last years winners Shane Loftus and Julie Savell (Osborne Park) also bundled out.

However the talented Laura Merz and Blake Butler (Manning) went through along with Kevin Pickering and Pam Chalmers (Osborne Park).

Mixed Masters Fours

These two teams provided one of the best clashes in the semi finals with Pickering and Chalmers prevailing in a tight 15-11 win. Featherby and Brandsma had three comfortable wins progressing to the final. They defeated Carlsen/Cooper (North Beach) 17-4, Pauling/Spragg (Composite) 15-4 and Pasalich/ Saunders (Osborne Park) 13-5.

The final was real tight affair for most of the match but the Osborne Park pair of Pickering and Chalmers looked to be getting on top. They held a nice four on one end when a lucky Featherby drive saw them collect a fortunate one shot and keep them in the match.

With the title on the line Featherby and Brandsma were three behind however the duo had set a plan with Brandsma leading he had placed a bowl behind the head.

Featherby was right in the area with her first and trailed the jack back to this waiting catcher. Pickering tried to reduce the count and with Featherby adding a third suddenly the scores were level.

Pickering again failed to reduce the count and Featherby saved her best for the last end added another counter for a score of four to win the match 12-11 in a thrilling finish.

Fours team too good

A capacity field of 36 teams lined up to contest the Mixed Masters Fours, the first event for the season in the Dyenamic Masters Series.

Sectional play was held on Sunday 25th September with the top 8 teams qualifying to play finals on the Public Holiday Monday 26th September.

Nice greens and perfect weather saw some great games played across both days.

Congratulations to the winners of the 2022 Mixed Masters Fours – Cody Packer, Hailey Packer, Laura Merz and Blake Butler (pictured with cheer squad Jasper) who proved far too good through out the event undefeated in six matches including a comprehensive 18-4 win in the final.

Runners Up were the Sorrento side of Bruce Eagles, Murray Hulbert, Kerry Hutchinson and Coral Smith.

• The winning Fours team – Blake Buter, Laura Merz, Hailey and Cody Packer with cheer leader Jasper.

Comfortable win in Men , s final

The 2022-2023 Dyenamic WA Men’s State Fours had a field of 96 teams take part this season with the final taking part at the Manning Bowling Club on the afternoon of Sunday October 30th.

In the Semi-Finals, the Sorrento team of Bruce Eagles, Murray Hulbert, Peter Flack, and Peter Morgan had a strong win over the Composite team skipped by Segan Pasalich (Osborne Park), Shane Loftus (Osborne Park), Andrew Pasalich (Osborne Park), and Sean Niven (Joondalup) 20-10.

The other Semi-Final saw a solid win for South Perth’s Justin Opie, Glenn Pauling, Troy Kinanne and Scott Walker over Doubleview’s Kyle Mcilroy, Stewart Gosstray, Steve Cerff and Gavin Faulkner18-11.

The Final was played under a series of different weather conditions with both wind and no wind at different times and sunshine and light rain also alternating through the game. The Bruce Eagles team started well by winning the first two ends to go up 3-0 with Justin Opie drawing level on the third end with a three.

Again, Eagles won two ends in a row and surged to a goodsized lead 11-3 by getting fours on both occasions. Opie again answered by grabbing a four of their own followed by a three to close the gap to a single shot of 10-11 after seven ends of the eighteen-end game.

At the halfway mark of the match, the Eagles team was leading 14-10 and were starting to gain the ascendence with more consistent bowls in the head. A two to Opie on the tenth end saw him close within two shots of Eagles at 12-14 but it was the start of the end for the South Perth team.

Three singles in a row followed by two, one, one and two saw Eagles win seven ends in a row and take a 23-12 win with an end to spare. Bruce Eagles, Murray Hulbert, Peter Flack, and Peter Morgan led from start to finish only being level on the third end to earn the 2022-23 Dyenamic WA State Fours Championship.

Tense struggle in Women

,

s final

The 2022-23 Dyenamic Women’s State Fours ended with a classic final at the Manning Bowling on Sunday October 30th with the composite combination of Laura Merz (Manning), Therese Hastings (Manning), Kaitlin Tyrrell (Manning) and Lisa Smith (Perth & Tatts) up against another composite team of Renate Coote (Mosman Park), Maureen Cooney (Thornlie), Jenny Parker (Mosman Park) and Jacinta Zadow (Kojonup).

In the morning Semi Finals, the Merz team were too strong for the defending champions Jennie Bruce (Busselton), Shari Solly (Osborne Park), Amanda Masters (Osborne Park), Shaan Saunders (Osborne Park) 23-6. While Coote defeated last seasons runner up’s Lisa Featherby, Chris Ace-Watson, Denise Kelly, Linda Warburton (Mosman Park) in a close contest, 19-16.

The final began with Merz hitting the green running by winning the first two ends to jump to a 3-0 lead, however Coote instantly came back with a two and a four to double the Merz score and lead 6-3. A run of four ends, including a three, single, two and four, saw Merz blow out to what could have been a match winning lead after only eight ends 13-6.

All that changed at the halfway mark of the game, when on the ninth end of the eighteen-end game, Coote’s team hit back with a big six shots to draw within one shot 12-13. Another single to Coote and then a three saw the Merz quartet on the back foot, down 13-16. But the experienced Merz team never panicked and replied again with two threes to take back the lead 19-16.

A single to Coote on the fourteenth end was only the fourth single of the game with multiple shots on an end being the usual for both teams. A single then to Merz and then a two to Coote set up a tense final two ends of the game with the score on 20-19 in Merz’s favour.

On both occasions Coote looked to be a in position to win the end but some pressure bowls, especially by Skip Laura Merz, saw her team take a single on the second last end to claim the title.

• Men's State Fours winners.

• Women's State Fours winners.

Coaching Clinic

Linda Warburton

Pathways Coaching day at Manning

The Bowls Australia High Performance Team, led by Karen Murphy AM (National Pathways Manager and assistant Australian Coach), ran a coaching day at the Manning Bowling Club on Wednesday 18th October.

The day was primarily for the players from Western Australia who have been selected to be included in this program and will be under the watchful eye of National Selector and Pathways Coach for WA, Therese Hastings.

These players include Ruby Leggett (who was unavailable on the day as she was in hospital having knee surgery), Segan Pasalich, Jack East and Calvin Rodgers (Vision Impaired Bowler) and his director Jason Schreutjens. The presentation has been presented to all states, however ours in Western Australia was delayed by Covid.

The day commenced with a presentation to the State Regional Bowls Managers; members of the Bowls WA High Performance team; athletes and parents of the Pathways players, Para bowlers and Vision Impaired bowlers and various other support crew.

Bowls Australia were represented by: Gary Willis, Australian Coach; Rebecca Van Ash, manager of High Performance with Bowls Australia and now retired International Bowler; Karen Murphy AM (who needs no introduction as an International Bowler and retired Jackeroo); Ellen Falkner, manager of the Bowls Australia Para Squad, an International player from England who has come to Australia to work with our Para Team.

Ellen’s resume is as extensive through her bowls career in England as Karen Murphy’s is with Australia; Therese Hastings who needs no introduction, Ian Hastings who was doing some statisitics with the Para players and Leah Lazarro is the operations manager for Bowls Australia. Her role is being the backbone of everything they do as far as an organizational role goes.

Kristina Krstic had her Gold Medal on hand for all in attendance to ogle over and gave a talk to the Pathways Players about what being a Jackeroo is all about, with requirements for training etc.

Cody Packer also addressed the group and told everyone about his journey to date as a Jackeroo squad member.

Karen addressed the group with a Power Point presentation of what the Pathways program is about.

•

After the session indoors, the players, along with some local accredited coaches went out onto the green to put into practice some drills that Karen had set up for them.

They did these drills, marking their scores for their own benefit so they can address any areas that they may need to work on. They then played a game of singles, playing 7 ends, then swapping opposition players for another 7 ends.

All during this exercise, they were being watched by Karen and the other coaches for any aspect of their game they wanted to address.

Manning Bowling Club ladies, as usual, provided great hospitality with sandwiches for lunch for the group.

We are very fortunate to have the quality of people to assist our bowlers of the future, who devote their time and energy into programs such as the Pathways program.

Some Coaching hints for meaningful practice sessions:

• Always practice with purpose. Be disciplined with your practice, marking your own drills is for your own purpose and designed to assist you to improve on areas that may not be your strongest.

• Don’t always go and practice in perfect conditions and on perfect greens.

• Use your practice session time to practice for events that you have entered into or for your next pennant match, (in the position that you are going to play).

Karen Murphy, Jason Schreutjens, Segan Pasalich, Calvin Rodgers, Jack East and Therese Hastings.

O60s Men , s Pairs

Osborne Park duo wins Men , s Pairs

Some 10 years on from winning the Open State Pairs good mates and Osborne Park team mates John Goddard and Gary Caffell have combined to win the Men’s Over 60s State Pairs at Leeming Bowling Club in a thrilling final against a gallant Mick Ryan and Joe Rollnik from Ellenbrook, the final score 16-15.

In the semi finals Goddard and Caffell survived an early scare when they trailed the Kalamunda duo of Bill Brandsma and Bob Farrant 7-1 after four ends. A maximum count on the next end saw them level up and they would only be behind once more. With the scores 9-10 they picked up a three followed by four two ends later to lead 16-11. They carried that margin to the finish winning 21-14.

Ryan and Rollnik saluted 17-12 however they were never seriously threated by the surprise Lake Monger duo of Graeme Davies and Brett Parker who did well to reach the semi finals. The Ellenbrook pair always holding the ascendency after jumping out to a 9-3 early lead and maintaining that advantage on the run home. A big credit to the Lake Monger pair especially Davies who was a last minute call up when one of the Parker brothers came down withCovid.

The final looked mismatched on paper with the highly credentialled Osborne Park team the hot favourites given their history and that they had been impressive with some big victories to this point of the competition. The less fancied Ellenbrook pair had survived some very close matches to make the finals but they were ready to give it their all.

Ellenbrook leader Joe Rollnik was super impressive for most of the match regularly nailing the jack however his good work was often undone by an equally impressive John Goddard. After a tight opening salvo the scores were locked at 2-2 after four ends before Goddard was fortunate with a drive which hit a front bowl and then dislodged every Ellenbrook bowl on the green. Goddard added an extra counter to secure a score of three and have them leading 5-2.

His good fortune turned around in the next end however as Rollnik had played three exceptional bowls and Goddard once again fired but put his drive through the narrowest of gaps, an inch either way would have been a killed end and once again the scores were locked, this time at five apiece.

Again a series of close ends saw the scores level at 7 all before Rollnik hit another purple patch and the Ellenbrook team took a good 12-7 lead. Goddard then hit back with a series of good ends himself to level the scores for an amazing fifth time at 12-12. Another two winning ends for the Ellenbrook duo saw them leading 15-12 and the upset looked a strong possibility with just two ends to go.

Gary Caffell then played two of his best ends of the match, just when they when needed. They grabbed a one on the first of those courtesy of a front toucher to make it 13-15 before he added two close bowls on the last end. Goddard was able to play a couple of good bowls himself and suddenly Ryan was down four.

Knowing if he hit the target he could win the match or possibly force and extra end the weighted shot was a touch on the narrow side but clipped one of the shot bowls through the head, unfortunately it never touched any of the other counters and the Osborne Park had saluted in a gutsy effort.

Chrizanda Hartman the Centre Manager at Fiona Stanley Hospital for GenesisCare who are first time Bowls WA sponsors was on hand to help present the finalist prizemoney along with the winners trophy and medals with Bowls WA Board member Phil Manning. Phil was able to personally recommend GenesisCare who are cancer care specialist and had helped care for his late father. Along with congratulating the winners Phil thanked all the participants along with the Bowls WA and club volunteers and host venues for their support of the event.

• Gary Caffell and John Goddard.

• Runners-up with Chrizanda Hartman and board member Phil Manning.

GenesisCarechanging the face of care

O60s Women , s Pairs

Blackwell and Abe claim Pairs title

The finals of the GenesisCare Women’s Over 60’s Pairs were completed at the Rossmoyne Bowling Club in chilly conditions. It was great to see a number of other participants and interested onlookers at the final.

In two competitive semi finals scores were locked in both matches with just a handful of ends to play however both winners were able to win the bulk of ends to secure victory. The country combination of Irene Leahy (Kalgoorlie) and Bev Davidson (Kukerin) upsetting three times champions Kerry Andersen and Linda Warburton from Mosman Park 19-12 winning the last five ends of the match.

Likewise Noelene Abe (Corrigin) and Kaye Blackwell (Mt Pleasant) did their best work in the late stages picking up back to back scores of three on ends 14 and 15 to grab a match lead 16-12 and hanging on to win 18-13 against the North Beach duo of Debra Rhine and Rhonda Prosser.

After the lunch break the breeze had stiffened and was quite gusty, combined with overcast conditions and a quick green running over 16 seconds all players found it challenging to regularly get bowls close.

Leahy and Davidson struck first with a very good three on the opening end with Davidson looking to continue her hot form from the semi final. However as the match progressed Abe and Blackwell adjusted well especially into the breeze where they picked up several multiple shots progressing to a 12-6 advantage at the half way mark.

Irene Leahy had a great end just when they needed it, putting two bowls right on the jack and with Davidson adding a counter the composite team where able to bridge the gap to 11-15 with just five ends to play.

When they continued that form with a 2 and 1 the score was suddenly 15-14 and it was looking like going right to the wire. However Abe played a great lead bowl and when Blackwell added 3 counters unusually Davidson couldn’t get one close it was back out to 19-14 with two ends to play.

Abe then applied more pressure putting down a toucher and another close bowl. After Blackwell added another counter Davidson was forced to drive to try and keep the game alive but was just narrow.

Congratulations to Noelene Abe and Kaye Blackwell on a well deserved 22-14 victory.

The win gives Abe a second Over 60’s pairs title whilst for Blackwell it was her first in this event. Bowls WA Board member Lisa Featherby along with GenesisCare representative Chrizanda Hartman made the presentations to the finalists.

• Kaye Blackwell and Noelene Abe.

• O60s Women's Pairs finalists with Genesis Care's Chrizandra Hartman.

Mt Lawley Consistency Singles

Manning duo win singles titles

The traditional season opener Mt Lawley Consistency Singles finals were played on Sunday 18th September in good weather which saw the reigning Bowls WA Club of the Year Manning continue on their winning way providing both Men’s and Women’s champions.

The Men’s event was taken out by Daniel Trewhella who added another Singles title to his already bulging resume of major victories.

In a really close contest where both players put in plenty of great bowls Trewhella was up against team mate Shane Knott, with the final score being 153-147. Knott had survived a thriller in his semi-final against Paul Kain (Joondalup) who was the surprise packet in the Men’s competition.

Likewise Therese Hastings showed she still has the talent to match it with the best winning the Women’s competition in stylish fashion. In what has become a regular in Women’s bowls it was Manning vs Mosman Park in the final with Cathie Smith putting in a career best performance to make to a major final.

Unfortunately she couldn’t really match it with Hastings who took the win 120-80. Smith took her semi-final in a thriller 101-99 over Julie Savell (Osborne Park) whilst Hastings also survived a close one against Ruby Leggett (Manning) 10397. Leggett who is just 18 years old showing she is a star of the future with a great tournament.

Mt Lawley would like to thank all those who participated in the event along with their much valued sponsors Irvin & Keenan Real Estate.

Daniel Trewhella.

WA BOWLS RANKINGS

Rank Name Club Total

1 Opie, Justin South Perth 235 2 Trewhella, Daniel Manning 204 3 Packer, Cody Osborne Park 199 4 Slavich, John Doubleview 191 5 Mitchell, Matthew Emu Point 172 6 Marsland, Dale Mosman Park 166 7 Adams, Clive Cambridge 145 8 Eagles, Bruce Sorrento 134 8 Holt, Warren Wagin 134 10 Downey, David Manning 128 11 Mitchell, Thomas Manning 99 11 Rankin, Dave Doubleview 99 13 East, Jack Osborne Park 96 14 Hulbert, Murray Sorrento 95 15 Pauling, Glenn South Perth 94 16 Such, Lee South Perth 91 17 Faulkner, Gavin Doubleview 80 18 Bates, Russell Doubleview 76 19 Butler, Blake Manning 72 20 Knott, Shane Manning 69

WOMEN

Rank Name Club Total 1 Featherby, Lisa Mosman Park 335 2 Merz, Laura Manning 320 3 Packer, Hailey Manning 296 4 Krstic, Kristina Manning 255 5 Hastings, Therese Manning 214 6 Warburton, Linda Mosman Park 183 7 Smith, Lisa Perth & Tatts 170 8 Andersen, Kerry Mosman Park 165 9 Morss, Helen South Perth 143 10 Kelly, Denise Mosman Park 133 11 Gobbart, Kathy Gingin 126 12 Poletti, Lee Mosman Park 106

Tyrrell, Kaitlin Manning 106

O'Brien, Robyn Manning 102

Saunders, Shaan Osborne Park 96 16 Blackwell, Kaye Mt Pleasant 92 17 Masters, Amanda Osborne Park 85 18 Abe, Noelene Corrigin 81 19 Ace-Watson, Chris Mosman Park 79 19 Solly, Shari Osborne Park 79

•

•

•

•

•

Ph: (08) 9383 7666 Fax: (08) 9383 7738 Unit 1/272 Selby Street, Wembley WA 6014 Email: admin@liquortradersaustralia.com.au Web: liquortraders.com.au

Bowls Premier League

Perth Suns give their best at BPL16

Anticipation was high for the Suns coming into the Bowls Premier League, BPL16 at Club Pine Rivers in November with Bowls WA owned side fielding a very strong local team.

Kristina Krstic was still riding the wave of her Commonwealth Games Gold Medal a few months earlier whilst Blake Nairn had a Gold Medal of his own having won the Covid delayed 2021 Australian Championship Singles

Joining them was the ever reliable Cody Packer who had already proved he was capable of mixing it with the best in this high octane high energy Bowls competition which has not only the best in Australia involved but some of the biggest superstars on the global stage.

Alex Marshall, Ryan Bester, Jo Edwards, Ali Forsyth, Katelyn Inch, Gary Kelly and Shannon McIlroy some on the international talent along with Ellen Ryan, Aron Sheriff, Aaron Wilson, Barrie Lester and Karen Murphy all household names in the Australia bowls scene gave viewers an absolute treat with their exceptional play through the five days.

The Suns started well winning their opening match against one of the tournament fancies in the Moreton Bay Pirates 6-5, 3-3 before a loss to Sydney and then a tie break win over Adelaide had them well placed after a solid first day of competition.

•

The support seemed to inspire the team with Kristina leading superbly in the first set and back up by Blake in the second but it was Packer who played some outstanding shots to steal the show from the No. 1 bowler in Australia Aaron Sheriff and his Moama teammates. The Suns shone brightly that night winning 7-4, 8-6.

In the remaining rounds the Suns were always playing catch up to try and sneak into finals contention, just when they banked a win a loss would nearly always follow as they found it hard to gather momentum against such classy opposition.

On Friday they knew they had to win all three matches to be a chance but suffered an agonizing loss to Tweed Heads. The Suns however did fight it out winning their last two matches against Tasmania and the Melbourne Pulse who would regroup and go on to claim the title.

Whilst the Suns finished overall seventh with a 7-11 record they can certainly hold their heads up high having giving it their all through the 18 rounds of competition.

The short format five end sets make for exciting play and a few good bowls by either side can make a big difference to the outcome as the Suns found out throughout the tournament.

The second day was perhaps the downfall when they loss to Tweed Heads, Gold Coast and Tasmania none of which would make finals however a good win against the talented Moama Steamers kept them in the hunt with 3 wins and 4 losses.

The middle day proved both a disappointment and a real highlight as the Suns suffered three losses during the day with just one victory leading into the televised night session.

The Suns however saved their best with members of the supporting BPL Cup teams led by Helen Morss impersonating Kristina Krstic decked out with pony tails, glasses and of course a gold medal.

Bowls Premier replays are available on the Bowls Australia Facebook Page and via Kayo.

Cody Packer, Kristina Krstic and Blake Nairn.

• Perths Suns team.

The next Bowls Premier League will be held in Moama from February 20-24, 2023.

• Photos Courtesy of Bowls Australia

• Kristina Kristic impersonators!

Club Grants Program

Yanchep headlines Grants initiative

An initiative by the Bowls WA Club Development Committee the Club Grants program was strongly supported with 27 clubs making applications for funding. With more than double the budgeted $40,000 requested by Clubs and many exceptional applications a total of $41,823 has been approved with 22 clubs receiving the good news. The full list of recipients is shown at the end of this article.

This program which allows clubs to apply for funding towards local club run projects or events has seen many clubs looking to embrace their local community to attract more people to our sport. Other areas of focus were with junior bowlers, schools program, disability and inclusion events and family based bowls programs.

Bowls WA President Doug Kelly along with Regional Bowls Manager Clive Adams visited one of the successful clubs in Yanchep as part of the announcement. Yanchep will receive $5,000 the maximum available to fund an exciting initiative which is being driven by their President Jodie Nikolic.

“The submission by Yanchep embraces the Bowls WA Strategic Plan of making Bowling Clubs stronger by playing more bowls more ways more often. The inclusiveness of all abilities bowlers and families into our bowls reflects how all clubs can build their participation in the sport” remarked President Kelly.

Yanchep will run a program of five separate events through October and November 2022 which is focused on attracting young participants, families and people with disabilities. The days are designed around being fun, family oriented and inclusive for all.

President Jodie who represented WA at the Multi Disability Championships in Queensland had a somewhat rocky road to getting started in bowls.

She plays out of a specially built wheelchair designed for bowlers which also protects the surface of the green with rubber tyres.

“I came down to the club and enjoyed watching the bowlers play so much that I wanted to get out there myself. Understanding there were requirements around the wheelchair being on the green I found that it was not so easy to get started but we managed to eventually get a specially made chair for bowling. This funding will allow us to buy two more wheel chairs and have them available for others who want to give bowls a go. We already have people asking when the chairs will be available,” said Yanchep Club President Jodie Nikolic who was thrilled when receiving the good news.

"This funding will allow us to buy two more wheel chairs and have them available for others who want to give bowls a go!" – Jodie Nikolic

Through a connection with her workplace which deals with Spinal Cord Injury Prevention she met Chris Easter. Chris who has over a decades experience in the fabrication industry and is also a wheelie himself was blown away when he found out how much it cost and remarked that he could probably build one much cheaper.

So much cheaper in fact that he now can provide a modified for bowls wheel chair at less than half the price of what Jodie initially had to spend for hers.

Chris has now started his own business called Wheeled Engineering which specializes in repairs, maintenance, modifications and custom adapted wheelchairs is hopeful these chairs will give more people the chance to bowl at a much more affordable price. He even has chairs designed for use on the beach or off road which are fitted with mountain bike tyres.

• Yanchep club member Barry Tocock, Yanchep President Jodie Nikolic, Bowls WA President Doug Kelly, Adam Ferguson, RBM Clive Adams and Chris Easter from Wheeled Engineering.

Doubleview bring in the juniors

• Adam and Jodie enjoying a roll up at Yanchep together.

The good news for Bowls is that Yanchep are also supportive of other clubs borrowing the wheel chairs if they have someone who wants to give bowls a go.

The other aspect of the Yanchep program is of course involving families and the younger generation.

“To future proof our sport we need to attract a younger membership base and embrace the family aspect of the sport within clubs,” said Regional Bowls Manager Clive Adams. “Bowls is one of the few sports where an entire family of kids, parents and grand parents can all play together.”

One of the clubs younger participants is Adam Ferguson whose parents are members of the club. “I like to come and watch mum and dad play and I like to have a go myself but I wish there were more young people playing too,” said Adam during a roll up. This is something the club is obviously hoping to change very soon.

Yanchep have already engaged with their Local Government who will be supporting this program and the club will be getting word out to the Yanchep Community and surrounds to come on down and give bowls a go.

Doubleview Bowling Club is looking for its next era of champion bowlers and recently held its first Bring a Junior Bowler day.

Eleven youngsters took to the greens on a day which encouraged members to bring along a junior to play, the club had already successfully run a similar Bring a Mate day last season.

Doubleview Committee member David Cosgrove said, “In the 2021/22 season we already had three junior boys play Men’s Pennants. In addition, we have another three boys who have been playing regularly with their granddad as well as a sister playing so have a small nucleus of juniors involved and we hope we can continue to grow those numbers.”

Having members introduce a family member to their club is a proven way of bringing new people into the sport as they feel more comfortable with their initial visits whilst they build up a rapport with other club members and bowlers.

“We have found when new bowlers start the generation gap can be large, not only within the team but also the opposition. We are hoping we can create a larger pool of junior bowlers and if other clubs are able to do something similar, having a regular junior competition can only be good for the sport.”

Doubleview have scheduled more events for juniors on the upcoming school holidays 27-29 September with a junior Pairs competition on September 30th. Following that they hope to have a regular weekly training afternoon for junior bowlers during the bowls season.

For more information on the Doubleview Junior Program contact David Cosgrove 0412 624 312.