The "Ins and Outs" of Bowls and Cricket

decided to get quotes and looked through our list of sponsors on the Club’s website. E-Solar jumped out and I gave them the opportunity to quote.

They proved very competitive and won the work. They quickly installed an 18 panel, 6.66kw system and did so quickly, efficiently, professionally and with great customer service.

My point here is that it is also a no brainer for members to always consult the Club’s sponsors list before making a purchase and giving them a chance to win your business – it’s win win and when you look at the breadth of Sorrento’s sponsors you will find it quite impressive. Our website lists sponsors according to the industry that they serve – so do yourself a favour and check out our sponsors before you make purchases.

– Brian Lucas

The "Ins and Outs" of Bowls and Cricket

John Hughes, the WA business icon, recently revealed the secrets of his success. He said life is like a game of cricket. Using a six ball over as an analogy, he explained that only one of the six balls delivered by a bowler would be of a perfect length and you must learn to deal with it in a positive and decisive manner. In lawn bowls, one good bowl in six of the right length and width, will probably determine whether you remain in or out of the team.

And when it comes to ins and outs, John Hughes is an expert. He has seen plenty of people come IN to his car yards and seen plenty go OUT. (Some with a new deal in their glove box and some without.)

In this article we discuss the “ins and outs” and similarities between lawn bowls and cricket, First of all for those readers who don’t understand cricket let me explain.

In cricket you have two sides, one out in the field and one in batting. Each player that’s in the side that’s in the field goes out and when the batsmen are out, they come in and the next batsman goes in until they are out. When a player goes out to go in, the players who are out try to get that player out, and when he or she is out he or she goes in and the next player in goes out and to go in. When they are all out, the side that’s out comes in and the side that’s been in goes out and tries to get those coming in out. Sometimes there are players who remain in and not out.

There are also umpires who stay out all the time, and they decide when the player who is in is out. Depending on the weather and the light, the umpires can also send everybody in, irrespective of whether they’re in or out. When both sides have been in and all the players are out (including those who are not out), then the game is over, and the winner is decided.

For those readers who don’t understand lawn bowls, you may think that this is a very simple game. All a player has to do is to roll their bowls close to the jack. However, the game is not as simple as it appears and to prove this point we have: • The “Laws of the Sport of Bowls” produced by World Bowls in

Scotland • National (Bowls Australia) Domestic regulations

• An Australian 142 page law book incorporating both World Bowls

“Laws of the Sport of Bowls” and Bowls Australia “Domestic

Regulations”. Copies are available from the Bowls WA for $9 • State (Bowls WA) and Club Match Committees setting “Conditions of Play” for each event under their control.

Umpires often need to search to find the appropriate rule before making a ruling. They need to be across the ins and outs of the game.

However there are lots of similarities between these two games. For example:

The Pitch and the Green

The minimum length for a game of bowls is just about the same as the length of a cricket pitch. Cricketers play with red, pink and white balls while lawn bowlers try and get their multi-coloured bowls close to a white or yellow ball. The ground between two sets of stumps is also known as the wicket, which after rain can cause the ball to behave unpredictably, hence the phrase sticky wicket. Sometimes a lawn bowls rink can also be sticky. Comments such as “plenty of moisture in the surface, with some grass” can be heard on the bowling green and the cricket field.

Underarm bowling

Underarm bowling in cricket refers to a style of delivering the ball whereupon the player releases it in a manner reminiscent of a lawn bowler. Underarm bowling was banned by the ICC because of this, as it was not within the spirit of the game unless it has been agreed to by both teams before the match.

Hat tricks

The dismissing of three batsmen with three consecutive balls by a bowler in cricket is known as a hat trick and cricketers get very excited when this happens. Similarly, a hat trick can occur on a bowling green, as evidenced by our friend John Sturk (aka “Sturkie” or “Jaffa”) when he throws his hat into the air in frustration and then jumps on it whilst shouting “Howzat!”. This trick was recently captured on camera and is pictured alongside.

Maiden Overs

In cricket a special event is when you “bowl a maiden over”. A maiden is an over in which the batsman does not score a run, and there are no wides or no balls. Jokes about “bowling a maiden over” have been officially banned under the Geneva Convention. If anyone knows of a maiden being bowled over on the bowling green, please let us know?

"Fast Bowlers" and "Slow Bowlers"

And, just like in cricket, lawn bowls contains fast bowlers and slow bowlers. You would have to be pretty slippery to beat Trevor Orton off the green in the Twilight 2x4x2 competition while some of our slow bowlers almost need a lantern to see their way back to the clubhouse. When batsmen decide to try and score a run, they are said to be running between the wickets. This process of deciding to run involves a simple process of communication, referred to as “calling”. Running between the wickets has five basic calls, ‘Yes’, ‘No’, ‘Wait’, ‘Bugger’ and ‘Sorry’. Young lawn bowlers will run up to the head when they get excited while older bowlers (Brian Saul perhaps) will move towards the head with as much gusto as they can muster.

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Equipment

The box is the most important piece of cricketing equipment. Nothing is worse than being hit in the nuts without a box on. Fortunately, a box is not required in lawn bowls. When a lawn bowler does a fullblooded drive, and bowls scatter all over, quick reactions are required to prevent broken ankles or damage and disruption to the game on the next rink. One mighty drive resulted in the jack ending up on our clubhouse roof – another broke the jack in half and there was then a dispute about whose bowl was nearest to each half and an umpire had to be called and find this rule in his rule book – talk about going nuts.

Skippers

In both cricket and lawn bowls we have Skippers. A Skipper is usually experienced and has good communication skills. A Skipper’s knowledge of the complexities of strategy and tactics, and shrewdness may contribute significantly to the team’s success. They need to be aware of the ins and outs of the game. In cricket an umpire will raise a single finger to indicate that the batsman is out. In lawn bowls one, two, three or four raised fingers mean different things depending on the circumstances and whether the

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