December 2011 by Queensland Bowler

December 2011 Print Post Approved PP 400063/0010

COMM GAMES Broadbeach to host bowls

WIN

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HENSE BOW

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QLD vs NSW Blues claim Tweed series

WIZ WIN Wilkie takes Champ of Champs

GOODBYE GIRLS Why are so many young women dropping bowls? AUSTRALIA始S PREMIER LAWN BOWLS MAGAZINE

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Contents

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CYPRUS CALLS

Brett Wilkie is heading to Cyprus for a second shot at the World Champion of Champions title.

FREE-TO-AIR FATE

COVER STORY

Regulars

We look into the reasons why so many young girls are leaving the sport of lawn bowls.

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LTC 2011 Tugun始s Sex Pistols take out the 2011 Ladies Team Challenge.

Bowls Australia awaits the outcome of the petition to get bowls back on the ABC in 2012.

From the Chair Ron Chambers

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Development

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Brett Murphy Umpiring State Umpires

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Kicking Back Kelvin Kerkow

QLD V NSW Queensland始s bowlers go down in a series whitewash against NSW at South Tweed Bowls Club.

COMM GAMES Broadbeach Bowls Club will play host to world-class bowls at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

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Club Law Curt Schatz

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Spot the Jack

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Henselite Coaching George Franklin

A simple thank you goes a long way for volunteers As the year draws to an end it is a prime opportunity for clubs to plan ahead for 2012. Bowls Queensland will also do this over the coming weeks, with a full review of our strategic plan scheduled for January. Part of this review will include identifying our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

TWO LEADS ARE BETTER THAN ONE Dear Editor,

This is an exercise I would encourage all clubs and districts to undertake in the coming months.

There are many ardent bowlers, who, like myself, are restricted by the problems of age and/or health.

The process involves looking at successes and failures during past years and making modifications and adjustments to suit the needs of your community.

One is 88 years of age, and two serious falls hamper the pleasure of ʻrollingʼ.

You will probably find that conducting this type of exercise will identify the importance of volunteers. Volunteers are the backbone of any club and are necessary in ensuring the viability of a club. However, recruiting volunteers is difficult as more people either do not have the time or are unwilling to help. Club members cannot be forced to volunteer and their decision not to should be respected. On the other hand, clubs should be asking why members are refusing to volunteer. The majority of those who cannot volunteer will tell you that itʼs because they do not feel appreciated or respected. In most circumstances this can be rectified with a simple thank you. It is with this in mind that I draw your attention to the Bowls Queensland awards. These awards recognise those who contribute to our sport at all levels. Despite being a really important way to recognise our unsung heroes, these awards have failed to generate a significant number of nominations in the past. If this trend continues, the worth of the whole evening will be subject to review. The work that volunteers, clubs and districts do for bowls is incredibly important for the sport of bowls. Volunteers provide invaluable support for every Queensland club, therefore there is no reason why any of you should fail to nominate for at least one award. The awards and their criteria can be found on the Bowls Queensland website and if you have any difficulty locating them please do not hesitate to contact the office and we will gladly forward copies to you. Nominations must be received at the Bowls Queensland office no later than the January 18 2012. This is a perfect opportunity to reward those that have contributed to the sport and their districts and clubs throughout 2011.

Keith Fullerton Bowls Queensland Executive Officer EDITOR: Wayne Griffin Published by: Bowls Queensland ABN 17 231 978 960 Editorial: Forward editorial to: Queensland Bowler, PO Box 476 Alderley Qld 4051

Phone: (07) 3355 9988 Fax: (07) 3855 0010 Email: news@bowls-queensland.org Advertising Contact: Noel Turnbull Phone: (07) 3298 5738 Fax: (07) 3298 5739 Email: advert@bowls-queensland.org

My Club has its share!

Another, younger, is currently undergoing medical treatment. We both use ʻextension armsʼ. We consulted on how we might improve the situation and submitted an idea to the Club President, who gave us the nod to try it. Simply, we have TWO leads on one team, and use the same set of bowls. One of us stays at the ʻstarting endʼ while the other is stationed at the opposite end. The game starts, and the lead rolls…and sits down to rest. The second end is opened by the lead who, having rolled, sits down to rest. This means that over an 18-end match, we each roll nine ends and no walking up and down the green. While we participate in the match, our physical efforts are halved. We both find ourselves less exhausted…in fact, refreshed by our participation and the pleasure of having been able to play. This obviously is unsuitable for pennants, etc, but certainly good for social games. Over a six-week period, we have had no problems. The idea is now ʻover to youʼ and you may like to broadcast it to the clubs for consideration by the old and infirm. They may see new horizons for the game from 2012 and beyond. Reg.l.Priestley - Eventide Social Lawn Bowls Club

More clubs robbed The bowls club crime spree reported in the October issue of the Queensland Bowler seems to be far from over, with yet another club suffering a break in. West Toowoomba Bowls Club was burgled on two consecutive nights in late November. After a raid by thieves in the early hours of Monday November 21, the criminals returned two days later to steal the club safe. Police have reviewed the CCTV footage from the break-ins and are conducting a criminal investigation into the robberies. To have a letter included in the next edition of Queensland Bowler, simply email: news@bowls-queensland.org or send your comments via post to: Subscriptions: The Queensland Bowler is a monthly journal. To subscribe, fill out the order form on page 38 and post it, together with a cheque for $25 (inc GST), to: Queensland Bowler, PO Box 476 Alderley Qld 4051.

Letters to the Editor Queensland Bowler PO Box 476, Alderley, Q4051 For Association information: Executive Officer, PO Box 476, Alderley. 4051 Phone (07) 3355 9988; Fax (07) 3855 0010 Sustainability: The Queensland Bowler is produced on sustainable paper and printed with environmentally friendly soy inks.

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Cyprus calls for Hawks’ Wiz Helensvaleʼs Brett Wilkie is headed to Cyprus for the 2012 World Champion of Champions, after winning the menʼs national singles at Mandurah this month.

perienced state representative so I knew there would be no easy games and it was a good quality field. Thereʼs no easy games when you get to that sort of level,” he said.

Wilkie beat South Australiaʼs Adrian Green 5-5, 9-7 in the final to clinch the trophy and book a ticket to the world titles.

“And to know that each of the competitors has come from the grassroots level and has gone right through the state to national finals made it all that more special.”

The win gives him a chance to notch up a second World Champion of Champions trophy, to add to his 2009 win in Scotland.

Wilkie said he would attempt to find surfaces as similar to the Cypriot greens as possible in the competition lead-up.

Wilkie felt for his club mate in such a tense finish.

If Wilkie returns with the World Champion of Champions trophy, he wil be continuing a hot Aussie streak in the event.

“I think youʼve just got to find out as much as you can about the surface that they play on and just try and replicate it here as much as you can before you go so you can get plenty of practice here before you go,” he said.

Australians have won the World Champion of Champions every year since 2008, after Lief Selby brought the first title Down Under. Wilkie with

Mandurah

Since then, both Wilkie and NSWʼs Aron Sherriff have taken the title for Australia.

President Ji

m Perkins

“The green was a little bit tricky to play on but I was fortunate to pick it up early and got the hang of it pretty quickly to get a jump on my opponent,” he said.

Winning as a representative of his club, Helensvale, made the title even more special for Wilkie.

“With the best club representatives from across Australia, I knew it was going to be a tough ask to go all the way this year.

“Weʼve been really well looked after by Club Helensvale over a number of years. To represent them as a club champion and to go right through and win the national

“Each player from each state was an ex-

Helensvale went within a shot of the singles double, with Australian captain Lynsey Armitage going down to NSWʼs Jan Agar in a three-set final, 9-5, 5-7, 2-3.

“I felt sorry for her because she worked so hard and was playing so well. She got a great start in the final and was a bit unlucky not to get over the line. I was a bit disappointed. It wouldʼve been great for Club Helensvale to get both the menʼs and the ladies home but she did very well,” he said.

The world number four has never been to Cyprus before but he will have plenty of time to prepare for the contest, which wonʼt be held until October 2012.

Wilkie knows a thing or two about winning on unfamiliar surfaces, dropping only one set on his way to the national title in his first outing on Mandurahʼs relatively new greens.

[champion of champions] was a great thrill and I wouldnʼt have been able to do it without their support,” he said.

The title win kicked off a busy couple of months for Wilkie, who played in the recent test series against NSW. He was also selected to play in the Australian side at this monthʼs Asia Pacific Championships in South Australia. The 2012 World Champion of Champions will be staged in Athena, Cyprus in October next year.

Wilkie in action 6 V35/#3

Ben and Jeff Twist with Mandurah President Jim Perkins

Twist ending Queensland combination clinch one last title as Geckos at the national Champion of Champions. Greenslopeʼs father-son duo Jeff and Ben Twist gave their former club a national Champion of Champions crown in their final match as Geckos. The final, against NSW pair Neville Connor and Gerad Beath, was a tight match, with the Queensland pair eventually winning 8-8, 8-5.

competition at now-defunct Ithaca, when Ben was fourteen. “The first time he picked up a bowl was at Ithaca and then we won,” Jeff said. The dominant combination was broken up late last year, though, when Sydneyʼs St Johns Park lured Ben across the border.

This was a walkover, though, compared to their must-win final pool match against Ross Brown and Dave Billington.

Jeff said Ben took the plunge south because of the greater opportunities offered by the powerhouse club.

After tying the first two sets, 7all, the Twists managed to pull themselves together in the tiebreaker, to take it out 8-2.

“Queensland hasnʼt got the back up of clubs that support the players like they do in Sydney. I mean theyʼve set him up in a unit, which they own. He also works for the club as a bowls coordinator. Thatʼs what he wanted to do,” he said.

Jeff, was ʻover the moonʼ with the win but always had confidence in their ability to go all the way. “[Champion of Champions] is a very tough haul. Youʼve got to stay healthy for 12 months virtually. We always thought we had a chance. “I looked around at most of the teams we played and I think we probably would have been favourites going in,” he said. Jeff said the achievement was even more special because of the unique opportunity to win a toptier competition with his son. “Iʼm getting older now so I donʼt think Iʼll be playing too much more serious bowls so to win that with him was exceptional,” he said. “Bowls is the only sport I can think of, except maybe darts, where father-son combinations can be champions. Itʼs an unbelievable feeling to win with your son and I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity.” The Twistsʼ successful pairing began with a debut win in a fours

Jeff has also made a move closer to home, transferring to Darra Cementco after years of playing far away from his Oxley home. He admitted that playing without his talented son has been tough but Jeff has learned to deal with it. “I miss him badly for bowls and other reasons. We used to go down to Greenslopes and practise and I tried to help him as much as I could. Of course, thatʼs all stopped now [but] you learn to live with it.” Twenty-one year old Ben has blossomed since relocating to NSW, breaking into the Australian under-25 team and winning the 2011 Junior World Cup. More recently, he played in the dominant NSW side that whitewashed last monthʼs test series against Queensland. 7 V35/#3

Fight on for free-to-air TV broadcasts in 2012 Almost 40,000 people got behind Bowls Australiaʼs petition to get the sport back on the ABC in 2012. With the petition now closed, the fate of bowls broadcasting now rests in the results of a parliamentary presentation. Parliamentarians Kelly OʼDwyer and Bronwyn Bishop jointly tabled the petition in the lower house in the yearʼs final parliamentary sitting. Sports Minister, Senator Mark Arbib, voiced his support of the petition as a representative of the upper house. OʼDwyer, a Bowls Australia board member and federal MP, has been the most vocal parliamentary supporter of the petition, attending the launch in September. OʼDwyer said there had been a great community response to the petition. “Itʼs electrified a lot of communities in metro and rural areas because people recognise the importance that bowls has played as an important national sport and in the social fabric of communities,” she said. While the ABC hasnʼt shifted their public position on the subject since the petition was launched, OʼDwyer will keep fighting to get bowls back on free-to-air TV. “Weʼll continue to highlight to the ABC the importance of getting bowls back on the ABC. “It should be on free-to-air because itʼs a high participation sport. Itʼs also pretty unique because it crosses the age divide, from school children playing bowls as part of active after schools program right through to people who have been playing for over 60 years,” she said. “[This issue] is important to my local community and itʼs important to me. “I recognise the importance of bowls being accessible to the next generations. If we want the next generation of champions, we need to encourage the next generation of champions.” Bowls Australia chief executive, Neil Dalrymple, said there are no guarantees that all the hard work would be successful. “Weʼre very hopeful. Nothingʼs guaranteed but our goal is to do it [get bowls back on free8 V35/#3

NZ’s top coach joins QLD kids

to-air TV] and thatʼs what weʼre striving to do,” he said. As Dalrymple has said previously, the ABC is not necessarily the only option, though. “Weʼve been out there talking in regular meetings with various broadcasters and weʼre optimistic that there will be bowls on TV somewhere. We canʼt say exactly who we have been very active in our discussions,” he said. The process of finalising any potential deal to come out of the petitionʼs presentation would hopefully be executed quickly, according to Dalrymple. “Itʼs obviously to fit in with the broadcasterʼs scheduling and a number of issues have to be solved in relation to that. “Unfortunately, itʼs not as simple as saying it needs to be finalised by [a certain date] , but weʼre aiming to have it all finalised before Christmas,” he said. Dalrymple remains optimistic about the chances of the ABC reviving its bowls coverage. However, if talks with the national broadcaster and free-to-air commercial networks break down, community television could be turned to as a last resort to take up bowls coverage next year. Community television could also potentially become a home for bowls coverage but Dalrymple said any community arrangement would be a last resort. “The number of people that watch community stations is not very high so we would be careful before we went down that track. Thereʼs community stations in every state but thatʼs not our highest priority,” he said.

Howard Sandler (centre) with NZ players Monte Pawa and Amy Brenton

Twenty-four Queensland players will travel across the ditch as part of a development program in conjunction with Auckland Bowls. The Across The Ditch program is the brainchild of Queensland state coach Bill Cornehls and Aucklandʼs Howard Sandler. Sandler, who was named New Zealand Coach of the Year, has been working with Cornehls for the past year, to help improve his coaching. Cornehls said Sandler thoroughly deserved the prestigious accolade. “Itʼs a great achievement. Itʼs great for coaches to be recognised for the work they put in. Howard is very passionate about what he does and itʼs great for him,” he said. Twelve under-18 and twelve under-25 players were invited to participate in the program, which will focus on talent development. Over four days, the players will have one day solely focused on working with coaches to try to improve their game. The remaining days will be spent putting their new skills into practise in a trans-tasman test series. Each division will play eventually seven tests, giving them a unique opportunity to play against bowlers from another country and experience entirely different playing surfaces.

If youʼre a Foxtel subscriber, though, you are still certain of having some bowls to watch on the box.

The players are not only state team members either, which Cornehls hopes will open up development pathways for other talented bowlers.

The Pay TV broadcaster has renewed its contract with Bowls Australia and will continue its current coverage of the sport into 2012.

“Itʼs all about development for under-25s and the youth teams within Queensland. The more opportunity that we can give our players at under-18 and under-25 level, the better. By giving them different competition, they can see how players from other countries play, as well as gaining experience in different surfaces and different environments,” he said.

The ABC have been the primary broadcaster of bowls in Australia since 1997, broadcasting over 700 hours of the sport. ABC Head of Sports and Events, Justin Holdforth, previously told Queensland Bowler that the station would consider reviving its bowls coverage if there was significant demand from audiences. “If we felt the audience once again had an appetite for bowls, then weʼd put it back on,” he said. Holdforth did not return our calls about the petition.

“Itʼs about picking some of the players out there to help them to progress through. So hopefully, theyʼll go back to their clubs and work on the areas that they need to improve on.” Cornehls hopes the program will become an important development opportunity for players, with hosting alternated between Auckland and Queensland. “Weʼve actually negotiated that it will be an ongoing scenario so weʼre actually going to produce a shield and trophies, where itʼll be carried over from year to year,” he said.

FROM

THE

CHAIR

B Y R ON C HAMBERS

Watch this web space

Seniors success AUSTRALIAN SENIOR SIDES The Australian Senior Sides Championships were held this year at Warilla Bowls Club, New South Wales. This year's competition included the ladies for the first time. Both menʼs and ladiesʼ teams are to be congratulated for their efforts on the greens and for the way they supported each other during the series. Our menʼs team played exceptionally well for the first two days with good wins against Tasmania, Northern Territory, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. On the last day of play they had to play at Shellharbour Bowls Club on a different grass surface and lost to Victoria in the morning game. The team rallied in the afternoon game to defeat Western Australian, two rinks to one which made them the overall competition winners. The ladies, playing in this competition for the first time, also performed very well with wins over Tasmania, Victoria, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. They only lost one game, to overall ladies champions, Western Australia. Being winners in the menʼs and runner-up in the ladiesʼ was an excellent result for Queensland. The Queensland players of the series were Geoffery Brown for the men and Estelle Welsh for the ladies. Thanks also to Barry Ward and Betty Andrewatha for their assistance in managing the teams. STATE CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS Bribie Island hosted this event, with the club once again providing excellent greens and volunteers to assist in the running of these championships. Neville Galbraith, Alison Duffy and their

If you visit our website in the New Year, donʼt expect to find the same, old thing.

match committees did a very good job in organising these events, with the highlight being the singles finals on the last day of play. The winners in these finals were Sue Brady for the ladies and Ken Evans in the menʼs. The menʼs fours were won by Helensvale, with the ladiesʼ fours going to Broadbeach. Ferny Grove won the ladiesʼ pairs and Jindalee the menʼs pairs. Congratulations to all the winners. Queensland bowlers were also successful in the Australian Champion of Champions held in Perth. The menʼs singles was won by Brett Wilkie, with Lynsey Armitage being runnerup in the ladies section. Father and son, Jeff and Ben Twist, made it a family affair when they won the menʼs pairs competition. INTERSTATE TEST SERIES The deferred test series between New South Wales and Queensland was held at South Tweed Bowls Club on November 8 and 9. Unfortunately, Queensland failed to win any trophies. However, there were some good performances from our bowlers, with Players of the Series medals going to Kelvin Kerkow and Lynsey Armitage in the open sides and Dean McWhinney and Shahn Griffiths in the Under-25s. With all state events finished for 2011, Bowls Queensland congratulates all bowlers who represented Queensland in competition throughout the year.. This being the last report for the year, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all bowlers and officials best wishes for Christmas and a Happy New Year.

After months of hard work and fine tuning, BQ will have a slick, new website for the world to see. When you visit our website in 2012 and beyond, you will notice a few great additions. One of the best of these is the inclusion of event photo galleries. Every major event in Queensland bowls will have a gallery, so after itʼs been run and won you will be able to see all our shots from the competition. If you want to get involved with our social network, you can like our facebook page or follow us on Twitter without having to leave our site. Our first-ever interactive district map will let you see all of the clubs in Queensland so you can find the clubs in your area. A lot of things might be changing when our new page launches, but all the great things from our current website will still be there. Our news will be up-to-date as always, with coverage of major events throughout the year as well as articles on current issues in bowls. The most recent news articles will be clearly displayed on our home page for easy navigation. As well as current bowls news from around the state, all of the articles from our current website will be archived on the new one. Event history, staff contact details and all of the information that you have access to on our current website will also still be available. Best of all, you can read and share the current edition of the Queensland Bowler. online. From January 1, 2012 you can access our new site at http://bowlsqld.org.

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Level 21, Riverside Centre 123 Eagle Street, Brisbane Qld 4000 Telephone 07 3224 0230 cschatz@mullinslaw.com.au

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Premier League prep heats up A word from Aerobowls AeroBowls is honoured to be the new sponsor of the Queensland Premier League, Reserve Grade and the Premier 7s club competitions. Known throughout Queensland, and indeed Australia, this is by far the most prestigious team bowls competition in the country. By Trevor Briese While many of us are still recovering from the overindulgences of the Christmas/ New Year period, one of the stateʼs top bowls competitions will be just warming up. The cream of Queenslandʼs bowling crop will line up for the start of the 2012 Premier League season on January 7. One of the strengths of Premier League is the depth of competition.

Bribie Island should also feature prominently come finals time. Kelvin Kerkow and his mighty South Tweed Sharks will need to improve on last yearʼs dismal season if they want to make a splash in 2012. The rest of the teams are all competitive and outstanding clubs, including Hamilton, Greenslopes, Springwood, Salisbury and Ferny Grove. Teams will have to be at their best every week if they want the

With two rounds remaining last year, 10 teams were within striking distance of the finals.

The contenders

Mark Casey, Nathan Rice, Brett Wilkie, Anthony Kiepe and Lynsey Armitage are just some of he stars the Hawks bring to the green. No doubt they will be installed as competition favourites once again. A host of clubs will be biting at their heels though, including 2011 runners up, South Toowoomba. Queensland super club Pine Rivers also boasts one of the youngest and strongest line-ups and will be out to make amends from a heartbreaking loss in last seasonʼs semi-finals. Capalaba, from Brisbaneʼs south, will want to reinforce its brilliant 2011 season with another top year. Wynnum Manly will be in the running after fizzling out of the finals very early last year. 12 V35/#3

These talks have been highly successful, with both organisations keen to make certain that events in 2012 all run smoothly. Premier 7s Premier 7ʼs has experienced close to a 50 per cent increase in entries for our 2012 season, mainly in the inventive 60 plus and 3rd Division. Its popularity is a direct result of filling the need for an open competition that caters for all bowlers, regardless of their skill level.

The race will be even tighter this year, with only twelve teams competing following the withdrawal of Ipswich Services United. Defending champions Helensvale, will be returning this year with some of the worldʼs best bowlers in their side.

PLQ has also had talks with Bowls Queensland to ensure there is minimal conflict in scheduling events.

Premier League stars Kelvin Kerkow and Brett Wilkie

honour of lifting the 2012 Premier League trophy. The competition will have a naming overhaul following the announcement that Comfit Pro/ Aero Bowls are on board as the new naming rights sponsors.

PLQ has also welcomed back their existing sponsors, Bowling Club Insurance Brokers (BCIB), South Tweed Sports Club (hosts of the finals), Club Helensvale and Hospitality Finance. Competitions like this couldnʼt happen without the huge contribution and commitment from these thriving businesses.

We have a divisional competition which allows clubs and club bowlers to be competitive at any levels. For example, our 3rd division caters for 5th division or below Pennant bowlers. Being an open competition has allowed clubs like Chermside to enter the maximum number of teams for 2012. Clubs have been very complimentary of the high organisational standard that makes Premier 7s great. Both Premier League and Premier 7s will start on January 7 and finish on March 24 & 25, with Premier League Finals at South Tweed and Premier 7s at Chermside.

With over 35 clubs expected to participate in 2012, itʼs going to be a great start to what will undoubtedly be a long and exciting partnership aimed at supporting and promoting the future of bowls in Australia and the rest of the world. The competition, now named the AeroBowls Premier League, and AeroBowls, who make the worldʼs most advanced and accurate bowls, are providing sponsorship in the form of cash, AeroBowls, and Australiaʼs bestselling ComfitPro bags and shoes to all the clubs involved. AeroBowls will be raising the competitionʼs profile this year, with winners earning a valuable trophy to display in their club for the year of their premiership reign. AeroBowls will sponsor competitions throughout Australia and New Zealand with the aim of supporting the bowls community and make bowls accessible to a wider audience. AeroBowls and ComfitPro invest in the future of Australian players such as Kelvin Kerkow, Brett Wilkie, Julie Keegan, Wayne Turley, Claire Duke and numerous others, ensuring they have the best equipment to compete across the globe. The growth and success of bowls in Australia is something very important to everyone at AeroBowls and ComfitPro, who have been in the bowls business for over nine years. Further information on sponsorship opportunities is available by emailing rodheaton@aerobowls.com

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BLUE CRUSH

Queensland finished empty-handed as NSW dominated their recent test series Queensland had a disappointing end to the year as NSW scooped the pool in their test series last month.

“You canʼt take anything away from NSW, though, they just played too well for us over the two days that we were there,” she said.

Queenslandʼs ladies were expecting to continue their strong Ashes history this year, following a string of recent wins against NSW.

The streak-ending loss wonʼt necessarily be seen as a bad thing for the side, according to Armitage.

But the talented group could only wrangle two rink wins over the three tests.

“Weʼve been the ones to beat and weʼve been quite dominant as a side. We can regroup and refocus and try and go better in the next one. Itʼs just a matter of learning from whatʼs happened and coping with the conditions a bit better next time.”

Australian vice captain Karen Murphy played some brilliant bowls over the series to lead the way for the Blues. After losing all three rinks in the first test by close margins, Queenslandʼs ladies side came into the second test on the back foot. Tracy Foster and Lynsey Armitage avenged their first test losses with incredibly narrow wins in their rinks, 19-17 and 22-21, respectively. These wins werenʼt enough to negate the massive 32-15 drubbing that Karen Murphy handed to Maria Rigby, though, and the Blues took an unassailable 2-0 series lead. The news didnʼt get any better for Queenslandʼs ladies in the final test. Armitage managed an 18-all draw, while Rigby and Foster dropped their rinks, 14-24 and 14-23, respectively. Armitage said that NSW had a better hold on the faster greens than the Maroons. “The greens were absolutely flying at South Tweed and it was really windy, so it was quite challenging for our girls,” she said.

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The menʼs open side fared a little better with a 58-53 win in the opening test. Wins from Nathan Rice and Kelvin Kerkow negated Brett Wilkieʼs loss in the opener, to keep Queensland out in front. It was all downhill for Queensland from then on, though, with Wilkie on the receiving end of a 13-29 demolition from Aron Sherriff in the second test. Kelvin Kerkowʼs side did their bit to salvage the margin in their 27-19 second test win but Riceʼs rink could only manage a draw, leaving the Queenslanders down by eight shots,. Despite the second test disappointment, the men went into the final test with every chance of taking home the prize. Kerkow and Rice tasted success, taking their rinks 21-16 and 28-22, respectively. Wilkieʼs side suffered a 13-29 loss, though, to hand the Blues the title.

The disappointing results from Wilkieʼs outfit of Anthony Kiepe, Jason Grundon and Mark Monro raised question marks over the selection of test combinations. Queensland selector Carlo Campana said they “just didnʼt click.” State coach Bill Cornehls was disappointed by the series loss, but took an optimistic approach when reflecting on the overall result. “The results were a little bit disappointing but there were some positive points out of it, of course. In the menʼs, the difference was only eight shots separating the two teams over the three tests,” he said. “Some players performed to where we wanted and there were some, unfortunately, who didnʼt perform to the standard they wanted to. But at the end of the day, weʼre looking to move forward so now weʼre looking at what we can put in place when we go to play NSW next year.” Cornehls wouldnʼt point the finger at selectors or particular combinations for the lopsided results in some rinks, instead taking a whole team focus. “12 players were picked to represent the state and those 12 players do their best. We win as a team or we lose as a team.”

Drought goes on for U-25s Queensland got agonisingly close to a maiden series victory over NSW in the under-25 womenʼs event, going down in the last end of the final test. After a dismal start in the series opener, going down on all rinks, the girls arrived at test two with a point to prove. They managed to redeem themselves with a 21-18 win to Charlie Harkness in the singles and a 19-9 triumph by last-minute substitute Lauren Wilson and Shahn Griffiths in the pairs. Queensland junior rep Wilson stepped in for the first two tests, after Amanda Bessell was struck down with illness. Neck and neck with the Blues going into the last test, the under25 women were one of only two Queensland sides with a shot at a series victory. The Queenslanders were desperate to salvage some pride for their state and Samantha Wilson got the ball rolling in the singles, destroying Loren Thomas 21-6. Morgan Solman-Stewart and Sarah Vesenjak hit back for NSW in the pairs, beating Amanda Haevecker and Charlie Harkness, 17-11. The final and deciding match was the triples. With three ends to play, Bessell, Emma Watts and Shahn Griffiths were up by two.

Charlie Harkness and Amanda

Victory was ripped out from underneath their feet, though, when they dropped five shots to trail by three heading into the final end.

Haevecker feel the pressure in the pairs.

The Queenslanders did everything they could to get back into the match, but the Blues held onto it with everything they had, finishing the game 19-16 and leaving Queensland empty handed. The under-25 men were comprehensively beaten in the test series but had some strong singles performances. Des Cann, Dean McWhinney and Jason Carpenter were all victorious in their singles matches, showing the talent that Queensland has to offer.

grabbing the game with two rink wins to one. Despite the Maroonsʼ unfavourable final results, state coach Bill Cornehls said that giving young players opportunities for development is his top priority.

Despite their singles success, victory went NSWʼs way in the first two pairs and triples matches, making the final test a dead rubber.

“Queensland had some very good performances from the youth players . [The under-25s] is all about progressing into the senior rank and I think the players are heading in the right direction.”

With the series wrapped up, the Queenslanders managed to save some face in the final test match,

The young Maroons will have to wait until next yearʼs series to exact revenge on the Blues.

Above: Queenslandʼs Judd Percy deep in concentration

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Pistols just Tu-good Tugunʼs Sex Pistols win 2011 Ladies Team Challenge in super tight final match Tugunʼs Sex Pistols won the 2011 Ladies Team Challenge over Toowoombaʼs Chardy Queens last month. The win wasnʼt easy for the Gold Coast ladies, with the result decided on the final bowls of the competition. Tugunʼs Lynn Baker and Cam Maunsell had a six shot lead in their rink with two bowls to go, with the other rink wrapped up 19-15 in Toowoombaʼs favour. The Chardy Queens were holding one shot in the final end, needing to grab three to clinch an overall win. Joyce McGeorge delivered a great final bowl, but it wasnʼt quite enough to snatch victory.. It was a thrilling end to a seesawing encounter, which saw

get an advantage on the scoreboard, with the scores even until the closing stages. The Chardy Queens managed to pull themselves together and pull ahead for the win. However, their four -shot margin wasnʼt enough to negate Baker and Maunsellʼs win. The Tugun team had a tough run to the final, gaining their spot on the last bowl of the semi-final against Sunshine Coast side, Kookaʼs Kitties. Talking to Baker after the match, she admitted sheʼd felt the nerves going into the final stages. “My legs felt like jelly and my hands were shaking,” she said. “It was a really difficult green to read. Weʼve never played on this surface before. It was really diffi-

Winners: Lynn Baker and Anne Tough celebrate all four semi-finalists, with one from the Sunshine Coast, one from the Downs zone and two from the Gold Coast. Event organiser Michelle Russell plans to expand the competition even further in 2012, to encompass the Burnett region. The competition aims to give more opportunities to working women who canʼt play in the traditional timeslots, but anyone can nominate to play.

Tugun Sex Pistols (L-R): Lynn Baker, Cam Maunsell, Susan OʼToole

Their fortunes changed with a purple patch in the 13th and 14th ends, when the Tugun pair picked up a massive seven shots to streak away from their opponents. The Chardy Queens faced an uphill battle to catch the Pistols but managed to claw their way back to within striking distance in the final stages. Despite their desperation and quality play, there just wasnʼt enough time for the Toowoomba ladies to get back on top. In the other rink, Anne Tough and Susan OʼToole burst out of the blocks, helping Tugun power to a 5-0 lead but the Queens hit back evening the scores half way through their final round match. Both combinations struggled to 20 V35/#3

cult but once you got the feel of it, you could actually relax a little bit,” she said Baker said the fact that Toowoomba only played three games in the finals at Indooroopilly, while Tugun played four, gave her side a slight edge. “I think [playing four games] might have given us a bit of an advantage,” she said. 2011 was the second time the Ladies Team Challenge had been run, with almost twice the participants of last year. The main cause of the competition growth was the expansion of the competition to the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Toowoomba areas this year, on top of the original Brisbane zones. The success of this move showed, with the zones providing

“It gave us all a great opportunity. It was more competition than fours and every week you got to play against different ladies. The competition and the format of it, is wonderful because you learn so much in every game,” she said. “Thereʼll be a lot more girls from Tugun and the Gold Coast in this competition [next year],” she said.

Club Operations Manager Chris Elliot (left) with winners (L-R) Zimitat, Arnold and Vagg

and Anne Tough defeated the Chandy Queens from Toowoomba Baker and Maunsell struggle for ascendency in the early stages.

Baker said she and her team had enjoyed their first time in the competition.

Ladies dig deep for big win by Ann Putland The Rockhampton Diggers took out the 2011 Souths Suburban Ladies Prestige Triples, held last month. The central Queensland combination of Sylvia Zimitat, Eileen Arnold and Doris Vagg grabbed the prize, finishing on top after five rounds of cutthroat bowls.

After four rounds, Lorraine Lempkeʼs side were the only undefeated side but all that changed after a one-shot round five loss. The loss gave Zimitatʼs team an opportunity to get their hands on the trophy with a final round win.

The Diggers stamped their authority on the competition early, well ahead on margin at the end the first day of play.

Ladies traveled from far and wide to play in the popular carnival, with some teams coming from clubs as far away as Toowoomba.

Their winning run was halted on the morning of day two, with their first loss.

This yearʼs carnival was such a hit that some teams have nominated for 2012.

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Where have all the girls gone?

Queensland始s junior girls are some of the best in the country. But, once they finish school, girls are leaving the sport in droves. So, what is making them drop their bowls?

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Bowls is one of the few sports that lends itself to both female and male participants. And yet, in Queensland, female participation numbers are less than half that of males.

“They wonʼt play [club and pennant competitions] on weekends, which I couldnʼt do at school so I never got a chance to play in them and now sometimes I canʼt play them either,” she said.

Some of the stateʼs best girl bowlers are dropping out of competition altogether when they graduate from the junior ranks.

While the young bowlers feel their relationship with the older bowlers is poor, Pine Rivers Ladies Club President June Holmes feels that it is the juniors who should be making the effort to improve the situation.

Many of these talented youngsters feel unwelcome and judged by their older female peers. Lauren Ingham, 18, is one of these. Ingham was selected in the under-18 Queensland team in 2010 as well as being state champion in the giris pairs, triples and fours. Despite her early success in the sport, Lauren has almost completely stopped playing since finishing school. “I still roll up every now and then but not very often. I spend more time hanging out with my friends, being a bit more social. All my timeʼs not taken up by bowls,” she said. Ingham felt that some older bowlers were not particularly welcoming of juniors coming up the ranks. “I would suggest that some of the female bowlers need to be more accepting and willing to play with the juniors and not be so negative about the junior people playing,” she said. Ingham said there could be more fun injected into the game, with junior-senior days and other mixed activities. Pine Riversʼ Elizabeth McKillop is another young bowler who is becoming disillusioned with the state of ladiesʼ bowls. Despite being selected for the under-25 Queensland team this year, McKillop feels there is a lack of support for younger bowlers in the sport. “If youʼre not dedicated, then thereʼs no one to support you. Youʼre the only one who can control your decisions and thereʼs not enough support around,” McKillop said. The scheduling of club competitions, according to McKillop, potentially disadvantages young bowlers.

“The oldies have been there for forever and a day and theyʼve changed. Weʼve got to go with the times, weʼve got to get young people to come in now. And the older ladies are changing and adapting very well, considering that they have been playing bowls for 40 or 50 years. I think the younger ones have got to make a bigger effort,” she said. “The juniors donʼt give the old ladies a chance. We play on a Wednesday so fair enough the girls are at school. When theyʼre on school holidays, though, they donʼt come anywhere near the club. The oldies have got grandchildren. They love kids so, I canʼt understand that.” Holmes felt that when girls graduate from the junior ranks, other interests supersede their bowls participation. “Young girls enjoy playing the game of bowls until a certain age. When I first joined the bowls at Pine Rivers, there were a couple of young girls…it was great. But then they got to about 18 and suddenly it was going out, going clubbing, meeting boys who didnʼt play bowls and they just disappeared off the horizon,” she said. When asked what specific effort she would like to see from the juniors, Holmes talked about attitudinal change. “Bowls, from a ladyʼs point of view, is not just walking in, getting on the green, playing bowls, coming off and going home. Itʼs starting off with a cup of tea and a nice chat. You havenʼt seen everybody for a week so you catch up, go out and play bowls, come back in, have something to eat and catch up on the games that

have been played, do the raffles and all that. [Younger players] donʼt seem to have the patience to do that…theyʼd rather be in competition. I find that when theyʼve had a couple of coaching lessons, they think theyʼre the best on the green,” she said. Despite acknowledging that the relationship between young and old is unlikely to change, Holmes would like to be able to bridge the generation gap. “Thereʼs not much we can do. They know weʼre there…what can you do to attract juniors to come and play with the old people? If you can tell me, Iʼd love to try it. They know weʼre there. Weʼve had juniors then theyʼve got to 18 and theyʼve disappeared,” she said. “When youʼre 18, 20, 26, the age difference is so much from being a young parent to being a grandmother. Would you want to be there playing games with grannies? [No,] the gap is too big.” Not all districts are as resigned to the status quo as others, though. The Brisbane Ladies District Bowls Association has taken the lead on the scheduling problems facing working women, with Indooroopillyʼs Michelle Russell helping to introduce a Saturday Pennants division for the first time in 2011. Indooroopilly won the inaugural competition, defeating Toowong in the final earlier this year.

they may change that next year,” she said. An expanded Ladies Team Challenge competition was run last month, following the success of the inaugural competition in 2010 also started by Russell. A team of ladies from Tugun took out this yearʼs title over Toowoombaʼs Chandy Queens team. Russell thinks there was an obvious desire for a competition like this to be developed and has high hopes for its future expansion. “Itʼll just keep growing bigger and bigger every year just to encompass those ladies [who want to be involved]. I can see those ladies are out there, because itʼs happening this time. This competition aims to get them involved, playing something structured at a time that suits them,” Russell said. While the biggest challenge still lies in attracting young women into competitive bowls, Russell says the new competition is hugely attractive to those women in their 40s and 50s who are still working. A move to re-structure Indooroopillyʼs club competition, with championships to be held on weekends, has also aided in boosting ladies membership numbers. Russell said Indooroopilly was the perfect place to get started on her innovative ideas for ladies bowls.

“My initial proposal was that players could play mid-week and weekend if they wanted to play in both. [The current approach could] start to cut off a lot of the smaller clubs if you go that way.

“The original reason I went to Indooroopilly was so I could actually implement the things we have in place now. I was pretty lucky and, from a ladies point of view, weʼve probably doubled our membership base since May last year. Itʼs quite difficult to get through the [scheduling problem] at club level so you have to have really big games, on a weekend to get people [involved],” she said.

“These clubs might not even have enough to field a [stand alone] mid-week team or Saturday team so youʼre not getting them participating at all if you donʼt allow them to toggle between the two. However, I think

The continued progress that ladies like Russell are making goes to show that many female bowlers are capable and willing to change in the hope of attracting more players and improving the state of ladies bowls.

The districtʼs ruling that ladies can only play in one of either the mid-week or Saturday competitions could potentially be hurting some clubs, though, according to Russell.

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Broadbeach bowlers celebrate Photo: Brendan Radke. Gold Coast Bulletin

World spotlight to hit Broadbeach bowls Broadbeach Bowls Club is set to become the centre of the international bowls universe in 2018 as host club for the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. The voting finished 43-27 in the Gold Coastʼs favour, giving the green light to Broadbeach as bowls host. Broadbeach Chairman Barry Gilbert is excited for the opportunity to host such a major event. “Itʼs fantastic. The club was in trouble a few years ago and now weʼve got the Australian titles next year and then to get the Commonwealth Games. Itʼs great,” he said. Gilbert believes Broadbeachʼs prime location was what stood it apart form other Gold Coast clubs when the committee selected a bowls host. “Weʼre right in the middle of the accommodation. You can accommodate 30,000 people within say a 20 minute walking dis-

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tance. Weʼre right in the middle of it all. Weʼre the best-positioned bowling club probably in Australia, with the beach on one side and restaurants a few hundred metres down the road,” he said.

does need a lot of work to get it up to the standard.” The result was met with plenty of emotion from those at the club, according to Gilbert.

Now that the games have been officially awarded, the hard work really begins for the club with multi-million dollar renovations required for the club to reach hosting standards.

“We had a champagne breakfast at 7am to get ready for the announcement. Some of the [bowlers] were very emotional. A lot of the women were crying with excitement, so it was pretty good.”

Gilbert expects a visit from the organising committee in the coming weeks to hash out the details of the work.

Broadbeach will now be focussing on getting some experience hosting major events in the lead up to the games.

“Theyʼll have people down to discuss with us what theyʼre actually going to do. Weʼve had little hints about what theyʼre going to do, like renovate the outside of the club…but I hope to hear from them in the next few weeks,” he said.

This kicked off with the Australian University Games Lawn Bowls in October, but is due to really rev up in 2012.

“The government is going to spend a lot of money, getting it up. Itʼs not too bad now but it

All of these major events will add to the rise of Broadbeach as one of Queenslandʼs biggest

The District, State and Australian Sides championships will all be staged at Broadbeach as well as the Pan Pacific Games.

clubs, a far cry from the situation the club was in when Gilbert came along a few years ago. “When I arrived the club was about to be handed over to Kurrawa Surf Club… because they couldnʼt afford to pay for anything. We didnʼt even have teams in the top divisions in the menʼs competitions. I think [weʼve come a long way] from being just about handed over to the surf club where they were going to close one of the greens and put in a car park,” Gilbert said. But they will have to do it without their highest profile player and bowls operation manager, Sean Baker. Baker left the club this month, in a move that didnʼt surprise Gilbert. The club has their eye on a replacement player but are keeping his identity under wraps for now.

Future stars Which young Queensland bowlers could be flying the flag for the Aussie team in Broadbeach 2018? Lauren Wilson Age:17 Club: Tweed Heads The Tweed teen has shown Australia much of her talent in recent times. After narrowly missing out on the national under-18 singles title, Wilson rebounded to win the triples and also made the Australia under-18 squad. She is a proven performer under pressure, too, coming in as a last-minute sub for the QLD under-25s last month. Sean Ingham Age: 17 Club: Broadbeach At the ripe old age of 17, Gold Coast product Ingham is already a stalwart of the Queensland juniors. After winning the national under-18 pairs title in 2010, Ingham backed up this year with a silver and entrance into the Australian under18 squad. He also won the All Schools Challenge Cup in 2010. Ingham始s next challenge will be to translate his junior success into a long-term career. Rohan Wilson: Age: 17 Club: Helensvale Wilson had an incredibly successful debut in the Queensland side at the Australian under-18 Championships in October. The Helensvale teenager came home with a bronze medal in the boys始 singles. His performance also earned him a spot in the Australian under-18 squad. His star is sure to rise as he embarks on an open career. Cass and Bolivia Millerick Age:17 Club: Burnett These two superstars are making a name for themselves at warp speed. After Cass was part of the 2010 national champion Queensland side, Bolivia joined her sister in 2011 and made the Australian under-18 squad. The girls paired up to come second in the 2011 All Schools Challenge Cup and won the national under-18 pairs in October. 25 V35/#3

DEVELOPMENT

B Y B RETT M URPHY

Last man standing Planning for 2012 in peace and quiet The Bowls Queensland development office has become a bit of a one-man band recently, with yours truly the lead musician. As most of you would be aware, our newest development team member, Vicki Stein, was involved in a pretty nasty car accident back in August. Vicki is on a long, and I would say very painful, road to recovery but she is hoping to get back into the thick of it in the new year. Since the accident both myself and junior development officer, Josh Thornton, have had to pick up some extra work to cover Vickiʼs absence. Itʼs fair to say weʼve been busier than a one legged man in a butt kicking competition. I donʼt know whether the extra workload got the better of Josh or perhaps I am just too much of a slave driver for his liking but heʼs decided to head for greener pastures. Josh is making the move to Dubbo, NSW to become a community development officer for Bowls Australia. Knowing what clubs in Queensland thought of the state and national bodies when I started working for Bowls Queensland, I think Josh wil have his work cut out for him turning the Dubbo clubs around to the BA way of thinking. But Josh has always said he loves a challenge, so he should be up to the task. Josh has only been with BQ for 18 months but in that time he has become an integral part of our team and he has done some great work. I wish him all the best in his new role and Iʼm sure he will perform the role to the best of his ability. So for now itʼs just me. Luckily, Iʼm a big fan of my own company because the office has become pretty quiet now. Like they say, though, the show must go on and I have no intention of abandoning ship anytime soon. I wonʼt be alone for too long,though. Iʼve already received applications from a number of well-credentialled people for

26 V35/#3

Joshʼs position and Iʼm really excited about the prospects for the team. The best thing about the peace now is that I have been able to use it to make plans for next year, so any new person will be able to hit the ground running. In fact, Iʼve already taken advantage of the peace and quiet and begun planning for next year so I can unleash them on the new development person, whoever that may be.

The challenge is getting people to take the plunge and become bowlers Year in Review But before we sprint into 2012, I think itʼs appropriate to stop for a second and look back at what weʼve achieved in 2011. Out Club visits were once again well received by the majority of clubs and these visits will continue in 2012. At the time of writing, we had visited 311 of our 341 clubs with another 13 clubs already scheduled for visits. and a further nine clubs set to have visits scheduled prior to the Christmas break. Three clubs closed this year, Ithaca, Highfields and Maroochy Swan. We were fortunate enough to make a final visit to Maroochy Swan but missed the other two. Six clubs who werenʼt interested or couldnʼt find the time to have a visit from the team, I wonʼt name them here but I am confident we will probably visit them next year as committees normally change on a yearly basis. A big focus of our visits this year has been on ascertaining participation numbers, with an in-depth survey conducted at clubs.

Membership in the past 12 months has dropped by 1971, including over 600 deceased members. However, participation in the sport by nonaffiliated players has never been higher. With barefoot bowls becoming an increasingly popular leisure activity for people of all ages and an ever increasing number of school students who participate regularly through school programs, the sport is receiving plenty of exposure to potential new members. The challenge is getting them to take the plunge and actually become bowlers. The promotional vans have also been very well received this year with over 5000 people having a crack over the 36 occasions they have been out in public at sports expos, fetes, shows and shopping centres. The All Schools Challenge Cup was a success once again this year and will continue in 2012 with a couple of minor changes. We are aiming to get a primary school All Schools Cup up and running and will send out some information in the first half of 2012 to all interested parties. Our Multi Disability State Championships was very successful this year and will return bigger and better next year. We are already stuck into planning for next yearʼs event, seeking feedback from participants and organizing a debrief of the inaugural event. We have already agreed the event will need to run for an extra day and will probably be moved back a month so as not to clash with a couple of other events. The development team (all one of me) will also be available to assist in all the areas we currently help with. Merry Christmas I would like to take this opportunity to wish all our members a very merry Christmas and a safe, healthy and prosperous New Year. I hope you all enjoy the break over the Christmas period and donʼt over indulge as I am prone to doing. I look forward to catching up with plenty of you through work or bowls in the New Year.

IMPROVE

YOUR GAME

B Y C AMERON C URTIS

So you want to be a lawn bowls skip? Cam Curtis Former Aussie rep, national coach and selector Most club players will then over correct and drop short. Just ask them to beat their last bowl. When it comes to fours and pennant play, I skip like many traders play the share market. I protect my downside first! If youʼre a trader, the golden rule is to limit your loses.

Good man management is the key to good skipping

This rule applies to skipping too, so every end I have in the back of my mind that if I canʼt win the end the goal is to drop a one or two at the most. For me thatʼs not negative thinking.

What is imperative and works regularly, when a teammate is having a bad game is donʼt ignore them on the cross over.

Of course the goal at the start of each end is to win that end, but when Iʼm skipping I know itʼs bowls in the head that count.

Much of the focus of this discussion is on skipping fours in pennant or a sides competition.

How often do we feel like walking sheepishly down one side of the rink trying to keep as much distance between ourselves and the skip?

After the leads have finished, basically from the seconds onwards,

Thatʼs the ʻtest-cricketʼ part of our game and pennant is something the vast majority of us all love to play.

As a player, Iʼve been in that deep dark hole where the harder you try the worse you play.

Iʼm continually evaluating whether we should be in either attack or defensive mode.

Itʼs terribly important that the skip leads by example and inspires his team often with great play, so first and foremost you need to keep working on and improving your ongreen skills.

You feel horrible because you feel like youʼre letting the team down.

You need to know how to play just about every shot in the book and then keep working hard on all areas of your own game, beginning with the weakest.

As a good skip, you have to tackle these situations head-on.

In this monthʼs column, Iʼll be aiming to help you get started by passing on one of the basic philosophies of skipping—man management.

Many teammates donʼt know what to say, so they say nothing, which only contributes to the anxiety of the whole team.

The key thing to remember about skipping is that great players are not always great skips.

Seek out any team members that are really struggling, sooner rather than later, either on the cross over, if itʼs your mat, or stay behind at the head whilst the other skip plays their first bowl.

The best skips are true leaders of people. Unfortunately, the leadership aspect of being a skip is often forgotten.

Empathise with the player and let them know that you know theyʼre not trying to play a bad bowl.

A skip needs to have that innate ability to constantly get the best out of his team.

A good skip will orchestrate a way for them to relax and will help take the focus off the end result of each bowl.

They need to instinctively know what buttons to push on each individual when they are having a bad day. Effective communication, both verbal and non-verbal, is absolutely paramount for a skip. For 90 per cent of the time, positive encouragement is absolutely critical. For the remaining 10 per cent, you might need to be able to pull the ʻwhipʼ out to have a tough talk with a team mate who is experiencing a performance rut. 28 V35/#3

Some simple techniques like getting the player to take three long slow very deep breaths, hold for 10 seconds, then exhale very slowly, can be very effective. The next step is to get them to focus (if they are the lead) on drawing the first bowl past the jack (and I would stand about metre or so behind the jack asking them to draw to me). If they do that, donʼt ask them to take any amount of weight off.

Iʼm mentally analysing how the head is setting up for our team.

Attack mode doesnʼt necessarily mean driving or playing weight. It might mean youʼre holding two shots, have cover at the back and there are no visible areas of danger. So going on the attack would mean drawing more counters to put the opposition under even more pressure. Defence, on the other hand, could mean that you are three down with no close bowls and a counter right on the jack. Many inexperienced skips would be focused on trying to get the shot, asking for a weighted shot in a vain effort to get one shot. What they donʼt anticipate is with every miss, the opposition has ample room to draw even more counters. This is where you would focus on defence and drawing at least one close second before even attempting to get shot. As always though, your decisions should be dictated by things like the scoreboard, the conditions, the green, and oneʼs overall confidence on any given day. As mentioned in previous months, High Performance Bowls Boot Camps have a Queensland tour in December. Email me at camcurtis@optusnet.com.au or call 0412 089 833 for more information.

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GREEN

KEEPING

B Y M AURICE H INTON

Respect the green Maurice Hinton

A bit of education

President Gold Coast Greenkeepers Association

reduce the harm

Qld’s fab five Five Queenslanders will be inducted into the inaugural Bowls Australia Hall of Fame this month.

is all you need to

Lynsey Armitage, Kelvin Kerkow, Keith Poole, Ian Schuback and Robert Parrella were all selected for inclusion in the prestigious list.

caused by bowls being dropped. Parrella

When I started greenkeeping at National Park Bowls Club in Newcastle we played on bent greens, which are a type of soft leaf turf. If a bowler was caught dropping their bowl they were told to leave the green and talk to the coach about why they were not getting their bowl away clearly. Once the coach cleared them, they were then allowed to return to the green.

Obviously, some bowlers are not physically able to avoid dropping their bowls and there are solutions for them.

Armitage is one of only two current Australian representatives to make the list, along with NSWʼs Karen Murphy.

We used to use a log mat for the bowl to drop onto, as this took most of the weight off the grass.

Kelvin Kerkow is another current Queensland player who will be inducted for his continued bowling excellence.

Now we have the bowlersʼ arm, which has been around for 10 years and is becoming increasingly accepted by bowlers. Schuback

So whatʼs changed over the last 40 years? I hate to say it, but absolutely nothing has changed.

Kerkow

Some bowlers are still standing up to deliver, dropping their bowls as they release. Iʼve seen some bowlers drop a bowl from as high as a metre off the ground. While Tifdwarf, a type of grass, has been a great find for its ability to take a great deal of wear and its quick recovery to leaf damage, the real problem the dumpers cause is just below the surface. When a bowl hits the green, it leaves an indentation. Depending on the height from which itʼs dropped, this indentation could remain until the green goes out for renovation. Even the most harmless looking incident can leave a longterm depression. For example, when a bowler is called to the head for a look, some tend to drop their bowl onto the mat from a standing position. It might not seem like it, but, I can tell you, it does leave a depression. How does this become a problem? This could be a major problem for narrow bowls, particularly. If one of these bowls meets a divot left from a bowl, it could change the course of the bowl. 30 V35/#3

These five great players join 24 other athletes and nine general members to be presented with their awards at the presentation night.

Kerkow felt honoured to be selected as an inaugural inductee and happy to be recognised for his work in the sport. “Itʼs a great honour to be inducted in to the hall of fame. I feel Iʼve done a lot for the sport, not just with my achievements but in other things Iʼve done through the sport. Iʼm absolutely honoured to accept the hall of fame [induction],” he said. Kerkow welcomed the introduction of a bowls hall of fame, saying it was a long time coming for the sport.

Above: Damage left by some bad barefoot bowlers

Armitage

Barefoot Bowlers

“I think itʼs 20 years late, to be honest. I think it shouldʼve been introduced many years ago…but itʼs a great step for the sport,” he said. The four-time Golden Nugget champion will miss the historic awards, though, as he will be overseas.

Lack of knowledge, particularly when looking at barefoot bowlers, can be a major cause of dropping bowls.

1982 Commonwealth Games gold medallist, Poole, will also be forced to miss the presentation due to ill health.

An increase in barefoot bowlers can be a problem if not supervised by members because they could be unintentionally damaging the greens.

His sons, Allan and Douglas, will attend the event on his behalf.

These people enjoy their time on the greens and clubs need the income they generate.

The 84-year-old said he was happy to be included in the list, though.

If they realised the damage that they cause accidentally, they might tread more carefully.

“I was happy to be nominated…I think itʼs really good,” he said.

An introductory coaching lesson before their first game could help solve the problem, by equipping them with the knowledge they need to be able to treat greens the right way.

Queensland has the third-highest number of inductees behind powerhouse states Victoria and NSW.

Poole

The awards will be held on the eve of the Asia Pacific Championships at the Stamford Grand Hotel in Adelaide.

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UMPIRING WITH

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Bowling with aids Players with disabilities (Law 38) The Bowls Australia philosophy is to allow as many participants as possible access to our sport to and ensure an inclusive atmosphere from club to elite level. That being said, we must also ensure that all users (regardless of any requirement of a wheelchair or artificial device) make sure the green is not damaged during play.

the mat after a delivery and risk being impaled on a stick should not be a hazard on any green.

They are known as the “Drakes Pride Arm”, the “Bionic Bowler arm” and the “DHB arm”.

The use of these devices is a problem only when the users do not stay attached to them.

Only approved arms (with Bowls Australia codes) can be used in Australia. Each device is manufactured in several lengths and some include varying release mechanisms. Modifications are not permitted.

It would be a great inconvenience, and unnecessary, to insist that the lifter be placed on the bank between each delivery.

Bowlers may use a walking stick, ʻbowls lifterʼ, ʻbowling armʼ or wheelchair during any game of bowls.

Also it should not be necessary to call an umpire to police the misuse of any of the aforementioned pieces of equipment.

Wheelchairs should be of a type approved by both World Bowls and the Governing Body for wheelchair bowlers in Australia.

As part of the player, a lifter is in the same category as a bowls cloth, hat, pencil or any other thing which players are permitted to use on the green.

Any of these pieces of equipment are, for the purpose of the laws, part of the participating player. If two people wish to share the convenience of a bowls lifter, the most common shared device, then those players must accept that the lifter is part of them. If the head is displaced in any way by the presence or misuse of a lifter, the user is responsible for the displacement and the opponent may act according to the relevant law to seek redress for the infringement. To step back from

In short, it is not the use of the lifter that creates problems. It is the position of the lifter when not in use that creates problems for players. So, as long as the users of these objects are careful and thoughtful of others, there should be no problems with their use. Bowling Arms There are currently three types of bowling arms approved for use in Australia.

An affiliated member must gain approval to use an artificial device (bowlerʼs arm). A medical certificate stating that the affiliated member requires the bowlerʼs arm to continue to participate in lawn bowls must accompany the approved form. Note these changes to the system will come into effect as of 30th June 2012, ensuring all bowlerʼs arm users are allowed sufficient time to update their equipment and/or gain approval to use their existing bowlers arm. Encroaching on the next rink Encroaching is an act by the bowler who, after delivering a bowl, shuffles sideways off the mat and into an adjoining rink to watch the path of his bowl. The bowler may do this deliberately or it may be done sub-consciously and

the player will be quite unaware of the fact. His actions could have a marked effect on the bowlers on the rink in which he has trespassed. A bowler preparing to, or in the act of, delivering a bowl will have their concentration broken and may become angry as a result. This act is a transgression of Law 36.2 and should a bowler or team wish, can call the umpire to take action. The umpire, after having observed the offending play can deliver a warning to the offending player and if the umpire observes the offence being repeated can take action under Law 35.3 to either have the bowl declared dead or if the bowl has disturbed the head to advise the opponent of the options available to him such as:1. Replace the head 2. Leave the head as altered 3. Declare the end dead.

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KICKING BACK

WITH

KELVIN KERKOW OAM

Test series whitewash can teach us all a thing or two New South Wales pretty much smashed us in every area of our recent test series.

these positions for the state side and, frankly, this is not good enough.

test series and he was outstanding as a lead in a dominant NSW team.

The greens down at South Tweed Bowls Club, where the series as held, were running pretty fast at around the 17 second mark.

I have personally told some of the under25s that if they want to make the senior side, they need to get back to playing lead or second and not skipping all the time.

It is my understanding that one of the reasons Ben moved to St Johns Park in Sydney was because he couldnʼt crack the Queensland team in the last three or four years.

Queensland has plenty of top thirds and skips in both menʼs and ladies, if theyʼre selected right.

This bewilders me because Ben was making a name for himself as one of Queenslandʼs top performing players before he made the move.

When I first played for Queensland in the 80s, the Maroons used to dominate interstate teams on fast greens. Obviously times have changed with NSW winning every division this time around. As a Queensland player, I make no excuses for the result. However, I did hear a few of my teammates saying that the greens were too fast and they werenʼt used to the speed. All I can say to those comments is that if you have been selected to play for your state then you should be able to play at your best in any condition – no excuses! Selectors pick who they feel are the best at selection time but recent results make me wonder about their selection policy, particularly when it comes to considering team combinations. I think we were beaten most comprehensively in the lead and second positions. My recommendation to any aspiring bowlers out there is, if you want to play for Queensland and youʼre any good at drawing a shot, you should stick yourself in lead and stay there. So many of our up front players only fill

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I was picked as a lead for Queensland in my debut and I stayed in that position for four years before I got the chance to move up to the lead and second positions. Maybe the good thing in all this is that itʼs a timely wake up call for Queensland. After dominating the national sides earlier this year, maybe a loss is just what Queensland need to really remind us of the quality of the other states. Mass Exodus Something that concerns me greatly about interstate representation is the number of players we are losing to our bigger southern cousins. The movement of many of our best players across the border has definitely boosted the New South Wales teams in recent years. A few players part of the exodus are Kelsey Cottrell, Julie Keegan, Ben Twist and Shane Globtis. I had the privilege to play against former Greenslopes player Ben Twist in last monthʼs

He has proven his talent more recently, too, winning the national Champion of Champions title with his dad, Jeff. The loss of all the Queensland-bred players down south makes me think that we should introduce some sort of State of Origin series back into the calendar. We had something similar several years ago. Players could play for whichever state they first started the game in. Personally, I think the Queensland team that we could have would be sensational. In the menʼs side, the first name that springs to mind is Steve Glasson. The likes of Julie Keegan and Kelsey Cottrell would be eligible for the ladies, too. 2011 has been another fantastic year. The only thing bad to come out of it is the loss of Saturday afternoon ABC coverage.

C L U B L AW

B Y C URT S CHATZ

SOCIAL MEDIA RISK: WHAT TO WATCH Social networking and media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn have become a feature of everyday life, with reports that more than one third of Australians use Facebook and Twitter. In respect to the hospitality industry, social networking tools are becoming mainstream methods of marketing and profiling venues, with the advantage of reaching a vast audience instantaneously.

Other possible risks include trademark infringement. For example, if a third party takes your trademarked name on a social media site and starts using it inappropriately. Additionally, you may be liable for publishing defamatory material posted to your corporate social networking profile even in the event that the material is posted by one of your employees or by a third party.

However, it is important to note that the use of social networking sites can be a double-edged sword to the extent that you can potentially be exposed to liability and/or negative publicity.

There are also risks that you may be liable for damages for breach of intellectual property rights in the event that a trademark or copyright of material, by another party is posted to your corporate profile.

In a previous article, we discussed the minefield surrounding employees' use of social networking sites and issues and risks for club owners and operators as employers.

Notwithstanding the risks, social networking tools can more often than not, be highly successful and comparatively inexpensive means to market and profile your venue.

In order to minimise risk, it is important to ensure you implement a social media strategy for your venue and implement policies and procedures addressing how complaints, negative comments and inappropriate material are to be handled. Additionally, we recommend training your management and marketing employees in the effective use of social networking sites and when issues should be referred to a more senior level or to legal representatives. Most importantly, social networking needs to be continually monitored.

It is equally important to be aware of the risks that may lead to legal liability when third parties, often disgruntled customers, post material to your corporate social networking site/profile, and to understand what you can do in this event. Arguably, reputation risk is the most important risk to minimise in utilising social media. Reputations of venues or owners/operators can incur intangible damage in a short period of time due to the instantaneous nature of social networking. Most of you are no doubt familiar with the Dominos YouTube saga, which is an example of just how fast such harm can proliferate. Two employees of an American Dominos franchise filmed a prank video and posted it to YouTube demonstrating unhygienic food handling. Within a matter of days there were reportedly more than a million views of the videos on YouTube and numerous references on page 1 of a Google Dominos search. The subject virally reached Twitter also.

It took some time to get the video to be removed from YouTube and for Dominos to respond to the issue.

Other risks that club owners and operators may not be aware of are potential responsibility for false and/or misleading and deceptive comments made by third parties on its social networking pages/profiles. A recent Federal Court case suggests that a party can be liable for comments made by third parties on their social media pages if they are knowingly false, misleading and deceptive, and they knew of the statements existence and still failed to remove them.

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Welcome to the Queensland Bowler’s December edition of Henselite’s Spot The Jack competition. Simply put an X where you think the missing jack was located in this head, fill in your details below and send this page to:

Queensland Bowler December Spot The Jack PO Box 476, Alderley 4051 The correct entry drawn will receive a free set of Henselite bowls. Winners can choose from a selection of bowls, colours and sizes.

Name................................................................................ Address............................................................................ ......................................................................................... State.................................................Postcode................. Daytime telephone........................................................... Entries must be received by December 31 and the winner will be announced in the issue.

*Email..............................................................................

This Month’s Winner Congratulations to: Basil Crain from Maleny You will receive a free set of Henselite bowls of your choice from a selection of bowls, colours and sizes. * By giving your e-mail address you will receive a copy of the next Henselite eNewsletter containing details of discounts, specials, new products and bowls information. You can unsubscribe at any time

AER pairs to compete for Open final spot The AER regional pairs finals have been run and won, with seven pairs qualifying for the state final this month. Stars from all zones are descending on the club in Brisbaneʼs south to show they have what it takes to represent Queensland in the 2012 AER Australian finals, as part of the Australian Open. Airfares and accomodation at the Open are also included. With a prize that good, there is

no doubt that every pair will be fighting tooth and nail for victory.

ner Paul Jopson, a spot in the Australian finals.

Former Australian representative Maria Rigby heads up a long list of talented bowlers who have qualified as regional stage winners this year.

Yvonne Lovelock, playing for Musgrave Hill with Gary Mounsey, is another bowler who could seriously shake up the competition.

Rigby will be representing Manly alongside partner Robert Rigby. Pine Riversʼ Noelene Dutton will be hoping to back up her impressive NSW Open run from earlier this year to earn herself, and part-

Lovelock won the state pairs title with Charlie Harkness this year and will be looking for more state level glory at the tournament. Swifts singles champion Harold Dakin and partner Lesley Behnke, who played in the Division one

winning Cunningham team this year, could also be a threat in the contest. Denice Turner and Dean Boyd (Yeronga), Jack Horne and Puddy Dan (Kandanga) and Larie Axiak and Jennie Smith (Pomona) are the other successful combinations set to compete for a spot in the prestigious event. The state finals will be held on December 10 at Algester. 37 V35/#3

COACHING

B Y G EORGE F RANKLIN

Autonomous Phase Even the best should strive to improve The third and final stage of learning is called the autonomous phase. In this stage the performance becomes almost automatic and the bowler can perform the skill at maximum proficiency. The skill now requires very little conscious thought or attention to the details of movement. In fact, asking highly skilled performers to consciously focus on their movements could actually harm performance. In the autonomous phase, the execution of correct movements is highly developed and well established in the bowlerʼs memory. Because they donʼt need to consciously focus on the execution, they can concentrate on things other than technique. The length of time it takes to progress through the three learning phases is dependent on four factors: the individualʼs abilities, the complexity of the task, the learnerʼs pride movement experiences and the efficiency of the learning environment. For example, high-speed dribbling in basketball requires more time in practice to master than a vertical jump.

The role of the coach. Instruction in the autonomous phase serves two purpose. Firstly, it helps to maintain the skill level, and secondly, it motivates the bowler to improve.

Once a consistently high level of skill is achieved, it must be maintained within a season and also from season to season. It would be a mistake to assume performance can not be improved once an athlete reaches the autonomous phase. Understanding the learning process and the phases of skill learning is as important for experienced athletes as for novice coaching. Minor changes, such as staying down longer on follow-through, can require little re-learning and are easily accomplished. However, when it comes to major changes like going from a finger to a claw grip, the athlete must essentially restart the process. Considering that a skill may take years to perfect, you can see learning a new technique could take a long time and, as such, these changes should only be undertaken in the off-season. While the re-learning process occurs, the bowler may experience a performance dip.

Coaching all the way Cognitive Learning 1. Motivate to learn the skill 2. Instruct and demonstrate verbally to help understanding 3. Design experience for initial skill development 4. Assist learner by providing feedback

Associative Learning 1. Plan and implement frequent practice opportunities for the athlete 2. Use feedback to reinforce, motivate and correct performance 3. Help athletes develop error detection and correction capabilities

Autonomous Learning

A coach should be prepared for any discouragement the bowler may feel and accept responsibility when the finger of blame is inevitably pointed at them.

1. Continue to plan practise opportunities

Ultimately, though,the long-term gain in performance from a technique change will outweigh any short-term slump.

3. Continue to motivate your athlete

2. Provide feedback when required

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