From the President with BQ’s Peter Williamson Last month I attended the State Consultative Board meeting convened by Bowls Australia at Broadbeach during the Australian Open. The meeting commenced with an overview of the National Integrity Framework proposed by Sports Integrity Australia which is a process initiated by Sport Australia. The National Integrity Framework is a suite of policies which address specific threats and are designed to mitigate the threats to sport by providing a safe, fair and healthy environment for participants at all levels of sport. The main policies within the National Framework are the Australian National Anti-Doping Policy, Competition Manipulation and Wagering Policy, Member Protection Policy, Improper use of Medicine and the most important Child Safeguarding Policy. The Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) Hearing Process on Complaints, Disputes & Discipline was also discussed. There were differing comments on how it would operate at a national level, without being cumbersome in the time frame, from the start of a complaint to finalisation. Particularly, by whom and how it is decided whether a complaint is handled at what level through to Australian Disputes review. The Women in Bowls working party paper was discussed, which included a workshop facilitated by Sports Business Partners (SBP) who will put all ideas into a report. A discussion and workshop on National Governance with a report to follow was put together by SBP.
Peter Williamson
DUAL MEMBERSHIP In 2013 John Dawson, who was the Bowls Queensland Umpire Committee Coordinator at the time, wrote an important article for the Queensland Bowler magazine regarding the “Pros and Cons of Dual Membership”. This article has been edited slightly to align with the current day situation. It remains important for all clubs, districts and dual members to be aware of of this information. The Pros and Cons of Dual Membership Having a number of players being members of more than one club can be a lifesaver for some country clubs. In fact, without multiple memberships many Queensland clubs would simply cease to exist. There is also the obvious advantage for the really keen bowler in that they can compete in numerous championships. However, apart from the cost of belonging to more than one club, there is another price to pay! A dual member can only represent the club in the District Champion of Club Champions that they had declared for. If you are a member of more than one club in Queensland, you must declare to the appropriate district which club you will represent in the event that you succeed in winning a club championship. This declaration must be made before the start of that competition. The State Conditions of Play for Champion of Club Champions stipulate that no member can represent more than one club in a bowling year. The penalty is that if a dual member represents a club at the District Champion of Club Champions other than the club for which they declared, they and the club will be disqualified from all disciplines. This disqualification applies to the club in all events, singles, pairs and fours, even if that player only competed in one discipline.
To explain the situation more clearly, let’s say that I am a member of two clubs, Club A in District C and Club B in District D. I declare for Club B and play in the singles championship losing in the first round. I also play in the fours championship at my other club, Club A, with more success and my team goes on to win. Club A, along with all other clubs in the district, enters teams into the District Champion of Club Champions in all disciplines, with me included in the fours. As I had already declared for Club B, my inclusion in the Club A team at these championships was illegal and the club would be disqualified in all three disciplines, leaving them no representation at all in the Champion of Club Champions. Could Club A have excluded me from the district event and played a substitute instead? Sadly no! While eligible substitutes are allowed in the competition, a substitute is a proxy for a player, so it would be as though I was still playing in that team.
6 queensland bowler July 2021
