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CONTENTS

Volume 37

Issue 3

Cover Story 11 Cover Story Bowler Mark Sutherland and barista Kendall Berwick will get the chop at Oxley Bowl Club this month. The pair will sacrifice their flowing locks to raise much needed funds for cancer research, an issue close to both of their hearts.

News 06 Australian Open Queenslanders claim a swag of medals at the 2014 Australian Open in Melbourne.

06

10 QLD wake up call

08

Queensland state sides suffered an embarrassing defeat against New South Wales recently. Could it be the reality check they need ahead of this month’s Australian Sides?

16 Dumpers Disasters Do you turn a blind eye to dumpers at your club? They’re actually doing a lot more damage than you think.

Columns 36 Coaching

15

Finally, it’s back! After several months in hiatus the Queensland Bowler coaching column returns this month, with Aussie bowling legend Ian Schuback OAM at the helm.

Editor: Wayne Griffin Reporters: Naomi Cescotto Alexander Tate Published by: Bowls Queensland Editorial: Queensland Bowler PO Box 476, Alderley, Qld 4051 Ph: (07) 3355 9988 E: news@bowls-queensland.org

4 | queensland bowler

Advertising: Wayne Griffin Ph: (07) 3355 9988 E: advert@bowls-queensland.org Subscriptions: To subscribe, fill out the form on page 26 and post it, together with a cheque for $26.80 (inc gst) to: Queensland Bowler Subscriptions PO Box 476, Alderley, Qld 4051.

12 16

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en 2 p O n a i l a r t Aus

LYNSEY S ’

FINALS FEVER

Commonwealth Games selection looks a foregone conclusion for Australian captain Lynsey Clarke, following the Queenslander’s “marathon mission” at the 2014 Australian Open in Melbourne.

The Jackaroos star proved she has the bowling talent and mental toughness to take on her third consecutive Comm Games, surviving a gruelling 13 hours session on the green to claim two silver and a gold at Darebin International sports centre.

, Kelsey Cottrell, Rebecca Van Asch Lynsey Clarke and Anne Johns

It was a close cut thing though, with Mt Gravatt’s Cathy Lewis, Glenys Read, Debbie Logan and Chris Baxter pushing Clarke’s all-star team to the wire in a thrilling final, 16-15.

The final day was both physically and mentally draining for Clarke, with pairs and fours semis in the morning and finals in the afternoon, followed by the singles final in the evening.

“So playing against her was quite a tough ask, but we are both competitive athletes, desperate to win that title.”

Winning the fours alongside her mates was particularly pleasing for Clarke, especially as it was Van Asch’s first title at Australia’s marquee event.

“It was her first time playing with us, so we were very happy for her to get her first AO title.”

Over the course of almost 13 hours on the greens, Clarke’s playing mind-set was given a thorough workout.

After two days rest Clarke was back in action playing Pennant in NSW.

“It was a great Australian Open, probably the best one I’d had ever. But it was a marathon mission,” Clarke said following an exhausting final day on the green.

“I’ve been working hard on seeing and believing. My mental approach to training is to take each game as it comes. Playing with great teammates is a big help.”

“It’s a sport I feel passionate about and it has been very good to me.”

Playing across three disciplines, singles, pairs and the inaugural fours, Clarke’s workload was immense.

“Singles is a really tough game. You’ve really got to be mentally on. Fortunately it all worked out for me until the final little hurdle!”

Not that it showed, with her bowls of a consistently high standard.

“It’s hard enough just to qualify for the AO, but to actually get to a final, in that quality field and play on those greens is pretty tough,” Clarke said.

“At the beginning of the week, if you’d offered me one gold and two silver, I would have taken it.”

Up against her good friend Anne Johns in the singles final, Clarke lost 21-19.

In the pairs, playing alongside Kelsey Cottrell, she suffered a last end defeat at the hands of fellow Queenslanders Emma Brown and Noelene Dutton, 13-9.

Success came in the fours, alongside Cottrell, Tasmania’s Rebecca Van Asch and her singles nemesis, Johns.

6 | queensland bowler

Where does she find the energy?

And when you are in red hot form, it makes getting out of bed in the morning so much easier, even when there’s a gruelling schedule ahead.

With such a busy schedule, especially on the last day, Clarke may not have had enough left in the tank to take home singles gold.

“I felt confident all the way through the Open, and mentally was in a good spot and pretty happy with my performance.

I only had 15 minutes between my pairs finishing and the singles starting so I was a little slow to get going. I was down 17-6 at one point.”

The camaraderie on the circuit, especially with Anne Johns, didn’t mean Clarke lost any focus.

“Jimmy, that’s Anne’s nickname, and I are pretty similar personalities, very happygo-lucky, very competitive on the green but great mates off it. v37/3

“It made all the difference, I can be prone to getting very nervous at times, but Noelene is an incredible skip, she keeps me calm and focused at all times, at our club championships, and at the Open,” Brown said.

“It feels amazing to have won the Australian Ladies Pairs.”

Noelene Dutton and Emma Brown

Kawana Girls’ win puts Qld selectors on notice DREAM RUN FOR MT GRAVATT GIRLS They may not have lifted the trophy, but Mt Gravatt’s Cathy Lewis, Glenys Read, Debbie Logan and Chris Baxter (pictured below), were winners none the less at this year’s Australian Open.

The foursome proved they’ve got the goods to mix it with the best in the world, pushing Lynsey Clarke’s all-Australian rep side to the wire in the fours final, before going down by just one shot, 15-16.

“We had a dream run all the way to the final, we were just so excited to be playing at the pinnacle of our sport,” third Debbie Logan said.

“The conditions were very difficult, cold and windy, but we were two ahead going into the final end. Then Lynsey drew and forced the tiebreak, and they won by one in the final end.”

Logan says the girls weren’t at all disappointed, just delighted with such a close game at the top of their sport.

“We had lots of people stay back to watch the match, we had pretty much the whole club watching at home on the Live Stream.”

Everyone loves it when an underdog gets up and that’s what happened at this year’s Australian Open women’s pairs.

“One of our clubmates said to me ‘You want this, you don’t need it’, and it was true, we had nothing to lose, we were doing it for ourselves,” Brown said.

“It didn’t worry me going up against Lynsey, I knew she was in three finals, but I decided I wasn’t going to let her win this one!”

Brown said Club Kawana coach Ian Schuback OAM, a four time world champion, also had some good tactical advice.

Kawana duo Emma Brown and Noelene Dutton battled the elements to defeat pedigree bowlers Kelsey Cottrell and Lynsey Clarke in a swashbuckling final, 13-9.

“He told us not to fight the wind, to go with it, anything closer than a metre was a good bowl,” Dutton said.

“I wasn’t overly nervous until the end of the 13th, at 9-9. We were up one in the 14th, 10-9, and I thought, if Lynsey draws this, we’ll go to a tiebreak and it’ll all come down to the last end,” Dutton said.

The girls’ next challenge is District Sides, if they’re chosen, and State Championships in May.

“But Emma bowled her little heart out, she bowled awesome, we got three on the last end.

“When we won we said ‘Oh my God, we’ve won the final’ but other people said, ‘No, you’re Australian champions’…that seems huge.”

Both Brown and Dutton had something to prove.

Dutton was overlooked for Queensland squad selection in 2014, a calling she’s coveted and worked for but never quite achieved.

Brown got the call for the squad but didn’t make selection for the first test of the year, against NSW at Port Macquarie.

Neither have been chosen for Australian Sides or Super 6.

“All my kids have won selection for Queensland or Australia in their sports, triathlon and softball, I wanted to show them mum can do it too,” Dutton laughed.

“But hey, we were happy to go to Melbourne and do well and win some money!”

The family-oriented Brown said it made all the difference that her mum Trish Spicer flew down from Cairns for the day, just to watch her play in the final, and husband Kurt also flew in, from Brisbane.

v37/3

Dutton said the conditions at Darebin, freezing cold and blowing a gale, didn’t make it easy for the Queenslanders, but she received some good advice on the way to the pair’s maiden Australian title.

“He said go long and wide, not to go for a narrow bowl, and he was right.”

Mixed Pairs Queensland duo Cassandra Millerick and Scott DeJongh missed out on the 2014 mixed pairs title, going down to New South Wales reps Jenny Roberts and Greg Brims in the final, 17-7.

The Port Macquarie pair proved to strong for Millerick (Gin-Gin) and DeJongh (Broadbeach), only dropping four ends in the title decider.

Knocking off Queenslanders was something of a sport for Roberts and Brims, with the duo also putting an end to Julie Keegan and Des Cann Jr’s mixed pairs tilt in the semifinals.

Under-18 Open Queensland’s Braidan tantalisingly close to his Open gold, going down Australian squad member in the singles final, 21-18.

Leese came first Australian to fellow U18 Dylan Skinner

Skinner, from NSW, also knocked out Brisbane bowler Cohen Litfin in the semis, 21-19, to set up his showdown with Leese.

Queensland missed out in the girls’ under-18 event, with Taleah Putney going down in the quarterfinals to NSW Molly Wilton, 21-18.

NSW junior rep Jamie-Lee Worsnop beat Wilton in the final, 21-16.

queensland bowler | 7

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en 2 p O n a i l a r t Aus

WHERE THERE’S A WILSON, THERE’S A WAY! Victorian youngster Nathan Wilson has followed in the footsteps of big brother Aaron, pulling off the upset win of this year’s Australian Open to claim the men’s singles crown for 2014.

The little known 20-year-old overcame world champion Brett Wilkie, 21-19, in a marathon two and half hour final at Darebin International Sport Centre to lift the title and $18,000 top prize.

“It’s insane. It’s crazy,” Wilson said following his shock win.

“To get on the list (of winners) is one thing, but to do it after my brother is just incredible.”

(Aaron Wilson, 22, defeated West Australian Matthew Ayres, 17, for the 2013 AO singles title.)

Despite claiming a number of big scalps en-route to the final, including Scottish world champion Graeme Archer, Adelaide Endurance star Scott Thulborn and NSW bowler of the year Ray Pearse, Wilson was far from favourite heading into this year’s title decider.

And no-one was more surprised with the shock result than Wilkie, with the Queenslander sure he had the title wrapped on a number of ends.

“I thought I had him at one stage,” Wilkie said.

Australian Open

images cour tesy

of Bowls Australia

“He’s got a great temperament.

He’s still quite young, so at this stage he’s looking like a future star of the game.”

Golden run for Qld disability bowlers Queensland’s disability bowlers had a golden run at this year’s Australian Open, with Tony Bonnell, Nathan Appleton, Kaye Freeman and Jake Fehlberg winning medals.

For his part, Wilson was amazed to have beaten one of his bowling idols.

Australian rep Bonnell won all three of his games to claim the Australia Athletes with a Disability singles title.

”Ever since I got into bowls watching ABC -TV back in the day, he used to be on it all the time,” he said.

Bonnell beat Wayne Allsop 21-10, before fighting back from 2-11 down to defeat Paul Kirton, 21-11 in round two.

A round three demolition of David Bailey, 21-4, ensured Bonnell took home the title.

“It’s just incredible to play him, let alone have a win over him. I feel privileged.”

Appleton blitzed the Ausrapid finals, clocking up double digit wins over Robert Hughes 21-3 and Brendan Elliott 21-8, before sealing his gold medal win with a 21-12 victory over Jarrad Olsen.

Asked what he would do with his winnings, Wilson joked “I’ll probably go to the casino tonight,” before adding, “Nah, I’ll probably chuck it in the bank and try and do what I’ve been doing, save some money.”

Meanwhile, Wilkie’s attention now turns to representing Australia in the Trans-TasmanTest Series atTraralgon Bowls Club inVictoria (March 18-20), before turning out for Queensland in the Australian Sides and Super 6 in Tasmania (March 28 - April 3).

Not to be left in the shade, Queensland’s Kaye Freeman won the Ausrapid women’s event after winning her first two games in a best of three battle.

Jake Fehlberg collected the Vision Impaired Singles title, despite dropping two of his five games,.

Fehlberg started strong with three wins from three rounds, including a 21-0 demolition of Wesley Johns, before dropping his fourth and fifth round games.

Thankfully his early victories were enough to see him safely over the line for a gold medal.

“I held game two or three times, but to Nathan’s credit he pulled out the big bowls when he was under pressure, to firstly save the game, and then to get over the line.”

Magnanimous in defeat, Wilkie was full of praise for his young rival.

“I think he showed a lot of qualities in the game when he was under pressure, playing the good shots under pressure, which is a great quality to have,” Wilkie said.

8 | queensland bowler

Champ Nathan Wilson with Brett Wilkie

Back Row (L-R): Jake Fehlberg, Grant Fehlberg, Tony Bonnell, Nathan Appleton, Bob Seymour. Front Row: Charlie Harkness (manager), Kaye Freeman and Lynne Seymour v37/3

14

n 20 e p O n a i l a r Aust

No joy for Qld in pairs or fours Queenslanders failed to make the medals in the men’s pairs or fours at this year’s Australian Open.

East Cessnock quartet Michael Cronin, Simon Mitchell, Brodie Turner and Jon Dimopoulos took out the men’s fours event, while Kurri’s Andrew Rees and Brendon Baker staged a thrilling come-from-behind victory to take out the men’s pairs.

It was a particularly impressive win for the East Cessnock boys, with the foursome firm underdogs heading into the final against South Australia’s Matthew Northcott, Simon Dorr, Wayne Ruediger and Scott Thulborn.

Ruedger is a current Australian Jackaroos representative and world champion, while Thulborn was most valuable player of last November’s $100,000 Australian Premier League.

But, despite their underdog tag, Cronin said the team always knew they had what it takes.

“We certainly didn’t go into the competition knowing we would win,” he said. “But you never go in thinking you can’t win.

“We were up against some pretty stiff competition, including all the Australian teams as well as groups from Malaysia and Hong Kong.

“We knew if we played we could beat anyone but we had to play our best.”

In the men’s pairs, Rees and Baker staged a thrilling come-from-behind victory to claim the $8000 winners’ cheque.

Their five-day campaign came to a stunning conclusion, with the duo progressing to the gold medal decider on the back of five emphatic victories, including an impressive 18-4 round two win over local Victorian hopefuls Scott Guymer and Michael Stanley (who had eliminated Australian Jackaroos pair Matthew Flapper and Aron Sherriff).

In the final they faced off against Victoria’s Graeme Spry and Ray Jansen.

Baker, whose previous greatest achievement was a semifinal finish at the 2011 Australian Indoor Championships, guided his teammate to a record 22-11 victory, the biggest margin of any of the Open’s main draw finals matches.

Rees admitted the fall of some gun teams in the early rounds eased their path to the title.

“We had a pretty cruisy time, with a lot of the big name teams getting knocked out early,” he said.

“The semi was definitely our toughest game, but Brendan played his best bowls the whole way through.”

10 | queensland bowler

Blues bashing

will energise Queensland’s Aus Sides campaign Queensland will get a shot at redemption during the 2014 Australia Sides in Tasmania later this month, following an embarrassing defeat by old foe New South Wales in Port Macquarie recently.

Despite some promising performances, a test series victory eluded Queensland at Port City Bowls Club, with the men, women and under-25s all slumping to defeat.

After drawing their opening test 54-54, the men dropped their remaining fixtures, winning just two rinks from nine across all three tests.

The women fared even worse, dropping all three tests, albeit by narrow margins in tests two and three.

The under-25s enjoyed the best of Queensland’s results, with the men and women notching up one test win apiece.

While admitting it was a tough defeat for Queensland, state coach Bill Cornehls hopes the experience will serve his sides well going into this month’s Australian Sides Championships in Tasmania (March 31 - April 3).

“It was pretty disappointing going down there and not having a good showing,” Cornehls said.

“But the scores didn’t really indicate the way we played.

“It was a strong NSW side. They’ve all had international experience, either at open, development or underage levels.

“We endeavour to put the best team on the green, sometimes we tweak and it works, sometimes it doesn’t. But how do players get experience at the top level unless you give them a chance?”

One tweak that proved successful saw Pam Rowe move from third for Lynsey Clarke, to skip her own team of Natasha Jones, Lauren Wilson and Rosie Lovelock in the final test.

It was a dry run for the Australian Sides, with Rowe pencilled in to skip Jones, Christina Pavlov and Lovelock in Tasmania.

Despite dropping the match, the foursome put in an impressive performance, pushing Karen Murphy’s all-star NSW side of Kay Moran, Arleen Jeffrey and Julie Keegan to a close result, 21-17.

“I’m excited to be skipping in the Australian Sides,” Rowe said. “I’m happy with the girls in front of me... they are very strong and they have my full support.”

Selectors don’t wield the axe Despite the disappointing results in Port Macquarie, selectors have kept faith with the current crop of recruits.

Pavlov’s return to the side in place of Wilson is the only personnel change for the women ahead of their Australian Sides campaign.

Lovelock, who skipped in the first two tests against NSW, moves to third to make way for Rowe, with Charlie Harkness (formerly third for Lovelock) slotting into Rowe’s old spot in Clarke’s team.

There have been two changes to the men’s side, with Kelvin Kerkow and Mark Casey returning at the expense of youngsters Sean Ingham and Dean McWhinney.

Brett Wilkie and Anthony Fantini will cede skipping duties to Casey and Kerkow, resulting a slight reshuffle of the teams.

Cornehls expects the return of players like Kerkow and Casey will make a huge difference in Tasmania.

“When these guys start high-fiving and letting the rinks know they’re winning, the other players take notice.”

“Kelvin is an icon in Australian bowls. He lifts players across both the men’s and the women’s teams,” beamed Cornehls, obviously glad to have his talisman back.

Yet, Cornehls is putting players on notice that need to up their own game and not leave the hard lifting to a few in the side.

“Everyone in the team needs to take ownership and put in the hard yards,” he said.

“The job’s not done because they’ve been selected, it’s only just started.”

“What better stage is there, to get up in front of your peers and hold those trophies up at the end, it will be a great feeling it we can achieve it.”

To check out the full team list for the 2014 Australia Sides visit www. bowlsqld.org. v37/3

Oxley bowler Mark Sutherland and local barista Kendall Berwick will shave for a cure on March 15.

Shear Courage

Oxley bowler and barista brave the shave for a cure for cancer OXLEY BOWLER MARK SUTHERLAND IS ABOUT TO MAKE HIS WIFE KATHY VERY HAPPY…

collected by hooking her up to a machine which filtered her blood and extracted the marrow from it,” Mark said.

After 15 months of putting up with a progressively wilder and scraggier beard, it’s about to come off.

Three months after her operation, her sister was given the “all clear”.

Mark will be part of Oxley Bowls Club’s Shave for a Cure, Saturday March 15, 4pm.

It’s personal for Mark, a bowler of three years at Oxley.

He started growing his beard on Christmas Day 2012 for a bit of a dare, to see if he could last six months until May. But in May, shaving his beard was the last thing on his mind, as his precious 18-yearold daughter Dana was diagnosed with leukaemia.

“Her leg swelled up and it was very painful, they discovered blood clots but it turned out to be much more,” Mark said.

“We shed our tears for a week and then we got stuck in and did what it takes.”

Dana had blood cancer. She had chemotherapy but she was still very sick.

Fortunately for Dana’s chances of survival, elder sister Caitlin turned out to be a perfect match for a bone marrow transplant.

Until recently this was a painful and invasive procedure for the donor, but thanks to the millions of dollars raised by causes like “Shave for a Cure”, researchers have developed a more donor-friendly process.

“It was a lot simpler for Caitlin, she gave herself injections for three days so her bones would produce extra marrow, which is then released into the blood stream, and v37/3

Mark will mark the occasion this month by getting rid of his beard, hoping to raise $5000 for the Leukaemia Foundation, after his family’s close personal shave.

He’s already got pledges of $3000.

“My work Hayman’s Electrical and my wife Kathy’s work, Volvo Commercial, have been very supportive,” Mark said.

Mark said the beneficiary of Shave for a Cure, the Leukaemia Foundation, provided great support and comfort to country families needing to travel to Brisbane for treatment, including organising accommodation.

“They couldn’t say enough about how helpful the Leukaemia Foundation was.

“In our case, we experienced first-hand how research has led to a less invasive procedure for bone marrow donors.”

Teaming up with Mark as a drawcard for the March 15 event is local Oxley barista Kendall Berwick.

Kendall is collecting donations and pledges to shave off her hair, with a goal of $3000 and $615 in the kitty so far.

“I could really do with some more pledges, I’m getting a bit nervous now, it’s getting close. I’m freaking about shaving off my hair, but I’m so pleased to be able to do something to help,” Kendall said.

“Every day 31 Aussies get the news they’ve got blood cancer.”

Event organiser Alicia Jones said they had organized a brilliant line up of musicians to donate their time to create a festive atmosphere at Oxley Bowls Great Shave.

There will be a colour booth for those who want to ‘Colour for a Cure’ and a photo booth to record ‘before and after’.

Kendall works at Coffee on Cook (Cook St, Oxley) and her employers will host a Champagne and High Tea on March 9 at 3pm ($35pp, with all proceeds towards Kendall’s target).

The Oxley Bowls Club’s Shave for a Cure Burger & Bowls afternoon is $15pp, with all proceeds to the Leukaemia Foundation.

“We’re working together to create an exciting family-friendly event with fresh, live, original music, all green fees will go to the Leukaemia Foundation, Under 16s can play free, there will be table tennis, as well as fresh food and slushies to buy,” Alicia said.

“In recent months, our club, like many others, has lost wonderful players to cancer-related illnesses.

“We wondered what we could do to raise money and directing our efforts to Shave for a Cure seemed a natural fit, when we found out about Mark’s journey and our wonderful local barista Kendall’s commitment.”

What can you do? ~ Donate online to Mark or Kendall via Shave for a Cure website. ~ More information from Alicia Jones at Oxley Bowls 0433 881 981. ~ Buy a Burger & Bowls at Oxley Bowls & Community Club, Englefield Rd, Oxley on Sat March 15, 4pm – 8pm. queensland bowler | 11

Premier League Qld 2014

Jostling begins for finals spot Sharks secure at the top, but with two rounds to go, just two rink wins separate second and fifth

Two months in and South Tweed’s Sharks still top the table in the 2014 Aero Bowls Premier League.

In fact, the defending champs have dropped just one game in the competition so far, a narrow 57-62 defeat at the hands of Hamilton Power.

With just two rounds to go, the Sharks are feeling pretty comfortable at the top, with Pine Rivers, Greenslopes, Hamilton and Wynnum Manly all two wins behind.

And with only the Seagulls and Capalaba Comets to come, the Sharks will be confident of at least one win (if not two).

The luckless Comets have had just one victory to date, a three-shot win over the Titans in round three, 63-60.

The Seagulls will challenge though.

offer

a

tougher

Having dropped three of their opening four games, the fifth place Gulls have come racing back with four straight wins and are on track for a spot in this year’s finals.

It’s going to be a tough two weeks for the Gulls though, with the Sharks up first followed by Greenslope Geckos on March 15.

The Geckos have had some mixed results, taking down big guns like Pine Rivers, 55-47, and Helensvale 68-49.

Helensvale round out the top six, three wins off the pace thanks to another loss in round nine, this time at the hands of Springwood’s Titans, 66-43, in round nine.

Despite the loss, Hawks star Brett Wilkie is confident his side will reach the finals.

But they’ve also lost to South Tweed (who hasn’t), 47-59, the Power 54-55 and, more worryingly, to Premier League debutants the Bramble Bay Vikings, 57-58.

“We’ve settled down now and we’re looking forward to finishing strong.”

Still, with Springwood coming up in round 10, the Geckos will be confident of a top four finish.

“Tweed are on top and going well, but we’re just looking to consolidate our position in the finals and go well once we get there.”

The second place Pirates will also be confident of reaching the finals. They’ve dropped just two games so far…to the Geckos in round three, 55-47, and to Helensvale in round seven, 67-42.

But with ninth place South Toowoomba and seventh place Titans to come, the Pirates won’t be losing too much sleep over the coming weeks.

In fact, the only top four team in the comp who might be sweating is also the only team to have beaten the sensational South Tweed this year.

The Hamilton Power are in fourth spot heading into week 10, but with Helensvale up next and a bye in round 11, there is definitely a chance of the Brisbane side slipping down the ladder.

The Power were out-muscled in round nine, going down to the Vikings, 63-49.

12 | queensland bowler

Wilkie is well aware of where the threat lies in this year’s Premier League.

One recent result gives Wilkie confidence that the Hawks can do well when the sharp end of the competition comes around on the March 22-23.

“We had a good win against Pine Rivers at Pine Rivers, and with the finals being held there, it’ll give our players a lot of confidence.”

grand final on Sunday, March 23.

Pictured clockwise from top left: PLQ umpire Derrick Jory tests the temperature at Hamilton Bowls Club; Supporters Trish Ward and Lyla Kiepe cheer on the Tigers; South Toowoomba’s Charlie Harkness with Broadbeach Bull’s Kiwi import Selina Goddard. Tigers stalwart Bob Blake; Bramble Bay Vikings’ Jason Curry; and Gecko boys Huggie McKnight, Stu McCosh and Nick George. Photos by Ron Ward.

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Taylor Bowls Super Challenge 2014

Challenging times

More than 200 Queensland clubs commence battle in world’s biggest inter-club competition

T

he world’s biggest inter-club competition has kicked off, with over 200 teams battling it out across Gold, Silver and Bronze divisions in the 2014 Taylor Bowls Super Challenge.

In the men’s Gold, Burleigh Heads’ title defence remained on track after four rounds in February, with the 2013 champs undefeated in Section 3.

The Burleigh boys clocked up 4-1 wins over Brisbane sides Indooroopilly and Jindalee in rounds one and two, before dispatching Rainbow Beach 5-0 in round three.

“That was a really good win,” Burleigh’s Scott DeJongh said of the Rainbow Beach victory.

“We would have been happy with 3-2, but 5-0 is very good.”

A 3-2 victory over Pacific Paradise in round four, leaves only Tewantin Noosa between Burleigh and a clean sweep of the section.

“We’re looking pretty comfortable on top of the ladder and looking forward to the finals series,” said DeJongh.

Burleigh aren’t the only contenders in this year’s tournament however, with three other sides also undefeated.

Club Kawana and Mooloolaba are cruising through section one unbeaten, while Musgrave Hill leads the field in section two with a perfect 4-0 record.

In the women’s Gold, defending champs Kawana got off to a shaky start, going down to the Bramble Bay Vikings in round one, 4-0.

But they have bounced back with wins over Coolum Beach, Caloundra and Victoria Point, and are currently running second, just two rink points behind Mooloolaba.

Musgrave Hill’s girls are also going well in Gold, topping section two in the women’s comp.

The Gold Coast girls are the only undefeated team in their section, with wins over North Toowoomba, Booval Swifts and fellow Goldie side, Mermaid Beach in the opening rounds.

Tweed Heads aren’t far behind though, currently running second in section two, just four rink points behind Musgrave Hill.

SILVER The men’s Silver section is tight at the top in section one, with just one rink point separating section leaders Darra Cementco and second place Ferny Grove.

Pine Rivers and Banyo are battling it out for third and fourth, with the Pirates just edging it on margins.

Musgrave Hill are miles in front in section two with a clean sweep of the opening rounds. After four rounds the Musgrave Hill men are sitting pretty on 24, with Paradise Point, Moorooka and Tweed Heads a long way back on 12 points apiece.

Bribie Island has begun opening up a gap in section three and is currently six points clear of Kawana, Mooloolaba and Tewantin Noosa on 12 points each.

Tarragindi overcame Scarborough in round four to cement their place at the top of section four.

The sides are currently on 18 match points apiece, with Tarragindi just ahead on rink wins.

Only one side has managed to come through the opening rounds of the women’s Silver unscathed, with Club Kawana clocking up four straight wins over Tewantin Noosa, Kandanga, Mooloolaba and Noosa Heads to top section three.

14 | queensland bowler

Musgrave Hill has been one of the most successful clubs in the opening rounds of this year’s Super Challenge. The Gold Coast club is undefeated in the men’s and women’s Gold and men’s Silver. Pictured above Musgrave Hill’s golden boys (back row) Roy Nunn, Mike Morgan and Paul Boyns, (front row) Steve Feeney, Gary Warby and Kevin Koorey.

Everton Park have pulled one win ahead in section one, leaving West Toowoomba and Pine Rivers scrapping for second, with just three shots between the sides, while Wellington Point is right on their heels just one rink point off the pace.

It’s a similar story in section two, where just one rink point separates first place Paradise Point and second place Tweed Heads.

Meanwhile Beenleigh and Club Helensvale are also just one rink point apart in their battle for third.

BRONZE With 11 sections in the men’s Bronze and eight sections in the women’s comp, it’s still way too early to see how the field is shaping up.

In the men’s event Kingscliff (Section 4) and Pelican Waters (S7) are streaking away, with 36 points each from six rounds.

There are a few unbeaten sides in the women’s Bronze also, with Kawana (S1), Coolangatta (S5) and Bramble Bay (S8) leading the field.

Pictured right: Bramble Bay Golden Girls (back row) Kay Roberts, Barbara Gribbin, Norma Cleghorn, Claire Hill, Gayl Itzstein, Paula Feuerriegel and (front row) Elizabeth McCleary & Mary Govan. v37/3

Baker boys bag title at new-look Cementco Queensland reps Dean McWhinney and Sean Baker triumphed in an attritional final at the 2014 Darra Cementco Invitation Masters Pairs on February 27.

The duo beat indoor specialist Steve Halmai (Condong) and Bribie Island’s Richard Strawbridge, 21-8, in almost perfect bowling conditions on Darra’s new-look greens.

The scoreline belied what was a tough final, with the sides going blow-for-blow in the early ends.

But as the afternoon worn on, McWhinney and Baker began edging ahead, picking up ones and twos to build up an unassailable lead.

It was a conservative approach, deliberately employed by Baker, who was more concerned with the number of ends won than the number of shots.

“In finals of any sort you’ve always got to keep the heads nice and tight,” Baker said of the low scoring ends.

“I think there were a couple of threes and one four, but if you can keep winning consecutive ends it builds your scores up.”

v37/3

Halmai played several drives throughout the match to break up Baker’s “nice tight heads”, but without much success.

“I think they took their shots when they needed to,” conceded Halmai after the match.

The three-day event saw some of Queensland’s top bowlers square off at the recently redeveloped west-Brisbane club.

It was the Masters Pairs’ 30th anniversary and the first held at Darra since the club underwent a major redevelopment in 2013.

of that we are hoping to get a lot more full members as well,” Chandler added.

The finalists were also complimentary about the greens.

“The new one was a little tricky on the first day, but both greens are very good,” said Baker.

“The green we played the final on today just got better and better, it was quicker, bending very nice. Beautiful wicket,” he added.

Below: 2014 Darra Cementco champs Dean McWhinney and Sean Baker.

Darra president, Geoff Chandler, said members were very pleased with the club’s redevelopment, which included laying the first completely new grass green in Queensland for over 50 years.

“It’s an excellent result we’ve got.

It’s turned out much better than we expected. We’re very pleased.”

Social bowling numbers have been on the rise and as this year’s Masters final took place, approximately 30 bowlers were testing out the new green.

“With the new green coming into play, numbers have been increasing and out

queensland bowler | 15

DUMPER DISASTERS Is dumper damage driving your greenkeeper to distraction and costing your club a fortune?

Are you a dumper and don’t even know it?

Do you know you’re a dumper but refuse to do anything about it?

If so, every time you take to a green, you cost a club much more in time and money than a bowler who has a smooth, low, controlled release.

Is it time you moved to a bowler’s arm?

“We have eight dumpers in our club and we all know who they are,” one country chairman said.

“We have signs up all over the place saying if you’re a dumper, you’ll have to do a bowler’s arm workshop, but the dumpers ignore the signs, and we’re all volunteers, nobody wants to confront them...”

Synthetic green builder Craig Morris said failing to act against dumpers was like letting someone on to a green with a builder’s hammer.

“You’ve got a dumper, old Harry, he doesn’t play much, only three days a week, four bowls over 15 ends.

“But that’s 60 bowls a day, and he tends to have a favourite rink, so it cops more than its share…

“Would you let someone on to your green with a builder’s hammer, giving it a little bash 60 times a day, three times a week, maybe 16 | queensland bowler

26 weeks a year, then multiply that by the number of dumpers in your club…?”

Morris said even concrete would chip, crack and break-up under that kind of assault and synthetic greens are not made on concrete because they have to drain.

“

We have eight dumpers in our club and we all know who they are. We have signs up all over the place saying if you’re a dumper, you’ll have to do a bowler’s arm workshop, but the dumpers ignore the signs.

”

“You’ll find ridges and gullies in your synthetic green if you’ve got a dumper problem at your club,” Morris said, “and it won’t be fixed under warranty.”

“We say anything released at more than half-calf height is a dumper.”

State coach Bill Cornehls said even bowls dropped from low heights caused damage.

“You notice the effects of dumpers more on synthetic greens and on the bent grass greens down south, our tiff grass greens

are a little more forgiving, but even so, most greenkeepers won’t appreciate any sort of dumping,” Cornehls said.

Queensland Bowler “Greens Guru” Rino Parrella says dumpers are a greenkeeper’s worst nightmare.

“I watch them like a hawk when they come to our club and as soon as they’re gone, I’m out there with my screwdriver, gently levering the soil and turf back up into place, to minimize the damage as quickly as possible,” Parrella said.

But at least with a grass green, the damage caused by dumpers can be rectified once a year at renovation time.

It’s not always that simple with a synthetic green.

“The only solution is to get on to your dumpers and make them use a bowler’s arm,” Morris said.

WHY DO DUMPERS CAUSE DAMAGE? Greens builder Craig Morris says dumpers are a no-no for longevity of an Australian Bowls Constructions green.

He says an ABC green is constructed with 125mm of road base, followed by 30mm of crusher dust mixed with a “sportcrete” polymer, which is then laser levelled.

Continued ► v37/3

We have the technology, so why is dumping still a problem?

The Bowling Arm ownermanager Greg Sherman said some bowlers say they would rather “give up bowls than use an arm”.

“Sometimes it’s just pigheadedness,” Sherman said.

“But just because you’re a dumper, it doesn’t mean you’ll automatically get a doctor’s certificate to use a bowler’s arm.”

Sherman’s father Don, 80, was a Commonwealth Games gold medallist (Brisbane 1982) alongside Qld skip Keith Poole.

Sherman Jnr said using a bowler’s arm to extend longevity in the sport shouldn’t be a big deal, and it didn’t appear to be down south.

“In Victoria, we’ve had 14 tournaments in the past six months for bowling arm users.

Dumper damage leaves many greenkeepers, like Enoggera’s Matt Butler, tearing their hair out in frustration.

Photo: Stu Taylor

► Finally around 10mm of fine grit is put down under the carpet, made up of sand, dust and 4-5mm pebbles.

“It’s this top coat the dumper disturbs but the regular bowler does not,” Morris said.

Des Wilson from Club Pine Rivers says when the club got its synthetic greens, they tried to “discourage” dumpers and “encourage” them to switch to a bowler’s arm.

But since then, they discovered with their particular synthetic green, they were able to roller every six months, to level out the damage caused by dumpers.

“You can feel the ridges and gullies when you start the roller but afterwards, it’s lovely again, our synthetic green’s only sand under the carpet, but you can’t use a roller on the ones that have a membrane,” Wilson said.

“When we roller, we go vertical, horizontal, both ways, every six months or so, and we’re also very careful to rotate greens, rinks and bowlers, to minimize damage caused by dumping.”

Pine Rivers has a Berry Bowling Systems green and Dales Needle Punch carpet. v37/3

“Queensland has yet to come on board but we’ve got bowlers in Victoria, NSW and South Australia playing a state championships specifically for those using a bowler’s arm.”

At a cost of around $250, a bowler’s arm can keep a bowler on a green longer, without dumping.

There are currently three types of bowlers arms approved for use in Australia, The Bowling Arm, the Bionic Bowler Arm and the DHB Arm. “They’re pretty simple to get used to, we’ve come a long way since the first wooden bowling arms, now they’re lightweight aluminium or fibreglass, they weigh less than a kilo, the springs last for 10 years, you might just have to replace the adhesive rubber grips,” Sherman said.

Coachman Product’s general manager Therese Raso said some bowlers were reluctant to take up an aid because they were afraid of being accused of “cheating”.

Coachmans has developed an Australian innovation called a Bowlsmate, which helps bowlers balance and get down lower.

“It’s not against the rules of bowls to have a support while you’re bowling, and if it helps your balance, it will help prevent against so-called dumping,” Raso said. queensland bowler | 17

A group of bowlers from the Far North has been getting together every year since 1976 to plan an adventure to somewhere in Australia.

Current organiser for the past 11 years is Val Riggs from Atherton Bowls Club, who took over the big job of organizing the annual February Fortnight adventure for the group of 50.

“Many of these bowlers say they would never get a holiday if we didn’t do this, they like to go with familiar faces and be looked after,” Val said.

“We did the Broome to Darwin trek last year, but we moved the trip to June-July because of the wet season, and we’re already planning a visit to the Grampions and the Great Ocean Road in Victoria for February, 2015.”

This year the group did southeast and southwest Queensland and northern NSW. The country bowlers from the Far North (Atherton, Mareeba, Herberton, Innisfail, Mossman, and Babinda) couldn’t speak highly enough of the friendliness and cleanliness of their southern cousins, at Warwick East, Goondiwindi, Gunnedah,

18 | queensland bowler

Annual Adventure

Far North bowlers blaze a trail across Australia Tamworth, Armidale, Glen Innes, Tenterfield, Stanthorpe, Ballina, Mount Tamborine and the Gold Coast.

“We had a beautiful trip, visiting lots of bowls clubs and really clean towns, the race horse town, Goondiwindi, was so clean you wouldn’t believe, not a scrap

of paper anywhere,” Dianella Cescotto from Atherton said.

The 2014 trip included an evening at the Gold Coasts Outback Spectacular, a ferry ride up the Brisbane River and wine tastings at Stanthorpe.

“The Spirit of the Horse show at the Gold Coast was the

highlight of the trip and one of our bowlers, Louie Cescotto, turned 80 that day,” Val said.

“We sang Happy Birthday with a big cake, he got a big surprise, I think it’s a birthday he’ll never forget.”

Places on the annual bowls trip are always hard to secure.

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clubs kick in for disadvantaged kids A shoes and socks drive for disadvantaged kids received a kick-along recently from charity bowlers.

A state-wide come and try day organised by Bowls Queensland and supported by more than 100 bowls clubs around Queensland raised $1600 for the Brighter Future 4 Kids Foundation.

“There are 56 pairs of BATA shoes and Underworks socks on their way to disadvantaged children as part of our “Shoes & Socks 4 Kids” drive,” Brighter Future 4 Kids Foundation managing director Pauline Preston said.

Flagging the start of another successful century Sandgate Bowls Club in the Brisbane North District is gearing up for its centenary, 1914 – 2014, with a series of events for the bowls and general community.

The club was established through the drive of then Sandgate Mayor John Lunn, who became the club’s first president.

The club’s centenary dinner will be held on June 14, an Edwardian-style banquet over six courses, with a raffle prize of a State of Origin jersey.

“We will host a series of intra-club handicap pairs, an old concept and one not used at Sandgate for many years, a nod at history which will be sure to give considerable enjoyment to our members,” centenary committee chairman Grant Burrows said.

“We’ll also publish a Centenary Booklet in June to acknowledge this historic milestone and our generous sponsors, including our local politicians, Cr Victoria Newton, state member Ms Kerry Millard, Sandgate Real Estate, Lion Beer, Wine and Spirits, and Taylor Bowls.”

20 | queensland bowler

President Ken Leslie said Sandgate Bowls was proud of its contribution over 100 years to foster sport and fellowship in the local community.

When the gates are refurbished, they will be handed back to the club by former president Edward Dyer’s granddaughter Dulcie Dyer.

“One of the most important things we can do in 2014 is enrol new members to ensure the future of bowls in Sandgate,” Leslie said.

Pictured: Cr Victoria Newton presents Sandgate Bowls Club with its centenary commemorative flag, with president Ken Leslie and chairman of the centenary committee Grant Burrows (Photo Jacqueline Husson, courtesy Bayside Star newspaper.)

In a heart-warming show of community pride, the family who donated the club’s entrance gates in 1938, as a memorial to their father, a Sandgate Bowls Club president, are in the process of having the gates refurbished in time for the centenary celebrations.

Sandgate Bowls Club invites bowlers to help celebrate its Centenary Year at one of the special events or on any of its regular game days.

Key upcoming Sandgate centenary events include: For Bowlers ► June 21-22 – Two day Fours Carnival. $5000 prize money. Raffle prizes, including a set of bowls from sponsor Taylor Bowls. ► October - Mixed Fours Day, two teams of two men and two women playing a Fours game, two mixed pairs games, and a men’s and ladies pairs game. ► March, May, July - Patrons, Presidents and Past Presidents ‘At Home’ days.

For the Sandgate community ► April: Bluewater Classic, a mixed fours competition, run as a local club “derby” during the Sandgate Bluewater Festival, run in conjunction with the Brisbane to Gladstone yacht race. ► A parents and children’s comp run by Sandgate PCYC.

“This is a direct result of the funds raised by the bowls clubs, with a special mention to Imbil Bowls Club (near Cooroy), which won a prize donated by MGA Insurance Brokers for the bowls club who raised the most money for Brighter Future 4 Kids.”

Regular and first-time bowlers who attended Queensland’s first-ever state-wide Come and Try day (November 2013) tipped in a gold coin donation for the Brighter Future 4 Kids collection.

“What a great job Imbil Bowls Club did, and a number of our other bowls clubs who raised more than $100, attracting more people to come and try our sport, and raising money for a great cause,” Bowls Queensland state development officer Daryl Francey said.

Ms Preston said all funds raised by the bowls clubs would be used to help kids in need through the Brighter Future 4 Kids Foundation, a Queensland children’s charity.

“It addresses physical and nutritional barriers preventing disadvantaged kids from escaping poverty through a good education, like buying shoes and socks for children who might not otherwise go to school because they don’t have the correct foot ware,” Ms Preston said. v37/3

Heather and Kevin Bernicke were over the moon to meet Australian country music legend, Chad Morgan.

Photo by: Ian Muir

Maryborough bowlers Kevin and Heather Bernicke carry their bowls with them where ever they travel and what a great time they had on a recent trip to Tamworth.

Country music favourites Chad Morgan (“Sheik of Scrubby Creek”), Sara Storer (Female Artist of the Year, Tamworth 2014, for “Lovegrass”) and Graeme Connors (“A Little Further North”) were among the stars they met.

“Travel and bowls are a good fit, this latest trip to Tamworth was a real highlight, meeting some of the legends of country music,” Kevin said.

Both Morgan and Connors are Queenslanders, Morgan from Caboolture and Connors from Mackay.

Connors is no stranger to bowls, his dad used to play and he’s had a few roll ups himself over the years.

Gold Coast and they’re about to tour Victoria and country NSW. Like many bowlers, the Bernickes plan lots of interesting trips around their favourite sport.

“After Tamworth, we visited Oakey and Gayndah, where I played in the annual Men’s Fours carnivals,” Kevin said.

Kevin is board secretary and men’s games director at Doon Villa and Heather is ladies president at Maryborough Services Memorial.

Heather and Kevin with Sara Storer.

Above: Heather meets country music maestro

Graeme Connors.

Connors has written music and songs for world stars like Slim Dusty and John Denver.

He will perform 25 years of hits and favourites from 17 albums at QPAC Brisbane on April 11.

At 81, Morgan is as sprightly as many of our bowlers, still towing his caravan around country music circuits.

He travels with Chad Morgan Show support musicians Ian and Glennys Muir from the v37/3

queensland bowler | 21

Gonna be a great’un in Drayton Drayton Bowls Club in Toowoomba will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its highly successful Men’s Carnival on April 11-13.

The first-ever winners were Allan Elliott (skip) from Musgrave Hill, Noel Ryan from Salisbury, Peter Stanton from Kilcoy and Mick Cherry from West Toowoomba.

different winning team at Drayton in 19981999, under skip Geoff Hawken.

“It’s a great carnival and I’d love to go back this year for the 20th anniversary but State Junior Championships starts on April 11 at the Gold Coast and I’ll be there in my role as a state selector,” Stanton said.

“Otherwise I would have loved to go.”

“Allan’s hoping to come back for the 20th anniversary carnival, that would be a nice touch, so we hope that happens,” games director Alma Hamblin said.

The club’s in its 21st year in 2014 and volunteers like Alma and husband Des have kept the club’s records since the beginning.

Peter Stanton says the inaugural winning team backed up for a second consecutive win in 1996 and he was also part of a

“We’ve done really well for a club of volunteers,” Alma said. “We’ve changed with the times.

“For the first 15 years we ran a three-day fours carnival but with so many bowlers now working on Fridays, we changed the format about five years ago to run a pairs tournament on the Friday and the fours over the weekend,” Alma said.

The greens are always full at the annual carnival, which caters for 28 teams.

(For more information, contact Des or Alma on 07 4630 1519.)

Pictured: Inaugural Drayton Carnival winners Alan Elliott, Noel Ryan, Peter Stanton and Mick Cherry with major sponsor Barry Hennessey. The official scoreboard from Drayton’s first men’s carnival 20 years ago.

Monica Duff, Dianne Viterale and Jane Bush

Caloundra Fours It was easy to pick the winner of Caloundra’s annual Australia Day Men’s Fours competition.

It was the only unbeaten team in the comp, finishing with six wins +34.

Congratulations to (pictured) Nev Blackley from Hervey Bay (2nd), John Newman from Musgrave Hill (skip), Peter Kemen from Rainbow Beach (3rd) and Brian Nunan from Benowa.

Organiser John Newman said a total of 42 teams competed, from Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Brisbane and Kingaroy, in extremely windy conditions.

22 | queensland bowler

Sunshine Coast women are looking forward to 2014 with much anticipation, with District Sides Division 1 and 2 titles to defend in May. “We recently honoured our “best of” 2013 ladies and there were so many top performers, it was an exciting day and a thrilling year for us, winning two District Sides titles,” district selector Margaret Vincent said.

Among those honoured for their performances in 2013 were Kawana’s Jane

Bush (District Championship Player of the Year), Tewantin Noosa’s Margaret O’Rourke (District Rep Player), Coolum’s Louise Witton (State Rep Player), Kawana’s Dianne Viterale (District Minor Event Player), Mooloolaba’s Judy Murry and Kawana’s Monica Duff (Emerging Players of the Year), Tewantin Noosa’s Dot Abbot (Non Elected Volunteer of the Year) and Mooloolaba’s Heather McMillan (Elected Volunteer of the Year). v37/3

Rino Parrella

Leopard print...definitely not the new green Due to the stubbornly dry weather through December, January and February, I’m sure many of us have very thirsty greens.

One week not so long ago, I went through 120,000 litres of water on our two greens at Scarborough (not looking forward to the water bill!)

So it seems very timely to talk about dry patches.

The obvious cause is lack of water in the soil and the obvious remedy is good, soaking rain.

However, there’s more going on with dry spots than you might realise.

Have you ever watered your lawn or garden only to find the soil won’t wet up or it seems to repel the water?

This is known as “hydrophobic” soil, and the same can happen to bowls greens.

Hydrophobic soil So what causes hydrophobic soil?

It starts with organic matter breaking down in the soil.

It creates a waxy acid which coats the soil particles and creates a high surface tension, which stops the soil wetting up.

Sandy soils are the most susceptible, but heavy soil greens can also be affected.

Prevention The most obvious preventative measure is not to let your greens become powder dry.

24 | queensland bowler

This is for two reasons: 1) It becomes too hard to re-wet the soil and 2) It puts the turf under too much stress and it will take longer to recover.

I’ve seen some so bad they look like a rusty iron roof.

Keep in mind there is a tipping point with tiff: there is a point of no return and once you lose turf, you’re in strife!

Don’t despair greenies, you will surely be able to fix this quite easily.

Eradication If you already have a hydrophobic green, they are hard to fix. But there are some things you can do to improve the situation.

Firstly, you should aerate the green, then apply a soil wetting agent, well watered into the soil, preferably in rain, if possible.

The aeration holes help get the soil wetting agent into the ground and it lowers the surface tension, which makes the soil easier to re-wet next time.

In saying this, I remember a green from years ago at the old Redcliffe club (it no longer exists). No matter what I did, I could not get water back into the hydrophobic spots.

It gets even worse when you try to fertilise, because the green takes the fertilizer up unevenly.

You end up with a leopard-spotted green, which looks embarrassing!

The only thing that helped on that green was flooding rain.

Tip of the month Ever wondered how some greens end up with corroded edges?

The problem usually starts with one dip and goes on to multiply all the way around.

Top dressing at renovation time usually fixes it and when you start mowing around the edges, go slowly and wiggle the mower side-to-side as you go around.

This will attack the ridges at an acute angle. Also change mowing direction daily.

A PSM mower is good to use, as they have a longer wheel base.

Weather watch According to the Bureau of Meteorology’s long range forecast, the February to April period has a “40 to 60 per cent” chance of exceeding the median rainfall range.

Which means there is not a strong tendency for either a wetter or drier February to April.

Compared to the outlook issued last month (for January to March), the February to April outlook shows a reduced chance of below average rainfall over drought affected Qld regions and northern NSW. So while it’s not great news for those of us waiting for good soaking rains, it’s slightly more encouraging news than last month! v37/3

From the Chair with Ron Chambers TEST SERIES Congratulations to all who performed with distinction for Queensland in a tough test series against NSW at Port Macquarie at the end of January.

In the men’s comp, the award for best performed senior male player was won by Darren Mullens and best U25 player was Jay Cross.

In the women’s comp, the best performed senior player was Samantha Wilson and U25 was Madison Styles.

The games were played on good greens, with pleasant weather conditions, in a competitive and friendly environment.

Our senior and U25 men’s team played very well on the first day, only to be beaten by a narrow margin on the second day.

Our women’s teams all played well, testing new combinations in both open and under 25 teams.

Gun Greenies Wanted Bowlers wanted to represent Queensland at national greenkeeper bowling championships in Canberra If you’re a bowling greenkeeper, you’re invited to represent your state in an interstate test series in Canberra, May 3-10.

‘We’re looking for more greenkeepers to represent Queensland at the Australian Greenkeepers Association Federation Week bowls carnival,” Gold Coast Greenkeepers Association secretary Graeme Perry said.

“Our reps will receive a Queensland uniform of jacket, shirt and hat or cap.”

Windsor’s Dan Bull (pictured) is in training, a supporter of the competition going back 25 years.

“It’s held every three years and I always go, for the friendships, the education and great competition,” Bull said.

“Most of the greenkeepers I know, with the exception of me, are very good bowlers!

“Many bowl for their states, so it’s an excellent standard of competition.”

Bull has been a greenkeeper for 30 years, since he started an apprenticeship at Moorooka Bowls Club when he was 19.

“There’s always more to learn about greenkeeping,” Bull said, “and standing on a green next v37/3

to other greenkeepers, we’ve always got something to talk about.

“I had a breakthrough in treating ERI, an ectotrophic root-infecting fungi, which I was able to pass on, but what’s also important, with chemicals costing a fortune, is to tell each other what not to buy!”

“You hear it, don’t buy that, don’t waste your club’s money.”

About 160 bowling greenkeepers from Queensland, NSW, Victoria and South Australia attend and there’s always a ‘play day’ in the middle of the week for visitors to experience the host area.

“We’ve been to the MCG, where Hawthorne had been playing that morning, suddenly these footies materialised out of pockets, we had a kick at the MCG,” Bull said.

“This year we’ll probably go to Parliament House and Canberra Stadium.”

Bull said with around 80 clubs in the south-east corner, he’s hoping Queensland will field a powerful contingent of about 45 greenkeepers for the 2014 comp.

Although Queensland did not win, the experience gained in playing in these tests will greatly assist players in the upcoming Australian sides tournament, to be contested in Tasmania in May. VALE JOSEPH WENHAM On behalf of the Bowls Queensland board and the Queensland bowls community, I’d like to express our sincere condolences to former board member Diana Wenham from Dalby on the unexpected death of her son Joseph.

Diane has been a valuable asset to Bowls Queensland in recent years, holding the position of Director and Director of Finance, as well as being a member on a number of committees.

Diana, we are thinking of you in this sad time and we hope to see you back in bowls administration at some time in the future.

DEVELOPMENT OFFICERS Bowls Queensland welcomes Greg Cawley, Charlie Harkness and Daryl Francey as state development officers.

Our state now has development officers based in Townsville, Maryborough and Enoggera to assist clubs in all areas of the State.

Promotional vans will be situated in these areas for clubs to use to recruit new members.

These vans can be placed in shopping centres or at the club on “Come and Try” days.

Our development officers can help with club administration, tournaments and general problems, with back up support from our CEO, BQ committees and BQ staff.

For further information, contact Bowls Queensland, (07) 3355 9988.

(Registration is $360. Inquiries to Graeme Perry 0419 727 628.) queensland bowler | 25

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Calling the shots!

Last month I looked at Section 8 of the Laws of the Sport, which covers Play, Players and their Duties.

This month I will cover Section 9 (page 73 – 75). I cannot stress enough how important this section is, as it covers the result of an end and any mistake made can make a difference.

I recommend that both Laws 39 and 40 be read in full as they explain the correct procedures for deciding the shot and deciding the number of shots scored.

These laws must be strictly adhered to at all times. If they are, then players should not make any mistakes.

Law 39 – The Shot & Law 40 – Deciding the number of shots scored: The important aspects of these laws that players and umpires must remember are: (1) A leaning bowl may be propped or supported AT ANY TIME during the process of measuring (40.6.1 and 40.6.2) as shown in Fig. 1. While the 30 seconds delay refers to the last bowl to be played, it also applies to any other bowl that falls in this period 30 | queensland bowler

with

joan brotherton

(40.1 and 40.2). So if either skip or opponent in singles asks for this 30-second period (for example, to see whether or not a bowl lying at an angle will fall of its own accord within that time) no bowl which is likely to fall should be secured during that period.

(2) If a bowl or bowls fall prior to or during measuring they shall remain where they lie and the result determined even though the fallen bowl or bowls has altered the likely result (40.6.3).

(3) If that fallen bowl is now closer to the jack than any other bowl which has already been agreed to by the players at the head end, the agreed bowl/s all count and this fallen bowl may possibly be the next shot. If it is a bowl belonging to the opponent of the player who has already received several shots, the fallen bowl is now closest to the jack, the agreed shots count and no further shots will count, but none are subtracted from the original count, just because the fallen bowl may now be closer then one previously agreed as a counter (40.6.3). So you can understand the importance of your decision whether to secure the bowl or not.

Continued ► v37/3

An umpire when called to measure for shot, must first determine whether any bowls are likely to fall and possibly affect the result. If there are such bowls the umpire MUST secure them.

For an umpire to start measuring and not secure any bowl likely to fall or be moved, is an invitation to a disaster. Even though several minutes may have elapsed from the last bowl to the umpire’s arrival, never assume that all bowls are “safe”. Better to secure a bowl, than to be caught by a fall and look and feel incompetent.

VERY IMPORTANT: Players should never move a bowl under any condition, until it is agreed by both players in charge of the head. Such a disturbance by a player, other than a player in charge of the head, could involve an umpire to determine if the movement of the bowl was a deliberate attempt to take an unfair advantage.

That is why it would be wise for all other players to wait until the decision is made before touching any bowls.

See Diagram 10 (below), showing how all measurements should be made between the nearest points of the jack and the bowl (Law 40.4).

Fig. 1

Law 41 – No Shot scored – tied end: ► 41.1 There will be no shot scored by either team if it is agreed that: ► 41.1.1 the nearest bowl of each team is touching the jack - as shown in Fig. 2 ► 41.1.2 the nearest bowl of each team is the same distance from the jack - as shown in Fig. 3 ► 41.1.3 no live bowls are left within the boundaries of the rink of play.

The above is self explanatory, however umpires are invariably asked “What do we do on the score card?”

The score from the previous end is moved down one space because this is a played end and counts as a completed end as stated in Law 41.2. It is a good idea but not necessary to make a mark in the margin (Fig 4) which will save the selectors/match committee getting confused when checking cards later, depending on what type of competition or result is needed.

Fig. 2

Law 42 – Delivering the final bowl of an end: It is not compulsory for the last player to play in any end, to deliver the final bowl of the end, but the player should tell the opposing skip or opponent in singles of the decision not to deliver the final bowl before the process of deciding the number of shots scored starts (as described in Law 40.1).

This decision is final. It is important also that the player does not release their bowl until the players at the head end have declared the head and moved the bowls.

I am in favour of carrying the final bowl up the green to a player at the head end similar to when replaying a dead end.

I hope the above helps you when playing your various games and that you do read the laws referring to each situation.

Fig. 3

DIAGRAM 10

ALL MEASUREMENTS SHALL BE MADE TO THE NEAREST POINT OF EACH OBJECT. IE. THE NEAREST PORTIONS OF THE JACK AND BOWL. Measurement Required.

A X

Y B

A - B is the shortest distance. All measuring must be carried out on this line.

X & Y are the horizontal centres of the jack and bowl. v37/3

Fig. 4 queensland bowler | 31

Changes to privacy laws I sometimes think that the world has gone crazy with protecting privacy rights, and that there is an imbalance.

However, if you accept the principle that the law generally reflects the social mores of society, then people want more privacy.

As a result, there have been changes to the Privacy Laws for Queensland which you need to be aware of.

This will relate particularly to carefully considering how you use information collected for either data dumps, or emails to your prospective client base.

All clubs will need to review and amend their privacy policy and practices before 12 March 2014 when substantial changes to the Privacy Act 1988 (Act) (Privacy Act) will commence.

The current policies and practices that most clubs have in place, will not be adequate to deal with the changes.

The amendments to the Privacy Act, are focused on ensuring privacy laws keep up with our ever changing technological and social environment.

SUMMARY OF THE CHANGES 1. Collection You will only be able to collect personal information (from an individual or entity) if it is reasonably necessary to your clubs’ functions or activities. If you receive personal information that is unsolicited, generally you will need to dispose of, or de-identify, the information.

When collecting personal information, you must make individuals aware of a number of matters including the purpose of collecting the information, who will use the information and how the individual can access and correct their privacy information which you hold about them. If your club engages in outsourcing to offshore entities and personal information is being shared, or if there is

with

Curt schatz

a risk that it may be, you will need to alert individuals of this, detail which agents or entities will have access to their information and receive consent from the individual before it discloses the personal information.

2. Storage and Maintenance You will need to ensure that adequate security measures are taken to securely store personal information. If you provide information to any offshore entity (such as a web host) you must take steps to ensure that they treat the information appropriately.

Individuals will have greater rights to access and ensure the accuracy of their personal information which you hold.

3. Use You will not be able to use personal information for direct marketing, unless you fall under an exception in the Privacy Act. The exceptions include where an individual has a reasonable expectation that their personal information will be used for direct marketing, or if they have consented to their personal information being used for this purpose.

Even if an individual consents, you must comply with the SPAM Act and the material must contain a prominent opt-out statement.

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO To ensure your club complies with the legislative changes by March 2014, you should begin to: 1. Amend your privacy policy and makes changes.

You will need to review your privacy policy and make amendments to it, to bring it in line with the changes to the Privacy Act. Your current privacy policy will be insufficient after March 2014. You should also consider whether it is necessary to review your terms and conditions and other points of contact with customers, suppliers and others to ensure they comply.

2. Review your practices and make changes.

You should consider how you collect personal information, what you do with personal information and how privacy operates within your business. For example, if you use personal information to assist in compiling marketing lists, store personal information in your company records or give any other entity or individual information that contains personal information, it is likely you will need to amend your practises to ensure you comply with the Privacy Act, including identifying the source of the information and whether the individual consented to the use of their information for marketing purposes.

3. Educate staff about the changes.

All staff members that come in contact personal information will need to be briefed on the legislative changes and the procedures that your business intends to put in place to comply with the Privacy Act. FAILURE TO TAKE ACTION Clubs who fail to comply with the changes may be investigated by the Australian Information Commissioner, whose powers have been expanded by the legislative changes. The Commissioner may investigate companies on its own accord, without having received a complaint. Serious or repeated breaches of personal privacy may attract prosecution with penalties of up to $1.1 million for corporations and $220,000 for non-corporate entities.

This is expected to be a hot topic this year. We have seen high profile examples of breaches being prosecuted overseas, such as Facebook in Europe and Google in the US. Mullins can assist in reviewing your privacy policy and advising on practices your business should put in place to comply with the amendments to the Privacy Act. If you have any queries in relation to this matter, please contact my Partner, Andrew Nicholson directly on (07) 3224 0261.

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For more information contact: Curt Schatz, Partner

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

32 | queensland bowler

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Welcome to the Queensland Bowler March edition of Henselite’s Spot the Jack competition.

Simply put an X where you think the missing jack was located in this picture, fill in your details below and send this page to:

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queensland bowler | 33

Coaching juniors

with

Try to Understand the person behind the mask

Ian Schuback OAM

It is wonderful to join you in Queensland Bowler magazine this month to discuss the fine and at times frustrating world of coaching.

I’m a firm believer in NOT coaching players, especially juniors, while they’re playing.

Over coming issues I will discuss the support mechanisms that players and coaches need, including great clubs, events and sponsors.

As a coach, try to observe and note what’s working, what’s not and what’s missing, with a view towards improving future performances.

This month, I would like to address junior coaching.

This should be discussed after the game, but not immediately after a loss.

With state selector Pam Maitland in attendance, I was pleased to be part of the team hosting some of Queensland’s most talented youngsters at Club Kawana for a recent Junior-Senior competition.

Waiting a few hours or several days will often prove more beneficial.

I coach at Club Kawana because it’s a great place to be.

The timing of well meant advice is important.

The club is committed to promoting bowls and developing junior talent through high performance coaching, including hosting junior events that have attracted Queensland reps such as Connie and Rebecca Rixon, Madi Styles and Joel and Kiani Andersen.

Not rushing right in to seize the moment will often be more effective and minimise any possible detrimental psychological effects on young players.

I am passionate about coaching all players, especially juniors, as they are the future of our sport.

They will ensure the sport’s continuity and growth.

Playing last month alongside ten-year old North Dalby pocket rocket, Jake ‘Rhino’ Rynne, it took my mind back to when I was regarded as the youngest competitive player in the country, at 30 years of age.

How times have changed!

What coaching isn’t…

Hopefully this advice will assist coaches to become more aware of the impact of criticism.

“Over enthusiastic” parents and dominant coaches drive many kids away from the sports they love.

Bowls is no exception.

At competitions, I have noticed a worrying trend of some coaches telling players which shots to play, almost every end.

Seeing youngsters running up to the bank, bowl after bowl, to seek advice from their coach may be seen as beneficial by some.

One of the quickest and most effective ways to learn anything is from experiencing failure.

Losses provide a great opportunity for coaches to offer positive reinforcement by analysing the areas of the game that require extra training and focus.

Losses also highlight just how ‘coachable’ an athlete is in terms of embracing honest feedback and demonstrating their willingness to work on improving any technical, tactical or mental shortcomings.

This type of coaching can take weeks, months and sometimes years before tangible signs, like winning a major tournament, can be achieved.

Effective coaching is all about developing talent, and that takes time.

Try spending more time understanding the person behind the mask than “coaching” during your next game.

You may be surprised at what you see!

Next month, I’ll write about the sort of attributes a coach might look for when trying to identify the next club, state, national or world champion.

Until

then....good

bowling

coaching)!

(and

Shuey

However, it’s more likely to produce a counterproductive result.

The best way to increase this is to provide vibrant junior programs and hold more events to attract young players.

Effectively, this practise inhibits a player’s confidence and hinders their ability to develop their own skills to read a head and make their own decisions.

It is also important to provide Queensland’s plethora of junior talent with access to regular coaching, mentoring and challenging match play.

Tactical awareness is better learnt from experience rather than hand fed instruction.

However, bowls continues to suffer from low junior membership.

And if they fail, even that’s not such a bad thing!

For Forall allthe the best best news, views views and and comps compsmake make sure sure you you get get your copy copy of of the the

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