Click on any name below

disclaimer: Bedford Bowling Club has no association with these comments.

One Blue North/South--David Goddard

September 8, 2005

Scotty, you display the typical inner city mentality regarding travel. Did you apply the same distance criteria to Safety Bay? The distance saved in travelling is much greater under your 1 blue placings.Think about us on the periphery, Dave.
You are probably right as far as calling 1 white 2nd division and so on, but look at all the egos you just bruised!! I think a Premier division followed by a first division,second division and so on is the way to go.

David Goddard
Back to Top

One Blue North/South---David Scott

September 6, 2005

SHERRO

Reference the introduction of two 1-Blue Divisions in Saturday pennants for the coming season.

If Bowls WA had maintained separate 1-Blue and 1-Gold divisions for the coming season, the Divisions would have lined up as follows:

1-Blue ---------------------------------------------1-Gold
Bassendean -------------------------------------- Cambridge
Bedford -------------------------------------------Dalkeith-Nedlands
Carlisle-Lathlain --------------------------------Gosnells
Doubleview--------------------------------------- Manning
East Fremantle -----------------------------------Morrison Park
Hilton Park ---------------------------------------Nollamara
Melville -------------------------------------------Rockingham
Osborne Park -------------------------------------Safety Bay
Spearwood ----------------------------------------Sorrento
Sportsmens ---------------------------------------South Perth

It looks to me that the line-up for 2005-06 will be:

1-Blue North -----------------------------------1-Blue South
Bassendean ------------------------------------ Carlisle-Lathlain
Bedford -----------------------------------------East Fremantle
Cambridge --------------------------------------Gosnells
Dalkeith-Nedlands ---------------------------- Hilton Park
Doubleview ------------------------------------- Manning
Morrison Park ----------------------------------Melville
Nollamara --------------------------------------Rockingham
Osborne Park -----------------------------------Safety Bay
Sorrento ---------------------------------------- South Perth
Sportsmens -------------------------------------Spearwood

Interesting that Bedford would travel an average of 16.8kms per away game if teams were to remain under the previous 1-Blue format. Under the 1-Blue North format, bedford will travel an average of 11.9kms per away game - a saving of only 4.9kms per game. Not the sort of saving in travel that I thought would warrent your undivided support.

I assume that there will be only one promotion promotion and two demotions from each of the 1-Blue Divisions at the end of the season. Will we end up with the situation of having the awarding of two 1-Blue Pennants at the end of the season - or will there be a play-off between the top teams (or two teams?) from both Divisions to determine the Pennant winner?

My personal feeling is that this is not a progressive move by Bowls WA. There will be a significant difference between the top and bottom teams in both divisions under the new format, which will lead to an overall drop in week-to-week playing strength in the competition.

Why don't we be realistic in naming Divisions? The reality is that 1-Red is 1st Division, 1-White is 2nd Division, 1-Blue (now North and South) is/are 3rd Division, the four Second Divisions are 4th Division, the eight Third Divisions are 5th Division, the seven Fourth Divisions are 6th Division, and the fifth Division sides are in fact 7th Division.

dave Scott
Back to Top

Narrow bias bowls ---David Goddard

September 5, 2005

Well done to John Sheridan and Clive Adams in getting to the Indoor Champs.
I read with great interest the comments John and Clive made and I couldn\'t agree more.
I watched Nathan Rice play Russ Meyer in the Australia v New Zealand singles clash on ABC and thought the bowls used there seemed narrow, but put that down to camera angles and that sort of thing. But reading your articles confirmed my worse fears.
I thought there was a certain minimum bias that bowls had to be---this must have been reduced even more. I use ABT 2000 and they were challenged not that long ago regarding their narrow bias. Dreamlines and Redlines kill them for line.
When I played in the National Blind Championships in Adelaide recently, a player from NSW used an Almark Edge brand, an English bowl on sale here in Australia.
On a 16 second tiftdwarf green, those bowls would not be drawing a yard. I questionerd Bowls Australia and Bowls WA regarding their legality, but received no reply.
In Tennis (I use this game because it is compared to bowls regarding the use of sets) it is illegal to consult the coach during a match. Surely if a player is regarded as good enough to represent their country, they should be able to think for themselves regarding shot selection.
As you say, where is the game headed?
It is fast having nothing to do with the ordinary club player.

cheers
Dave Goddard

Back to Top

 

Australian Indoor Championships Summary----Clive Adams

AUGUST 29, 2005

Well, having just returned from my first crack at the Australian Indoor Championships I can certainly say it was a wonderful learning experience and one that I hope to experience again soon

.Clive Adams and John Sheridan were the two WA qualifiers along with WA’s Australian Development Squad member Anthony Provost. For the Ladies we had Therese Hastings and Lee Poletti with Australian Squad member Roma Dunn.

All looked good after the first day, with 5 of the 6 WA players advancing to the last 16 (Poletti losing to in form Brenda Thompson), however it got tough from there. Adams lost to Russell Green, Sheridan lost to Steve Glasson and Hastings lost to Thompson. In the next round Dunn was defeated by Katrina Wright and Provost lost to Scott Caundle therefore ending WA’s tilt at the title.

In the end Glasson took the Mens Crown for the ninth time in ten years and Maria Rigby took the Ladies title.There were many issues that arose during the competition some of which I will discuss below:

------------------------------------COACHING

Under International Rules, a player competing in a Singles match can have a nominated coach available for consultation at any time during a match. This includes discussing tactics etc as well as advice on actual shot selection prior to a bowl being played.

As the Australian Indoor Championships were played under International Rules, the Australian coaches were quite open in coaching members of the Australian Squad during their matches. Whilst this is within the rules and the reason used is that they are preparing for the Commonwealth Games one really must ask if it is in the true spirit of competition.

A Singles match should, in my opinion, be a match of talent between two players and that is it – it should not involve anyone else. Tactics, shot selection etc are elements of our game that a player must consider all the way through the match whilst also concentrating on the game at hand – this is part of the skill of the game and should not be diluted by the use of a coach.

Further, should a player have a coach on hand, it should be the player who approaches the coach, not the other way around. There were instances during the tournament where the coach of a player actually called the player over to them for a discussion.

I am unaware of the complete guidelines for the behaviour of a coach and despite looking through the Internet I am unable to find any rules discussing coaching.
My concern is will we end up with a situation where, in effect, we will have a non-playing skipper during Singles matches who simply stands down the other end and calls the shots. I feel a certain polish of a great shot in a Singles match is taken away if you didn’t find the shot yourself and it had to be called for you.

-----------------------------BOWLS AND THE BIAS

A few years ago, when I made my debut of the State, I realised during the Sides Series that I was giving people a start by using the bowls I was using. Mine were simply too wide drawing compared to the players we were competing against.
As a result I upgraded to a new set of bowls and have enjoyed the change.

The “tightness” of the bowls that are now being used must be seen to be believed. One of the major interests in our sport stems from people seeing the bowl go out on its arc and then see the bias take over and the bowls come drifting in – this is being eroded by the bowls of the new age.

I have never been one to criticise the narrower bowls feeling that you must still pick the right line and weight to produce a good bowl, but we are now at the point where the bowls are travelling close to straight up the green (with maybe a foot to two feet of grass). This cannot augur well for our sport.

----------------AUSTRALIAN SQUAD AND AUTOMATIC ENTRY

The question must be asked whether it is fair for the Australian Squad members to be given automatic entry into each of the Grand Prix events, especially given that half the squad is a development squad of Under-25 players. This methodology assumes that the Under-25 group of players is better than the group of players just outside the Australian Squad which is most likely not to be the case.

I agree that some players should be given automatic entry but this should not be something that players take for granted. I question whether some of the players receiving automatic entry really appreciate the significance of the event they are playing in and the opportunity they are being given.

Certainly all of the qualifiers for the Australian Indoor were extremely determined to do well having earned a spot in the field – I did not get this impression from some of the other players.

---------------------------------- QUALITY OF PLAY

The quality of play is another aspect that must be seen to be believed. For those who are endeavouring to qualify for this event in the coming years be very aware that you will need to be right on top of your game to make inroads on the Indoor surface.

The game becomes easier on the Indoor surface with the elements taken out, however this simply results in a higher standard game where you must be all the more closer to the jack to be any chance of retaining shot.

For example, a bowl 8 inches away from the jack is very unlikely to remain shot at the end of an end. Where a bowl is good outdoors (say within a foot), it is simply too far away indoors.

-------------------------------- INDOOR SURFACE

The indoor surface plays very consistently – there are some tricks, but they are constant and can be played for. All around the surface is very good and gives good reward for good bowls.

WA can dream of one day having a complex with an indoor green. It is yet another area of the game where WA is finding itself a bit left behind in the fact that we have nowhere comparable to practice prior to make the trip east.

---------------------- PROMOTION OF THE COMPETITION

I must say that I was most disappointed with the promotional literature sold at Tweed for the event. The programme was billed as a programme for the event, when really it was a listing of profiles of all the Australian Squad members plus a couple of players who are close to the squad.

To be a true programme, it should have included a small profile of each player regardless of their Australian Squad status or not.

---------------------- GRAND PRIX EVENTS AND W.A.

Players who are not based on the East Coast are finding it very difficult to be involved in the new Grand Prix setup. To be included in Australian rankings these days players really need to be travelling to all the Grand Prix events and giving themselves a chance.

Given the non-professional nature of bowlers in WA (in that everyone must work for a living, not play bowls), players must use holidays etc. to get to events. This is a very costly exercise and does take away any opportunity to use well earned holidays for any other purpose.

It is imperative that Bowls WA find a way of hosting one of the events here – to give WA bowlers a chance to shine at the highest level without being at the disadvantages of travel and cost. Hosting an event is a very costly exercise in itself and one wonders whether it can happen but we really need to be seriously looking at it. I realise the date that was offered this year was completely unsuitable as it was out of season, but perhaps another date could be looked at.

Many players on the Eastern seaboard have indicated to me that they would like to come over here and play in some events but there is nothing attractive enough. Perhaps if we had a Grand Prix event, other events could be organised by Clubs surrounding the event making for some profitable carnivals for Clubs in WA.

---------------------------------CONCLUSION

The Grand Prix events are a great innovation but there are certainly areas where things can be improved and levelled out to present a more even competition and opportunity for all players.
Back to Top

Narrow Bias bowls----John Sheridan

August 27.2005.

Having just spent a week at Tweed Heads playing in the Aust. Indoor Singles, I was absolutely astounded at the bowls most players used..

As I used what I considered to be minimum bias bowls, imagine my surprise when most, if not all, bowls used took a line at least ONE METRE inside my line...

I realise the same option was open to me, and this is in no way sour grapes, but for crying out loud, where will it stop. The entire Aust. sqad had \"tight\" bowls given to them, and this in itself represents an unfair advantage.

But I will qualify my remarks by saying that Steve Glasson would still have won the event if ALL competitors he faced were to use a wider drawing bowl.

My concern is simply this...Where will it stop ??

Back to Top

Sets Play ---Cedric R. Netscher

June 18, 2005

Dear Sherro
I was interested to read your article and some others re your State Association implementing sets play this year for your State Championships.

As we know, Bowls Australia has implemented this format for the Australian open in March each year and the State winners have automatic entry into it. Accordingly, Queensland, thinking it was doing the right thing by our players by giving them experience in this type of game, ran our State Championships last May under the Bowls Australia format.

The feedback that we received from National players like Kelvin Kerkow, Mark Casey, Shane Globits and others in our State squad was, that if we have it next year the entries will be down very considerably. This was the general opinion all round. They were down a lot even this year. It was pointed out to us, that when it all boiled down, there are only six persons who go on to play in the Australian Open so why penalize everyone by playing this format.

Other problems experienced were at the clubs where events were held. Although we went to great lengths to run seminars for games controllers, umpires etc, and gave them sample score sheets etc, they still managed to make a complete mess of the scoring. Many of them used their own methods whereby they gave ½ points for a drawn set in sectional play because they considered that it was fair. We had to prepare special score sheets for sectional play and also have new scorecards made. Greens have to be marked for spotting the jack.

It is my candid opinion that this format is only useful for televised matches. It does nothing for the players or spectators. As you mentioned, players scoring the most total shots in the two main sets can lose a match.

We have normally played traditional singles, Pairs and fours in our State Championships but, to bring the format into line with what Bowls Australia are doing, we played 4 bowl Singles, 2 bowl pairs and Triples.
Players found the Pairs particularly devastating.

Our Ladies who have their State Championships in September were intending to run them under the sets format but have now decided to revert to the traditional formats. Our Men’s Championships next year will follow suit.

To sum up, sets play at Club/State level is disastrous!!

Cedric R Netscher
Member, Bowls Queensland Match Committee.

Back to Top

Sets Play--David Scott

April 13, 2005
The Bowls WA Executive Committee have indeed recommended that the State Championships go to sets play, as per the Australian Open (refer Minutes of 21 March on Bowls WA web-site).

They do,however, propose to invite submissions on the matter from clubs/bowlers (whether any notice is taken of such submissions is another matter!). It is interesting that the sets play \'rules\' adopted for the Australian Open are NOT the rules as set out in \'The Laws of the Game of Bowls in Australia\'. Law 51 sets out the Rules of Sets Play, summarized as follows: .

All sets in singles shall be 7 shots up (although the controlling body may set a larger number of shots up for exhibition games) . All sets shall be 5 completed ends for team events (with an extra end to be played to determine the winner of a tied set) . Games may be 3 or 5 sets.

The Controlling Body of an event may vary the Rules of Play. For example, Law 31B specifically determines how a game or competition shall be played without dead-ends.

In summary, if Bowls WA go ahead with the proposal to play State Events under sets play conditions, it is most important that it very clearly indicates \'what\' rules it proposes - as per the Laws of the Game?, as exactly as played in the Australian Open? (in which case these Rules have to be clearly defined), or some other variation?

Personally, I am ambivalent about sets play. It took me ages to get used to tie-breaker points in tennis matches (instead of sets being played to a two-game advantage), but it is now just part of the game. Similarly with sets play in bowls - any \'change\' is difficult to accept at first, but if it improves the overall game, it will grow on participants.

I guess Roma Dunn would have felt hard done by if she had lost the tie-break in the Australian Open Singles Final after having scored more points - overall - than her opponent. But this situation can occur in tennis (where sets play is the means of determining game results). It will be interesting to see what the opinion of clubs/members are when Bowls WA invite submissions.

David Scott
Back to Top

Reply to David Scott on State side performance

June 5, 2004: Just a quick response to David Scott in relation to his letter regarding the state squad and the demise of our earlier success in the state series...David, have you EVER been to the Eastern states, and seen the number of games played there ?? Have you ever seen the fanatical way the game is approached ??

Up until the last few seasons of the W.A pennant season W.A was the envy of every other state...The RED division played against each other on a very regular basis, and this in turn developed a very healthy competition...Top players playing each other..regularly !!! This in turn was enough to develop a very healthy attitude to WINNING..The overall success of the teams of that era was by no means lucky...The players selected COULD PLAY BOWLS...The fact that they were selected from the RED division primarily only punctuated the fact that they were more than capable of holding their own against all comers..

The demise of our team can be attributed to one thing, and one thing only.! ..\"We must promote YOUTH\"...Even if they are completely inept at competing at the top level...Just ask some of the OLDTIMERS...Guys who could then, and still now, hold their own against the best Bowlers Australia could put in front of them...Form bowlers, not some young guy who happens to win some event that carries a title...People like Brian Katunarich ( lost to the state side because a particular selector \didn't like what he said\), Dennis Katunarich ( lost to the state side because he\ didn't eat lunch\, but accumulated over 250 games for Australia), Stewart Davies ( lost to the state side because he enjoyed a beer), Ron Taylor ( lost to the state side because a young guy won a state junior, repeat, JUNIOR, title)..I could go on, but hopefully you get the idea...GOOD BOWLERS ARE HARD TO COME BY, AND JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE YOUNG DOESN'T NECCESARILY MEAN THAT YOU ARE A COMPETENT BOWLER...

John Sheridan

Back to Top

---

STATE SIDE PERFORMANCE

May 14, 2004: The WA State Side has nose-dived over the past few years - from being among the premier Bowls States, to fighting it out for last place with the NT and ACT (which, by the way, are not even States!). The decline coincided with the dumping of the State's two best bowlers and the decision to select players on \'potential\', rather than \'performance\'. The common lament excusing this decline has been \'lack of regular tough competition\'. And what has our State Body done to rectify this situation?

Well may you ask - I cannot put my finger on the initiatives introduced to strengthen our State Team performances. Certainly, Bowls WA have NOT provided a forum/competition whereby the best bowlers in the State will regularly compete against one another. (I understand that 1-Red bowlers themselves voted against the formation of a premier league separate from the existing pennant competition - on the basis that \'it would be too much bowls\'.)

One proposal which I have heard, is for Bowls WA to select no more than two players from any one Club in the State Team. This would have the effect of evening out the 1-Red competition and thus providing tight competition each week for these bowlers - rather than the situation we have at present whereby (currently Doubleview) have maybe a dozen State or potential State Representatives in their top side, and seem not to put much effort at all into their bowls for the first half of each year.

Another proposal would be to have a premier league of eight sides of twelve players each. The premier league sides being permitted to select a squad for the season of, say 16 - from ANY Club in their respective region. This would enable players like Anthony Provost and Clive Adams to participate in high-level matches on a regular basis, without having to desert their \'home\' clubs. Maybe thereafter have a draft system similar to the AFL in an effort to provide eight sides of similar strength. But the most important thing for Bowls WA to do is to ensure that the State Side is selected on \'performance\'

David Scott

Back to Top