Bowls, a sport defying predictions in Southland

“There’s a lot of people around that 40-age getting into it now, and they are starting with fun. There’s a lot of corporate functions and a lot of people are now doing the Friday night bowls."

Some in Southland were drafting an obituary for the sport of bowls a few years back.

The sport was in natural decline.

There was a feeling the sport was for older folks, and as they departed there wouldn’t be the numbers coming through for bowls to remain relevant.

Wrong.

Bowls in Southland has just experienced its most encouraging season in many years. Both in terms of participation and results.

Bowls’ suggested looming death was premature it seems.

Bowls Southland is holding its own with 1266 members, an increase of less than 100 compared to over a year ago. That small increase is being hailed as a big victory for the sport.

Bowls Southland executive manager Simon Flett said last season they had 538 people compete across championship events and that had increased to 609 in the season just finished.

“In the grand scheme of things it doesn’t sound like a massive increase, but you lose a hell of a lot at the other end with the nature of our sport.”

All up Southland has 36 bowls clubs throughout the province. Arguably that’s too many clubs for the number of players, but let’s leave that debate for a later date.

Flett has a few theories as to why bowls has managed to hold its own in a climate where many activities compete for people’s time.

He paid tribute to the work the clubs had done.

“Clubs have got off their bums, so to speak, and have been proactive. Bowls Southland has also done what we can to support, promote, and help where we can too.”

“If you got to the likes of the Waihopai club for argument’s sake they’ve gone from 112 members to 131.”

Flett believed the willingness for clubs to engage people in a social format had flowed into more people taking up the sport competitively.

“There’s a lot of people around that 40-age getting into it now, and they are starting with fun. There’s a lot of corporate functions and a lot of people are now doing the Friday night bowls, but not pressuring them into joining.”

He feels the perception of bowls being a sport for older people had also changed with more younger people getting involved.

Having a person like Sheldon Bagrie-Howley flying the flag at the elite level had played a role in changing that perception, Flett said.

In January 27-year-old Bagrie-Howley won the national men’s singles title, becoming the first Southlander to win the title since it was first played for in 1915.

Bagrie-Howley has since been selected in the New Zealand men’s team. Flett said he was a great ambassador for the sport in Southland.

Included in the lengthy list of encouraging performances from Southland bowlers in the season just finished was the Gore Bowls Club winning the National Men’s Interclub Sevens title.

Bagrie-Howley was also part of that team.