In 1988 I bowled my first wood on a bowling green aged 10 years old. I use the word “wood” in the true context as the only bowls small enough for me were the old lignum vitae bowls found collecting dust in many a club around the country. This was my first experience of the sport I have now loved for 27 years but also an indication of the lack of support for young bowlers taking up the game at the time.
It was very tough to get involved in any teams at my first club due to there being a blatant disregard for young players being allowed on the green mixing with senior gentleman. This unwritten rule has come back to bite a lot of clubs on the backside as I now see the once strong clubs disappearing due to having no young blood progressing through the ranks to keep the legacy of decades of history alive. Unfortunately this is becoming an ever increasing occurrence and I sometimes wonder whether any of the jobsworth characters who seem to litter many a club ever feel any guilt when they see their club close its doors for the final time.
The dress code in this era was still very much regimented and it was very rare you could turn up for club or county without wearing the full regalia of blazer, tie, tailored grey trousers and shoes that you could see your reflection in. If this wasn’t bad enough for a teenage boy then you also had an extra stone in weight due to badges pinned all the way down the blazer lapels. To say it was not easy seeing your friends looking like a school teacher would be an understatement but these were the standards of the sport so they were to be respected. Compare this to the clothing the men generally wear today and the difference is unrecognisable.
I always remember certain things that I observed as I was growing up in the sport that were signs of the progression that would take place bringing us up to the present day. The first of which was seeing players play in white shoes with their grey trousers on. At the time this was as rare as hens teeth and these players were seen to be big headed and thinking they were better than the average player. Who do they think they are not wearing brown bowling shoes? I remember thinking to myself that one day I wanted to be good enough to wear white shoes with my greys. Yes I agree it is as ridiculous as it sounds! The second thing was the introduction of coloured bowls. This was outrageous and was a total fad. It will never ever catch on as everyone will see your bad bowls sticking out like a sore thumb. “Stick to black or brown son because you don’t want to look like an idiot”. Slowly but surely the game was starting to progress and an appeal to new young bowlers was taking place.
Those with bowling savvy knew that something had to be done to recruit young players and the current dress code and outdated equipment was never going to encourage this. In contrast the coloured team shirts, tracksuits and trainers of today seem to be having a very positive effect with younger players starting the game.
I have been lucky enough throughout my bowling career to have worked within bowls retail doing many a roadshow around the country and meeting a lot of fantastic people along the way. This opportunity also kept my finger on the pulse with regards to the new lines of clothing and equipment hitting the market and seeing the progression first hand but one thing was always a constant issue for as long as I remember. A high percentage of women would pick up a top and then immediately put it down insisting they would not be allowed to wear it due to having colour on it. I would look in disbelief at the statement and question why such a rule was in place. “that’s just the way it is” would be the answer and a plain white top would be purchased instead. Now bearing in mind this would be around 20 years ago I appreciated that maybe the ladies game was taking a little longer to accept progress than the men and things would soon change. How wrong could I be…
Having taken time out of the retail side of the sport for a number of years I have very recently decided to start up my own bowls business knowing there is some amazing bowls clothing and equipment available from manufacturers around the world and feel the organisations are doing a lot of work to encourage new players and especially focusing on youth participation. It was to my dismay that having sold a very nice ladies bowling top with navy and light blue around the neck line my customer brought it back to me the following day. I was asked for a refund due to her not being allowed to wear it as it was not plain white. I was staggered to see that the same issues I had encountered 20 years previous were still being enforced today. This made me think of how many young lady bowlers there were in and around my area and I could think of only a handful. A very harsh and disappointing statistic and it took me right back to my younger days when starting out.
Why are the people who are implementing these rules hell bent on holding the sport back? Do they seriously think that young girls of today are going to be seen in an outfit that lost its place in the last century? Do they not question why they are struggling to sustain membership due to a lack of recruitment? Are they blinkered when it comes to seeing young women competing in major world tournaments wearing quality, up to date, colourful clothing or are they putting 2 and 2 together and getting 5?
I do not know how common this is around the British isles but it is certainly alive and kicking in my area and I feel it is time for people to put their foot down and stand up to this dictatorship. So many want the change but the minority are winning the battle and killing our sport. It is really time to wake up and do what is right for the future and hopefully it is not too late to repair some of the year’s of damage.
Rules have been implemented to allow working ladies the opportunity to play competitions on a night instead of during the day which has also contributed heavily to non participation in the past. A step in the right direction but still lots of work to be done.
I am quite sure similar issues are still being found within the men’s game but I do feel it is currently in a much healthier place than the ladies. Stop creating pointless barriers and start to move with the times!