No that is a load of rubbish.
People continually post what needs to be changed, what effects the game of bowling, how to get people back into the sport, why people are leaving, all of this has very little effect on the core of the bowling community when they start talking about things which only effect the minority.
What happens at an elite level has very little (to nill) effect on the bowling community in australia. Why? when was the last time you picked up the paper and heard reports of a local bowler? when was the last time you heard anything remotely connecting bowling in the media? when have times been published in various news sources for local bowling tournaments, when did you pickup tv guide and see bowling on the tv? Now, where do you see the NRL?
Just for arguments sake, have you ever played rugby league as a junior? have you seen the amount of development that goes on at a junior level? both financial support from local associations and businesses, development squads designed to recognise talent and further their development, routine local, state and national competitions exist for all skill levels, and nation wide publicity are what football thrives off . The NRL has been saying for the past 5-7 years, the future of their sport (especially now with AFL taking hold in key rugby areas) exists with the juniors and getting more people into rugby. Without a firm establishment at a junior level nothing can be achieved, many clubs are facing this very problem now. Lack of development at the base level of the sport leaves nobody to progress through to become part of the elite sporting ranks. It is a fact, without a stable ground for the majority, the top percentile folds.
Explain to me how the "elite" bowlers in our sport have an effect on what goes on at a grass level when there is no representation to members of the public, no recognition of achievements, and virtually no spotlight on the sport at all.
People are being down right stupid if they use the words improve bowling and sport conditions and ball technology in the same sentence. You can bring all this into the game and it is not going to effect the average bowler, they wont have to change anything, they wont be effected by tough new laws, they probably wont even see a sport condition in their life (just assume for a moment that a sport condition made it nationally outside of ranked competition).
The average bowler who makes up the majority of our sport is effected by what goes on at his/her center and what evolves around their association. They care about what personally effects them, all of the points raised are key issues faced by day to day bowlers each time they walk into a center and they need to be addressed now. To take a viewpoint contrary to this is to show just how out of touch you are with the bowling community.
To increase numbers in bowling, to generate more talent within the sport, it has to exist at a grass roots level, not at the highest form of competition we have available.
If a similar situation happened in australia today like what has happened to the PWBA, if all national events ceased to exist for a year, do you think it is going to affect the 2 league a week bowler? the very same person who might bowl the odd local event and might make the step up to a regional event once or twice a year as they pass through his/her area?
No, it simply wont, why? Because circumstances have not changed, he/she still continues bowling like before, tournament life continues (remember, he/she isn’t part of the elite bowling community so they don’t attend national events), nothing has changed in his bowling life. This is the majority of our sport, these are the people who generate the money so a top level competition can exist. Now what happens if you do not address problems the majority faces? bowlers leave in droves. What have we been facing for the past 7-8 years? With the collapse of our governing body, the upheaval of associations and the closing of centers, do you think this has all occurred because a select few individuals which number in the hundreds have been doing it tough with conditions and technology shutting people out of the game? Or do you think it is because the core of our bowling is no longer happy with the sport and feels that they aren’t being shown enough attention and that their needs aren’t being met?
You only have to look at the business plan for AMF and where their focus is being directed to validate every single point I have raised. They have recognised this is an issue, they understand where their money comes from and they (for all the talking that goes on) are putting in place steps to see these problems are corrected.
I leave with something simple, take a handful of various centers nation wide. Do a bit of study with the bowling community, go into a center with a bunch of head shots of various elite stars of our sport, and see what percentages are returned when you ask people to put names to the faces.
The problems I listed above is what will get bowlers back in the door, elite sports people inspire juniors and the youth (heck, even adults) to strive to improve their games in an effort to further their development and hopefully join them, but this (for the large part) only effects bowlers already participating in the sport. How can these people have an effect on new bowlers when they aren’t coming through the doors to sign up in the first place?
The simple answer is they can’t and this is why bowling is in trouble.
I'm glad that at least one week this season was an entirely different condition, as it certainly highlights the difference between the average bowlers and the good ones.
