Bowling News
At a time when the very real threat of extinction of our sport refuses to go away what are our leaders doing to counter this negative outlook? I can find no evidence that they are doing anything at all. In fact I can find no evidence that they even care. Time for a rant!
Our sport is in crisis. The number of clubs, teams and bowlers is plummeting downwards at a rapid rate. The pandemic is proving to be a continuous threat to any recovery. Some leagues that have been in existence for over 100 years are folding. Greens are closing down. No new greens are being opened. The state handouts and cash grants for sport clubs are shielding the real state of our game and delaying the demise of our sport altogether. Anyone who thinks differently is in denial, the facts are there and the downward trend is out of control.
So who is doing what to counter and minimise these threats? Who is leading the campaign to reverse, or at least delay the trends and promoting our sport to a new audience, a new generation of bowlers? There are pockets of excellent work being undertaken in some areas to address the decline and the work in Todmorden instantly springs to mind. But where are our leaders? Where are the experienced heads to take us forward? Well the silence from our elected representatives is deafening.
I see nothing being done by the BCGBA or Yorkshire CCGBA to galvanise our sport, nothing being done to identify the problem and bring a plan forward to engage with those that care. It is the close season and the powers-that-be appear to be hibernating, saving their time and effort for what? By the time they are shamed into action will be too late to save our sport. The clock is definitely ticking and no one seems to care. Where are our leaders?
I think that the BCGBA and YCCGBA are doing more to escalate the demise of bowling than they are doing to save it and we are supporting them by voting them into office year after year!
As the Secretary of a League affiliated to the BCGBA and Yorkshire CCGBA I have never had any written communications from either body. I understand that there is a communications path to cascade information from the Yorkshire CCGBA to leagues, to clubs and then on to bowlers. I have never had any such communications through this route either. During the summer I contacted the Yorkshire CCGBA Chief Executive to voice my concerns about poor communications and he promised to address the issue. I have not seen any improvement at all since then, in fact it has got worse.
I therefore am left relying on both bodies' official websites to glean any information at all. The BCGBA website hasn't been updated for more than 6 weeks and is primarily about reporting on the passing of former officials and updates on the individual and team competitions that they organise. No mention of a crisis to be found here. Head in the sand time.
The Yorkshire CCGBA website has been redeveloped earlier this year but nothing has been added to that since August 2021, almost 4 months ago. That last posting invited entries for the County Under-16 Boys and Girls competitions. No mention since on the outcome of those events. No mention either of the fact that the Yorkshire teams won the BCGBA County KO competitions for both men and women. So nothing much has happened, nothing worth sharing with its members, nothing worth promoting as the good side of our sport. So what are our elected leaders doing to promote our sport and tackle the demise? Nothing.
Saving bowling may be a hopeless case but the leaders in post are displaying a dereliction of duty by not trying to address the problem. They have given up but will continue to flaunt the ego their status brings them. Why are they in these posts? Apathy rules at all levels, The price for the apathy shown by the bowling community is to be led by individuals with Qualifications in Apathy.