Social bowls on the attack
Jack Attack is building hype nationwide after being launched during the Australian Premier League last November. Bowls Australia’s newest initiative, Jack Attack, continues to grow legs nationwide as more than 50 clubs have now joined, as Perth Suns ace Clive Adams reports for the Perth Sunday Times.
In WA, Sorrento Bowls Club is the first officially to sign up for the program, with Scarborough and Rockingham having conducted pilot programs in the past 12 months.
Many clubs in WA are interested in the program which aims to deliver a fast and fun form of the sport for the social participant.
For years, bowls has been heralded as one of the more social sports, but there has never been a nationally branded format that recognises this market.
The Jack Attack concept builds on the hype generated by the Australian Premier League recently played in Brisbane and broadcast live throughout Australia and New Zealand.
The concept provides for teams to play a short 60-70 minute game once a week over a six-to-eight-week period, with evenings during summer looking like a particularly attractive option.
Teams consist of three players.
However, they can be made up of more than three players, substituting in and out of the game as they wish.
Players can play in any order, providing play is alternate with their opposition.
The format is particularly friendly for families, with parents able to play a few ends while still being able to take their children and look after them when not actually playing.
The two-set, five-end format makes it as exciting and fun to watch as it is to play.
Clubs which have the Junior Jack Attack equipment product will also be able to provide a safe, fun environment with kids able to play separately with lightweight rubberised bowls that still perform very much like the real thing.
Businesses, families or community groups that are looking for a fun activity that everyone can get involved in will be attracted to this concept.
Bowls is a sport that caters for everyone, regardless of age or gender – not many sports provide for people from all areas of the community to compete with no advantage to anyone.
When clubs sign up to the program, they are provided with a full promotion kit which includes a specifically designed website to handle team registration through to fixtures and results.
The club can then choose how they wish to formulate their competition or indeed if they wish to run more than one, potentially aimed at different markets.
Nambour Bowls Club deputy chairman Graham Morton said the Queensland club jumped at the chance to get involved.
“We recognised the limited spare time which many people have these days and the need to cater for those wishing to combine a little social life with a healthy challenge,” he said.
“With music playing over the greens while games are in progress, an enjoyable experience is assured and Jack Attack will prove to be a great networking medium for individuals and businesses alike.”
Former Australian tennis star Alicia Molik is on board as Jack Attack’s ambassador and her enthusiasm was evident in her recent showing at the Pro-Am competition during the APL.
Molik is a huge fan of the concept and is keen to see it grow throughout the country over the next few years.
Caption: Western Australian Regional Bowls Manager Clive Adams and former world number eight women’s tennis star Alicia Molik high five the initial success of Jack Attack.
