Cheltenham Whaddon Bowling Club secretary Andy Todd discussed the ‘worrying’ impact of Coronavirus three years ago, alongside his thoughts on the social aspect of the sport and the club itself.
Having taken charge of his job in 2019, Todd has experienced many highs and lows throughout his five year tenure.
During the COVID-19 pandemic which impacted businesses for over a calendar year, many bowls clubs had closed down due to the many lockdowns that were imposed.
The Cheltenham Whaddon Bowls Club were selected by the BBC for a section on their news programme to discuss the situation during a lockdown in 2021.
“They were doing some research and did a slot on how small sports clubs were coping and getting through without being able to play.
“I was talking about the difficulty of keeping the club going and we were lucky because we got some grant funding which kept us going, but it was a very worrying time for 12 or 18 months.
“Some of the smaller sports clubs were quite literally in danger of folding because there was no money coming in.
“We have to keep the grounds good and the green costs a lot of money to keep going.”
With no restrictions being in place in 2024, the sport of bowls is thriving with members allowed to play freely.
When a neutral to bowls looks at the sport, it’s seen by many as an older persons activity.
Todd explored the thoughts of how people view it and if there is a place for people who are of a younger age.
“I would say our average age is somewhere around the retirement age [66] or just over, we’ve got a handful of people who are still working but even then, they are in their 50s.
“We don’t have much in the way of young bowlers but one of the other clubs in Cheltenham does, the one at Suffolk Square, Cheltenham Bowling club, they have quite a good youth programme.
“It would be good to get younger people involved. We have lost two or three clubs fairly recently, so we do need to encourage more young people to get into the sport.
“I mean, I go to the National Finals which is in Leamington every August and there’s quite a lot of young players there as the top players tend to be younger.”
𝙔𝙤𝙪’𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙡 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙞𝙩
— Bowls England (@BowlsEngland) August 27, 2024
What an event the Aviva National Finals 2024 has been 🤩
The festival of bowls isn’t over! We’ve still got 5 days left with at least one final on each day🏆
Get your tickets now before it’s too late! 🔽https://t.co/os5z54Og8h pic.twitter.com/9wsmiHYtKU
In 2021, 3.3 million people above the age of 65 were living alone which can become isolated.
The set up within the sport of bowls allows it to be a good opportunity for socialising.
“It’s an excellent way of being social, there’s no getting away from it because when you’re on the green bowling, you’re with other people so you just talk to them.
“You’re not bowling 100% of the time, you’re sort of waiting for the rest of the team to bowl and take their turn.
“It makes sense to fill the time with a bit of conversation.”
