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SHORT MAT BOWLS 17
SHORT MAT BOWLS
THE WORLD’S MOST SHORT
THE WORLD’S MOST
SHORT
SECRET SPORT 2 MAT
SECRET SPORT 2
MAT
Since publishing my secret sport article in the last issue I NEWS
NEWS
have had yet more people lamenting the lack of both new
and younger people taking up our sport. But you can’t
have your cake and eat it. One person who lamented a
drastic drop in his counties membership was directly
asked by me “If I wrote to your county and asked for a list
of your clubs so I could send out a free introductory copy
of the magazine, I bet your county would say no”.
I got no reply just a blank stare as the answer was
no but he didn’t want to say so. According to one correspondent, the ESMBA numbers have
dropped by about 20% (I have not checked this figure), but I think numbers may continue to
drop.
Ask yourself the basic question “can a sport that wants no publicity will ever be
taken seriously” and how can it grow? Answer, it won’t. Looking over the years the ESMBA
does not publish anything much in the magazine except an occasional article. No national
news comes out of Wales or Scotland and occasionally I get items from Cyprus or Sweden
but these are very small Nations just beginning to grow. Irish news is taken from their website
and not sent to me but additional info is given by Irish Secretary Seamus Kyne, who responds
well to my requests.
However it appears that publicity for our great sport is the last thing on everyones mind
as there are no fully dedicated publicity officers at National level and very few at local level.
So please don’t complain to me about the lack of growth in your area or the shrinkage of our
sport overall, if you don’t let the World know about it then how can it grow?
One correspondant for the Angling times told me in the past how they have much more
sent to them than they can include in every issue and no doubt other sports are the same but
not short mat bowls, which continues to shoot itself in the foot. This magazine itself has a
finite life and will cease one day in the not too distant future. If you don’t care then why should
I? Some very generous people and some advertising revenue continues to support the mag-
azine, which should continue now until 2015 at the least, assuming I’m still breathing!
Looking at advertising and the commercial side of this or any other sport we have sup-
pliers of equipment who cannot reach their target audience as no club lists exist. God forbid
we should ever support the people who make our equipment; it would never do would it? But
without their equipment and its replacement we would not be able to play.
In the UK it appears that salesman is a dirty word or a lesser profession but everything
in the world needs selling otherwise Mercedes, Bentley and Rolls Royce wouldn’t need Sales-
men but of course they do. I can think of one good instance in
2011 of a supplier who wanted to make a great offer on equip-
ment but couldn’t offer it out as they had no club lists but all other
codes do, so why is Short Mat different?
Ask yourself what happens to your club once everyone in it
is either too old to play or has passed on? Scale this up to County
and National level and you can see what the future holds in the
UK. Short Mat bowls will not die but it will remain a very small mi-
nority sport that will never be taken seriously.
“have you been harsh bob” “no” is my very firm answer as
our shrinking sport is down to everyone who does nothing to
change the future and this could be you and your county!