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READERS LETTERS
6 READERS LETTERS

Dear Bob,
When I first started bowling in 1988-89, I asked “what is the
block of wood for”, one said, “To stop anyone bowling straight up
the mat”. Another said “to make you use the bias of the woods”.
Over the years players have started bowling by leaning outside of
the delivery lines and bowling diagonally up the mat. It does away
with the centre block and the bias of the wood, as the delivery is
straight.
Maybe if the centre block was bigger it would stop it but I say “deliver from within the de-
livery lines and bring back the skill in the game”.
FE Saunders

Ed - I’m not sure where to start my reply as I was not originally intending to do so but as read-
ers often seem to very silent, I will. Firstly, I did consider some years ago to propose that the
width of the centre block should be increased from 15 inches to 18 inches but this would only
work if all floors were relatively level. However, I can think of many “odd” club floors where the
mats would be unplayable on at least one side if the centre block was widened. Secondly, it
takes skill to be able to reach out and play running shots with some consistency. Should this
skill be prevented?
Also, delivering from within the delivery lines would be an absolute minefield in calling
faults when people deliver, as the exact point at which bowls are released would be impossi-
ble to call accurately and this would result in disagreements and arguments
This type of rule is applied in Carpet Bowls but this is an entirely different game and de-
livery is from standing off the mat and between two upright blocks of wood. It is also applied
by some old and longer established clubs outside of the Scottish Federation and probably has
its foundations in that very early on it was the Carpet Bowls rules that were supplied with
Short Mats. I too would like to see the “old” skill return to Short Mat bowls but this would be to
do away with the extra heavyweight jacks and returning to the old jacks that were just half the
weight, they required much more skill and touch bowling, which seems to have left many peo-
ples skills. So what do readers think about Mr Saunders letters and are you bothered to
reply?

ORIGIN OF THE WORD WICK

Chris Whittock wrote in about the origin of the word “wick” as applied to bowls but sadly I can-
not trace its origin where bowls is concerned but it certainly has several meanings, some of
which I have never heard of. However, when it comes to slang applied to bowls, the words
seem to vary from area to area. For instance in the Staffordshire area I have heard the word
“snipe” used instead of wick.
Look at the word Jack, which in some areas is called the block, very confusing in short
mat. In level green bowls it can be called the “kitty” and I think I’ve also heard it called the
“cot”? Or something like that. A blocker in some areas is called a “Bobby” and in other areas
“a policeman”. Names used have basically come in from outdoor bowls in flat green you have
a delivery mat, which is the same as we use in short mat but in crown green there is a “footer”
which is a small round delivery mat.
The actual word wick has its origin as Old English weoce, from West Germanic *weukon
(cf. Middle Dutch wieke, Dutch wiek, Old High German wiohha, German Wieche), of unknown
origin, with no known cognates beyond Germanic.
It would be interesting to find out what other words and phrases are used. E.g. a “Judith
Chalmers” means you are short with a bowl and derives from her old programme of “Wish you
were here”. So what can you add?