Hulbert - Bowls: making the most of your game

Patrick Hulbert

R OBERT H ALE

First published in 2014 by

Robert Hale, an imprint of

The Crowood Press Ltd

Ramsbury, Marlborough

Wiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2016

www.halebooks.com

This impression 2016

Patrick Hulbert 2014

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 0 7198 2031 1

The right of Patrick Hulbert to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Contents

To Dad

Acknowledgements

F irst and foremost, I would like to thank Robert Hale publishers and Alexander Stilwell in particular for commissioning this book. The sport of bowls will hopefully benefit from the publication of this work.

I would like to thank Mum, who with Dad, got me into the game of bowls, and I would like to thank posthumously John Kilyon a great Leicestershire stalwart and England international whom I looked up to immensely as a young, aspiring player. It was because of John that I learnt temperament is key.

Thanks also to my brothers Matthew and Tim, who played with me for years and showed me how to behave on the rink (and occasionally how not to).

Thanks are also due to those who assisted in the production of this book.

The bowlers Rex Hazeldine, Tony Allcock MBE, David Bryant CBE, Willie Wood MBE, Andy Thomson MBE, Steve Glasson OAM, John Rednall, Natalie Melmore, John McGuinness and David Rhys Jones, who kindly contributed in the writing of this book, all love the sport and are great ambassadors for our game; their input to this book is greatly appreciated.

The input of Professor Ian Maynard of Sheffield Hallam University, an expert in the field of sport psychology, has been integral to the message of the book. Thinking outside the box and using advice from professionals away from the sport of bowls gives us all a chance to improve our grasp of how to push on and progress within the sport by taking fundamental psychological practices and implementing them in our game.

I would like to thank Key Publishing Limited, the owners of Bowls International magazine, and in particular consultant editor Paul Hamblin, for allowing me to write the book in the first place and to use input from a few of the contributors of Bowls International magazine and some images from our library.

A particular thanks goes once more to Willie Wood and Andy Thomson for allowing me to photograph them, and to Potters Resort, where many of the pictures were taken. Many thanks also go to former England junior international James Alcock for pictorial help in the physical section of the book at Charnwood Indoor Bowls Club.

Finally, I would like to thank the readers of this book. I hope it helps you improve your game, and I really do think that it will.

Introduction

I am not the greatest bowler in the world. I never have been and I can probably guarantee that I never will be. I am not a qualified coach either if you want a bowls book written solely by someone who is a coach or has won 250 world titles then this book is not for you. Put it back on the shelf. However, if you want a comprehensive yet concise, practical and engaging piece of work that will aid you to become a better bowler and teach you key skills to help you be a good team member, then keep reading.

Well, what am I then? I feel I have many traits that have enabled me to play at the highest level at county standard and represent the England under-25 side as one of the longest-ever serving players in the countrys history patience, hard work, determination, coolness under pressure and, most importantly, a good team ethic have allowed me to play in some of the most exciting and high-quality matches one could wish to play in, and with and against some of the best players.

I do not profess to possess all the answers to make you the superstar bowler of the world. If I had all the answers then I would be a regular senior international with a perfect delivery. For this reason, I will also be getting help in this book from some of the greatest stars of the game. You will get input from players with a vast array of world titles after all. Their invaluable contribution, accompanied by my knowledge of the sport, has ensured that this book is the most rounded and comprehensive (yet concise) bowls book available on the market.

With help from Tony Allcock MBE, an eighteen times World Champion, Willie Wood MBE, the Peter Pan of bowls with a whole host of World and Commonwealth medals, three times world indoor singles champion Andy Thomson MBE, Bowls Australia Head Coach Steve Glasson OAM, Commonwealth Games singles champion Natalie Melmore and, arguably the greatest bowler who ever lived, David Bryant CBE just some of the star names contributing to this book this is your one-stop-all book on bowls and something that has never been attempted before on this scale. Google each of the contributors to this book and see just what they have achieved in the sport and in their professional careers it is truly incredible!

I am going to focus on five major areas and approaches to ensure you can improve on every aspect of your game. Thus, the main areas I will scrutinize will be the technical, psychological, tactical, teamwork, and physical aspects in the sport of bowls, and I will be rounding off with a conclusion, looking at how to blend all of these elements to make the perfect bowler so it comes as no surprise that the model for this perfect bowler comes in the shape of David Bryant CBE.

I am probably ten years ahead of the game with regard to my focus on the physical side of the sport of bowls. I may even be twenty years ahead. I may have missed the point completely but I very much doubt it and I hope that elements in this book will pioneer a different approach towards physical aspects that will aid you in the sport of bowls.

Furthermore, psychology is seen nowadays as an essential aspect in any sport. Football teams, for example, all have their own sports psychologists and more emphasis is being put on this. However, psychological analysis in the sport of bowls usually tends to be about a blinkered notion of a player either having bottle, or not having the nerve necessary when under pressure. This book will aid you to prepare for matches appropriately and give suggestions to assist you to go into a match with a positive frame of mind. This second section will also delve into the finer details of how to play in a particular position and the mindset needed for that task.

With regard to the psychological aspects of bowls, in addition to asking top players for their input, I have also included some invaluable content from Professor Ian Maynard of Sheffield Hallam University, a sports psychology expert.

For the physical section, I have relied heavily on Rex Hazeldine, a lecturer at Loughborough University and currently the Bowls England sports scientist. Rex is in the Sports Coach UK Hall of Fame for his work in numerous sports and is a fully qualified coach in the sport of bowls. His knowledge about physical exercises to improve performance and reduce the risk of injury in bowls is something innovative and fresh-thinking in what can sometimes be considered a conservative and narrow-minded sport.