The final round of the bowls singles club championships at Northcliff Country Club saw some fierce competition and a few surprises.
The club’s bowls, tennis, squash and air rifle club had been active since the state of national disaster had been declared.
This, as club president Rob Nobbs explained, was because the sports were non-contact, people could keep their distance, and no large gatherings of people were made in recent weeks.
Only the bar closed at 6pm to limit the extent of social gatherings.
Nobbs even hoped the club’s bowls pairs championships would run for three weeks starting on 29 March but this cannot happen now since President Cyril Ramaphosa instituted a nationwide lockdown.
On the day of the bowls singles club championships, on 22 March, excitement from three weeks of games had culminated in enough joy to put all worries of the coronavirus aside for the time being. “The level of competition was excellent and there were surprises were a few established guys lost to newer bowlers,” Nobbs said.
This made for an exciting final, where accomplished bowler Peter-John Johnston had to take on a novice bowler, Thomas Brown. “It was a great game but in the end experience triumphed, and Peter-John won 21–18.”
There were no hard feelings between the two, and the success of new bowlers surely bodes well for the club.
Since the lockdown was announced, Nobbs said the pairs championships were postponed and club members would have to take their minds off bowls for some time, as it is one sport that cannot be played at home.
Details: Northcliff Country Club northcliffcountryclub@gmail.com; 011 678 3224.
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