“Bowling has become a passion”
John Molupi (30) from Springs Town Bowling Club recently joined the Junior Silver Squad to play in the Malaysia Practice International Tournament recently held at Wingate Park in Pretoria.
“My first chance to play against an international bowling squad was fun.”
The tournament was organised by Bowls South Africa for the Malaysia side to gain international experience for the Commonwealth Games to be held in Australia in 2018.
John, who is the current Ekurhuleni Bowls Open Masters Singles 2016 champion, was part of the junior Silver Squad which played in the men’s pairs, trips and fours.
“We won all our games,” says John.
• Read: Another master’s win for John Molupi
According to him the Malaysian teams played well, but struggled on the grass greens.
“They mentioned that they only play indoor bowls in Malaysia,” he says.
“It was not a fully international tournament but those selected to play are seen as having the ability to go forward in the sport,” says Mike Smith, coach at Springs Town Bowling Club.
He also recently represented Ekurhuleni Bowls in the 2017 Warwick Bowls SA u-30 Inter-District Championship in Bloemfontein, where his team did quite well and ended second in their section.
Smith says this tournament is an example of what can be achieved with dedication and hard work, irrespective of background.
“The sport of bowls has always been seen as a sport for the more mature but, the average age of both the England and Australian national sides is less than the rugby sevens national sides of both countries.
• Also read: John off to PE
“At international level it is no longer a sport for the more mature person,” says Smith.
Another local bowler, Damien Rudolph, also recently competed in the 2017 Bowls SA u-15 National Championship and the team came fourth in their section.
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