Ron’s rolling out the welcome mat
Perthshire is preparing to roll out the welcome mat for a talented team of bowlers from Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong Youth Development squad is jetting in from Asia for a week of competitive action in Scotland.
Blackford Bowling Club and Perth Bowling Club will both host the August fixtures which are open to the public for viewing.
The match at Blackford will see a Scottish Young Bowlers Association select team take to the scenic green.
That is before the visitors travel to the Fair City the following day for a test series match against the country’s regional academy players.
The day of bowling will involve singles, pairs, triples and fours.
Bowls Scotland District 6
Ron Anderson secretary Ron Anderson (59), also tournament director for the Hong Kong visit, is looking forward to the event.
“Bowling in Hong Kong is huge and I was gobsmacked when I had a look at their website,”said Ron, who himself plays out of Blackford BC.
“They have a Premier League which has nine divisions of 12 teams, which is really fantastic.
“Bowls over there is in its infancy compared to what we have in Scotland. So it’s good that we have this connection and that they are coming over.
“The team from Hong Kong will be training and playing test series. They are at Blackford Bowling Club on Tuesday, August 14.
“And then they go to Perth Bowling Club on the Wednesday for three test games there.
“They will be based at Stirling University so these places were pretty quick for them to get to with not too much travelling.
“The standard will be pretty high. The under-25s are quite strong.
“The Scottish Young Bowlers Association is playing against them at Blackford and there should be a decent crowd down.
“By exposing the green and the facilities to Bowls Scotland, they are then aware that this is a top class facility.
“They have used us in the past and we’ve had junior internationals. But this is the first one for a wee while.”
Ron is working hard to get the younger generation involved with the sport and he hopes hosting major events can help increase its profile.
“I coach at the regional academy for central, Tayside and Fife,”Ron added. “We have 12 youngsters and they are eligible to play in the Scotland under-25 team.
“Coaching in bowls has changed so much, especially in the last five years. People will say you roll the jack and throw bowls at it.
“But we have loads of games we play now - golf, cricket, battleships - which are all connected to the game itself.
“Bowls is a game for everybody - eight to 80. People say it’s an old man’s game but it’s certainly not.”