What is this thing called Pennant?
What’s the idea behind it?
The main form of competition between bowls clubs is Pennant, which is organised by Bowls Victoria and represents about 80-90% of the bowls played in Victoria during the season.
How is it organised?
Pennant sides compete in a number of Divisions ranked on their skill level.
The top competition is Premier League, and the skill levels go from Division 1 to Division 8.
Each Division has a number of Sections which are grouped in local areas. Promotion and demotion occurs at the end of each season.
Sides consist of teams or “Rinks” of four players (Fours), with each Side having four Rinks on Saturday, three Rinks on Tuesday and two Rinks of three players (Triples) in the 6-a-side competitions on either day.
Only two bowls are used for Pennant. Thirds must have a measuring tape and chalk or spray to mark “touchers” and chocks to support leaning bowls when measuring. Seconds must have a pen or pencil so they can mark the score card. Leads place the mat or rake the bowls.
Sides win by scoring more total shots than the opposing side. The ladder is based on wins and then shots-for minus shots-against. At the end of the season the top four sides play-off for the Section Pennant: 1v2, 3v4, moving to a grand final for the Section. The winner goes on to play for the Division (whole of Melbourne metropolitan) pennant.
Side selection
At Hampton selectors are elected each season. Side selection is based on selecting the best Skips, then Thirds, Seconds and Leads for each side. There might be other players who could fill places below the Skip however they need to select balanced and compatible sides for all Sides in all divisions.
If you sign up for one of the Pennant competitions, the selectors will assume you are available most weeks. It is critical that if you are UNAVAILABLE you add your name to the list on the notice board in the clubroom as early as possible for dates you cannot play. If you are available, but are listed as an emergency on the side sheet you must be available to play on the day. Be ready for a phone call.
Sides are normally announced two to three days before the play date. This will often require someone on the selection committee to contact players to tell them if they have been moved to a lower or higher side and to try and fill vacancies for late withdrawals. Side Selection Boards are placed on the deck as soon as sides stabilise.
Getting to the match
Players are required to wear club uniform for Pennant matches.
Rinks will normally travel to away matches together if that suits . Skips will try and make contact with their rink members, or members should advise Skips or Side Managers if they are travelling on their own.
For Tuesday Pennant you need to bring your own lunch to most clubs. You will get tea and coffee and often the opportunity to enter a raffle.
Tuesday games begin at 10.30 am and Saturday games at 1.00 pm.
Side Managers
Each side has a Manager who will: fill in the players’ names on the score cards for each rink, collect a brown “green fees” envelope. Green fees are $10 per player, either as cash or you purchase a strip of Green fees tickets from the Bar.
On the day, the Managers of the opposing sides will sit at the Managers table, mix the score cards and do a blind selection of what rinks play each other. Then they fill in the opposing sides’ names on their score card. A coin is tossed to determine which side has the option of rolling the first jack or playing second, which applies to all rinks.
The Side Manager will then give the score cards and green fees envelope to each Second. The Second will collect the green fees from each player and place them in the envelope. He will tell each Skip and/or Lead who “has the mat”.
Only the side managers or the Greens Director can agree to call off a match due to wet weather. And if the temperature reaches 36C, then managers are obliged to bring players off the green. A minimum 60 (Saturday) and 45 (Tuesday) ends must be played for scores to count for full sides. Side managers on Saturday agree whether there will be a midpoint break (Tuesdays always have a lunch time break).
Play
All sides may practise from 90 to 30 minutes prior to the start time, whether Home or Away.
A two end Roll Up happens before the game commences . The side that has won the mat starts and on the next end their opponent rolls the jack.
Once the Roll Up is complete the game begins. Twenty-one ends are played.
The team with the mat sets the position of the mat and rolls the jack. The Skip will tell the Lead where to place the mat and indicate the length to roll the jack by placing a foot on the centre line at the length desired.
If the Jack is not in play the opposing team’s Lead may relocate the mat, roll the jack, but does not have first shot. If it is out of bounds again it is placed on the Tee.
The Leads then bowl in turn followed by the Seconds and Thirds. It is important to vacate the mat once your bowl has stopped, as you then no longer have “possession of the mat”.
Skips now change places with the other three members of the team and play their bowls in turn.
Scoring
Only the Thirds have a role in deciding the score, so they will agree on the winning shot and the next shot etc. If there is a disagreement, they will measure the shots. Shots not in doubt may first be removed from the head and placed on a rag so that they will not be re-included in the count by accident. If the Thirds cannot agree they request an Umpire to measure. The umpire’s decision is final.
The side that wins an end must place the mat and roll the jack for the next end.
At “The End of the Day”.
Side managers collect all the score cards and then sit with their opposition manager to confirm the scores are the same. On returning to the club they hand them to a selector or person nominated to enter the scores on the Bowls Victoria site, or place them in the scorecard box on the deck.
Complaints
There are always differing views about selection, and if you have any, these should be addressed to a selector in the next 5 days after the game. Please don’t ask selectors questions on the day of the match.