On the Jack – Blog #7(New Season)

🟢 On the Jack – Blog #7 (New Season)

“The Bowl That Almost Was”

Every bowler has one.

A shot so magnificent, so beautifully judged, so perfectly weighted that it deserved to be remembered for generations.

Unfortunately, it missed by about a sixteenth of an inch.

Welcome to the world of “The Bowl That Almost Was.”

🎯 The Perfect Delivery

You step onto the mat.

The line feels right.

The weight feels right.

The follow-through feels right.

Your bowl glides smoothly down the rink, curving elegantly towards the head. Teammates begin nodding approvingly. Spectators murmur encouragingly.

For a glorious few seconds, you are convinced you have produced the bowl of the season.

Then it drifts.

Just a little.

Enough to miss the jack.

Enough to finish second shot.

Enough to generate the familiar response:

“Unlucky. Great bowl.”

Bowls players hear those two words more than almost any others.

🌱 The Fine Margins of Bowls

One of the reasons bowls remains endlessly fascinating is that success and failure are often separated by the smallest of margins.

A fraction more weight.

A slightly different line.

A gust of wind.

A blade of grass.

The difference between a match-winning shot and a story beginning with:

“You should have seen it…great bowl... it nearly got shot.”

📚 A Little Bowls Wisdom

Experienced bowlers understand something important.

Not every good bowl gets rewarded.

And not every poor bowl gets punished.

Sometimes the perfect delivery finishes second best.

Sometimes an unintended bowl produces a remarkable result.

It is one of the game’s great levellers.

And one of its greatest teachers.

🤝 Etiquette Corner – Applaud Good Bowls

One of the finest traditions in lawn bowls is acknowledging quality play wherever it comes from.

A genuine “well bowled” costs nothing and means a great deal.

Whether the shot belongs to your teammate, your opponent, or a newcomer discovering their confidence, good bowls deserve recognition.

The game is always better when sportsmanship travels alongside competition.

☕ Clubhouse Chatter

Roll-up attendance remains excellent.
New members continue to improve every week.
The green is not playing as well this season.

😄 This Week’s Green-Side Quote

After narrowly missing the jack for the third time in one end, one member was heard to say:

“If near misses counted, I’d be club champion.”

Several players immediately agreed.

🌟 Final End Thought

Bowls is not just about the shots you make.

It is also about the shots that almost happened.

The ones that looked perfect.

The ones that taught you something.
The ones that bring a smile when retold over tea afterwards.
“So close… another great story for the clubhouse!” and becomes the story everyone remembers🟢🏆☕

See you, “On the Jack.”

Your Rink side Rambler, Norman Deegan.

THIS WEEK ON THE GREEN – Club News and Activities

🗞️ Marine Gardens Bowling Club Weekly Report

Week Ending Sunday, 7th June 2026
Alan Paterson, Press Officer.
A week dominated by the weather, with two of our scheduled fixtures falling victim to the persistent rain and blustery winds. The first casualty was our Brodie Tray match at Tarring Priory, which will be rearranged in due course. The second was our WSBL home fixture, where both clubs agreed that travelling in such conditions would be fruitless. The points were therefore shared, five apiece.

Happily, the WSBL match at Arundel did survive the unsettled conditions, and Marine Gardens made the most of the excellent playing surface. A strong all‑round performance secured a 3–1 victory with an aggregate score of 71–56. The clean sweep was only narrowly denied, our one losing rink going down by a single shot.

Top Rink honours went to Gerry Perch, David Sayer, Terry Ashley and—whisper it—Graham Ray, who delivered an impressive 21–12 win. Their efforts helped secure a very welcome haul of 8 points, which, added to the 5 awarded against Petworth, strengthens our bid to retain Division 2 status.

Here is hoping the weather shows a little more kindness in the week ahead.