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Joyce is always ready to roll.
Bowls is a classic sport and Australian pastime that dates back to 1844 when the first green was laid at a beach tavern in Tasmania. Now, in just about every Australian suburb, you’ll find a bowls club where people young and old enjoy a game or two with friends under the hot sun.
Bowls is Guide Dogs NSW/ACT Client, Joyce’s sport of choice. She played bowls before she had low vision and continued to play after her vision changed. She’s now been playing for over 20 years!
“When my eyesight gradually went, I had to give up work and then I started playing bowls more seriously. I’ve been playing for quite a few years now,” Joyce says.
When Joyce was looking for a sport to play, she decided to join her local bowls club in East Maitland and has been playing a few times a week.
“It takes a bit of coaching to get started and I usually go and play on a Saturday afternoon and Tuesday.”
She’s also played in competitions in other towns including Gosford and Northhaven, where she travels, meets new people and enjoys the scenery of playing in a different town.
She’s even won a few competitions and snagged her latest win at the minor singles competition this year.
Joyce doesn’t let her low vision stop her from playing bowls at any time of the day or night. However, she does need some assistance. Another person called a “director” provides Joyce with a bit of help when she plays. The “director” sits on a chair on the other side of the green and explains where the bowls are, how hard to bowl and who is “holding shot.”
“It’s a team effort”, says Joyce.
Bowls isn’t the only sport that interests Joyce. She’s also thinking about getting into chair aerobics with Guide Dogs NSW/ACT and attended our “Let’s Talk Sports and Fitness” seminar recently to learn about how to play other sports. At the beginning of her low vision journey, Joyce received a long cane and some Assistive Technology from Guide Dogs. Orientation and Mobility Specialist, Nathan taught her how to use her cane to navigate her environment and attend meaningful activities, like her bowls games.
Now, she continues to play twilight bowls, mixed competitions and social bowls and has a message for anyone who’s thinking about giving the sport a go. “If anyone’s interested in bowls, all you need is a flat jogger and a good attitude. You can borrow bowls from the club to get started and once you start playing, you’ll realise how much fun you have while doing it,” Joyce says.
