My guest this week to answer 10 questions about himself and his sport is Trevor Taylor from Carlisle. Trevor followed his dad David into bowls and it’s even a job now as he runs the Cumbria Indoor Bowls Club in Carlisle.
Just to start with Trevor, can you tell us how you started in bowls?
I started playing in the late 1980s having been interested due to my dad playing and representing England.
Can you give a few details of your career as a bowler and how your job fits in with that?
I have been fortunate enough to represent England at Under 25 and full international level all over the UK and also in Australia, winning national and British Isles titles in individual and team events for club and county.
I am lucky to be employed as manager of the Cumbria Indoor Bowls Club where I have worked for almost 30 years now.
Back in the 50s when I was growing up, bowls was very much an old man’s game. That certainly changed in the 80s and 90s. How much emphasis is there on attracting young players now?
The game of bowls is still very much an old man’s game with probably 90 per cent of participants being over the age of 60 with most of these playing for fun, exercise and the social side, however, the majority of success in competitions goes to the younger players.
Do you get many new starters and if someone did show an interest would it cost them much to start with a set of woods etc?
At Cumbria Indoor Bowls Club we tend to get 50-60 new members each season and this currently costs £50 a year. The equipment costs vary with second hand bowls costing anything from £25 to new bowls going up to £350 for a set of four.
Indoor and Outdoor Clubs in Cumbria are always happy to accept new members to join their clubs.
What would you say is the state of bowling across Cumbria?
Bowls in Cumbria is in decline (as it is nationally) but we are still quite successful, with the Aspatria trio of Kevin Harrison, Mark Irwin and Stuart Irwin adding to the extensive list of national titles won by players of Cumbria when they won the Bowls England triples in August.
Cumbria have had international bowlers over the years but who are the main ones playing now?
Cumbria have had their fair share of International players with 12 players representing England at full international level Indoors and over 40 getting caps outdoors.
Personally I would say the best players in the county currently are still Stuart Airey and Stephen Farish who have enjoyed success at both codes over the last 30 years.
There are bowling leagues across the county. Are they thriving and how many clubs are active in league bowls?
The bowling leagues during the outdoor season may not have as many clubs as 20 years ago but they are still going and many players are still enjoying the weekly competitive visits to venues all over the County.
An indoor bowls club encourages participation at all times of the year, in all weathers, so how is your club faring in Carlisle?
When the outdoor season ends, over 500 players from all over Cumbria and southern Scotland turn their attention to the blue carpet of the Indoor Bowls Club in Carlisle for the winter season (September to April) where there are levels for every ability of player to compete or play for fun.
Did COVID disrupt bowling as much as other sports and have you recovered from the affects of the pandemic?
COVID was as difficult a time for bowls as it was for every sport and numbers still haven’t returned to what they were before but for those who have returned they are back playing and enjoying the sport as much as they ever did.
I finish with this question to everyone. A rich benefactor leaves £1 million to be spent on bowling in Cumbria. How should it be spent?
If a rich benefactor was to leave a large sum of money to be spent in bowls, I would recommend a new facility to be built to include a new eight-rink indoor surface, a six-rink outdoor grass surface and a six-rink artificial outdoor surface with good bar, restaurant and viewing areas.
