ABC to quit Lawn Bowls
After 30 years the ABC will abandon broadcasts of lawn bowls at the end of 2011.
- Published by David Knox
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After 30 years the ABC will abandon broadcasts of lawn bowls at the end of 2011.
ABC’s head of sport, Justin Holdforth, has informed Bowls Australia that it would not be extending its long-term association.
The move follows ABC recently announcing job cuts and the axing of three in-house productions. Other sports, including the SANFL and WAFL, are awaiting clarification on their future. Last year ABC abandoned its Hopman Cup deal with Director of Television Kim Dalton saying “ABC Television is pursuing a strategic direction that focuses on women’s, regional and Paralympic sport.”
Holdforth has now cited a strategic shift to attract a younger audience to bowls’ traditional 5pm timeslot on a Saturday evening, as well as the need to ‘redirect its very limited resources into alternate programming’ as some of the key reasons behind the decision.
On Saturday Bowls: World Cup 2011 pulled 196,000 viewers.
Bowls Australia chief executive officer Neil Dalrymple said it had not come as a surprise.
“The ABC has been a wonderful partner for Bowls Australia over the past three decades and I would like to acknowledge the contribution they have made to our sport,” he said.
“I believe our relationship has been mutually beneficial, and while I know our membership will be disappointed by this announcement, our own broadcast strategy had identified the need to re-work our current television offering.
“Over recent years, our requests for innovation and expansion had been met with some resistance, stifling the opportunity to showcase the sport to its maximum potential.”
In late 2009, Bowls Australia engaged leading sports marketing firm, gemba, to develop a broadcast strategy for the sport.
FOX Sports, is expected to renew its agreement beyond 2011.
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- Tagged with Bowls: World Cup, Hopman Cup, SANFL, WAFL
35 Responses
5pm on a Saturday afternoon is the peak time for Lawn Bowls players to be coming down for a game. Why sit at home and watch it on TV when there is the real thing just down the road?
Lawns bowls has been a large part of my life for over 5 years and it is amazing how a sport I once considered boring became so interesting when I started playing it and started to understand the skill and mental aptitude to takes to repeatedly get your bowls close to the jack. To all those cynics out there, how about trying to play the game before you critisize it.
As for the ABC’s decision to axe Lawn Bowls – it’s the wrong thing to do!!!
Hundreds of thousands of viewers will be disappointed. We all get our ‘fix’ each Saturday afternoon when we get the chance to watch the elite players – both young and old – play at a level we all aspire to. Please, Please, Please don’t axe this show!!!!
Lawn Bowls was the most boring load of rubbish on tv. I am really really glad they axed it. I don’t know how something so boring was put on tv in the first place.
I’m sure I wasn’t the only person that used to change the channel in complete disgust when it was on.
How sad that the only time slot – 5.00 – 6.00 pm on Saturday ABC – Bowls – is under threat of being taken off. This will effect thousands of keen children bowlers, teenage bowlers, middle age bowlers and elderly bowlers. All of which look forward to 5.00 pm Saturday Night on ABC – Bowls – please, please – don’t take our bowls away.
Pat
When this programme is being telecast at 5 pm, most bowlers are usually at the club especially if it’s pennant season, so the ABC are not capturing the viewers out there which may be on offer, so a change in the time slot may be more favourable.Myself personally i think any week nights at 6.30pm. We are in A Beautiful Country so keep flying the flag ABC…
Further to my earlier comment ….. Not all of us has Fox nor can all of us afford it. Also I hope the ABC realises that there are many bowlers who are , in a way ,slightly disabled,( arthritis etc) and find great enjoyment in the game of bowls by using “aids” to assist them. Do they not count in the scheme of things?
Oh I could go on and on ad nauseum but will my little voice have the strength to cause influence? Methinks not.
Please don’t axe the bowls . So many of us find pleasure in this game of skill. No longer is it for the golden oldies as there seems to be a great deal of younger people who are equally enthralled by this this gentle sport. Please consider all ages when it comes to sport not only the footy lovers or the golf lovers. So many of us enjoy other less “important ” interests.
i am very disapointed in abc ‘s decision to cancel the bowls program, bad bad mistake i’ would bet abc has other programs with less viewers than bowls , why don’t you drop them ? or are they a part of your politicaly correct or multi cultural program list !!! which no nobody watches ? , , after spicks and specks ends this year i might delete abc from my tv channel memory , long live bowls
Like many of the posters already, I am disappointed that the ABC has decided to ax Lawn Bowls, surely if it is a matter of the timespot, why not change it; then you can use it for whatever you deem better progamming, and still give the bowling community and the non bowlers who watch the show their sport to view.
Bowlers ages cover the spectrum, even my 3 year old granddaughter loves to watch the bowls when they visit. But more importantly, it has been the one place where we can not only watch some of the best perform in a particular tournament, but watch some of the up and coming younger ones.
Your decision is one which bowlers across Australia disagree with, please reconsider this decision and continue to provide your bowling audience with their game. Surely the 500,000 bowlers are worth capturing…. so instead of axing the show, why not try increasing the program with a more broader showing of bowls from juniors to seniors, I am sure there is a lot more you can do with bowls than just the 1 hour a week..
Everybody’s bagging ABC, and rightly do, but few people have mentioned BA. The money they’ve spent on the gemba consultants must really be paying off! The only part of a media strategy I can see from the grassroots is the online streaming of some grand prix semis and finals. As a pay per view product I’m sure their servers are buckling under the demand! If that were the case I’m sure BA would have made a media release song and dance about it.
This is a terrible decision and unless another free to air broadcast partner is found will consign the sport to the media wastelands. Cue tumbleweeds.