Girvan BC Club Story - 2023 Affiliation
Bowls Scotland’s Annual Affiliation and Competition Entries for 2023 opened last week with Girvan Bowling Club becoming the first to complete their online capitation for the year. Last year this honour was held by Springhill BC who we contacted for a club story. This year Alistair Scobie, who is in his tenth year as Secretary of Girvan BC, told us about the clubs’ 2022 season, plans for 2023 as well as the affiliation process.
2022 was a good year for Girvan BC, who hosted over 40 social events throughout the season, from quizzes and visiting club games to birthday celebrations, funerals and dances. The club also saw a small increase in membership from the 2021 season. Alistair told us more about these social events, which included two fun days, as well as giving an overview of the competitive season at the club:
“Two fun days took place, the first was a ‘Ryder Cup’ competition with two mixed teams. Competitive, inclusive, and very entertaining. The second fun day was a competition with different activities in six rinks, eg bowls were played through hoops to a target mat; trying to put a jack in a tin in the ditch; playing nearest to a bottle of whisky without touching it; playing with the other hand (using left hand if usually use right) I found this particularly difficult!
“Our social events were lighthearted and a great opportunity for members to enjoy good company and good fun. There were prizes but it was the taking part that everyone enjoyed.
“Another highlight for the club was hosting an Andrew Hamilton Trophy game. Although we didn’t win anything at an Ayrshire or Scottish level we did get quite far in a couple of the competitions. Nearly but not quite. The same was true of the Top Ten where we lost to the winners of our District, Maybole Memorial Park, in a close fought game. All in all, I would say a successful season with certainly more highs than lows.”
When it came to Online Affiliation for this season, Alistair had all of the club’s information ready to go which helped him complete things in a timely fashion.
“Having recently completed the Ayrshire Bowling Association Capitation Form I had all the information to hand before I started. Therefore, once last year’s Girvan details were loaded, completion was very simple. Kelly Anderson’s YouTube video guide re completing the form was most helpful, particularly as the format of the form has changed.”
“While the information provided in the form is correct at the point of completion, it is subject to verification and changes at our AGM which is likely to take place in March/April. However, it is understandable that Bowls Scotland and Associations require the information in advance for planning purposes etc.”
For clubs in a similar situation, where club roles might change at AGM time or throughout the season, ‘Club Admins’ (the person who submits capitation via the online system) can edit committee roles on the Online Club and Membership System as and when required. Our Membership and Business Officer, Kelly, has created a video walkthrough for this process.
Next, we were keen to find out what plans the club have for the upcoming 2023 season, Alistair gave us an overview which included continuing to offer the wide range of social events and activities which the Girvan community and club members value so highly. There are also plans to renovate the facilities, making the clubhouse more accessible and the grounds more sustainable:
“We’ve received estimates to upgrade our inadequate 1960’s gents’ toilets to include toilet facility for disabled, completion of which will be subject to successful funding applications.
“We hope to continue to be at the heart of the Girvan community by providing our facilities to support and sustain local groups. As a town, Girvan has limited provision for larger events, and our bowling club has one of the larger halls in the town. Therefore, we aim to carry on hosting family events: eg birthdays; anniversaries; funeral teas etc. In support of our full and social club members we will ensure a continued program of activities: eg Beetle Drives; Dances; Coffee Mornings; Quizzes; Fairs and so on. Our Sunday afternoon dances have been very successful with demand for tickets always outstripping availability. Sunday afternoon games and food are also very popular.
“To research, cost and consider turning one of our four greens into a Wildflower Meadow. As well as being pleasing to the eye and supporting dwindling populations of native pollinators, it would reduce our labour and utility costs. With membership trends, we don’t need four playing greens, indeed two would more than suffice.”
Thanks go to Alistair for his time in helping with this story, we wish him and all at Girvan BC all the best for a successful season.
Online Affiliation and Competition Entries are open until 28th February with FAQs and Help guides available by clicking here. To watch the YouTube video that Alistair mentions as well as other step by step walkthroughs click here.