Founded in 1930, the Gloucester Bowling Club has long been a key part of Gloucester’s sporting identity. Bowls is a unique sport that caters for anyone regardless of whether you are young or just young at heart.

There are currently 87 bowling members in Gloucester, of which 40 are women and 47 are men. There are 780 social members of the Gloucester Bowling Club.

Introducing mixed barefoot bowls to the club this month, the format provides a fun and relaxed way to play bowls no matter your age. Held on Friday afternoons at 5pm and is open to anyone who wishes to play. 

The women’s branch plays on Wednesday mornings and a social men’s outing takes place on Thursdays and men’s pairs on Saturdays. 

Both the men and women have pennants teams who compete in the Manning District competition. In a competition hosting seven grades, Gloucester has teams in grades three and five. From this stage anyone wishing to play at a higher level can nominate for Manning Zone representation. There are currently two Gloucester locals, Col Hebblewhite and Mark Groves, who are nominated for the squad. 

The women can play at a higher level by electing to join the state carnival. They are allowed to play with another team to achieve this without any restrictions from the Gloucester club. 

Many great players have played at the local bowling club, with stalwart Tom Donoghue leading the charge. Donoghue won his first club championship in 1981-82 and won many more titles before finishing his playing career two years ago. 

At the end of the day, it’s all about how you play ball, whether you want to be Gloucester’s next Donoghue or just play socially with old and new friends.

"We're here for the game, the game's not here for us," one long serving member said, facing 40 degree heat outside. 

Sunburn notwithstanding, they all agreed.