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An interview with Jim Allison, Cyprus' bowling pioneer

by Melissa Reynolds

When Jim Allison received a set of bowls for his birthday fifty seven years ago it was a gift that ignited a lifelong passion for the game and one that would eventually lead many others to convert to the sedate sport of bowling. Jim born in Edinburgh is the man responsible for building up a thriving bowling community in Cyprus, now over 400 strong and with ambitions to climb both the European ranks and field a side at the next Commonwealth Games in Delhi in 2010.

Jim can remember the auspicious moment he first attempted bowling, a sport said to have originated from a Roman pastime that evolved into 'petanque' in France and 'bocce' in Italy, and was even played by Henry VIII.

"I got a set on my 18th birthday on 26th and was on the Bowling Green on 27th May 1950," he says proudly. Recalling that first outing at the Edinburgh Synod Hall, previously used as a cinema with folding lanes of carpets installed behind the screen, Jim was delighted to provide some youthful opposition to the bowling regulars, "I took to bowling like a duck takes to water and I think I must have been one of the youngest players ever to go on a bowling green because it was an old man’s game. Everybody looked like Santa Claus, they all had beards but I was in my element," he says with a broad Scottish accent and a glint in his eye.

Now aged 75, Jim has lost none of his characteristic fortitude, a trait that was fundamental in overcoming numerous obstacles and difficulties he experienced in trying to establish bowling facilities on the island since moving here permanently in 1992. Having spent nine years visiting Cyprus on holidays after he and wife Catherine fell in love with the country in 1983, Jim set about his mission to find a place where he could indulge his passion for bowling, having been disappointed by what the island had to offer in those early days.

"The nearest thing that came to a bowling club was Bob, I don't remember his surname, I met him in Coral Beach and he had tried to get a club going long before I ever came here, with no success whatsoever. He invited us along one night to carpet bowling at the Theophanous hotel in Paphos, he had about twelve people interested so I went along and what they had done is scatter some cement on a garage roof, put the carpet down and it was like that," he says, gesticulating a wave motion, "It was a no-go area; that was the first and there was no way you could play bowls on that."

Returning in 1984 Jim saw little progress had been made since the undulating green at the Theophanous, "We saw an article about the bowling green at the Queens Bay Hotel so we shot along with Tom Sloan and his wife who were not bowlers at that time. The green had a rope on it with three wee lanes so I said first thing is the rope has to come off. They ran their first competition there, a knock-out thing but the green was on a slight slope, I asked why and the manager said it was to let the rain run off," says Jim of the facilities he continued to use for several years.

The most difficult challenge for him was that the sport, like cricket, had never really taken off with Cypriots, a populous well-known for their love of football, "When you mentioned bowling in Cyprus all they thought was 'skittles,' explains Jim, who finally asked a friend, George Philippides, to help, "I asked for a bit of green and got a magazine and showed him. He went away and about three months later I met him again and asked him about this Bowling Green and he said he'd forgotten. Anyway he said he would speak to his cousin who was building the Aliathon Village at the time - they were looking for something sports wise that didn’t make any noise so I told them I had just the thing."

Determined to see his bowling dream come to life, Jim wasn't prepared to sit on the sidelines, "I had thirteen meetings with Aliathon - Themis (Maispa Developers) and George Psomas, the architect, and they asked me about bowling. We started putting the feelers out to start a club; I had 105 names and 75 actually joined on the first day. I formed a small working group and we met up once a month to keep up-to-date on what was developing because we used to go down there and nothing had started."

Plans for an eight rink green were thwarted by budgetary restraints, although Jim was nonetheless delighted when the Aliathon's four rink facility was finally completed in April 1995. An opening day inaugural match took place three weeks later when the President Select beat the Vice President Select by eight points. Jim still carries his original Aliathon membership card today, numbered 001, the same as current club, Louis Phaethon which he set-up after resigning from Aliathon in 2002.

Louis Phaeton opened in April 2003 and now has around sixty eight members playing in the league organised by the island's governing body, 'Bowls Cyprus,' in which all four Cyprus clubs participate between early September and late November. Intra-club competitions are supplemented by matches against the regular influx of bowlers visiting Cyprus from overseas.

Despite opting for a back-seat role at the Louis Phaethon, between playing the game Jim manages to find time to act as an agent for Lincolnshire based Dales Sports Surfaces, coach new bowlers and is developing a following for 'Short Mat' bowling, a popular form of the game that has gained in popularity in the UK. Short mat, in common with 20/20, a relaxed version of cricket, has some purists in a spin, although Jim considers it to be a positive influence in widening the sport’s appeal and already has over 100 players signed up, "It's more skilful I think, but it's debatable with some bowlers who say it spoils their outdoor game. It's more accessible - you only need a 45 foot carpet by 6 foot wide. Since we’ve started it's gone from one to three clubs." Newcomers are welcomed to give the game a try at his regular events at the 'Crazy Spoon' in Kissonerga. "Anyone can come along, just phone us and we'll make sure you get a game,” he promises. Not content at that, the indefatigable Scotsman is on a mission to introduce short mat to schools and is looking for a contact to help him win over the island’s youngsters, in part to overcome the sport's image as a game for those in their retirement years.

When asked what it is that maintains his interest in the sport after all these years, Jim simply says, "I've always enjoyed bowling, I still do to this day and I’m still learning, because you are always learning." He recommends bowling as a pastime that provides enormous benefits, "You can play at any age and many disabilities can be overcome, especially rheumatics and stiff legs. It's a mental game; concentrating for two hours keeps your mind active because it's not just a case of getting to a jack, it's building up positions, you've got to build things up and that will generate your brain to work overtime - it's a very strategic game. Then there’s the social element, it really encourages friendship and social lives; there are people here who say that without the bowling they'd be lost,” he explains.

Cyprus bowlers owe Jim Allison a debt of gratitude for his efforts in overcoming so many challenges to share the joy of bowling in Cyprus, a sport now thriving here thanks to the indomitable spirit of a man who simply refuses to take 'no' for an answer.
'Short mat' bowling takes place every Thursday evening from 4.30pm and Sunday mornings from 10am at the Crazy Spoon in Kissonerga. To find out more, pop along to the tournament taking place on Sunday 16th December from 9.30am, or contact Jim Allison on 26951678.


Cyprus bowlers get ready to take on the world

By Melissa Reynolds

As Cyprus gets ready to host the 7th European Bowls Championship, the home side are already hard at work preparing to take on the best bowlers on the continent before they arrive in Paphos in February 2009.

National team coach, Mike Cooper, appointed four months ago by the island’s governing body ‘Bowls Cyprus,’ is putting the country’s twenty top bowlers through their paces with hopes of a leading position in the European competition, which will be hotly contested by fourteen countries, including last year’s winners, England and runners up, Scotland and Spain.

The squad has been selected from thirty four of Cyprus’ best players and Mike is optimistic that they can improve on the 9th place they achieved at the Paphos tournament this year, “The object of the exercise is to give us eighteen months training to come up with two men and two women who will represent Cyprus and give us a better chance of competing at the top level. Last year we had four people and they came ninth, my aspirations are to come fourth – anything better than that would be great. We can take some points off some of the top countries - there’s no reason why we can’t because we’ve got some excellent bowlers,” he says.

The European championship is just one of a number of international competitions the fledgling organisation has its sights set-on over the next three years, with plans to send a squad to several events next year. The ‘Tiger Bowls’ championship in Hong Kong at the end of February followed by the China Open in March and Warilla Bowls World Cup in Australia during April are a few of the contests that will give the team valuable competition experience. Much depends on finding sponsors to fund the team’s participation and Bowl Cyprus are keen to hear from anyone who can help, particularly as the association has aspirations to send a squad to the Commonwealth Games in three years time, “We’ve applied to become members of the Commonwealth and Olympic Committee because in 2010 if they think we are of good enough standard we may be included in the Cyprus contingent. We will only get to that standard if we have enough money to be able to compete against these top nations. We have talent here; it’s just a matter of harnessing it,” confirms Mike.

For more information on sponsoring the Cyprus bowling team contact Mike Cooper on 26652394 or email bowlscypruscoaching@yahoo.co.uk
 

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