ROSSMUND Bowling Club won the overall prize on conclusion of the Namibian Lawn Bowls National League last weekend.
They won the Men’s Division with 48 points, the Women’s Division with 54 points and the Trips Division II with 48 points, to top the overall standings with 147 points.
Omeya Bowling Club were the runners-up in the Men’s Division with 42 points, Eros Bowling Club were the runners-up in the Women’s Division with 36 points, and Eros Bowling Club the runners-up in the Trips II Division with 42 points.
The Trips Division 1 was won by TransNamib Bowling Club with 39 points, with Eros Bowling Club second on 36 points.
The league is always planned to finish in Windhoek with all clubs present as this makes it the perfect time for everyone to gather for the annual awards, when the NBA recognises and honours excellence among its members.
The Most Promising bowler award went to 17-year-old JP Fouche of Eros Bowling Club, who represented Namibia at the under-20 South African national tournament in Bloemfontein in March this year.
While he was still in Bloemfontein, he received the news that he had been chosen for the Namibian senior team who were to participate in the Atlantic Championships in Wales during May this year. At 17, he is the youngest player ever selected to play for Namibia.
The women’s player of the year was awarded to Diana Viljoen of Rossmund Bowling Club. Viljoen is currently the Namibian Singles Champion of Champions, while she also won the Namibian Closed Singles Championships and is thus eligible to represent Namibia at the World Singles Championships to be held in Adelaide, Australia at the end of 2019.
She also skipped the Namibian women’s team that won gold in a quadrangular tournament held in Windhoek last year, as well as the team that represented Namibia in Wales at the Atlantic Championships in May this year.
The Men’s player of the year was awarded to Piet Appollis of Rossmund Bowling Club. Appollis was part of the Namibian Men’s Triples team that won a bronze medal at the Atlantic Championships where 23 countries participated in that discipline. He was also in the Namibian Fours team that made it to the quarter-finals in the same tournament.
The team of the year award went to the Namibian Men’s Triples team of Willie Esterhuizen, Johan Jacobs and Piet Appollis that won a bronze medal at the Atlantic Championships held in Wales in May.
The Sportsmanship Award went to Lynne Lindsay-Payne. She has been playing for many years and has represented Namibia at national level and more recently for the seniors team.
She was part of the Senior Women’s team that won gold at last year’s Triangular Series against Botswana and Zimbabwe. Together with Cathy du Plessis, she won a silver medal at the 1998 Commonwealth Games, held in Kaula Lumpur, Malaysia.
The final award, for the contribution made to Namibian bowls, was shared by Jenny Gardiner and Lesley Vermeulen. Gardiner is the PRO of the Namibia Bowls Association and since she has taken over the task, bowls has had a great deal more coverage in the media than in the past.
She has been a female selector for a number of years and she helps behind the scenes with fundraisers and the general organisation for the Namibian team.
Vermeulen won the award for her tireless dedication and commitment to representing Namibian bowlers at the National Namibia Olympic Committee and the Namibia Sports Commission. She took it upon herself to accompany the u20 team to Bloemfontein earlier this year, while she has been on the executive of the Namibia Bowling Association for a number of years in various capacities.
The team for the upcoming African States Tournament, which takes place in Nairobi, Kenya from 19 to 24 August, was also announced and is as follows:
Men: Willie Esterhuizen, Johan Jacobs, Piet Appollis, JP Fouche and Cabous Olivier.
Women: Diana Viljoen, Amanda Steenkamp, Anjuleen Viljoen, Elzaan de Vries and Bianca Lewis.
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