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Interview with Jacqueline Henderson |
| Having
started playing 12 years ago after realising there was a green round
the corner from her new house in Derbyshire, now she is on a mission
to breathe life into the women´s game by investing in the
Professional Bowls Association. A director of consultancy business Lean2Suceed, earlier this month Jacqueline sponsored the Women´s World Matchplay qualifier for Potters in January, which was held at Huntingdon IBC. She also proved that bowls is accessible to anyone by reaching the semi-final of the competition, losing out to runner up on the day Chelsea Tomlin. 
"I absolutely loved everything about the day and it has given me confidence," Jacqueline said. “When I saw the international women coming in, I kept telling myself that this was about me, I just needed to play my game. I did have some nerves and apprehension, but I thought I need to get my head down and just show what I could do. “That really worked for me, I felt on top of the world. I was a bit gutted not to get to the final but there is always time for that.” Jacqueline says she was delighted that the PBA received 22 entries for the event. “I am really surprised and happy that the uptake so far has been really good and I think next year that can only grow,“ she added. “There are so many women that should be entering. After the draw was done, I had a number of other enquiries from women so there was potential for more. "It is about getting the word out there" “This year for me, what I have tried to do is link through Facebook to as many bowls clubs as I possibly can, talking to people who work at the clubs, especially indoors and asked them to place a poster up on their boards to try and encourage women to enter the PBA. “For a first attempt it did pretty well.” Jacqueline is passionate about promoting the women´s game. “It is as good as the men´s and in some instances, it can be better,“ she said. “In August last year I saw that Jason Parkinson had been received into the PBA as a director and one of the things I noticed about the PBA was that the women´s series had not been featured. I wanted to support the PBA and wanted to include the women´s game again, I pushed them to re-consider for quite a few months. “I am a female and play bowls and I hear from quite a lot of other women who say that are not wholly engaged in the men´s game and playing with the men. I didn´t like that a huge chunk of the bowls population was being left behind, it was almost like going into the dark ages again and I really did not want that to happen, I wanted to find a way of seeing if the women´s series could get back in. “Nick Brett summed it up when he said there´s a lot of people sitting there waiting in the wings, ready to come forward and I think this will give people an appetite, I do expect to see more entries next year.” Jacqueline financially supports the Wrong Bias podcast, run by David Bolt and Richie McKie. She has also sponsored the Women´s World Matchplay qualifier in Glasgow this weekend, which will be streamed by the Wrong Bias team. Jacqueline said: “My goal is to get people watching bowls from home. I think streaming is a golden ticket to promoting bowls and raising the profile and has so much potential to grow. “I know that organisations may be focussing on foundations first, getting coaching in place, growth at clubs and getting people in but this is what I would call a quick-win. “The only cost involved is the equipment that you use and the resources, whether people get paid or not. The music rights have to be paid for too, but it can be done on a shoestring budget.” Having received no formal coaching, Jacqueline honed her skills through entering the Open Singles Circuit, which in time she came to sponsor. She said: “I started off with these quite early on, simply because it is competitive, it was the next level up for me and it was a way of developing my skills. It took me to a completely new level in terms of how I played bowls. “In my opinion, if I want to improve I have got to be playing with and against some of the better players and that´s men and women, it does not really matter. You are playing the game rather than playing the person, you should not be put off by who you are playing, you should be just playing your own game and that´s how you learn. “Right from the start the OSC was and still is a really friendly, incorporating environment to be in, it feels relaxed, there´s no pressure, you turn up, you network with people and you play your own game, and that´s what the OSC is all about. “I enjoy that immensely; I have met so many people through it and there is mutual respect for everyone that turns up on the day. “There is always a friendly face, no matter where you are.”  Jacqueline
“never looked back“ as soon as she stepped on the green.“I started off with two old boys who were lovely,“she said. “I just learned as I went along and worked my way through. I had no pre-conceived ideas of bowls and no background knowledge although I had heard of it and seen it on television. I didn´t really have an appetite either way for it, but when I got involved, that´s when my hunger grew. “I think bowls has got a really good competitive side to it, and if you want it there is a superb social side too. “There´s the option of being indoor or outdoor and there´s a huge variety of people that you can network with. You can progress at your own speed to different levels, there is no pressure to perform and climb the ladder. You can do it at your own pace and time which I really like. “Now bowls is my life, I live and breathe it at the moment. I am bowling at least every other day if not every day. I am entering lots more national competitions including the OSC and the PBA. “It is a cliche but I would say to women thinking about entering these events- just go for it, try it and see if you like it, do not hesitate. “You just need to get up and go, there´s nothing to lose and you don´t always need support from others, just do it.” Sian Honnor Previous ArticleYaz Hasan Previous Article Nick Brett Previous Article Andy Knapper |
November 2022
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