Cancellation rules detailed

Batavia Bowling League members have agreed on more detailed conditions being met before games can be cancelled, after a decision to abandon a match last round failed to reach other clubs, which proceeded with their games. The match that sparked the conversation was a fixture in Northampton between the Rams and the Denison Seagulls, which was called off early last Saturday by agreement between the two clubs over duty-of-care concerns, with the temperature tipped to go past 40C. With prior commitments and events at league venues ruling out a catch-up match this weekend despite a general bye due to State Inter-Zone Round Robin competition in Busselton, the two clubs will split the points. League members have now agreed all players from each team must be at a venue and ready to bowl at the agreed start time before deciding to cancel a game, and a 90-minute extended window of opportunity can be used to allow matches a better chance of going ahead. The rules of play for the association, including rules for abandoning fixtures, are general and non-descriptive, leading to some confusion over how teams would actually go about cancelling a match. The end result of last week’s round kept Denison in second place ahead of the final three rounds of the season, two and a half points clear of Geraldton Blue, with the Rams three points shy of fourth. In the three matches that did go ahead, Geraldton Red cemented their position on top of the table with a dominant 6/0 result over Wonthella Maroon, who dropped out of the top four for the first time this season, due to percentage. Part of the reason for the move down the table by the Maroons was a big result for sister side Gold, who continued an impressive run with a fourth aggregate win, claiming all rinks in a 6/0 demolition of well-fancied Geraldton Gold and moving into fourth on percentage thanks to a massive 55-shot aggregate differential. Maroon and Geraldton Gold will both need a huge reversal in recent fortunes to keep their hopes of finals bowls alive. Meanwhile, Blue look to be growing in confidence after moving from fifth to third with a 5/1 win over Mullewa at home. Joe Criddle is club captain at Geraldton Bowling Club.