BOWLS: Development officers delighted with progress of young players

Irish Bowls Federation Development Officers, Ian McClure and Chris Mulholland, have been thrilled with the success of the inaugural Under-18/Under-25 Regional Development Squad initiative, sponsored by Belfast City Council.
By The Newsroom
Published 30th Mar 2016, 17:01 BST
Updated 30th Mar 2016, 19:16 BST
High Sheriff of Belfast, Alderman Jim Rodgers, IBA President Stephen Moran, AIIB President Nixon Armstrong, IBF Secretary Colin Campbell, IBF Development Officer Chris Mulholland and Belfast Indoor Bowls Club Chairmen Ronnie McKitterick are joined by some of the participants from the Regional Development squadHigh Sheriff of Belfast, Alderman Jim Rodgers, IBA President Stephen Moran, AIIB President Nixon Armstrong, IBF Secretary Colin Campbell, IBF Development Officer Chris Mulholland and Belfast Indoor Bowls Club Chairmen Ronnie McKitterick are joined by some of the participants from the Regional Development squad
High Sheriff of Belfast, Alderman Jim Rodgers, IBA President Stephen Moran, AIIB President Nixon Armstrong, IBF Secretary Colin Campbell, IBF Development Officer Chris Mulholland and Belfast Indoor Bowls Club Chairmen Ronnie McKitterick are joined by some of the participants from the Regional Development squad

This squad targets the cream of the country’s young players.

The 15 athletes selected have had an unprecedented opportunity to progress along the pathway for Under-18 and 25 players in Northern Ireland and have benefitted immensely from ‘one-to-one’ mentoring, the introduction to high performance coaching drills and being able to participate in workshops and learn from the experiences of some of the country’s top internationals, including David Corkill, Mark McPeak, Gary Kelly, Catherine Beattie and Michael Nutt.

“The feedback has been overwhelming,” beamed McClure.

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“The potential that was on show each week was amazing and these young bowlers will undoubtedly be representing Northern Ireland on the International stage for many years to come.”

Chris Mulholland added: “This initiative has been a great success. However it would have been impossible to organise without the financial support of Belfast City Council.

“It was fantastic that the High Sheriff of Belfast, Alderman Jim Rodgers, was able to attend our finals evening and present prizes to all our athletes.

“With the support of the four governing bodies and Belfast City Council, we are already planning ahead for next season, especially with added incentive of the Commonwealth Youth Games being hosted by Northern Ireland in 2021.”

Related topics:BowlsBelfast City CouncilJim RodgersNorthern Ireland