One week to go until England versus Australia test match

Bowls Australia will visit England from Thursday, June 28 to Monday, July 2.
The travelling party, which includes a number of Commonwealth Games and World Championship gold medallists, will spend the opening two days of their visit at Warwickshire-based clubs (Avenue (Leamington) BC and Lillington BC), familiarising themselves with greens in the Northern Hemisphere.
A Development Test Match will then take place at Whitnash Sports & Social Club, Heathcote Road, Whitnash, CV31 2NF, on Saturday 30th June against a team of current England Junior Internationals.

Junior Team Managers Martyn Sekjer and Nicola Bowe will be leading the England team which includes Devon Cooper (Hertfordshire), Laura Holden (Somerset), Kirsty Richards (Warwickshire), Harriet Stevens (Devon), Rachel Tremlett (Hertfordshire), Ryan Atkins (Herefordshire), Connor Cinato (Northamptonshire), Marcus Clifton (Leicestershire), Ed Elmore (Huntingdonshire) and Harry Goodwin (Devon).

Play is scheduled to start at 10am with the Men’s Singles, Men’s Fours, Women’s Pairs and Women’s Triples, followed by a second session at 1pm which includes Women’s Singles, Women’s Fours, Men’s Pairs and Men’s Triples. A third session will take place at 3.45pm when all players will take place in either mixed pairs or mixed triples.

A Senior Test Match will then take place at Victoria Park, Royal Leamington Spa, starting on the afternoon of Sunday 1st July (at the conclusion of the British Isles International Series) and all day on Monday 2nd July.

Senior Team Managers John Bell and Gail Gilkes will lead the Teams to take on the Australian Jackaroos, which feature Stef Branfield (Somerset), Annalisa Dunham (Lincolnshire), Rebecca Field (Norfolk), Amy Gowshall (Lincolnshire), Imogen Jenner (Kent), Andrew Knapper (Berkshire), Ian Lesley (Devon), Steve Mitchinson (Essex), Mark Read (Cornwall) and Jamie Walker (Northamptonshire).

Play is scheduled to start at 1pm on the Sunday afternoon with the Men’s Singles, Men’s Fours, Women’s Pairs and Women’s Triples, followed by a second session including Women’s Singles, Women’s Fours, Men’s Pairs and Men’s Triples at 3.45pm.

On Monday, three further sessions will take place, commencing at 10am, 1pm and 3.45pm.

Entry is free to all of the events. Spectators are asked to utilise nearby car parks operated by Warwick District Council for the Senior Test match – parking in Archery Road will be subject to the normal time restrictions.

Bowls Australia National Coach Steve Glasson and his selection committee have opted for a young squad, including two Australian debutants in Ben Twist (NSW) and Jesse Noronha (NSW), with a vision to gaining exposure on the vastly different surfaces and conditions offered north of the equator.

The young team will be guided by three 2018 Games representatives, in gold medallists Kelsey Cottrell, Rebecca Van Asch and Aaron Wilson, while also having a firm eye on blooding the next batch of possible Games competitors.