Last weekend marked a milestone for Bowls Auckland, as we hosted and facilitated the Bowls New Zealand accredited coaching courses — independently, without direct assistance from Bowls New Zealand.

Twelve enthusiastic members from across Auckland, Northland, North Harbour, and Counties gathered on Saturday, 3 May, to complete the Foundation Coaching Course. Eight of those returned on Sunday to take the next step in their coaching journey — working towards becoming Development Coaches.

These newly accredited coaches will bring immense value to their clubs in many ways, including member coaching, school programmes, and potentially the 1–5 Year Winter Coaching Programme, which will run across five Auckland regions starting 28 June.

Facilitated by Bowls Auckland Coach Development Lead, Les Eagleton, the two-day course blended classroom learning with on-green practical exercises, designed to be educational and engaging. As participant Sheryl Wellington from Mairangi Bay shared: “The course was very informative, fun, inclusive — and now I’m looking forward to putting this knowledge into practice.”

From a trainer’s perspective, Les was thrilled with the outcome: “This weekend’s course is all part of our vision to build a best practice coach network that is participant-focused and supports clubs to deliver quality experiences.”

Les added: “It was very gratifying to see the commitment and enthusiasm of these new coaches, and it was great to welcome attendees from outside our region. We look forward to seeing them in action on the greens, in due course.”

A big congratulations to all participants — we look forward to the positive impact you’ll make in your clubs and across our bowls community.