Bowls Auckland is delighted to announce the appointment of Paul MacKinnon as the organisation’s new Performance Lead.

Paul brings a wealth of high-performance experience, having held key roles with New Zealand Rugby (High Performance Player Development Manager), Auckland Cricket (High Performance Manager), Hockey New Zealand (High Performance Director), and most recently with Bowls New Zealand, where he contributed to the development of their High Performance Strategy and mentored key team members.

His appointment signals a significant step forward in Bowls Auckland’s commitment to developing and supporting bowlers with regional and national aspirations. In this role, Paul will oversee the performance programme, mentor coaches and selectors, and help establish clear development pathways for players.

Dean Bartlett, Bowls Auckland CEO, shared his enthusiasm:
“We understand that developing and having aspirations to play at the highest or next level is important to many of our players. We want to support these ambitions, and we’re excited that Paul has accepted the challenge to lead our programme.”

Paul also shared his thoughts on the role:
“Performance in sport is all about learning how to repeat or become more consistent at the level you want to play at. I really enjoy helping people set and achieve their goals. This role is about putting in place the structure and systems to support our bowlers in achieving at regional and national levels – including higher Blackjacks honours. I look forward to coming on board and joining the team.”

Paul will officially begin on 18 August, but will be involved in the interim, joining the Appointment Panel for team management roles, which are set to be announced by 1 August.