COMMUNITY bowls in the region will take on a bright and positive look going forward, with Murray Downs bowler Josh Thornton being recently appointed to the role of North West Victoria Country Manager.
Thornton will step into the newly created role by Bowls Victoria to assist both leagues and clubs in the operation and running of competitions across the Murray Mallee and Wimmera regions.
The new role is the first of its kind in Victoria, and will see the project rolled out as a pilot program by Bowls Victoria, with a view to implementing it state wide proven successful.
Thornton will be the sole regional manager for its duration and will be employed by Bowls Victoria on a two-year contract.
After speaking with The Guardian this week, Thornton was excited at the prospect of changing the face of the sport he loves in this region, while equally aware of the enormity of the task in front of him.
“I’m absolutely rapt, it’s my dream job in many ways and I’m just so excited to get in and get to work,” Thornton said.
“I know my boss, having been involved with Bowls Victoria for the last twelve months, has had a vision to put more back into regional bowls for quite a while now.
“For a long time Bowls Victoria has been based in Melbourne and one would argue, what do they do for country clubs?”
Mr Thornon said the new role has come about in a pilot phase to see what can be done to professionalise the sport and improve support for regional clubs.
“At the moment, Bowls Australia employs the reps throughout each state and they directly link to clubs and support them on a one-on-one basis,” Mr Thornton said.
“My role will be more focused on the overall north west region – running the competitions, making sure everything’s up to scratch, and that everyone’s abiding by all the rules.
“Just generally helping to ease the burden on the many volunteers within our clubs.”
With the region stretching as far north as Wentworth and as south as Stawell, Thornton will have a lot of work ahead in order to cover the newly formed North West Bowls region.
“With me being in this role and professionalising it, we should be able to set some platforms that should then build up the north west area,” Thornton said.
“If the pilot program is successful, then there’ll be three other regions down the track that will come online in the same capacity throughout the state.
“We’re hoping to try and commercialise it a bit – we’ve kind of modeled it on the AFL Victoria model, where there’s someone paid to run the sport and the competitions in that area.
“We see bowls as no different to any other sport – we want to bring community bowls to a higher level.
“Hopefully it’s successful and gets rolled out across the state – because if that happens it probably means I’ve done a good job.”
Bowls Victoria CEO Tony Sherwill announced Thornton’s appointment in a press release this week, highlighting his many achievements, as well his showcasing his credentials.
“We see Josh as being an ideal candidate and a key part of the pilot – obviously Josh needs no introduction, having joined Bowls Victoria as participation coordinator just over 12 months ago,” the press release stated.
“Josh’s experience, having previously been a regional bowls manager and servicing clubs across north east Victoria and far western NSW, coupled with his AFL experience and abundance of enthusiasm, made him the standout candidate for the new role.
“Josh brings a diverse range of skills and prior experience, as well as his elite bowls ability, to the new role.
“His background will greatly assist the Murray Mallee and Wimmera Regions to enable more people to play more bowls, more often.”
Thornton took home the Gold Medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in the Para-Sport Open Triples – and earlier this year became the National Men’s Disability Champion at the Australian Open on the Gold Coast.
In what will be a very busy period, Thornton will also complete his Masters of Sport Management and Business in early 2022 and will start in his new role at the end of next month.
