About Us

CONTACT DETAILS

Address:	Cnr Duke & Windham Streets
	Wallan    VIC    3756
Telephone:	03 5783 1483
Email:	info@wallanbowls.com
Facebook:	https://www.facebook.com/wallan.bowls.com.au/

CLUB BOARD

President: Peter Glass

Vice President: Tim Gascoigne

Administration Director: Carol Glass

Finance Director: Pam Cowen

Greens Director: Vacant

Bar Manager: Janet Cockerill

Delegate Rep: Vacant

Sponsorship: Carole Wright

 

Wallan Bowling Club – Constitution – (Download PDF)

 

The Beginning – 24th September 1963

The Wallan Bowling Club was first established on the 24th September 1963 in the original location in Bentinck Street, Wallan next to what is now Hogan’s Hotel.

The establishment of the club was a huge step for the township of Wallan, considering the town had at the time one pub, two butchers, two garages, a cafe, a store and about fifty houses.  Wallan East, a mile away, included another pub, a dozen homes and a railway workers camp.

Perce Forbes or “The Fox” was able to convince 37 potential members, including ladies, to join the club and raised £2,470 in donations from local businesses.

Members of the community put their blood, sweat and tears into laying the green on concrete, planting shrubs to keep the rabbits out, and purchasing mats, jacks, a mower, hand pulled roller and hoses. At this stage they had a green ready to play on, but not yet a club house.

Around this time the local C.F.A. had recently updated and expanded their facility and the Wallan Bowling Club members were successful in purchasing the C.F.A. garage before it was demolished. The garage was quickly dismantled, transported and reassembled at the Bowling Club site where it became the equipment shed and initial club rooms.

The first men’s pennant team was entered into competition and finding the 11th and 12th player for the team was frequently difficult.  Often a prospective bowler or two were given a quick coaching lesson on the green on Saturday morning and played their first ever game of bowls in a game of pennant, sometimes in their own or borrowed cricket whites that afternoon.

All would pray there would be no grass fires or accidents on the highway as the Secretary and Pennant Skipper was also the local Policeman.

pictured in the photo on the original Wallan Bowling Green Site:

M McGeady, R Humpries, K Christie, O Monahan,R Eastburn and R Stockdale

In the first 15 years of the club being established there were four extensions made to the original clubhouse and the men agreed wholeheartedly that their favourite extension was made to the bar.

The Wallan Bowling Club became incorporated in December 1983. The club felt this was a great achievement as it released the members from any liability incurred.

The township of Wallan was expanding rapidly and it was decided that a second green was required. The current location was not suitable for a second green and the search commenced for a new club home.

The current site at Greenhill Reserve was found to be the best option and, with support from the Kilmore Shire with a land grant and financial assistance, plus funds raised from the sale of the Bentinck Street property, the new site was given the certificate of occupancy on the 14th of October 1988.

During the 1988-1989 season the club combined its Silver Anniversary dinner with the official opening of the new clubhouse. The Pavilion was named the Allan F Ryan Pavilion.

In 1994, following a donation from Bernard and Marjorie Laffan, construction commenced on the Laffan Green which is named after one of our founding members.

In 2005, the club took the first steps into the next era with the men changing their club uniform to green and gold. In 2008 the ladies followed also adopting green and gold.

In 2016, the club received a grant from the state government which will enable the club to put down a new synthetic green.

In 2017 a partial grant from Bendigo Bank and the State Government to supplement a club loan enabled us to install a synthetic carpet green to complement our grass green.

In 2019 we were grateful recipients of a State Government to install outdoor lighting so the Wallan community and visitors can enjoy long summer evenings of bowls.

Since 2016 the Wallan Bowls Club have won 6 pennant flags and since moving to the Metro Bowls division won one 20021/22 divisional flag and one 2022/23 grand final.