BRBA: Thrill of the chase for Central Wendouree bowler

FOR Central Wendouree bowler John Nunn, it's pennant or its nothing.After nearly 40 years on the rinks, Nunn has basically eliminated social bowls from his weekly schedule.The 62-year-old admits it's the competitive and team-based nature of the Saturday pennant competition that gets his heart racing"I've played more than 700 games of pennant, and it's probably the only game of bowls that I really enjoy,'' Nunn says."I suppose it's the team bonding and the competition. You can play every day of the week if you want to, but I don't play social bowls. I'm only a competition bowler.''Nunn said a mass exodus from the Bears a few years ago had changed the club's focus."We had a big change in the club when Matthew Flapper left. We had a lot of top bowlers there, and once he left, probably eight went with him. He was playing at Essendon and a lot of people wanted to play with him,'' Nunn said."We had to develop the players from within the club instead of players that came from the likes of Melbourne or Bacchus Marsh to play with him. We had to make do with our local ones."At the moment I like developing some of younger and less experienced players.''A self-confessed competitor who thrives on success, Nunn admits his win-at-all-costs attitude had mellowed over the past few years."I play pretty tough, and I'm fairly competitive, but after the game I enjoy the social side of things. I'm well known as a stirrer, and come from the old-school days where there is a bit of niggling and gamesmanship,'' Nunn says."I play to enjoy it and play to win. If you don't win, well bad luck."I'm a lot more socially adjusted now and probably don't have that keenness and will to win that I used to have. I'm more relaxed now and tolerant of others.''Nunn began his career with Central Bowling Club ? which amalgamated with Wendouree in 1990 to form Central Wendouree ? in his mid-20s when football injuries led him to pursue a less taxing sport.Nunn recalls being one of the few youngsters involved in the game back then, a trend that has changed dramatically in recent times as more young people try their hand at bowls."I would have been one of the youngest by far at that club for about 20 years. There weren't too many younger than me paying at that stage,'' Nunn recalls. "There are a lot more young people taking it up now. It is an easy game to play and people get bored playing cricket because if you don't bat or bowl you get sick of it."And of course the clubs are licensed and they might like a beer or two.''In a successful career that began in 1972, Nunn has claimed two Central Wendouree club championships, as well as a Victorian under-35 singles title.He has won multiple BRBA pairs, triples and fours events as well as pennant titles with Central and during a brief stint with Midlands Golf.