Bowls is a relatively simple sport to understand although it does require a certain degree of tactical thinking. You are given four bowls a game to get as close to the small white ball that is known as the ‘jack’. The game is made difficult by the bowls, which have flattened sides and a weight bias. The game can be played as singles, pairs, triples and four-player teams.

The game begins after a coin toss to determine who goes first. The first bowler (the Lead) takes their place on the mat and rolls the jack to the other end of the green as a target. When the jack is delivered it must travel to at least 23m, which will then be moved to the centre of the rink. The players take turns to bowl and player who gets closest to the jack scores one shot (point).

In Bowls there are different types of delivery that make the bowl turn in different ways. The draw shot is when a player attempts to roll the ball without disturbing other bowls. This is done by a bowler initially aiming for one side of the ball, which then curves to the other side. The drive bowl is when a player hits either the jack or a specific bowl with considerable force and the upshot or yard on bowl is when a player hits only the jack without going out of play. If a bowl reaches the ditch – a small gully at the end of the pitch – without touching the jack it is out of play.