Road Bowling has become the most endangered of Ireland’s national sports

Will clubs have enough money to pay for insurance? Will older players give up the game after two years absence, will a generation of young people also be lost?

CHANGED TIMES: North Cork Region treasurer Willie Murphy wipes the bowls with sanitising wipes before a match last June. Picture: Piaras Ó Mídheach

A sport whose identity is woven of social contact is bound to be gripped in a state of shock, disbelief, and bewilderment as a consequence of the prolonged lockdown.

Road bowling lives on the social interactions of those that play and watch the game. It is perhaps more of a cultural phenomenon than any other Irish sport. It draws on oral memory in a globally connected online world, stubbornly holding values and traditions that are not easily moulded by current trends or fashions. A resilient entity, but also the most endangered of Ireland’s national sports.