Bowls Tactics: When You are Ahead in the Last End and Don't have the Mat

 

Introduction

Lawn bowls is a game where consistency is rewarded. It is not how close a single delivery is to the jack; it is how often your bowls finish close to the jack. Throughout most of a match no-one should fret if an opponent builds up a big lead beating your own close deliveries. So long as your side maintains consistently bowls well, the law of averages should be trusted to even out the difference.

When the final ends come around, however, such faith is no longer warranted. To win the match the team that is behind must act in ways that might be imprudent any other time in the match and the team that is leading must be aware of this and take appropriate counter-measures.

The more shots a side is behind, the sooner these more daring tactics need to be invoked.

You are Ahead in the Last End and Don’t Have the Mat

If the situation is that you have just lost the penultimate end of your match; but, you are still ahead; well, there is a bright side- you will have the last bowl in this, the last end! This is a very palpable advantage. So much so that you might have accepting down 1 in the previous end just to get it! The team with the last bowl has the better opportunity to score. 

The opposition has the mat and has the privilege of determining both mat location and jack length; however, very few skips make good use of these choices. Most likely they will go with either whatever length they just scored with or the longest jack possible. These are the commonest choices although not necessarily the smartest.

Strategically, it is significant whether the last end is open or closed. That is— whether the end can be killed and replayed, or the jack must instead be re-spotted if it is driven out of bounds. It is advantageous to the trailing team if killing the end is allowed. If your side at any point delivers a very close bowl that also widens the head, your opponents will be assessing the possible benefit from attempting a ‘kill’.

It is also strategically important whether the tournament rules require a tied game to be settled in some fashion- such as playing an extra end. If an extra end is specified, then a further consideration is what determines who gets the last bowl?

Finally, of course, it is of very considerable importance how many shots you are leading by?! To be leading even by a single shot when your side also has the last bowl is a considerable advantage. No matter how badly the end develops you will have that final chance to turn it around. The other side can do nothing about your last bowl. There is no rejoinder. Even if things continue to go badly if you can hold them to a single shot, you will be tied and if ties must be broken you will still have a chance to win!

If your side is ahead by three or more bowls, you or your skip will probably call for you to match bowls with your opposite number so long as your opponent’s bowl is behind the jack. Preferably, your bowl will still finish shot. The other side will be trying to group their bowls behind the jack and then trail the jack towards this grouping. Your side will want to place bowls in among their grouping positioned preferably so your bowl is are also closest to the jack to catch any trailed jack and to apply maximum pressure. 

Although it is always preferable to end up behind the jack, your side does not need to share this same level of fear as your opponents must. Perhaps almost as important is getting your bowls close to the center line. Then even if slightly short a bowl will reduce the chance for the opposition to hit the jack and, if within the rules, ’kill’ the end.

Because your side has the last bowl it does not have to protect in advance against the most common trick for the other side to get a big last end. That trick is to bowl everything long and then with their last bowl try to push the jack into the ditch. So long as you are comfortable bowling long with your last bowl, you are not in danger. If they fail to hit the jack you will earn a big score!

In the final end, it becomes of enhanced importance to consider the situation from the perspective of the opposing side. Have they already won the previous rounds in the tournament? Are their points-for sufficient to keep them in contention to win a prize? If the answers are yes to both these questions, they may take bigger risks to make up the score and thereby present you with the chance to be handed a big end yourselves.

When your side is ahead it is the other side that needs to be daring. You do not need to strain for more points- there is a good chance you will be handed them!

Since you have last bowl, the best situation your opponents can aim for is to be sitting match-in-hand when you come to make your final delivery.  This will put pressure on you. Your goal is to be positioned so that you can refuse your last bowl.