BOWLS

BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT

 

WHAT a recent run for Latrobe Valley lawn bowls player Lisa Phillips.

Not only did she walk away with three medals around her neck at the 2025 Australian Championships and Australian Sides Championships, the local gun was also selected to the Emerging Jackaroos national squad.

The elite development program is a feeder squad to eventually play for the Australian Jackaroos building towards the 2026 Commonwealth Games and beyond.

After taking up the sport at 10-years-old, Phillips receives her first recognition at this level as one of the country’s best.

“As a kid starting in the sport of lawn bowls, my dream was one day to have an opportunity to wear the green and gold,” Phillips told the Express.

“I can’t put into words how grateful I am to be selected in the Emerging Jackaroos squad.

“It may be myself who’s been selected within this squad, but if it wasn’t for the support of all my teammates, coaches, managers, friends and of course my family, something like this would never be possible.

“I’m looking forward to the journey ahead and excited for what is to come.”

The current Clayton player has also been selected to represent Australia at the Burnside Pairs in January, held in Christchurch, New Zealand.

At the Australian Championships held in Devonport, Tasmania last month, Phillips claimed her first gold medal at the national competition, as her Victorian triples rink defeated South Australia by two shots in the final.

She featured alongside fellow Sandbelt Region teammates Kelly McKerihen and Melanie Allen.

“Doing it with the team, the two other girls who I’ve played with for the last few years, we managed to win our triples at a smaller level, at a regional level, before going to the state (level),” Phillips said.

“This year we managed to win the state title, which gave us that opportunity to play for the Australian title, so it was our first go at it (and) it was really cool to win the gold medal from our first attempt.”

Following on from that victory, Phillips then sought to taste further success in the fours competition.

Her rink almost pipped another gold medal, but settled for silver thanks to a painstakingly close result in the final against New South Wales.

“We were all square on the very last end of the game, so that was another one where we actually were behind early and we fought our way back into it to get all level and it came right down to the absolute wire,” she said.

“It could have gone either way… we were really happy to get back into a position where we could’ve won it, but up against such competition, to come away with a silver medal was an awesome result for us.”

In the lead-up to the Australian Championships, Phillips and her Victoria women’s side clinched an additional silver medal at the Australian Sides Championships.

As captain of the state team, Phillips led from the front as Victoria rallied to finish the tournament with six straight wins after an initial loss to eventual Marj Morris Trophy recipients New South Wales.

The resilience was clear as day from a group who had not long ago stood atop the podium themselves in the same competition.

Phillips has done wonders for herself, including two Australian Open Singles wins, as well as multiple state singles titles, and triples and fours successes.

After becoming the number one female lawn bowls player in the country at the age of 20 when she won her second Australian Open title, Phillips has continued to play high level, competitive bowls over her time in the game.

The now 32-year-old noted the growth she’s seen over the past two decades since first competing on the green.

“When I started, you didn’t come across a lot of younger people… and people had that mind-set that it was an older person’s game,” Phillips said.

“But, I think now everyone you play against is younger than me half the time, and I’m only 32, so I think there’s been a massive growth in our sport with younger ones coming through the ranks.”

Phillips has been one of many that have advocated for lawn bowls inclusion in future Olympics and Paralympics, beginning at the 2032 Brisbane Games.

In a past life, Phillips would be leading into potentially playing in her backyard in Gippsland with the Jackaroos, but the Commonwealth Games will now commence in Glasgow, Scotland next July.