If you were to look up “dedication”, “focus” and “commitment” in a nearby dictionary, there is little doubt you would find Roger and Bronwyn Stevens associated with both.
The husband and wife bowling duo from Otapiri, Southland have long been regarded as exemplary players both inside and outside of their province, and now with simultaneous crowns in both the men’s and women’s singles – it’s clear to see their work is rightfully paying off.
Bronwyn Stevens
Hundreds of early morning starts, thousands of kilometres of travel between their rural lifestyle block and their city based green at the Te Rangi club in Invercargill – and now joint Southland singles champions – a moment the development players are savouring.
“We’re both absolutely stoked, and I’m happier for Bron than me to be fair – she’s been in great form and has put a lot of hard yards in to get to this point,”, Roger exclaimed.
But what makes this story even more memorable, Roger, the current Bowls Southland Player of the Year, successfully defended his title as the reigning champion, while for Bronwyn – the win marked her second singles win at the top level, building from the victory in 2014 and six previous runner-up ribbons in other Southland events.
And the pair, who now have eight Southland titles between them, haven’t just found themselves stumbling on success - in fact, far from it.
A former silver medalist at the 2015 World Powerlifting Championships in Finland, Bronwyn is no stranger to success having also found herself topping the podium in five events at the Commonwealth and Oceania Championships several years ago and emerging as a leading light for the country’s hopes for international success.
Roger Stevens
Though it was the more genteel sport of bowls that captured her undivided attention and for the last several years, despite a hefty training schedule in the gym, all focus and commitment has been thrown behind her on-green endeavours.
While for Roger, a former competitive shearer and once considered one of the country’s top tennis players in his youthful heyday, his focus also remains firmly on the bowling horizon - though a “spur of the moment attempt” at the World Shearing Championships in Invercargill last year saw him throw on the singlet and wind back the clock - an occasion he hopes won’t be his last with blade in hand.
“It was a great buzz and although I was found wanting, I’d like to think I could try my hand at it again in the future . . . I hope it won’t be my last attempt at shearing fame,” he smiled.
Both Southland open and development representatives in their own right, the Te Rangi duo, proudly blazened in blue and white, will often be seen putting in the hours on the green by the iconic Invercargill water tower, spurring each other on or carrying out individual training drills – valuable practice Roger credits for their recent haul.
“Both Bronwyn and I are players that live by the ethos, ‘there is no substitute for hard work”. We know that if you’re prepared to put the hard yards in the rewards will come – and for us, this moment is very, very special.”
So where to from here on CVs that are already bulging at the folds?
Countless more hours, weeks and months with bowl in hand, motivational and positive thinking and a combined crack at winning the Regional Pathway singles in Dunedin next month – with the ultimate goal to advance and take out the national gongs and simultaneously rule the country as king and queen of the green.
Perhaps a tall order for many, but with a schedule packed in the coming weeks with representative
commitments including the 0-8 Intercentre side in Auckland, the Open Intercentre line-up in Christchurch and the regional finals at Taieri, few would bet against such a feat becoming reality as both Roger and Bronwyn continue to carve out their own memorable story season after season and together epitomise the true meaning of “hard work”.
