The changes will mean a Goulburn Murray Bowls Region board will replace the president and secretary of each of the Goulburn Valley, Murray Valley and Central Bowls divisions.
Representatives from the Goulburn Valley and Murray playing areas, which are what the former divisions will be known as, will now play for Goulburn Murray rather than the Central Goulburn Murray region at state events, with the Central Bowls Division competition folding.
The changes mean Eildon, Alexandra, Seymour, Seymour VRI and Yea will join the Goulburn Valley playing area, while Kilmore, Broadford and Wallan will be involved in a competition closer to Melbourne.
The clubs playing in the Murray playing area will remain unchanged.
Goulburn Murray Bowls Region chairperson Alan Rogers said the board's message to clubs was that as little as possible would change from the season just gone.
“Nothing much will change,” Rogers said.
“We will still have our playing areas and the board will be the governing body for this area.
“We are happy with how the area was run previously and we will still rely on the pennant committees to run Saturday and midweek pennant.”
Rogers said the main concern the new clubs had was the extra travel, but the board already has an idea in mind to address that.
“I don’t think some clubs are that happy to come out of this (Central Bowls Division) area,” he said.
“The (main) negative is the travel.
“We are trying to avoid a trip from Kyabram to Alexandra (for example) by having a division of teams close together and try and make sure they play each other.
“But that will be up to the Saturday and midweek pennant committees.”
The change of governance comes after a statewide shortage of board nominees, something the new Goulburn Murray region is also dealing with.
“The GV have had two secretaries in 40 years and no-one has been encouraged to step up, now these board members want to have a spell,” Rogers said.
“In the Murray area, we have had a succession of secretaries, so it's been different people rather than it being stagnate like in the GV.
“We have seven members on the board and there is room for nine, so we just need people to come to the fore and nominate.
“We're also hoping to get the same (pennant) committees (from last year) and we're encouraging them to still to do that.”
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