Ian MacPherson watched the ball roll during a crucial match as the Canadian Short Mat Bowls Association Seventh National Championships wrapped up at the Virgil Community Hub and Gymnasium on Saturday.

The championships, held from Monday, Nov. 18, to Saturday, Nov. 23, weren’t just about local pride — they served as one of two key qualifiers for the Canadian team heading to the 2026 Short Mat World Championships in Norway.

MacPherson, a passionate advocate for short mat bowling, has worked tirelessly to grow the sport in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Though the NOTL Short Mat Club isn’t part of the national association, MacPherson hopes the championships will show the town’s potential to contribute to the national scene.

This tournament isn’t just about winning, said MacPherson, who practices in St. Catharines and Niagara Falls due to the lack of local facilities.

It’s about showing Niagara-on-the-Lake’s ability to be a key player in the short mat bowling community.

“I wanted somebody to take notice. Maybe the town could push the Niagara-on-the-Lake Lawn Bowling Club to try to expand — because nobody in the town really knows about short mat,” he said.

During the competition, MacPherson wore a shirt representing the Niagara Falls Short Mat Bowls Club, the team of behalf of which he was playing.

The championships saw intense competition across multiple categories. In singles, David Llewellyn took home the gold, with Alan Bell finishing second and Bill McCollam securing third.

The pairs competition saw Gary Pickering and Peter Stuart Sheppard emerge as the champions, followed by Mike Healey and Jules Marsen in second place, while Fred Wallbank and Lynn Frost earned third.

In triples, Pickering, McCollam, and Sheppard dominated, claiming the top spot. The silver medal went to Terry Bradshaw, Alan Bell, and Laura Mounce, while Obed Nnewe, Fred Gundel, and Dave Burrows came in third.

The fours division ended with Pickering, McCollam, Patrick Cote, and Sheppard taking the gold. Marion Brunton, Sophie Burrows, Penny Heneke, and Burrows finished second, and MacPherson’s team — joined by Ryan Pascoe, Chris Empey and Tim Jones — took third.

Canadian Short Mat Bowls Association president Dave Burrows’ short mat bowling journey began in 2015 when he learned about the world championships online.

Within 24 hours, he had assembled a team of nine and was on a plane to England.

Although Canada’s team lost, it sparked the movement to form a national team, said Burrows.

Now, the Canadian short mat bowling community has grown to 85 players across 24 clubs, with Burrows optimistic about the sport’s future.

“Now they say, ‘You can’t take Canada for granted,'” he said.

Val McWilliams, president of the St. Catharines short mat club offered a tip for short mat bowlers: “You need to have your weight with your bowls. That’s a big thing when playing.”

While many short mat bowlers also play lawn bowls in the summer, McWilliams said the dynamics are different.

“There’s a big difference between playing on a 120-foot green outside and these 45-foot mats,” she said.

For MacPherson, the championships are just the beginning. If they keep this momentum going, something quite special can happen for the sport in the community, he said.

With spots on the Canadian team for 2026 on the line, these championships marked a critical step in the participants’ journey to the world stage.