The Final Mixed Doubles of the season was held on Saturday with 25 pairs taking part to play in good conditions on a late September day, with the competition originally scheduled for July falling victim to the weather, with entries considerably lower than the original date, however they were the same as 2022.

Losing out in the quarter finals were home greeners Jill Quayle and Billy Blair 14-21 to Marown pair Joyce Ogden and Walter McCarthy. Another home green pairing lost out as Sue and Geoff Collier were beaten 16-21 by club mates Jenny Moore and James Teare.

In the other half of the draw Fiona Kennish (South Ramsey) and Steven Waters (North Ramsey) ended the hopes of Sue Gawne (Noble’s) and Wayne Roberts (Port St Mary) with a hard fought 21-18 victory. The last of the quarter finals saw Marown pair Lyn Bolton and Peter Jones win 21-10 against Kim Hargraves and Peter Collister (both South Ramsey).

The semi-finals appeared to be straightforward, however Moore and Teare were leading 19-16 against Ogden and McCarthy with the latter pair counting for two the last bowl up from the Marown pair knocked the jack to the South Ramsey pair to gift wrap a 21-16 win and with it a place in the final. The other semi-final was a 21-11 win for Kennish and Waters over Bolton and Jones, with the latter pair scoring on just two ends, however both ends resulted in a three.

The final got underway with the temperature dropping, it was the South/North Ramsey combination who looked like they were going to pull off a huge upset as they went into a 17-11 lead.

Moore and Teare picked up a single, were lying one down on the following end with Kennish putting up a front toucher Moore made good contact to spring the jack to their own bowl as they counted for one, which proved to be vital in the game as the South Ramsey pair went on to run out winning six consecutive ends picking up a three on the fourth end of the run to level the game up at 17-17.

Moore and Teare got themselves one chalk ahead at 18-17. On the last end nobody covered themselves in glory, with room to save points Kennish and Waters were unable to stop their opponents scoring a three as they lost out 17-21 after giving Moore and Teare a run for their money.

At the conclusion of the competition the presentation was made by Elaine Moore, who thanked the club members who had helped with the running of the competition and the Ladies for the refreshments provided.

The final of the Canada Life International Sponsored Mixed Team Championship and the Inaugural Plate competitions took place simultaneously at Ballaugh on Thursday evening, with the Championship final seeing South Ramsey A take on Marown A. The floodlights were required, whilst the rain just about held off for most of the night.

In the first half of the match Marown were quickest out of the blocks with Neil Withers striking the first blow with a 21-8 win over James Teare, with the Marown man only allowing his opponent to score one more chalk with the score at 13-7 in his favour. South Ramsey captain Glynn Hargraves responded with a win to the same score against Peter Jones in a game which was expected to be close to wipe out the deficit, as he also went on a good run with the score 8-7 in his favour, with Jones picking up just one more chalk.

Marown briefly went into a 11-chalk lead as Clare Cooper won 21-10 against Fiona Kennish, with Bob Clark hitting back with a solid performance to see off one of Marown’s top players Paul Dunn with a 21- 9 win to put South Ramsey one chalk ahead.

The lead was extended further as Peter Collister won 21-16 against Lyn Bolton, with the former leading 9-0, the Marown player battled back to 8-10 to claw her way back into the game. Jordan Cain stormed into a 10-3 lead against Rebecca Teare, with the latter turning the game around to lead 18-14. Cain dug deep to see the game out with a 21-19 victory on a shorter mark.

Game seven was between Kim Hargraves and Marown captain Matthew Keggen with the latter trailing 6-1 early on, a good performance in the corners put Keggen into a 17-6 lead. Hargraves managed to score five more singles to reach double figures before losing out 11-21 as Marown edged into the lead by just two chalks (113-115).

The last two games on the green saw any hopes of a Marown victory quickly fade away as the two South Ramsey Ladies wrapped up victory in style, with Gill Dixon just one chalk ahead at 10-9 against Philippa Taylor, before shifting through the gears to finish strongly to run out with a 21-10 victory. The last game on the green wrapped the match up for South Ramsey as their top bowler Jenny Moore, who is more than a match for any bowler on the island led 11-7 against Paul Kelly, with Moore going on a 10-point scoring streak to seal the victory in style with the biggest win of the night with a 21-7 victory.

South Ramsey have now claimed the Mixed Team Championship 12 times since the competition was first held in 2005, have also won the title for four consecutive years.

Association Competition Secretary Matthew Keggen thanked Ballaugh for the use of the green, for providing the refreshments and measurers on the night. South Ramsey captain Glynn Hargraves congratulated his team for their performance on the night, offered commiserations to Marown, whilst also congratulating Noble’s on their win in the Plate competition.

South Ramsey A	Score	Score	Marown A
Glynn Hargraves	21	8	Peter Jones
James Teare	8	21	Neil Withers
Fiona Kennish	10	21	Clare Cooper
Bob Clark	21	9	Paul Dunn
Peter Collister	21	16	Lyn Bolton
Jordan Cain	21	19	Rebecca Teare
Kim Hargraves	11	21	Matthew Keggen
Gillian Dixon	21	10	Philippa Taylor
Jenny Moore	21	7	Paul Kelly
6 Games Won	155	132	3 Games Won

The final of the Canada Life International Sponsored Mixed Team Plate competition took place at Ballaugh on Thursday evening with Noble’s B and Port Erin battling to become the second winners of this competition after Noble’s A took the inaugural title last year. There was a good crowd in attendance throughout the evening with the rain just about holding off.

The first two games to come off the green saw Noble’s take a huge 32 chalk lead to put down a huge marker with Alex Yates winning 21-0 against Susan Inch, whilst Jo Smith beat Voirrey Curphey 21-9. Alison Stockham picked up the first Port Erin win on the night with a 21-15 victory over Martyn Hobson.

The next two games to come off extended the lead even further for Noble’s to a somewhat unassailable 46 chalks as Sue Gawne won 21-11 against Jacqui Elliott, whilst the shock of the night was from Jo Kelly who put in a superb performance to beat Port Erin’s Bernie Duncan to the same score.

Game six was another win for Noble’s as Michael Johnson beat Steve Durcan 21-18 in a close game, whilst Derek Allen picked up the Breagle Glen teams second and final win of the night with a hard fought 21-17 win over John Andrew.

Rounding off a resounding victory for Noble’s were Libby Andrade with a 21-8 victory over Mark Stockham, whilst Marilyn Ellison won comfortably 21-14 against Port Erin captain Seamus Whelan.

The overall result was Noble’s B winning by 66 chalks (179-113) with the games 7-2 in their favour as the club continue to go from strength to strength as they picked up a second successive Mixed Team Plate title.

The presentation was made by Association Competition Secretary Matthew Keggen who thanked Ballaugh for the use of the green, their club members for the refreshments and providing measurers, with Noble’s captain Terry Bates receiving the Shield.

Noble’s B	Score	Score	Port Erin
Alex Yates	21	0	Susan Inch
Jo Smith	21	9	Voirrey Curphey
Martyn Hobson	15	21	Alison Stockham
Sue Gawne	21	11	Jacqui Elliott
Joanne Kelly	21	11	Bernie Durcan
Michael Johnson	21	18	Steve Durcan
John Andrew	17	21	Derek Allen
Libby Andrade	21	8	Mark Stockham
Marilyn Ellison	21	14	Seamus Whelan
7 Games Won	179	113	2 Games Won

South Ramsey hosted the Manx Masters on Sunday, one of the highlights of the Manx bowls calendar with four separate competitions taking place throughout the day. The weather in the morning was slightly better than forecast with rain holding off for most of the competition.

JP Corry Young Manx Masters

The Young Manx Masters was contested by seven players – with five girls and two boys. This competition was played in a round robin format playing six ends with the last end played as a ‘power’ end with points scored counting double. After a good morning of bowls, it was Bailey McMullan who was the runaway winner with 56 points, to become the first Young Manx Masters winner to retain the trophy in her last year in this category. The runner up with 42 points was Enya Christian (Marown) who also scored particularly well in her games.

JP Corry Junior Manx Masters

The Junior Manx Masters was played as a straight knockout 21up off a handicap of +6 for the older and more experienced players with 12 players braving the early morning start.

The title was won for the first time by Sam Colquitt (Noble’s) following his win in the Young Manx Masters competition in 2018, as he beat clubmate Alex Hampson 21-18 in an entertaining final, with the furthest anyone got ahead in the game was Alex at 13-10 halfway through the game. With Alex leading 18-17, Sam dug deep to see the game out with four singles to secure a 21-18 victory.

Losing out at the semi-final stage was pre-tournament favourite Madison McMullan (Mooragh Park) to Colquitt with the latter putting in a brilliant performance to seal a 21-16 win and a place in the final. Losing out in the other semi-final was Lola Tebay (Ballaugh) by the finest of margins 20-21 to Alex Hampson.

At the quarter final stage Colquitt comfortably beat Dylan Marsh (Port Erin) 21-13, McMullan won 21-11 against Aalish Moore (Castletown), Alex stormed to a 21-7 win over Lacey McMullan (Mooragh Park), whilst Tebay beat Alex Colquitt Noble’s 21-16.

The standard of play in both events was excellent and some of the bowls played would not have been out of place in the senior events taking place in the afternoon.

JP Corry Isle of Man supported the event once again with the prizes presented by Keith Quane. All competitors who took part received a prize, with Saskia Tebay receiving a special prize for the young player who had smiled the most all morning. Thanks were given to everyone who had helped throughout the morning.

Once the Junior competitions concluded the Felton’s sponsored Men’s and Ladies events got underway with the Ladies event being an invitation of 16 players, whilst the Men’s event had 32 invited to play.  Once again home greeners forfeited the jack on the first end to visiting bowlers.

Ladies Manx Masters

In the Ladies event losing out at the quarter final stages were home greener Gill Dixon 15-21 to teammate Jenny Moore, whilst Madison McMullan (Mooragh Park) battled well before losing out 18-21 to Clare Cooper (Marown).

In the other half of the draw Louise Tebay (Ballaugh) lost out 17-21 to Rebecca Teare (Marown) with Teare scoring two more doubles in the game this proved to be the difference. Another two home greeners clash in the last of the quarter finals with Sue Collier leading 10-3 against Kim Hargraves, as the latter fought back to 9-10 only for Collier to rally once more to seal a 21-12 to book her place in the semi-finals.

At the semi-final stage both were comfortable wins as Moore won 21-11 against Cooper, whilst Teare eased to a 21-9 win over Collier.

In the final Moore took the initiative early on a round peg mark to lead 16-5 against Teare. The Marown player got in and headed for the bank edge of the green, which is well known for being a big pegging mark in both directions. Teare got a run of fiver chalks together to get into double figures at 10-16.

Moore then picked up a single and double to lead 19-10, with Teare picking up another five chalks in between conceding a single to put the score at 15-20. On the following end a loose lead was punished by Moore to full effect who put her first bowl within six inches of the jack, with Teare failing to beat it this secured a 21-15 victory for Moore to win the title for a sixth successive year.

Mens Manx Masters

In the Men’s event five of the eight last 16 games were well contested with the player losing out scoring 17 or more.

Losing out at the quarter final stage were Stevie Kelly (Peel) who was well beat 11-21 by Colin Kelly (Marown), Harry Barton (Marown) reached the end of the road as he was defeated 4-21 by Jordan Cain (South Ramsey). Matthew Keggen (Marown) beat James Teare (South Ramsey) 21-17 in the closest game of the quarter finals, whilst Paul Dunn comfortably beat Glynn Hargraves (South Ramsey) 21-8.

Similar to the ladies competition the victories were comfortable as Kelly trailed to Cain by a single chalk at 9-10, before going on to concede just two more chalks to seal a 21-12 win. Keggen booked his spot in his first Manx Masters final with a 21-14 victory over Dunn, with the former having led 14-7 and 18-12 this lead was enough to keep his opponent at arm’s length.

In front of a healthy crowd who had stayed for the duration, the final started under the floodlights, with Kelly taking an early lead at 7-4, with Keggen opting to come out of the corners that had served him well throughout the day. Keggen got back in and did go into the corners to level the game up at 8-8.

Kelly restored a three-chalk lead at 12-9, then built this up further on a longer mark in the opposite corners to which Keggen had been playing to lead 17-10. A single and a double from Keggen was responded to equally by Kelly to lead 20-13, with Keggen scoring a single and in the last chance saloon needing to run out, however a good first bowl from Kelly secured a 21-14 victory and the eighth time Kelly has picked up the trophy since 1994, with the competition having previously been played as the Champion of Champions which Colin won five times in the previous format.

At the end of the competition the presentation was made by South Ramsey Chairman Steve Moore, who thanked everyone who had helped with the running of the competitions. The Ladies who once again outdone themselves with the catering and the club members who assisted throughout the day. Long term supporters of the event Chris & Lynnette Perry were then introduced to present the prizes from the sponsors Felton’s Ironmongers who without their support this event would not be possible. Upon accepting the trophy Kelly stated he was delighted to have won the competition.

16 teams took part this weekend in the Port St Mary any combination threesomes ‘open’ competition on a damp but improving afternoon.

The fallers at the quarter final stage were Colin Kelly, Phil Kelly and Walter McCarthy (Marown) losing a hard fought match to Peter Jones, Rebecca Teare and Glenn Boland (Marown) 17-21. Also losing 17-21 were Clare Cooper, Lyn Bolton and Sid Bolton (Marown) to Dylan Marsh, Ed Benson and Alan Crebbin (Port Erin). Les Brookes, Edward Carlyle and Bryan Lindsay (Finch Hill, South Ramsey and Peel) beat Glynn Hargraves, Kian Bradford and David Bradford (South Ramsey) 21-12. The match of the round saw home greeners of Margaret Tasker, Mavis Franks and Tricia Bull with an impressive 21-15 win over John Kennish, Jordan Cain and Bob Clark (South Ramsey).

In the semi-finals Jones, Teare and Boland ended the good run of Marsh, Benson and Crebbin 21-6, whilst Tasker, Franks and Bull had another impressive of 21-13 against Brookes, Carlyle and Lindsay.

In the final Tasker, Franks and Bull carried on their good form building up a 19-11 lead. Jones, Teare and Boland hit back with a four and a single to close the gap to three points. However the three Port St Mary ladies scored two singles to get the job done and secure an impressive day of bowling.

Port St Mary competition secretary Wayne Roberts presented the prizes and thanked all those that took part in the competition and everyone that helped through the day.

11 juniors took part in the Port St Mary Bill Oliver junior open competition on Saturday morning.

The players were drawn into two groups in a round robin format consisting of matches played over seven ends.

The top two players in each group progressed to the semi-finals to be played over eight ends.

In the first semi-final, Madison McMullan (Mooragh Park) played her younger sister Bailey (Mooragh Park), this was a very close match and after seven ends the score was 5-5. On the last end Bailey was laying game with two good woods only for Madison to play a great last bowl to win the match.

In the second semi-final Dylan Marsh (Port Erin) played Aalish Moore (Castletown). This pair met recently in the final of a Castletown club comp with the latter winning that encounter. Dylan was determined for a better result this time and played very well to win this match 11-1.

The final was played over 10 ends. Both players were playing to a very high standard as they had been all morning, on this occasion Madison played the more consistent and won the match 13-4.

As usual the standard of bowls from the Islands bowlers was amazing to watch and just seems to get better every year.

At the presentation Christine Holland introduced Roy Oliver to present the prizes. Roy thanked all the players that took part and everyone that helped with the competition.

Castletown Bowling Club hosted the Wilfrid Quayle mixed doubles on Sunday with the competition attracting 30 pairs with the competition sponsored by the Sidings Pub.

Falling at the quarter final stage were home green pair Sam Quayle and Joy Stevens, who were beaten 10-21 by Marown’s Debbie Leece and Neil Withers. Caroline Whitehead (Port Erin) and Kevin Firth (Douglas) just lost out 20-21 to Elaine Moore (South Ramsey) and Nathan Hamilton (Castletown). Home greeners Hilary Kermode and Alan Phair were well beaten 8-21 by Hannah Drewett (Castletown) and Bob Clark (South Ramsey), whilst Jenny Moore and James Teare (South Ramsey) won 21-6 against Marown’s Lisa Pugh and Walter McCarthy.

Losing out at the semi-final stage were Leece and Withers who were kept to just two singles as they lost 8-21 to Moore and Hamilton, whilst Moore and Teare lost out 16-21 to Drewett and Clark.

In the early stages of the final neither pairing were able to build a lead, with the score at 9-8 to Drewett and Clark counting for three a superb last bowl from Hamilton won the end to level the score at 9-9. Drewett and Clark responded to go into the lead at 17-12 as they kept their opponents down to singles. Moore and Hamilton picked up their first double of the game with a great strike from Elaine to turn a two down into two up to put the score at 14-17. Three singles followed over the next three ends for Drewett and Clark, with their opponents picking up a three to put the score at 17-20. The single point needed by Drewett and Clark was picked up on the next end to seal a 21-17 victory.

The presentation was made by Castletown Bowling Club President Hilary Kermode who thanked everyone who had entered, along with the club members who had helped with the smooth running of the competition throughout the day. Thomas Callister from the Sidings presented the prizes.

Noble’s Bowling Club hosted the Thurlwell Bowl on Saturday with a good entry of 50 taking part after a great week of Festival bowls, with the Noble’s greens being widely praised by local & visiting bowlers throughout the week.

Losing out at the quarter final stage were home greener Mark Bradshaw who lost out 9-21 to Marown captain Paul Dunn, Margie Tasker (Port St Mary) was defeated 16-21 by South Ramsey’s Glynn Hargraves. In the other half of the draw Lee Dawson (South Ramsey) beat Grahem Moore (Noble’s) 21-15, whilst Peel man Rob Middleton ended the hopes of Glenn Boland (Marown) with a good last end to win 21-19.

In the semi-final Hargraves made the better start against Dunn to lead 11-7, then settled for a longer length to extend the lead to 17-12. The Marown man fought back level the game up at 18-18, then conceded a single with Hargraves playing through to take out Dunn’s counting bowl. On the following end with the South Ramsey man leading 19-18 and counting two for game Dunn bowled in to level the game up once more at 19-19. Two great bowls from the Marown captain on the next end had Dunn lying game himself with both bowls next to the jack and touching each other, a strike from Hargraves came off perfectly to go 20-19 ahead. On the next end a good lead bowl from the South Ramsey captain was unbeaten to seal a place in the final with a 21-19 win.

In the other semi-final between Middleton and Dawson the game was keenly contested in the early stages, with Middleton stretching away in the second half of the game to seal a 21-14 win and his first appearance in a final of a singles open.

The final started with Hargraves being favourite, however it was Middleton who made a strong start to lead 9-6 after four ends, the lead could have been bigger with Hargraves taking the jack off when lying two down for a dead end. With the ends being exchanged in the early part of the game neither player could get away from the other with the score being level at 10-10 and 11-11. The next two ends Middleton played four great bowls with Hargraves just missing strikes on both ends for the Peel man to lead 15-11. Hargraves got back in and headed for the corners that had served him well earlier in the day to turn the game around to lead 17-15.

A strong response followed with three consecutive singles from Middleton. Hargraves got back in with a single, then played two good bowls on the following end to lead 20-18. On the following end Hargraves played a good lead six inches to the side of the jack, which Middleton played out with his first bowl, the latter made two with his second bowl for a one end shootout with the score tied once again at 20-20. Middleton played his lead 18 inches away from the jack, which Hargraves used to count for one. With his last bowl the Peel man got inside the jack land with Hargraves winning an entertaining final 21-20.

The presentation was made by competition secretary Tina Hampson who thanked the club members who had helped with the running of the competition. The winners were awarded with IOM Steam Packet vouchers, with Juan Qualtrough presenting the prizes. In his speech Hargraves congratulated Middleton for a great performance.

Port Erin Bowling Club hosted the F.M. Sowerbutts Memorial Trophy Mixed Doubles on Bank Holiday Monday. Entries were slightly lower than the previous day with 21 pairs taking part despite the road closures.

Losing quarter finalists were home greeners Alison & Mark Stockham 10-21 to South Ramsey pair Jenny Moore and James Teare, while Marown duo Debbie Leece and Neil Withers beat Caroline Whitehead (Port Erin) and Kevin Firth (Douglas) 21-13. Collin Holland (Castletown) and daughter Jayne Smith (Marown) just lost out 20-21 to home green pair Nigel Haymes and Sue Ricketts, whilst Cliff Clague played with his granddaughter Bethany Hamilton (both Castletown) as they lost out 12-21 to Sue Wilshaw (Port Erin) and Nick Peterson (Port St Mary).

Bowing out at the semi-final stage were Moore and Teare who led 13-6, with the South Ramsey pair going on to concede a costly four on the 10^th end as they lost out 16-21 to Leece and Withers. The other semi-final went in favour of Wilshaw and Peterson who took a comfortable 21-14 win over Ricketts and Haymes to book their place in the final.

Leece and Withers started the final as heavy favourites despite having previously never won a mixed doubles together, although both have won with other partners. The Marown pair never fell behind in the game as they led 10-6, then 12-7 with the Port Erin/Port St Mary pair getting right back into the game at 11-12 as they picked up a single and then a three which brought a cheer from the home spectators.

Leece and Withers hit back immediately with a three of their own, before conceding just four more chalks with both players performing well to see the game out as they proved too strong for Wilshaw and Peterson with a 21-15 victory.

The presentation was made by competition organiser and sponsor Janet Shilling, who thanked everyone who had entered, the club members for their support. Neil thanked Port Erin for hosting the competition and commended their opponents in the final for a good performance.