News: Ladies

Ladies Crown Green Bowling Gets Underway

Ladies crown green bowling got underway on Friday night with the Open Age League following the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions.   It has been a bitter-sweet start to the bowling season with a couple of teams withdrawing from the Open Age League and Over 60s league due to dwindling club numbers and a couple of clubs forming a second team having increased membership of ‘new to the game lady bowlers’; Junior lady bowlers and bowlers transferring from other clubs.   Given these changes, this season has the promise of being an interesting one.

Featured match from the opening week in the Open Age Night League was between the newly formed Marown B playing host to their stable mates Marown A. This match was played on Thursday evening due to Marown having the official opening of their new clubhouse on the Friday evening.  Two new bowlers for Marown B, Jo Corkill and Amanda Butler, took on Marown A’s Elaine Dewhirst and Joyce Ogden respectively. Although Jo and Amanda played well they struggled against the more experienced bowlers with both losing 4-21.   The three junior lady bowlers of Marown B are sisters Grace and Emily Cooper (playing league bowls for the first time) and Rebekah Kelly.   Grace played Lynda Cadamy, Emily took on Marown A’s captain Lil Smith with Rebekah playing Shirley Whelan.   All three girls played exceptionally well, but couldn’t quite get over the line with Grace losing to 13, Emily losing to 6 and Rebekah losing to 3.  Next game saw Rebecca Teare for Marown B playing Philippa Taylor.  On paper this was always going to be a close game and it didn’t disappoint with Philippa eventually running out 21-18.   The two closest games of the night saw Deborah Leece for Marown B taking on Jayne Smith and Helen Withers, Marown B’s captain, playing Rosie Winckle.   Both games were nick and tuck throughout with Deborah losing 20-21 to Jayne and Helen beating Rosie by the same score line.  The remaining game was between Clare Cooper for Marown B and Celia Joughin for Marown A; this resulted in a comfortable 21-4 win for Clare.  Overall score: Marown B 110 – Marown A 171 (two games to seven).   

The remaining Open Age league matches were played on Friday.  There were some very close results, especially South Ramsey who lost on games, but won on points. 

Results :Onchan147123Mooragh Park(6-3)
 Port Erin107179Castletown A(2-7)
 South Ramsey161146Peel(4-5)
 Ballaugh136157Port St Mary(4-5)
 Castletown B175151Douglas(6-3)

Payne & Gawne Seal Home Win

Congratulations to Maureen Payne & Sue Gawne on their win in yesterday’s Ladies Doubles Open played at Onchan. A total of 17 pairs took to the Green on a sunny, if chilly, afternoon.

The one Prelim game saw the PSM pairing of Margaret Tasker & Tricia Bull see off the local all stars of Lynda Clarke & Lesley Nicholl 21-12 in an epic battle lasting over 70 minutes.

Some closely contested first round games included Christine Price & Mavis Franks 21-19 win over Sue Collier & Norma Cowell whereas Caroline Whitehead & Rita Callister will have felt unlucky to lose by the same score to home greeners Dee Lewis & Libby Andrade. Perhaps the best performance came from the Peel duo of Gill Clarke & Terri Berry who scored 18 before losing to the eventual competition winners.

The quarter finals saw competition favourites (winners for the previous 3 years) of Elaine & Jenny Moore brush past Price & Franks. Philippa Taylor & Joyce Ogden left Onchan newbies Sylvia Kennaugh & Paula Firth in their wake. Marown pair Lil Smith & Rosie Winckle put an end to the hopes of Lewis & Andrade. In an Onchan derby, Gawne & Payne got the better of team mates Caroline Corlett & Jo Smith.


Team Moore started strong in the first semi final but had no answer to Taylor & the trick shots of Ogden; eventually losing out 21-14. The second semi saw Smith & Winckle run out of steam & their challenge wilted losing 21-12.

After a long day of quality bowling, Taylor & Ogden matched up against Gawne & Payne. Unfortunately for the former, their luck had run out. Although the ends were close, Gawne & Payne were steadily picking up singles & eventually ran out 21-8.

A big thank you to the ladies for the catering. Thanks also to those who contributed raffle prizes. On a personal note, a thank you to Matthew Keggen for getting the online entry ready in time for the competition. We wish everyone an enjoyable season & hope to see you back at Onchan in the near future.

Castletown Win Jean Kelly

The highly anticipated final of the Jean Kelly competition was played at Onchan Bowling green on Thursday 27th August.

The rather challenging weather conditions included heavy rain & strong winds but in no way dampened the enthusiasm of either the players or the many supporters around the green who were treated to a masterclass of bowling from the Ladies of Castletown A and Nobles, the latter having been given a handicap of 5. The standard of bowling throughout the evening was exemplary with extremely high levels of skills evident and all games were finally balanced.

Becky Teare was first on for Nobles and she eventually triumphed 21-16 over Tracy Moore. Paula Firth & Hilary Kermode had an excellent tussle but it was Hilary who eventually won the game 21-15. Fantastic bowling between Paula Garrett & Stella Watterson resulted in Stella winning 21-17 and Hannah Drewett overcame Nobles’ Debbie Leece to win 21-13. Next up was Sylvia Kennaugh who stormed to victory over the talented Amanda Lawler 21-7, meaning that at the end of the first five games, Nobles took the lead by 92 points to 86.

Jan West was on next for Nobles, but could not get the better of Ann Oates who scored 21 to Jan’s 13. Clare Cooper and Ann Hollingworth also had a fantastic game but it was Ann who came out the eventual winner, 21-15. Ali Keggen played brilliantly against Kim Foy to triumph 21-10 and with the competition poised at 141 to Nobles & 138 to Castletown A, it came down to the final game between Jayne Smith & Kath Kinley who, in the end, had the green to themselves. A further showcase of great bowling but it was Kath who brought it home for the Castletown Ladies 21-14, thus securing the Jean Kelly Shield for the team.

The presentation was made by Sue Gawne, President of the Ladies Association, who thanked Moore Kelly & his family for their continued support of this competition and also for the buffet and refreshments that they supply each year. She also thanked the Club, the supporters and everyone involved in making the evening such a great success. Moore’s Granddaughter, Kate Watson, made a short speech and presented the awards to each team.

Onchan Wins First Ladies Plate

The final of the Ladies Plate Competition was held on Friday (21st August) at Finch Hill Bowling Club, with Mooragh Park taking on Onchan who had a handicap of 15.

There was some fantastic bowling by both teams, and it was great to see supporters around the green. First game off was Libby Andrade v Maureen Hamilton, with the Onchan player comfortably winning to 9. Second game to come off was Joanne Kelly v Shannon McMullan, with the latter taking the win with a very close 19-21. Both players demonstrated some excellent bowling and it was definitely one of the matches of the night, with one of Onchans newer players Joanne really holding her own against the up and coming star of the future Shannon. North Ramsey players Chris Sims and Pat Lenton battled against Dee Lewis and Marilyn Ellison, managing to beat them with scores of 21-19 and 21-14 respectively. Final game of the first set of jacks was two junior girls, Grace Gawne v Aalish Howarth. Again, two players to watch in the future, with some exceptionally close ends, Grace managed to secure another win for Onchan with a score of 21-16. This left the scores after the first blocks off at 94 Onchan, 88 Mooragh Park before handicaps.

Caroline Corlett played Victoria Johnson and struggled to shrug the junior star off. Playing some brilliant bowls, North Ramsey player Victoria won the match 21-15. Maureen Payne fought against Janet Monk, but Janet played the green extremely well with some brilliant leads and beat Maureen to 9. Onchan players Jo Smith and Sue Gawne played Katie Johnson and Irene Goodall, keeping them to single figures with a 21-6 and a 21-5 win, which really secured Onchan’s victory as the first winners of this new competition. Final score was 175 Onchan and 141 Mooragh Park.

The presentation was made by Janet Latham, treasurer for the Ladies Committee, who thanked all involved for the running of the evening, and all the players who took part. Special mention was made to the juniors who all played exceptionally.

Onchan To Take on Mooragh in Ladies Plate

Last Friday was the semi-final round of the Ladies Plate competition, and in the first semi-final, Onchan had a close game against Port Erin, with Onchan just scraping through by 10 points, even despite Port Erin having 5 winners. With both teams off of scratch, it really was every point to play for, and Dee Lewis of Onchan managed to defeat Susan Inch to 6, which helped the away team with the final score of Port Erin 154 Onchan 164.

In the second semi-final Marown travelled up to Mooragh Park, where they unfortunately lost their place in the final. Once again the junior girls at Mooragh did themselves proud, with Aalish Haworth beating Elaine Dewhirst to 9, and Victoria Johnson beating Mary Alderson to 10. Final score, was Marown 160 and Mooragh Park 203, after the 55-point handicap for Mooragh.

The final will be held at Peel Sunset Bowling Club on Friday 21st August, Onchan will have a handicap of 15, and Mooragh Park will be off scratch.

Onchan take no prisoners in Ladies Plate

The quarter final round of the Ladies Plate competition took place last Friday, with 4 teams securing their places in the semi-finals comfortably.

The first winners were Port Erin, who took on last year’s Jean Kelly winners South Ramsey. With a 90 – point handicap they had quite the advantage. Two winners for Port Erin were Carol Kaye and Jacqui Elliot, keeping South Ramsey from getting a full house. New Port Erin player Alison Stockham played her first game in the north of the Island and scored a very credible 10 against Sue Collier. Final match score was 199 to Port Erin, and 177 to South Ramsey.

Onchan played Castletown B who had a 60 – point handicap, but Onchan took no prisoners, with every Onchan lady winning their game, and managing to keep their opponents to low scores to ensure their place in the semi-final. Final score was Onchan 189 – Castletown B 146.

Peel Sunset travelled to Mooragh Park, but despite a 30 point start they couldn’t overcome the strong home team. Great to see the junior girls who play at Mooragh Park with some great wins, Aalish Haworth beat Peel player Joyce Kelly to 13, Victoria Johnson battled Shirley Corrin to win to 19, and the two McMullan sisters, undoubtedly two players to watch in the future, won both of their games to 10. Final score Mooragh Park 172, Peel Sunset 145.

In the final match, Marown beat Ballaugh 174 – 159. Despite the home team Ballaugh having 3 winners, the Marown ladies proved their strength, especially Joyce Ogden and Elaine Dewhurst who both won their matches to single figures.

This Friday, 7th August, the semi-finals will take place. Port Erin (scratch) v Onchan (scratch), and Marown (scratch) v Mooragh Park (+55).

Jean Kelly continues to Semi Finals

The Ladies Jean Kelly competition really came down to a nail biter when Castletown A travelled to Marown last Friday, with both teams off of scratch, and both teams accumulating 155 points. Castletown A took the match due to winning on matches, 5–4. For the home team, two of the winners Helen Withers and Lil Smith defeated Kim Foy to 11 and Anne Oates to 9. Nice to see Stella Watterson back on the green after some time away from the game.

In the second quarter final Nobles took on Port Erin in the south of the island and managed to secure their place in the semi finals with a victory of 174-113. Port Erin players Lynda Cadamy and Caroline Whitehead used their home green knowledge to prevent Nobles from getting the full 189 chalks, beating Paula Garett and Sylvia Kennaugh respectively.

Onchan lost out to Douglas, despite getting full chalks for each game. With Douglas having a head start of 85 points, the team managed to gain enough points to win the match, finishing 189-214. Kay McKiernan lost just shy of 21, losing to 19 to Dee Lewis.

The final match of the quarter finals, Castletown B took on Port St Mary A, losing 121-186. Starting off a low handicap of 25, Castletown B had a lot to do to win the match, and even with Sonya Mercer defeating Jayne Kneen, and Joy Stephens defeating Port St Mary’s newest player Nicola Cain, it proved to be too much of a hurdle.

The draw for the semi final was done at Nobles on Saturday and are as follows:

  • Port St Mary A (scratch) v Castletown A (+20)
  • Nobles (scratch) v Douglas (+90)

In the Ladies Plate Competition starting this Friday 31st July, we see South Ramsey battling another 90-point handicap against Port Erin. Onchan host Castletown B, who have another high handicap of 60 points. Mooragh Park will take on Peel Sunset who have a 30-point handicap, and finally, Ballaugh play Marown, with the home team having a 30-point advantage.

Every Point Counts in Jean Kelly Preliminary Round

The Jean Kelly Handicap Knockout competition started on Friday 17th July, with preliminary rounds being played across the island. With a new handicap system in place this year, it really is every point to play for, making for much more interesting matches, and a greater chance for an underdog to snatch the title.

Peel hosted the Onchan team, with the latter taking the win with a comfortable 192 -151 score. Interestingly, even without the 40 point handicap, Onchan would have taken the win by just one nail-biting point. There were a few close games, the longest of which took place between Peel’s captain Lynda Wilson, and Dee Lewis, with 30 ends, and Lewis running away with a 21-18 win.

Four-time winners of the Jean Kelly title Port St Mary defeated Ballaugh despite the 55 point handicap, with a very close score of 170-177, and seven games for Port St Mary. Two winners for Ballaugh were Christine MacDonald and Gill Dixon, beating Margaret Tasker and Jayne Kneen respectively. Newest member to Ballaugh Maria Holder, only having played twice before scored a very credible 10 against Katy Williams.

Mooragh Park travelled to Port Erin, only to lose out with a score of 179-144. Two games reached an incredible 33 ends, with Port Erin’s Lynda Cadamy beating Caroline Parker to 19, quite an achievement after being 12-1 down. North Ramsey’s Shannon McMullan, 2019 Junior Champion, had a lengthy game against Carol Kaye, finally beating her to the win with a 21-19 score.

Castletown B knocked last year’s winners South Ramsey out of the competition with a score of 201-189. Despite every Ramsey player winning their match, Castletown B managed to accumulate enough points to win the match. Two of the Castletown players came close to a win with some high double figure scores, with Sheila Preston getting to 20, and Sonya Mercer, who unfortunately tipped the jack to her opponent on the final end, racked up 18.

First round games will take place on Friday 24th July, with the following:

Port Erin (scratch) v Nobles (scratch)

Castletown B (+25) v Port St Mary (scratch)

Onchan (scratch) v Douglas (+85)

Marown (scratch) v Castletown A (scratch).

This year any teams losing out in the preliminary or first rounds are entered into the Ladies Plate Competition, which will take place on alternate dates to the Jean Kelly.

Perfect Run In Seals League For Port St Mary A

Port St Mary A overturned a 25 chalk deficit, held by Castletown A, heading into the final round of matches to claim their ninth league title and in doing so retained the title for a sixth consecutive year.

Castletown A started the evening as favourites and knew they needed to score 165 chalks to become champions even if PSM scored a maximum.

Castletown A travelled away to face Marown with the sides producing only the second drawn game since 2017. Marown stunned the leaders by winning five games on the night including Rosie Winckle and Celia Joughin who both won 21-10 against Marie Ashurst and Hilary Kermode respectively. Shirley Whelan defeated Kim Foy 21-13, Joyce Ogden won 21-15 against Anne Oates and Margaret Scarffe beat Hanna Drewett 21-18. For Castletown Kath Kinley won 21-7 against Elaine Dewhurst, Tracy Moore beat Mary Alderson 21-17, Amanda Lawler won 21-9 against Lil Smith and Heike Perry beat Helen Withers 21-12. Both sides finished level on 150 chalks but the 39 points dropped by Castletown meant Port St Mary only needed to score 175 to win the league.

Port St Mary A have been ruthless in the run-up scoring 177, 187 and 189 in their last three matches. In their final match at home to Ballaugh they dominated winning 8-1 on games. Ballaugh were one short, handing Chris Price a 21-0 walkover but Ann Maddrell, Mavis Franks, Kellie Maddrell, Jayne Kneen, Trish Bull and Margaret Tasker all won to single figures whilst Katy Williams held on to win her game 21-18. Those eight wins gave PSM 168 chalks and despite Val Macfarlane losing 15-21 those points gave PSM the chalks they needed to make a remarkable turnaround and win the league by eight chalks. Castletown ladies will be disappointed to finish second but have had a fantastic season, giving the tightest finish for several years.

Nobles finished third 52 chalks behind PSM having been in title contention for much of the season. They rounded their season off with a comfortable 168-103 (7-2) victory over Mooragh Park. Clare Cooper, Rebecca Teare, Alison Keggen, Debbie Leece, Sylvia Kennaugh, Jan West and Jayne Smith won for the home team. Aalish Haworth and Janet Monk were MP only winners. It has been great to see Mooragh’s junior players flourish this season. Shannon & Madison McMullan, Victoria Johnson and Aalish Haworth have all improved and produced some fantastic results during the season. I do not doubt that they will continue to improve and cause some upsets in the coming seasons.

South Ramsey completed their final match with a home tie against Peel Sunset. SR won seven games from Ann Gale, Bethany Kennish, Jill Quayle, Jenny Moore, Kim Hargraves, Sue Collier and Elaine Moore. Joyce Kelly and Mary Moffatt were winners for Peel with the match ending 177-103 (7-2).

Onchan ended their season defeating Port Erin by seven chalks despite losing 4-5 on games. Dee Lewis, Libby Andrade, Sue Gawne and Tina Hampson won for the home team. Port Erin’s winners were Alison Stockham, Caroline Whitehead, Jenny Cain, Di Benson and Lynda Cadamy.

Douglas against Port St Mary B is the final match to report on with the home side slipping to an eight chalk defeat despite winning 5-4 on games. Paula Garrett, Harley Garrett, Michelle Cowley, Kay McKiernan and Wendy Cowin won for the home team with PSM wins coming from Chris Holland, Rita Callister, Linda Dawson and Sandi Lowe. The match finished 149-157 (5-4).

Individually Elaine Moore topped the ladies merit, having lost only a single game during the campaign, adding to the over 60s merit she had already won. Rebecca Teare, Jenny Moore, Jayne Kneen and Janet Monk completed the top five.

Although the season is over players can look forward to the annual presentation evening being held on Friday 18th October at Douglas Legion Club. Please contact your club reps to book your ticket. Finally, I would like to wish all bowlers a good winter and a reminder to all clubs that any motions for the AGM must be returned by Wednesday 16th October.

Two Horse Race Heading Into Final Week

With a week left to go Castletown A and Port St Mary A will battle it out to become champions of the Ladies Night Bowling League.

Last week, Castletown A faced a tricky away match against Nobles knowing they could not risk dropping too many points with the title in sight. Nobles saw wins from Clare Cooper, Rebecca Teare, Alison Keggen, Debbie Leece and Sylvia Kennaugh. Castletown’s winners were Anne Oates, Hannah Drewett, Hilary Kermode and Tracy Moore. The match finished with Nobles claiming a one chalk victory winning 164-163 (5-4). Castletown’s losing ladies all performed well pushing into double figures ensuring they dropped little points and retaining their advantage heading into the final week of the season.

Port St Mary A have done all they can to keep themselves in the title race with a crushing win over their B team in which they scored a maximum winning by an overall score of 94-189 (0-9).

Castletown B played their final match of the season, at home against Mooragh Park, as they sit out of the last round of matches. Mooragh Park won by 66 chalks 112-178 (2-7). Rosemary Quirk and Aalish Haworth top-scored both winning 21-2 with Janet Monk also winning to single figures. Victoria Johnson, Vicky Lloyd-West, Helen Martin and Shannon McMullan also won for the visitors. Castletown picked up their wins from Jo Robert and Rachel Palmer. In only their second season Castletown B have improved with each week and have scored over 250 points more than their debut season. I expect further improvements in 2020 and this team will begin to rise the table.

Peel Sunset travelled to face Douglas at the Villa green and left with a 41 chalk victory. Heather Horsburgh and Pat Robertson top-scored for Peel both winning 21-3 with wins also coming from Lynda Wilson, Joyce Kelly, Gill Clarke and Sue Jones. Douglas picked up three wins from Harley Garrett, Wendy Cowin and Pat Kelly with the match ending 120-161 (3-6).

Ballaugh had a home encounter against Onchan with the visiting team winning more games on the night but losing on chalks with having to give a walkover. Michelle Cubbon received the walkover whilst Elaine Fenton, Cath Harvey and Gill Dixon won for the home team. Onchan’s winners were Marilyn Ellison, Dee Lewis, Maureen Payne and Lynda Clarke. Final score 145-137 (4-5).

The final match last week saw another close result as Port Erin lost at home by three chalks to Marown. Port Erin picked up four winners from Di Benson, Carol Kaye, Kay Primrose-Smith and Lynda Cadamy. Marown’s winners were Lil Smith, Mary Alderson, Joyce Ogden, Rosie Winckle and Elaine Dewhirst. The five wins gave Marown the chalks they needed to win 144-147 (4-5).

With the final matches approaching Castletown A lead Port St Mary A by 25 chalks and face a tricky last match away to Marown. PSM have a home tie against Ballaugh and must look to score another maximum and hope their rivals drop points. It promises to be a great conclusion to the season and the closest finish to the season for several years. Should Castletown triumph it would be a record 16th league win and their first since 2009.

In the race for the individual merit, Elaine Moore remains top on 481 three chalks ahead of Rebecca Teare.