Isle of Man County Crown Green Bowling Association

Plate Knockout: The Association Plate knockout was played on Thursday night in warm weather at Ballaugh Bowling green between Nobles and South Ramsey with good support from supporters and spectators. There was only an eight point handicap difference between the teams as Nobles were off +29 and South +21 so points, not games, won would be the order of the night and this proved the case. First five jacks off the green saw South Ramsey come out of the starting blocks winning 4-1 on games and giving them a halfway lead of 21 points (not  including handicaps) as South players Lauren Groen won 21-13 against Jo Kelly; Joyce Ogden 21-13 against Sylvia Kennaugh; Gillian Jopson 21-14 against Marilyn Ellison; Gill Dixon 21-19 against Paula Firth whilst Kim Hargraves lost to 17 against Colese Creer for Nobles. But, as we all know, a match can be turned round and this is exactly what happened. Tina Hampson for Nobles was first off the green with a comfortable 21-9 win against Lorraine Moore. Next jack off saw a solid 21-12 win for South’s Fiona Kennish against Libbi Andrade. At this stage, Nobles had reduced the deficit to 10 points. The final two jacks on the green saw Nobles Sue Gawne put in a strong performance winning to 9 against Judy Kelly  and Jo Smith win 21-18 after a nip and tuck game with Sue Collier. At the conclusion, although South won 6-3 on games they lost on points – As they say, points make prizes!

Final results (including handicaps) Nobles 184 – South Ramsey 179 (3 games to 6)

Many congratulations to the Nobles ladies on retaining the trophy, and to all the lady bowlers for treating the spectators and supporters to some great bowling and for an exciting end to the competition.

The presentation was made by Chris Holland, Ladies Association Competition Secretary. On receiving the trophy, Lisa Bradshaw, Captain of Nobles, thanked Ballaugh for hosting the competition and to Chris for the smooth running of the competition. She offered heartfelt  commiserations to South Ramsey before saying how proud she was of her team on their performance.