Author Archives: Glynn Hargraves

Top Two Extend Gap

Marown A took on South Ramsey B in the Ellan Vannin Fuels sponsored division one at Crosby on Monday evening with the home team recording a strong 9-1 win, with Sid Bolton beating Marown captain Paul Dunn 21-17 for the visitors. Next closest to snatching another point was Austin Hart, who performed brilliantly going 16-3 and 17-6 up on Matthew Keggen, before Keggen got hold of the jack using his extra experience to claw his way back into the game to eventually win 21-18. Hart has found first division bowls a steep learning curve, however he can take plenty of encouragement from his scores in the top division, at 15 years old he is the youngest player in the division. This season will no doubt stand him in good stead in the future. Tony Dugdale also came close before losing out 17-21 to Dean Kipling. For Marown Paul Kelly, Colin Kelly and Phil Kelly all won to single figures, whilst John Gelling and Neil Withers had fairly comfortable wins.

South Ramsey A recorded their third 10-0 win of the season and only their first maximum at home over Marown B. Last season the champions recorded five maximums and three 9-1 wins at home. This season’s home form has been somewhat patchy, whilst still winning all their matches. Dido Kelly, Glynn Hargraves and John Kennish all won to single figures, with Juan Killip coming closest to taking a point for the visitors before losing out 17-21 to Chas Grills. Rob Corkill stepped in to help out the visitors after a 24 year absence from bowls.

Onchan A recorded a 7-3 away win over Douglas A. Home team captain Andy Kennish once again led the way for his team, recording a 21-9 win over Matthew Quirk. Kennish has recorded some good results this season, no doubt helped by the extra games playing in the Over 60’s league, in which he is currently undefeated after 20 games. His night league record is 9 wins from 12 games. The two other winners for the Villa men were Mervin Sayle with a 21-16 win over Rob Monk, whilst Keith Rise held off Steve Crampton to record a 21-18 win. For the visitors Jordan Cain was pushed hardest taking a 21-17 win over Stuart Garrett, whilst the biggest win for the visitors was Mark Kelly who beat Gary Conwell 21-8. Kelly is only in his second season of league bowls and the time being put in on the green is obviously paying off. The experienced trio of Kevin Quirk, Peter Slinger and Phil Kerruish beat Ian Moore, Jimmy Sansom and Shaun Seal respectively.

North Ramsey A continue to use their home advantage well, this time seeing off Douglas B with an 8-2 win, however they did lose two games 21-20 with Andy Cannell and Gordon Wynne-Smythe both holding on to beat Tony Smart and Allan Callow respectively. Geoff Porter and Gary Merrill both won to single figures, whilst Steve Walmsley was pushed hard by Pat O’Donohue before winning 21-19.

Port Erin A will have been disappointed to lose 8-2 at home to Port St Mary A with recent open winner Trevor Quayle just getting over the line 21-20 against Dave McCabe, whilst Steve Franks did enough to beat Derek Cadamy 21-17. Peter Addison had a close game beating Dan McCabe 21-19, whilst David Cain had a comfortable 21-11 win over Rob Cooil. Wayne Roberts had a good 21-8 win over Bernie Durcan, with Paul Skelly, Thomas Keggen and Ewan Cooil also winning for the visitors.

Castletown A had a good home win over Peel A, winning three close games in the process. George Peach beat David Smith 21-20, whilst David Quayle inflicted a third successive defeat on early season merit leader Tommy McMeiken 21-19, with Dean Kinley winning to the same score against David Proctor. Jordan Drewett made home advantage count beating Tom Kelly 21-12, whilst Peter Oates won 21-15 against Gary Smith. For the visitors Dave ’Barney’ Kelly won 21-15 against Ian Watson, son Stevie did enough to beat Mike Hargraves 21-18, with Frank Watson beating Jeff Kinley 21-17.

In division two Castletown B took on Peel B in the sunset city and will have been pleased to take away a 7-3 win on a difficult green in a high scoring match. Winners for Peel were Mike Ashmole, Harry Kelly and Paul Quirk. Responding for the visitors were Ross Moore, Ron Williams, Alan Phair, Mark Saunders and Derek Lewney.

Port St Mary B recorded a maximum 10-0 home win over Port Erin B with Peter Collins, Ray Maddrell and Dave Saxon all winning comfortably. Ken Horsley recent runner up in the Port Erin Open was closing to grabbing a point before losing 19-21 to Derek Kneen.

Onchan B just missed out on a maximum by just three chalks with Mike Alexander losing 18-21 to Mark Kremor to record a 9-1 win over Noble’s B at Onchan Park. Mike Thomas and Neil Dunwell both recorded single figure wins.

League leaders Noble’s A made the trip north to take on North Ramsey B coming away with a 7-3 win to keep Castletown B at arm’s length. Glenn Boland was in good form winning 21-1. For the home team Rheuben Thomas held on to beat Tommy Collister 21-20, with Bryan Corner and Alex Yates winning fairly comfortably.

Ballaugh A made the journey south to take on Port St Mary C, with no signs of Ballaugh improving their away form with the home team performing well winning 7-3. Chris Oates won 21-1, whilst Nathan Hamilton beat Edgar Cowin 21-5. The winning trio for Ballaugh were Bob Unsworth, Peter Graham and John Keenan.

Peel C performed well to take a 7-3 win away to Finch Hill A. Ian Pendlebury just got over the line 21-20 for Peel, whilst Jeff Wilson won 21-8. Winners for Finch Hill were Arthur Halsall, Peter Hughes and Paul Dougherty.

In division 3 league leaders Ballaugh B made the short trip along the west coast to take on Peel D coming away with an assured 8-2 win to stretch their lead at the top to five points. For Ballaugh Philip Quayle won 21-3. John Bolton just missed out on securing another point for Ballaugh losing 20-21 against Leslie Halsall. Young Ryan Tate picked up his second league win of the season beating John Looney 21-16.

South Ramsey C hosted high flying Marown C with the home team winning 7-3 over the Crosby outfit to put a huge dent in their hopes of winning the league. Ian Moore stepped up from the D Team to beat Kevin Kelly by the closest of margins 21-20. Austin Hart’s younger brother Toby performed well beating Stephen Rundle 21-15. For Marown Darren Kerruish, Steve Gregg and Jamie Joughin were the winners.

Castletown C boosted their hopes for promotion with a 10-0 home win over bottom of the table Douglas D with the result helping them climb above Marown C into second place. For Douglas only Greg Brew managed to make it into double figures losing 12-21, with the visitors scoring just 47 chalks in total.

Finch Hill B checked in to a flying Ballaugh green to take on their C Team, with visiting teams finding it extremely tricky to play. Finch Hill will have been delighted to record a 6-4 away win. Newcomer Paddy Murphy continues to impress picking up his second successive league win beating Bert Quayle 21-7, whilst another new player Frank Christian picked up his first league win in just his fourth league game defeating Paul Bradford 21-15. Kevin Stannard and Sam Stannard were the other two winners for the visitors to help secure the aggregate by six chalks.

Douglas C happily rearranged their game with Onchan C to the Wednesday evening, to give them the opportunity to watch the England game on Tuesday night. Fittingly it would seem, in honour of the football the teams played a score draw with the match ending 5-5. Winning for the home team were Mike Cain, Tommy Rougvie, Andy Foster, Willie Cowley and John Ferguson. Keith Fearnley lost 20-21 against Brian Woodall, with Douglas forced to give two games away due to being short of players. Onchan edged the aggregate by just two chalks (127-125) to secure the draw.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

Kennish Reigns Supreme

Association Cup Winner 2018

Ballaugh Bowling Club was the venue for the rearranged Association Cup on Sunday. The green was in fantastic condition, with a smooth surface and it was lightning quick making for testing conditions for the 46 players taking part. The green was as fast as I can recall in my 25 years, which was great to see.

The eventual winner after a long, hot day was John Kennish (South Ramsey) who secured his third successive Association Cup win, defeating team mate Glynn Hargraves. This to go alongside his three successive Manx Championship wins that must be a record to hold both of the top Association competitions at the same time three years running to confirm his dominance of the Manx game.

The final started with Kennish taking the first two ends, before Hargraves hit back taking the next two ends to level the score at 6-6. Kennish took control from there taking four of the next five ends to go ahead 13-7. Hargraves fought back again to get back to 11-13, before Kennish once again had a run with the jack, which was key all day in the tricky conditions seeing the game out with a 21-13 win.

Kennish beat another team mate David Bradford in the semi-final with Kennish scoring six two’s, whilst Bradford was unable to make a two during the game to see Kennish win 21-11. In the other semi-final Hargraves booked his place in the final thanks to a 21-15 win over Tom Kelly (Peel) with Kelly only securing one two, whilst Hargraves scored four two’s.

Losing out in the quarter finals were Arnie Withers (Marown) who had put out Barney Kelly in the earlier rounds, Stevie Kelly (Peel) who had put an end to Dido Kelly’s hopes of a win, Matthew Keggen (Marown) and Sam Clague (Castletown) who performed brilliantly in only his second season of bowls and his first real experience of a quick green to beat Colin Kelly 21-20, then pushing Kennish to the limit, going 20-18 up before Kennish took the next two ends with a double and a single to win 21-20.

At the conclusion of the competition the presentation was made by the hard working competition secretary Matthew Keggen, who thanked Ballaugh for hosting the competition, providing the refreshments and preparing a superb playing surface. Thanks were also given to those who helped with the running of the competition.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

Champions Have It All To Do

Champions South Ramsey extended their lead at the top to eight points with a 10-0 away win against Castletown A. Dido Kelly and David Bradford both won 21-3, whilst Chas Grills recovered from a poor start going 8-0 down before winning 21-18. Having competed in the Parish Walk on Saturday Stefan Kelly was quick out of the blocks going 9-0 up on Mike Hargraves before stumbling over the line 21-20. Whilst South Ramsey sit top at the half way stage they still have it all to do in the second half of the season with having to travel to the teams that sit in the top five, Marown A, Peel A, Onchan A and Douglas A.

Marown A sit in second place and will have been delighted to come away from their visit to the Villa with a 9-1 win over Douglas A, which stretched the gap on the teams below them. Captain Andy Kennish spared the whitewash for the home team with a 21-13 win over Phil Kelly. Dean Kipling and Paul Dunn made light work of their games beating Stuart Garrett and Ian Moore to single figures. Paul Kelly and Matthew Keggen were pushed a lot harder by Mervin Sayle and Keith Rise winning their games 21-18. Marown have seven home games in the second half of the season (due to their B Team being in the same division) and only have to face Onchan A away out of the top five, will fancy their chances of closing the gap on South Ramsey A to take their first league title since 2013.

Third placed Peel A once again proved they are force to be reckoned with defeating visitors Onchan A 7-3, on another night it could have been 9-1 with Gary Smith and Tommy McMeiken both just losing out 19-21 to Jordan Cain and Phil Kerruish. Steve Crampton had a comfortable 21-13 win over David Proctor. For the home team winners Frank Watson was pushed hardest winning 21-18 over Mark Kelly. Captain Stevie Kelly had a good 21-10 win over June Festival quarter finalist Matthew Quirk, whilst Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly made it back from his World Cup visit to Russia to beat Kevin Quirk 21-14. Tom Kelly beat visiting captain Peter Slinger 21-13 and Jerome Surridge won 21-15 against Rob Monk in a result that put them eight points ahead of their opponents on the night.

Port St Mary A sit in mid table and made the trek north to take on South Ramsey B, coming away with a 7-3 away win. Wayne Roberts won 21-3 over Christian Caley, whilst Ewan Cooil, Dan McCabe and Thomas Keggen had fairly comfortable wins, with Trevor Quayle pushed a lot harder before getting out 21-18 against Tony Dugdale. Home captain Ben Dugdale led by example winning 21-8, whilst Sid Bolton and Steven Waters both won 21-18 to help secure an extra two points for the team.

North Ramsey A won 8-2 with Allan Callow and John Cannan both winning to single figures. Geoff Porter was pushed harder with a 21-18 win over Seamus Whelan. The winners for the visitors were Steve Durcan and Peter Addison.

Marown B appear to have settled into division one nicely now and have given themselves plenty of breathing space to remain in the top tier following their 10-0 win over Douglas B, who appear set for the drop sitting nine points away from the two teams above them. I tipped Marown B to stay up at the start of the season and they look well placed to achieve this. No doubt helped by a quick green, the Marown players winning to single figures were Brian Kelly, Arnie Withers and John Kelly. James Kelly did well to beat visiting captain Andy Cannell 21-20, whilst another young star Bobby Thorne beat the experienced Pat O’Donohue 21-19.

In division two, word is reaching me that Ballaugh have a running green, which hasn’t been the case for a number of years now, no doubt helped by the recent fine weather and taking advice from Mike Atherton. The A Team would appear to be enjoying this recording a 10-0 home win over Noble’s B. The visitors did have to give a game away due to being a player short. For the home team Steve Grant had a fine 21-4 win.

Noble’s B continue their quest for promotion with a 7-3 home win over Finch Hill A, with their green not as quick as Festival week having been well watered ahead of their match. At the halfway stage Noble’s sit six points ahead of Castletown B, who had a slip up away to Peel C losing 4-6. The match ended 4-4 on games, however Peel picked up the aggregate thanks in part to Bob Berry’s 21-6 win.

Onchan B drew 5-5 at home to Peel B, despite winning 5-3 on games they lost the aggregate by three chalks with David Smith defeating Bernie McPhee 21–9. Onchan returned the favour with Paul Bailey beating Peter Greenlees 21-8, however of their other four winners Mike Alexander, Mike Thomas and Edward Carlyle could only win 21-19, whilst Roger Payne just got over the line 21-20 against Paul Quirk.

Port St Mary B took on their C Team with three big wins for the B Team, Dave Saxon, Paul Russell and Ray Maddrell all winning to single figures. Winners for the C Team were Ken Karran who beat Peter Collins 21-17, whilst Milton Cubbon stepped in to roll back the years beating Tom Collins 21-13.

Port Erin B didn’t fare well on their visit north to take on North Ramsey B at Mooragh Park, with the home team winning 9-1. Sparing the visitors blushes was Christopher Dent who beat Barry Teare 21-15. Winning big for North Ramsey were Alex Yates, Bryan Corner and Brian Colquitt.

In division three match of the week was Ballaugh B who took on league leaders Marown C. The home team had an 8-2 win, which allowed them to leapfrog the visitors to sit top of the table at the halfway stage. The two winners for Marown were Dan Smith and Stephen Rundle, whilst Dicky Watson won to single figures for Ballaugh. The other five winners for Ballaugh rather unusually recorded wins to scores of 15,16 17,18 and 19.

Castletown C slipped up away to South Ramsey C with the home team winning 7-3. This only tells half the story as Castletown gave away three games due to only being able to field five players, which pains me as the club up until a few years ago regularly had four teams competing in the league. James Drinkwater, Juan Drinkwater and Philip Smith all won for Castletown, whilst the two winners for South Ramsey were Anthony Kelly and Paul Routledge.

Finch Hill B closed the gap on the teams above them with a 9-1 win over Douglas D. Greg Brew was the only winner for the visitors beating Guy Smith 21-17. Finch Hill were awarded two walkovers. Home captain Pat Maher and Sam Stannard both won 21-9, with new bowler Brian Murphy winning his second game of the season, along with another newcomer Paddy Murphy who I am tipping to come on leaps and bounds, as he picked up his first league win in only his second league game for the club. It is great to see a player who has recently taken up the game getting around the opens, as this will definitely help improve his game.

Onchan C recorded a 6-4 home win over South Ramsey D, helped in part by Paul Clinton receiving a walkover. Winners for Onchan were Brian Woodall, Mike Kelly and Derek Anscomb. For South Ramsey Matthew Corkill and Ian Moore both won to single figures, with James Moore and Franz Ten Donkelaar also winning.

Peel D had an outstanding 7-3 away win against Douglas C, with Steve Tate and Bert Quayle winning to single figures, John Lightfoot who won 21-19 and Leslie Halsall winning 21-20. Winners for the home team were Parish Walk finisher Juan Readshaw, along with Keith Fearnley and Mike Cain.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

Cumbria Duo Take Top Prizes

Martin Gilpin

IOM June Festival Winner 2018

The top prizes in the Isle of Man June Bowls Festival went to two Cumbria players.

In the Men’s competition it was Martin Gilpin (Kendal Vic) from Cumbria who picked up his first June Festival win and the winners cheque for £3,000. Gilpin had to overcome the challenge of Chris Kelly (Thongsbridge) in a thrilling final on a tricky green. Kelly was quickest out of the blocks taking a 13-6 lead, then 16-9 and 17-13. From there Gilpin chipped away at the lead to draw level with his opponent. At 19-19 Gilpin sent the jack out which was less than a yard from the edge, however he was unable to keep his first bowl on the green. Kelly played a yard short bowl which Gilpin was unable to beat with his second, and Kelly missed the opportunity to make two for game. At 20-19 up Kelly led a bowl two foot to the side of the jack with Gilpin putting one a similar distance the other side of the jack. Kelly made sure he was counting by glancing the jack towards his side bowl to lie two and within touching distance of his first Festival win. Gilpin had other ideas, ensuring he reached to sit on Kelly’s back bowl to count one to leave the score tied at 20-20. Gilpin headed for a longer length mark and left his bowl just under a yard away, which Kelly was unable to beat which gave Gilpin the title. Kelly had the blow softened receiving a cheque for £1,000.

Gilpin reached the final courtesy of a 21-10 win over Colin Price (Dukinfield Central), whilst Kelly booked his place in the final defeating Thongsbridge team mate Craig Gant 21-9.

All the quarter finals in the Men’s tournament were the closest games I can recall with Onchan’s Matthew Quirk losing 19-21 to Price. Quirk received the George Craine trophy for the furthest Manxman. Phil Lee (Wallasey) just lost out 20-21 to Gilpin, whilst Gant ended the challenge of Nigel Briggs (Brighouse) 21-19. Finishing off the close games Kelly played another Thongsbridge team mate Jack Dyson with this also going to the wire with Kelly winning 21-19.

In the Ladies main competition it was another player from Cumbria Angela Athersmith (Ulverston Cons) who won the Ladies title and a cheque for £1,000 with a hard fought 21-19 win over Caroline Hall (Cleveleys WM) with the final being nip and tuck all the way through with neither player able to take control of the game. Hall received a cheque for £600 as runner up.

The semi-finals were close with Hall defeating Rachel Quirk (Crossgates) 21-17 to reach the final, whilst Athersmith was pushed harder by Diane Harrison (Lune Road) 21-19.

Furthest local player reaching the quarter finals was South Ramsey’s Elaine Moore who received the Visit IOM.com trophy. Moore’s challenge was ended by Hall 13-21. Joyce Foxcroft (Lune Road) lost 10-21 to Quirk, whilst one of the favourites Sarah Fox (Woodlands) lost 20-21 to Harrison. Karen Hill (Ossett Flying Horse) lost 10-21 to Athersmith.

The Men’s Tourism was played down to the winner on Thursday morning on Noble’s 1 with James Wilcox (Crossgates) following up on his June Festival win in 2017 with the Tourism title defeating Callum Wraight (Castlefields) 21-18 in an entertaining final.

Losing semi-finalists were Phil Lee 18-21 (Wallasey) to Wilcox, whilst Paul Bailey (Meersbrook) lost out 12-21 to Wraight.

The Ladies Tourism was also played down to the winner on Thursday morning on Noble’s 2 green with another entertaining final it was Sarah Fox (Woodlands) who held her nerve to bowl a winner at 20-20 which after being measured in this was enough to earn the Tourism title with a 21-20 win over Jackie Butterworth (Knutsford BC).

Fox earned her place in the final following a hard fought 21-20 semi-final win over Debbie Leece (Noble’s) after coming back from 16-20 down. In the other semi-final Butterworth had a comfortable 21-10 win over Mary Alderson (Marown) to book her place in the final.

The Men’s consolation was won by Melvyn Byron (Marton Institute) who beat Kevin Nicholas (Gresford Colliery) 21-17 in a close final. The Ladies consolation was won by a regular visitor to the Island with Joyce Jones (Syke BC) defeating Amanda Nicholson (Gresford Colliery) 21-16.

The Visit.Com Flyer title went to Callum Wraight (Castlefields) who had a 9-3 win over Martyn Watkin (Cortonwood), whilst the Last Chance Mixed Final was won by Matt Gilmore (Wallasey) who beat Craig Ramell (Rishton) 21-15.

In the doubles competitions the Open Doubles was won by Joshua Mordue (Pudsey) and Joseph Cranston (Crossgates) with a 11-8 win over Conor Chamberlain (Stretton Anglesey) and Stevie Kelly (Peel Sunset) in a close final.

The Men’s doubles was won by Joseph Cranston (Crossgates) and David Gwilliam (Nursery Inn) who beat Alex Power (Bar Lane) and Dean Butler (Rishton) 11-6 in the final.

The Ladies pairs was won 11-8 by Sharon Ridgen (Penwortham Sports) and Shelley Kennish (South Ramsey) who beat Alexis Lunn-Gadd (Ossett Flying Horse) and Diane Harrison (Lune Road)

The Mixed pairs had local representation with Edward Carlyle (Onchan) and Sharon Ridgen (Penwortham Sports) just losing out 7-9 to Lee Longland (Rishton) and Sarah Edmondson (Rishton).

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

Callum Hits The Jackpot in PokerStars Invitation

PokerStars Invitation Winner 2018 Callum Wraight

The PokerStars IOM Invitation took place on Friday evening at South Ramsey Bowling Club immediately after the conclusion of the IOM bowls festival.

It was a strong field taking part with every player in the field having played county bowls. The format was 31 up with 5 on the card which is a format that hasn’t been played for a number of years on the Island, but is a popular format across the water.

Robby Fitzpatrick (Merseyside) was the first jack on taking on Billy Speed (Lancashire), with Speed taking control of the game early on without ever going behind in the game. Speed won to a comfortable 31-20 score.

Local player Jordan Cain made his first appearance in the competition, with Cain only one point behind Carl Fielding (Warwick and Worcester) at 20-21. Fielding took control from there to see the game out with a 31-22 victory.

Derbyshire man Conor Chamberlain took on five time Manx Champion Colin Kelly, with Kelly’s knowledge of the green over the years proving enough to take a 31-21 win.

The final game in the top half of the draw had top Merseyside player Matt Gilmore taking on North Lancs & Fylde man Dave Jackson with Gilmore taking the biggest win of the round with a 31-19 victory.

In the bottom half of the draw Jon Palmer (Shropshire) took on James Wilcox (Yorkshire) with Wilcox proving too strong for Palmer taking a 31-23 win.

Nidge Hughes (Merseyside) took on one of the top players on the bowls circuit Callum Wraight (Shropshire) with Hughes hanging on to the tail of Wraight throughout the game and lying two bowls on top of the jack at 27-29, however Wraight had one of his trademark strikes taking off both of Hughes’ bowls with the jack staying on the green to leave himself one. Wraight secured another single on the next end to win 31-27 with Wraight’s striking ability being the difference.

Richie Goddard (Shropshire) and Kevan Shaw (Lancashire) was a good encounter with several tight ends and measures with Shaw getting over the line 31-26.

The last game in the bottom half of the draw had Paul Bailey (South Yorkshire) taking on Merseyside man Phil Lee with the game being close throughout with Lee going 30-27 up before Bailey hit back with two singles and a two to edge it 31-30 to book his place in the quarter finals.

The first game of the quarter finals had Speed up against Fielding with Speed taking an assured 31-23 win to book his spot in the semi finals.

Colin Kelly had his challenge ended by Gilmore who had a comfortable 31-17 win.

In the third quarter final Wilcox took on Wraight with the game living up to expectations. It was close throughout with the score tied at 27 and then 29 with Wraight scoring a double to secure a hard fought 31-29 victory.

In the last quarter final game Bailey was always ahead against Shaw taking a 31-19 win.

In the first semi final Speed took on 2015 winner Gilmore with Speed using all his experience to book his spot in the final with a 31-28 win with Gilmore pushing hard to get through.

In the second semi final Wraight took on Bailey, with both players being big hitters their striking didn’t disappoint with a number of hits throughout the game with Wraight taking a 31-24 win over Bailey.

In the final Wraight was quickest out of the blocks taking a 12-6 lead, then extending this even further to 25-10 on his trademark short marks to the middle of the green. Wraight held off Speed to take a 31-15 win to secure the title and a cheque for £1,200. Speed will no doubt have been cheered up by his cheque for £600, with the losing semi finalists each receiving £250, and the losing quarter finalists taking home £125.

At the conclusion of play the presentation was made by event organiser Glynn Hargraves, who thanked the sponsor PokerStars for their continued support, the players for what made for an entertaining evening of bowls, the spectators for turning up to support, all the club members who had helped in any way to prepare for the competition ahead of the day and on the night. Special thanks were also passed to the South Ramsey Ladies who once again catered for the event.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

Kerruish Wins Ballacashtal Cup

Ballacashtal Cup Winner 2018

The traditional pre festival open the Ballacashtal Cup was held at Castletown on Sunday with an entry of 86 the competition had an early start to get through the games.

Rather unusually the quarter finals featured just one visiting bowler Neil Ridgen (New Longton) in a competition that has been heavily dominated by visiting bowlers over the years. Ridgen went out to Onchan man Phil Kerruish 20-21 after coming back from 14-19 down before losing out. In the second quarter final another Onchan player Matthew Quirk put an end to the challenge of Stevie Kelly (Peel) 21-16. In the third quarter final John Kennish (South Ramsey) had a comfortable 21-13 win over Neil Withers (Marown). In the last quarter final it was an all Marown clash with Colin Kelly having enough in the tank to beat team mate Paul Dunn 21-15.

In the first semi final Quirk took on team mate Kerruish, who despite being 14-19 down came back to 19-20 and had a good lead to which Kerruish played an even better bowl to count. Quirk struck and missed which confirmed Kerruish’s spot in the final. In the other semi final Kennish took on Kelly in a game that rarely disappoints for spectators. Kelly held a 13-10 lead, before Kennish kicked into gear to take take seven of the next eight ends to secure a 21-14 win.

In the final Kennish scored a two on the first end to take an 8-6 lead before Kerruish replied to take the next three ends to go 11-8 ahead, with Kennish responding with a two to sit one point behind Kerruish at 10-11. From here Kerruish used all his know how of the green picking a difficult mark to take six of the next seven ends to go 19-11 up and within touching distance of the trophy. Kennish never one to give up got back in with a single and led a fair lead which Kerruish beat. This forced Kennish into reaching up however he took his own bowl out allowing Kerruish the opportunity to make an easy two which secured a 21-12 win and with it a first Ballacashtal Cup win on the same green that he won the Manx Championship on in 1986.

At the conclusion of play the presentation was made by Ron Williams who thanked Dennis Oates and Kath Kinley for their work in running the competition on the day and over a number of years, along with all the club members who helped in any way. Thanks were also given to the green keeper for preparing the green and the sponsor Friends Provident International. Adam Drewett was then introduced to present the prizes on behalf of the sponsor.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

Bradford Finds Form

Jim Kernan Winner 2018

The Jim Kernan was held at South Ramsey on Saturday with the green running well despite the heavy rain overnight and early morning. There was an entry of 44 taking part.

Visiting bowler Paul Bailey lost out at the quarter final stage to home greener David Bradford with Bailey 12-10 up before Bradford ran out to win 21-13. Bailey will no doubt have found the competition useful practice ahead of the PokerStars Invitation next Friday. Dido Kelly had his hopes of a first Jim Kernan win ended by Marown man Paul Dunn who had a comfortable 21-14 win. Reversing the fortunes for Marown was James Teare who performed well to see off Marown’s Neil Withers with a 21-18 win. Another visiting bowler featuring in the quarter finals was Roger Lunn who ended the run of South Ramsey D team captain James Moore thanks to a 21-11 win.

In the first semi final it was Bradford against Dunn with the latter taking a 13-11 lead before Bradford kicked into gear to take four consecutive two’s, then two singles to book his place in the final with a 21-13 victory.

In the other semi final between Teare and Lunn it was close throughout with the score going level at 17, 18, 19 and 20 with Lunn just holding on to win 21-20 to secure his place in the final.

In the final neither player was able to get a run with the jack early on in the game with the score tied at 7, 8, 9 and 10 before Bradford ruthlessly used his knowledge and experience to secure his third Jim Kernan win courtesy of three consecutive two’s, a single and two further two’s to run out with a 21-10 win for a deserved victory.

The presentation was made by South Ramsey Chairman Steve Moore, who thanked George Brew for his generous sponsorship, those who ran the competition, prepared the green, and anyone else who helped. Special thanks were also given to the Ladies who had put on a variety of hot and cold refreshments throughout the day.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

June Festival Preview

June Festival 2017

Men's Winner James Wilcox

The eagerly awaited Isle of Man June Festival takes place the week commencing 18th June with a good entry of over 340 in the Men’s competition.

On the first page of the draw former festival winner Gaz Lally (Crossgates) takes on Stewart Meddings (Royal Oak BC) in what should be a good game with both having expectations to go far in the competition. Former finalist Carl Fielding (Bradford Arms) will also be looking to make it to the latter stages, whilst Matthew Kelly-Walley (Stratton Anglesey) could face Billy Speed (Castlefields) in the second round. Local player and another former festival winner David Bradford will be looking to pick up his second title and first June win.

On the second page Ryan Clark (Thongsbridge) takes on Ian Sherbrooke (Wallasey) in the first round. Also on this page are current title holder James Wilcox (Crossgates) who starts off a handicap of two and Chris Mordue (Brighouse) who will be hoping to make it a memorable week.

On page three Joshua Mordue (Pudsey) will also be looking to have a good run, whilst regular visitor and serial winner Ian Nicholson (Kendal Vic) will be confident of another victory on Manx soil (or grass!) Another former winner Marown man Colin Kelly could well face Phil Lee (Wallasey) in what could be an entertaining game.

On the next page Andrew Spragg (Eastwood Park) will take on local Stevie Kelly (Peel) who will be looking to take a good scalp in his first game. If Martin Gilpin (Kendal Vic) and Nick White are able to navigate their way through their first game they could face each other in the second round. South Ramsey’s John Kennish the Islands most decorated player has his handicap back up to four, having been as low as scratch thanks to his September 2014 win, which was followed up in style with his June 2015 win despite giving most of his opponents a three start. Kennish will be confident of reaching the latter stages and would be a strong tip to make finals day.

On page five two players jump out with Richie Goddard (Castlefields) on the top half of the page and last year’s runner up Craig Gant (Thongsbridge) in the bottom half. Both players would need to win four games to face each other and if the festival has taught me anything it is that there is always plenty of shocks throughout the week, so neither player will be counting their chickens.

Looking at page six Andrew Duckett (Castlefields) will be hoping to have a good run with Brian Smith (Stratton Anglesey) standing firmly in his way with a potential second round face off.

Over to page seven and Nigel Hughes (Wirral) could face Conor Chamberlain (Stretton Anglesey) as early as Wednesday afternoon in the third round, whilst Kevan Shaw (Westhoughton RC) could play Carl Armitage (St Oswalds) in his second game with the winner potentially taking on Rob Fitzpatrick (Wallasey) in the next round.

On page eight Paul Morgan (Woodlands Park) winner of the September Festival in 1998 makes his long awaited return to the Island and faces Tommy King (Marton) who knows the Islands greens well with both players hoping to be on top of their game to ensure they make it through to the second round. Onchan man Kevin Quirk is finding form at the right time and will be hoping to pick up his first title after having gone close in previous years. Paul Bailey (Meersbrook) takes on Ian Hazlehurst (Wallasey) in his first round game, whilst Andrew Sorsby (Thongsbridge) will be keen to progress to the latter stages.

On page nine Marown captain Paul Dunn will be looking to take his league form into the festival, however he could have the tricky task of facing Kevin Nicholas (Gresford Colliery) in his second game. Chris Kelly (Thongsbridge) could have dodged a bullet in his second game with Danny Barwise (Wallasey) now rumoured to be unable to make it to the Island due to work commitments.

Page ten, this is littered with previous winners. Matt Gilmore (Wallasey) is the first of these and he could face Ben Gloag (Nursery Inn) in his third game which could make for great viewing, whilst Kez Smith (Crossgates) another former winner could face Jon Palmer (Castlefields) in his second game in what could be a fascinating battle. Jon Guess (Fairfield) could face Smith or Palmer in the next round should he find his way through two games. Neil Withers (Marown) is another of a handful of local players to have lifted the trophy and could face another former winner Alan Gilpin (Kendal Vic) in his third game, whilst Alan Belcher (Dukki Central) will be hoping to surpass his previous best in the competition to secure his first festival title.

On the final page Callum Wraight (Castlefields) is another regular visitor to the Island and will know full well that whilst it appears his half of the page is favourable, he will need to ensure he wins those games to make the eagerly anticipated Thursday afternoon, which never fails to throw out some classic encounters. Wraight will be a big favourite to reach the latter stages. On the other half of the page Jack Dyson (Thongsbridge) could face David Jackson (Knutsford) in Wednesday afternoon, whilst Mark Hughes (Crossgates) will be hoping to secure his first festival win having gone close previously.

Whilst I can’t guarantee the weather what should shine through, however, is the quality of the field and the week of bowls we have in store for us, with the Tourism, Men’s Doubles, Open Doubles, various flyers and consolation competitions there is plenty of bowls to be played & enjoyed for all.

Best of luck to all visitors and locals who are taking part throughout the week.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

Marown Close The Gap

League action returned this week in the Ellan Vannin Fuel sponsored division one with the tie of the week being top of the table South Ramsey A taking on second placed Peel A, who sat nine points behind the league leaders at the start of play. In the first four John Kennish led the way with a 21-6 win over David Proctor, backed up by captain Glynn Hargraves who inflicted a first league defeat of the season on Tommy McMeiken 21-14. Peel hit back with Jerome Surridge beating Chas Grills 21-15. Gary Smith then levelled the score to 2-2 at the half way stage performing well to beat David Bradford 21-16. In the back four visiting captain Stevie Kelly inflicted a 21-6 defeat on Peter Collister. This defeat was the largest since Juan Kermode beat Collister 21-7 a number of years ago. Stefan Kelly wasted no time in defeating Frank Watson 21-3, to level the match at 3-3 with a 14 chalk advantage to South Ramsey. Things were looking precarious for the home team with Dido Kelly taking on Barney Kelly with Barney holding a 10-3 lead and Alan Moore just 6-5 up against Tom Kelly. Dido kicked into gear to run out comfortably in the end performing well to win 21-16, whilst Moore won 21-13 over Kelly. This earned the home team a 7-3 home win. Peel will have been disappointed with the result having handled the quick green extremely well. The result could just as easily have been 7-3 to Peel on another night.

Marown A took full advantage of the top of the table clash to jump into second spot with a 10-0 win away to North Ramsey A, in doing so closed the gap at the top to just seven points, despite missing two regulars. Paul Dunn, Phil Kelly and Neil Withers all won to single figures over Allan Callow, Tony Smart and John Cannan respectively, whilst Bob Clark stepped in to win 21-12 over Geoff Porter. Paul Kelly had a fairly comfortable 21-16 win over Steve Parker. The final three winners were not so comfortable for the visitors with John Kelly holding off Ray Skelly 21-17, whilst Colin Kelly and John Gelling had to work hard to hold off Stephen Walmsley and Gary Merrill to both win 21-18.

Onchan A had a good 9-1 home win over Marown B. For the home team Kevin Quirk & Phil Kerruish won to single figures. For Marown Peter Kelly was the only winner defeating Steve Crampton 21-15. James Kelly came next closest to taking another point before losing out 18-21 to Mike Thomas.

Port St Mary A had a good 8-2 home win over Castletown A with Trevor Quayle maintaining his 100% record to record his 10th straight league win of the season. Wayne Roberts, Thomas Keggen and Steve Hall had to work hard to beat Mike Hargraves, Jordan Drewett and George Foy respectively. For the visitors Peter Oates had a fine 21-14 win over Ewan Cooil. Dave Quayle was the other winner for Castletown beating Dan McCabe 21-18.

South Ramsey B continue to close the gap on the teams above them at the bottom of the table thanks to a 6-4 away win over Port Erin A. James Teare led the way for the visitors with a 21-6 win over Seamus Whelan, along with Ben Dugdale, Tony Dugdale and Sid Bolton. The four winners for Port Erin were Derek Allen and Dave McCabe, along with Steve Durcan and Peter Addison.

Douglas A were ‘away’ to their B Team with the B Team performing well to snatch three points off the A Team. For the B Team captain Andy Cannell beat Merv Sayle 21-19, whilst Mark Corrin and Bob Callow were the other two winners. For the A Team captain Andy Kennish won 21-4, with the other four winners being Gary Conwell, Shaun Seal, Ian Moore and Stuart Garrett to help them on their way to a 7-3 win.

In division two, Noble’s A maintained their lead at the top of the table with an 8-2 win over their B Team. The winners for the B Team were Stewart Cubbon and Juan Qualtrough.

Castletown B maintained the pressure on the league leaders with an 8-2 home win over Port St Mary B, with all of the visiting players reaching double figures. The winners for Port St Mary were Ray Maddrell who had an outstanding 21-3 win over Mark Saunders and Dave Saxon who beat John Alderson 21-10.

Onchan B performed well to beat Finch Hill A 7-3 away from home, whilst Peel B beat their C Team 7-3. North Ramsey B ensured that Ballaugh A continue to struggle on their travels with a 7-3 home win, whilst Port St Mary C will have been pleased to come away from their visit to Breagle Glen with a 8-2 victory over Port Erin B.

In division three, South Ramsey D performed well at home on a quick green to take four points off high flying Ballaugh B. For the home team Ian Moore won 21-2, whilst Richard Davies won 21-13. Ryan Hargraves came back from 12-17 down to win 21-19 over John Bolton, captain James Moore matched this with a 21-19 win over Tony Quine. For Ballaugh Paul Cubbon beat Jay Moore 21-7, whilst Mick Buckeridge, Phil Quayle and John Cooney also won. The aggregate went to Ballaugh by just seven chalks to seal a 6-4 win for the visitors.

Castletown C closed the gap on the teams above them with an 8-2 home win over Finch Hill B. The two winners for Finch Hill were Bryan Masterson and Stephen Oates.

Peel D won 8-2 at home against Onchan C, with the home team losing three games 19-21, it could just as easily have been a 9-1 win on another night.

South Ramsey C made the short trip to Ballaugh to take on their C Team, coming away with a good 7-3 win on the night.

Douglas D took on their C Team with the D managing to take two games off the higher ranked team. Winners for the D Team were Mike Dransfield and Michael Knowles.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

Rayner Semi-Finals

Rayner Plate Winners 2017

Marown C

Rayner Shield

In a repeat of last year’s semi-final South Ramsey A took on Onchan A at Onchan Park in what was expected to be a close match it didn’t disappoint. With heavy rain the green was constantly getting heavier. The home team adjusted to the conditions quicker with Jordan Cain winning 21-7 over Alan Moore, whilst Kevin Quirk turned on the style to see off Dido Kelly 21-9. Tony Dugdale replied for the visitors with a 21-11 win over Mike Thomas. It is worth mentioning that the home team must have been grateful for the weather as this led to Peter Slinger being available to play with the boat not sailing, Slinger made the most of this defeating Peter Collister 21-8. At the half way stage Onchan held a 3-1 lead and led by 29 chalks (74-45). As expected South Ramsey hit back in the second half with David Bradford clawing back 17 chalks with a 21-4 win over Phil Kerruish. Glynn Hargraves was next off winning 21-11 over Steve Crampton, after being 20-5 up and lying two for game Crampton bowled in to save game and then earned a six extra points which turned out to be crucial. This levelled the match on games at 3-3 and gave Onchan a lead of just two chalks (89-87). Sealing the win for Onchan was Matthew Quirk who beat Stefan Kelly 21-9. John Kennish was last game off beating Rob Monk 21-13 to level the match on games 4-4, however this left the chalks 123-117 in favour of Onchan which was enough to book their spot in the final. All of the Onchan winners won their games to single figures, which was the difference on the night.

Conditions were similar in the south of the Island with Port St Mary A hosting Marown A in the other semi-final. Neil Withers got the visitors off to a good start with a 21-4 win over Thomas Keggen, backed up by John Gelling who beat Rob Cooil 21-16. Port St Mary replied with Paul Skelly winning 21-16 over Dean Kipling, whilst captain Trevor Quayle beat Matthew Keggen 21-13. The match was finely balanced at the half way stage 2-2 on games with Marown leading by nine chalks (62-71). Colin Kelly extended the lead with a 21-7 win over Nathan Hamilton, with Wayne Roberts and Dan McCabe both holding their nerve to beat Paul Kelly and Phil Kelly 21-20 respectively. Visiting captain Paul Dunn knew a win to any score would do due to the advantage on chalks and wasted no time in securing the victory with a 21-11 win over Ewan Cooil. The match ended 4-4 on games with the visitors winning by 29 chalks this was enough to book their spot in the final.

The final of the Rayner Shield between Onchan A and Marown A is to be held on Friday 13th July with the venue to be confirmed.

Rayner Plate

In another thriller Noble’s A (+40) took on Peel A (+10) at Noble’s Park. Noble’s knew home advantage could be crucial along with a 30 point start. Gary Smith continued his fine form for the season with a 21-7 win, backed up by Tommy McMeiken who beat Reginald Temporaza 21-6. Glenn Boland was 20-12 up on Frank Watson, however Watson then took nine consecutive chalks to run out 21-20. Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly beat Bod Boland 21-16 to put the visitors just ahead 94-89 to leave the match finely poised at the half way stage. Tommy Collister beat Tom Kelly 21-16 to level the match on chalks. Kevin Firth handled the conditions well to beat Stevie Kelly 21-19, to give the home team a two point lead with two games left on the green with David Quayle 20-20 against Jerome Surridge. Surridge held his nerve to win 21-20 to reduce the deficit to just one chalk (151-150). David Pease was 19-19 with David Proctor, Pease managed to secure the win 21-19 to record a memorable win by just three chalks (172-169) for the home team to book their place in the final.

In the other semi-final South Ramsey D (+76) hosted Finch Hill B (+80) the visitors had their work cut out to win away to the team sitting nine points ahead of them in the table. 10 year old Ryan Hargraves was first off the green securing his second win of the week with a fine 21-17 win over Eric Stanley to level the match on chalks. Ian Moore beat Kevin Anderson 21-18, backed up by Martin Caley beating new comer Paddy Murphy 21-11. Richard Davies then beat Brian Murphy to the same score to give the home team a lead of 23 chalks at the half way point (160-137). Replying for Finch Hill Kevin Stannard beat Jay Moore 21-16, whilst Sam Stannard beat Matthew Corkill 21-7 to cut the deficit to just four chalks (183-179). Franz Ten Donkelaar eased the home team’s nerves with a 21-9 win over Frank Christian, whilst captain James Moore beat visiting captain Pat Maher 21-14. South Ramsey won the match by 23 chalks (225-202) whilst also winning 6-2 on games to ensure they take part in their first ever final.

The final of the Rayner Plate between Noble’s A (+40) and South Ramsey D (+76) is to be held on Friday 20th July with the venue to be confirmed.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves