Author Archives: 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

Boland Crowned Junior Champion

Junior Championship Winner 2018

The Ellan Vannin Fuels sponsored Junior Championship took place on Saturday with 16 juniors entering the competition.

Losing out at the quarter final stage were Madison McMullan (Mooragh Park), Kiera Corlett (Castletown), Aalish Haworth (Mooragh Park) and 2017 winner Harry Barton (Marown) who lost 17-21 to Sam Stannard.

Falling at the semi-final stage were Sam Stannard (Finch Hill) 20-21 to Bethany Kennish (South Ramsey), who kept her composure to book her place in the final. In the second semi-final Sam Clague (Castletown) lost out 4-21 to Glenn Boland (Noble’s).

In the final Glenn made a strong start building a big lead on his favoured long marks. Bethany managed to pull a few points back to get the score back to 8-19, before Glenn secured a two to win his first Junior Championship, with a deserved victory thanks to winning all his games to single figures.

Both Glenn and Bethany have qualified to play off Island later in the year.

The presentation was made by Glynn Hargraves, with thanks given to Castletown Bowling Club for hosting and helping to run the competition. It was great to see so many supporters around the green, with the games played in the right spirit, also to see such a good standard of bowls throughout the day.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves

As You Were At The Top

In the Ellan Vannin Fuel sponsored division one this week reigning champions South Ramsey A made the journey South to take on Port St Mary A who were missing two of their experienced players. The conditions on the night around the Islands greens were tough with swirling winds. Despite this the home team managed to take three games off the visitors and on another night could have taken two more. The winners for Port St Mary were Trevor Quayle, Dan McCabe and Wayne Roberts, with Steve Franks and Rob Cooil going close before losing out to Stefan Kelly and Glynn Hargraves. Manx Champion John Kennish carried on where he left off from Sunday winning 21-1, with Dido Kelly winning 21-7.

Second placed Peel A made the trip to the capital to take on bottom of the table Douglas B. The home side fared better than they could have hoped taking three points from the visitors losing 3-7. Captain Andy Cannell had an outstanding 21-9 win over opposition captain Ste Kelly, whilst Pat O’Donohue rolled back the years to inflict a 21-4 defeat on Jerome Surridge. Mark Corrin was the third winner defeating David Proctor 21-15. Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly was pushed all the way by Roy Williams before winning 21-19, with Tom Kelly back to winning ways holding off Bob Banning 21-18. Tommy McMeiken kept up his 100% league record with a 21-4 win with Gary Smith also winning to single figures.

Marown B took on their A team with the B team players looking to prove they can mix it with the A team and continue their climb up the table. The B team will have pleased to secure three points following their 3-7 loss. For the B team Peter Kelly rolled back the years to defeat his Nephew Neil Withers 21-14, whilst his son John got over the line 21-19 against Ian Kissack. Bobby Thorne proved his worth beating John Gelling 21-18. For the A team Dean Kipling beat Juan Killip 21-4, whilst Colin Kelly, Paul Kelly and Matthew Keggen had comfortable wins. Captain Paul Dunn was pushed a lot harder winning 21-18 over Brian Kelly.

North Ramsey A hosted South Ramsey B with the home team securing a 6-4 victory thanks to two single figure wins by Allan Callow and John Cannan. The other two winners were Steve Parker 21-17 over Ben Dugdale and Gary Merrill edging it 21-19 against Austin Hart. For the visitors Tony Dugdale and Sid Bolton had comfortable wins, with James Teare (21-18) and Steven Waters (21-19) having enough in the tank to hold off Ray Skelly and Steve Walmsley.

Port Erin A hosted Douglas A at Breagle Glen with the home team suffering an 8-2 defeat, the southerners will have felt hard done by as Derek Allen & Bernie Durcan both lost 18-21 to Ian Moore and Mervin Sayle respectively. Steve Durcan lost 17-21 against Gary Conwell, whilst Peter Addision also fell at the last hurdle losing 20-21 to Stuart Garrett. Despite the home defeat there were only 12 chalks separating the teams to show how close the game really was.

Onchan A bounced back from last week’s defeat to beat Castletown A 9-1. For the home team Matthew Quirk, Kevin Quirk, Steve Crampton and Jordan Cain all won to single figures, whilst for the visitors the only winner was Juan Kermode over the experienced Phil Kerruish who is notoriously difficult to beat on Onchan.

In division two, top of the table Noble’s A had a tough away game with a visit to Peel B, managed to maintain their unbeaten record despite being beaten 5-3 on games, they took the aggregate two points for the chalks edging it by a solitary chalk (146-145). Noble’s missed out taking extra points off Peel with Steve Cook and Tommy Collister losing 20-21 to Alec Taylor and Gordon Corrin, whilst Bod Boland lost 18-21 to Dougie Allan. For Peel, Harry Kelly and Mike Ashmole won comfortably.

Castletown B missed an opportunity to close the gap further on Noble’s A with a 6-4 home victory over strugglers Port St Mary C who performed well to take four points away from home. Dave Faragher kept up his place at the top of the individual merit table with a 21-7 win over Nathan Hamilton. John Alderson lost out 20-21 to Tom Wilson, whilst Alan Phair & Aaron Richardson lost out 17-21 to Louis Callister and Chris Oates.

Ballaugh A came away from Finch Hill A with a 6-4 win with Edgar Cowin winning 21-8 for the visitors. John Keenan, Richard Fisher and Steve Grant were the other winners for the visiting team. Winners for Finch Hill were Tony Epifani, Sefton Denton, Paul Dougherty and Billy Long.

North Ramsey B had a good 8-2 home win over Port St Mary B, with Barry Teare getting over the line 21-19 against Peter Collins, whilst Rheuben Thomas held his nerve to beat Paul Russell 21-20. Winners for Port St Mary were Brian Corrin and Dave Saxon.

Peel C hosted Onchan B with Onchan taking a 6-4 win. For the home team Paul Quirk and Kevin Mort helped secured two extra points for their team winning 21-19 and 21-20 over Mike Thomas and Paul Bailey respectively. Edward Carlyle, Les McLellan, Mike Alexander and Bernie McPhee were the winners for the visitors.

In division three, Peel D took the pressure off with a 9-1 away win to Douglas D. For Peel Ryan Tate got a walkover, Steve Tate won 21-4 and Leslie Halsall also won to single figures. For Douglas Tony King prevented the whitewash with a 21-8 win.

South Ramsey D welcomed Douglas C in a tight contest, recording a 6-4 win. Home Captain James Moore and his eldest son Ian won to single figures, whilst youngest son Jay had to battle to win 21-18. Richard Davies was the other winner. For Douglas Juan Readshaw marked his first appearance of the season with a win, backed up by William Cowley, Andy Foster and Mike Cain.

Marown C just missed out on a 10-0 win over Onchan C with Darren Kerruish losing 20-21 to Gary Lee to record a 9-1 win to extend their lead at the top of the table. Paul Clinton came close to securing another point for the visitors before losing 19-21 to Karl Parker. For the home team Stephen Rundle and Jamie Joughin won to single figures, with Walter McCarthy, Steve Wilson, Kevin Kelly and Carey Dewhirst also having comfortable wins.

Ballaugh C took on their B Team with the match ending 6-4 to the B Team to show how little difference there is between the two teams. For the C Team Bert Quayle got home with a 21-20 win over John Kneen, with Paul Bradford the biggest winner 21-11 over Percy Faragher. Maurice O’Reilly just lost out 19-21 to Fred Waggett. For the B Team Tony Quine won to single figures, whilst John Bolton and Philip Quayle had comfortable wins.

South Ramsey C managed to record a 6-4 victory over Finch Hill B despite suffering two heavy defeats, they responded with three big wins over the visitors. For the home team Anthony Kelly, Tony Marler and Tony Hart all won to single figures, whilst Kevin Anderson and Sam Stannard also won to single figures for Finch Hill. Toby Hart kept his cool to beat Pat Maher 21-20, whilst Kevin Stannard did the same for Finch Hill with his own 21-20 win. Just three chalks separated the teams to show how close a contest it was.

Post published by Glynn Hargraves