The Onchan Commissioners Any Combination Doubles took place on Sunday with a field of 29 pairs taking part on a green that got trickier as the day went on.

At the quarter finals stage Caroline Whitehead and Joyce Ogden (Breagle Glen/South Ramsey) lost out 9-21 to Marown’s Paul Dunn and Neil Withers, while another Marown pair lost out Walter McCarthy and Sid Bolton lost out 17-21 to South Ramsey’s Glynn Hargraves and Dido Kelly. In the bottom half of the draw Glenn Boland and Peter Jones (Marown) beat Lacey McMullan and Janet Monk (Mooragh Park) 21-14, while South Ramsey duo Jordan Cain and John Kennish beat Colese Creer and Lisa Bradshaw (Nobles) 21-11.

At the semi-final stage Dunn and Withers progressed to the final with a 21-17 win over Hargraves and Kelly, despite winning one end fewer throughout the game, as they scored three doubles and two three’s. Cain and Kennish made light work of Boland and Jones as they won convincingly 21-9 in just eight ends.

In the final Cain and Kennish started strongly scoring heavily to lead 14-8 after just four ends. This was the end of the heavy scoring until the 20th end as the next 15th ends were singles to show what a tight contest the final was. With the score at 20-16 to Cain and Kennish they were counting for game, however the Dunn and Withers got the result they needed to pick up a single to put the score at 17-20. The South Ramsey pair were still the favourites at this point, however two quickfire doubles saw the Marown men get over the line 21-20.

The presentation was made by Kevin Quirk and competition secretary David Tait, thanks were given for the running of the competition, the refreshments provided throughout the day, with the trophy & prizes presented by Oliver Lockwood of Onchan Commissioners to whom the Club are grateful for the continued support.

North Ramsey Bowling Club hosted the Ken Parker Memorial Rose Bowl at Mooragh Park on Saturday, with 23 pairs entered on a much improved surface, which was running well.

At the quarter final stage all four games were keenly contested with John Kennish and David Bradford (South Ramsey) beating Glenn Boland and Jordan Cain (Marown/South Ramsey) 21-16. Onchan pair Kevin Quirk and Steve Parker got over the line 21-18 against the home pairing of John Piekalns and Bryan Corner. In the bottom half of the draw Mooragh pair Rob Monk and Paul Allison were trailing 11-16 against Marown pair Philippa Taylor and Lynda Cadamy, as the home duo went on to win 21-18 on a longer length. The closest game of the quarter finals was between South Ramsey’s Dido Kelly and Glynn Hargraves and Marown’s Matthew Keggen and Paul Kelly, with the South men edging home 21-19 to take their place in the next round.

It was the end of the road for Quirk and Parker at the semi-final stage, as they were defeated 19-21 to Kennish and Bradford in a keenly contested game. In the other semi-final the home pairing of Monk and Allison were tied 13-13 with Kelly and Hargraves, as the Mooragh men went on to see the game out 21-13.

In the early stages of the final neither pairing was able to get a run of the jack with the score tied 9-9 after six ends, with six singles scored. Kennish and Bradford made their move as they went on to win five of the next six ends scoring heavily to take the lead 18-10.

What looked to be an unlikely comeback from the Mooragh men, after taking two singles, and a four to put the score at 16-18, which was followed by three good singles to put Monk and Allison ahead 19-18. To get into this position Monk had led brilliantly at the front to his own jack, putting pressure on with every bowl played, while Allison came to the rescue when they weren’t counting.

A single was picked up by the South Ramsey men to level the game at 19-19. On the following end Kennish played a short round peg, putting up two great bowls, with Monk taking the time to consider playing a reaching bowl which connected perfectly to count for one. Allison put the pressure on playing a good bowl to count for two, with Bradford saving one to buy another end. On the following end a great lead from Monk over distance ultimately went unbeaten to seal the comeback and a 21-19 victory. A final which was played with great sportsmanship between both pairings in the right spirit.

North Ramsey competition secretary Gary Merrill thanked those who had entered the competition. Ken was a popular member at both North & South Ramsey clubs. Gary introduced Ken’s daughter in law Caroline Parker to present the prizes. Thanks were also given to those that had helped run the competition, for the preparation of the green & running of the afternoon in particular the ladies in the beehive.

The 2025 Apollo mixed doubles comp was held at Finch Hill  in sunny & windy conditions the threat of Storm Floris did not deter the 22 entries. The Preliminary round saw Jamie Box and Debbie Leece (Marown) off to a flying start – “home-greeners” Les Brookes & Lil Smith, Peter Woods & Anne Hon had mixed fortunes with the latter pair narrowly missing out gaining six points when all-but against.

In round one the enthusiastic youngsters Grayse & Martha Blencoe (Mooragh Park) put up a creditable performance against the maturity of Les & Lil; surprise upset when youngsters Sam Quayle & Lacey McMullan (Castleotwn/Mooragh Park) narrowly progressed against the experience of Sid Bolton & Clare Cooper (Marown). Jamie & Debbie’s pairing again triumphed against the in-form Kim Hargraves and Alan Moore (South Ramsey) Willie & Pauline Cowley (Douglas/Ballaugh) saw off the runner up of Saturday’s competition – Brian Kelly & Sue Gawne (Marown/Nobles).

Calmer conditions had set in by the time of the quarter finals which saw two close fought games with remaining” home-greeners” Les & Lil winning by two points over Willie & Pauline and Sam & Lacey by three points over Steve & Judy Kelly (South Ramsey). Although hard fought, in the two other matches James Teare & Jenny Moore and Jamie & Debbie sailed comfortably into the semi-finals.

At the bottom half of the draw the good form of James & Jenny proved too strong for Les & Lil; in the top half of the draw Jamie & Debbie’s accuracy ended Sam & Lacey’s afternoon adventure.

The final was hard fought affair with Jamie & Debbie closing in on the eventual winners whilst they were standing at “all-but” for five ends finally the final bowl of the 20^th end clinched it.

Congratulations to James Teare & Jenny Moore on their victory. Thank you to Chris Reynolds of Apollo Blinds for support & sponsorship; to Joyce Ogden for her competent management of the event and to all Finch Hill members who helped and provided the refreshments.

Published by David Holmes

Last Saturday, 2^nd August saw Onchan Bowling Club host the Derek Killey Memorial Charity Trophy for mixed doubles. The weather was excellent for the 22 teams who entered.

The final was played between Sue Gawne and Brian Kelly (Nobles/Marown) against Kim Hargraves and Dido Kelly (South Ramsey) with both pairs having played the extra game in the preliminary round.  

Jenny Moore and James Teare (South Ramsey), considered strong contenders, were narrowly defeated in the first round by Mike Spooner and Julie Riley (Ballaugh) with a score of 21-18, after Spooner and Riley secured three points on the final end.

Three very close games were contested in the quarter finals with Gawne, and Kelly winning over Breagle Glen pair Anita and Wayne Roberts 21-19. Spooner and Riley couldn’t quite repeat their first round going down this time 18-21 to Debbie Leece and Jamie Box (Marown).

In the third quarter final Rose and Tom Waterworth (Ballaugh) edged out Cherise Fiahlo and Matthew Keggen 21-19 (Marown). In the last quarter final Hargraves and Kelly had a decisive win over Ballaugh’s Edward Trustham and Michele Cubbon 21-8.

The first semi-final was a close game at 11-11 until Gawne and Kelly picked up a single, three two’s and a three to beat Leece and Box 21-11. In the other semi-final the Waterworth’s were leading 15-9 over Hargraves and Kelly then lost a four, three singles, a two and finally a three going down 9-21.

In the final Hargraves and Dido Kelly were leading 16-6 after just seven ends played (with 5 handicap). Gawne and Brian Kelly took four points in the next three ends to make it 10-16 but Hargraves and Kelly replied with the same scores in the next three ends to make it 20-10. Once again Gawne and Kelly replied with singles on the next three ends to make it 13-20 but ran out of steam going down 21-13.

The presentation of the trophy and prize money was made by Onchan Bowling Clubs President Kevin Quirk who congratulated the finalists and thanked those who had helped to run the competition.

The winners and runners up kindly donated their winnings to this years charity which is the Parkinsons Disease Society Isle of Man. This added to the entrance fees, catering profit and a donation from the club came to £400.  A big thank you to all who entered.

Published by David Tait

The Isle of Man Team took part in the 2025 BCGBA Senior Supplementary County Championship which was held on Sunday at Fleetwood Bowling Club. The day started in wet conditions, with the wind playing a factor for the first two rounds of matches.

Drawn in Group 1, the opposition was tough with Staffordshire, North Midlands and Cheshire awaiting. The matches were played for on chalks with two points for a win, and one for a draw.

In the first round of matches the eight man team were up against Staffordshire, with the Manx men winning by 13 chalks (149-136). Peter Jones won 21-20 against Paul Evans, Neil Withers also crept home 21-19 against Reece Farr, with the latter hitting a high percentage of his strikes as the Marown man kept his composure to see the game out having trailed 13-19. Tom Kelly performed brilliantly leading 16-5 against Daryl Handley, as he went on to win 21-12 to give the Manx men an eight chalk lead at the halfway point.

The second half of the match saw Colin Kelly win 21-8 against Owen Evans, while Paul Dunn beat Kevin Hocknall 21-14. The five wins helped the team to secure the two points to get their day off to a good start.

In their second round match North Midlands were the opposition, they managed to share four individual games with the winners being Neil Withers who stormed to a 21-12 win against Ronan Allen, Glynn Hargraves wasn’t far behind as he beat Tyler Dewes 21-13, David Bradford won 21-16 against Jordan Badderley, while Paul Dunn beat Matt Horton 21-14. Tom Kelly lost out 18-21 after a good battle with Will Beal, while Colin Kelly lost out 20-21 to Max Jefferson. The chalks went in favour of the Island men by 10 (149-139) to put the team on four points and sitting in top spot after two games played.

In their final match they faced Cheshire. The team knew a win or a draw would guarantee safe passage to a first ever final, with a defeat leaving them in the unenviable position of relying on results in the other game. This fixture turned out to be their closest as they managed to secure a win by just three chalks (145-142) despite losing 3-5 on games, which says a lot about the games they did win and the chalks scored by the players who lost. Losing out 18-21 were John Kennish and Tom Kelly, with the former having a tough day at number one, but scoring well in each game as he lost to Richard Peach, while Tom lost out to Simon White. The three winners for the Island Team were Matthew Quirk who beat Nathan Brown 21-13, Neil Withers kept his 100% record going with a 21-15 win over Andy Gregory, as did Paul Dunn who was the last man on the green needing to win to 21-12 or better, he took any tension out of the situation with a 21-9 win over Darren O’Hanlon.

Taking six points from the group stages was enough to top the group with a chalks difference of +26. Staffordshire were runners up in the group with four points and a slightly better chalks difference of +28.

Group 2 consisted of Shropshire, Cumbria, Derbyshire, and Merseyside with the latter topping the group to take their place in the final.

The final got underway with the first four games played on the green that the Manx men had been on all day. Tom Kelly didn’t get the chalks to reflect his performance as he lost 12-21 to Matt Gilmore, Paul Dunn had a battle with Stephen Glover only to lose out 17-21, Neil Withers picked up Manx win number one in the final as he trailed Phil Lee 15-17, finishing the game strongly with three doubles to win 21-17. Glynn Hargraves trailed 8-17 against Danny Barwise, with the former picking up another eight chalks to lose out 16-21.

The second half of the match moved to Green 2, with the Merseyside men building on the 14 chalk lead that they had built up from the first four games. Wayne Ditchfield won 21-5 against John Kennish to put the Merseyside men into a 30 chalk lead, to all but put the match beyond any doubt. Next off was Peter Jones who lost 15-21 to John Finch, swiftly followed by Matthew Quirk 12-21 to Andy Hayes. The last match off saw David Bradford recover from a 14-18 deficit to win 21-19 against Nick Burridge as the team lost by 43 chalks 119-162, picking up their second win of the match, as the Merseyside men took a deserved win.

The Isle of Man Team who were managed by Bob Clark and assisted by Nicola Kneale outdid any performance of any Manx team over the years as they reached the final, they can be proud of their performance to win all three group games and reach the final of this competition. Thanks must also go to Bob and Nicola for their efforts on the lead up to the day, especially on the day, with the incoming storm leading to a change in travel arrangements at short notice.

A great team effort overall, with Paul Dunn winning three out of four games, while teammate Neil Withers won all four games. The performance by the team and support from the supporters throughout the day was superb.

Douglas Bowling Club hosted both the Mens & Ladies Jaks Group Douglas Town Cups on a very tricky Villa Marina Green this Sunday, on what was a great day for bowls, despite a couple of minor showers.

The green was in fantastic condition and running faster than much of what we’ve seen on the Island this year. In fact I would say, especially in the early stages, the playing surface was each bowlers toughest opponent. Changing weather conditions mean a changing green and the winners were those who adapted the best throughout the day.

Clare Cooper of Marown reigned supreme in the ladies competiton beating the prolific Janet Monk (Mooragh Park) 21-14 in a high quality final. Both players were excellent all day but Clare really had the bit between her teeth in the final and ran out the deserved winner.

Defending champion Paula Garrett (Douglas) went out 21-15 at the semi final stage to our eventual winner whilst Janet ended the charge of Breagle’s Margie Tasker 21-14.

Just falling short at the quarter finals stage were Martha Blencoe (Mooragh Park), Lyn Bolton (Marown), Jane Lothian (Douglas) & Trish Bull (Breagle Glen) .

Trevor Quayle (Breagle) won the coveted trophy for a second time halting the efforts of Paul Dunn (Marown) who is still to add this title to his ever growing resume. The game was nip and tuck in the early stages but Trevor found tip gear and accelerated to a 21-15 win.

It was great to see two seasoned veterans having a great run to the semi-finals with Steve Parker (Onchan) going down 21-9 to Dunn whilst home greener Keith Rise turned in a battling performance to narrowly lose out 21-18 to Quayle.

Neil Withers, Paul Kelly, Peter Greenlees ( all Marown), and Merv Sayle (Douglas) all had good days before dipping out in the quarters.

At the conclusion of the event Mark Kneen thanked Jaks Group for their continued support and introduced Steve Pickett who presented the prizes on behalf of the sponsor.

Noble’s Bowling Club hosted the Roy Williamson Memorial Cup Junior Boys competition on Saturday morning, with a good standard of bowls from the Juniors.

With nine entries Arran Dunn beat Alex Colquitt to reach the quarter finals in the only preliminary round game.

The first quarter final saw Sam Colquitt beat Arran Dunn 21-18. Sam Quayle lost out 20-21 to Clark Kelly. In the bottom half of the draw Freddie Palmer beat Bertie Moss 21-7, while Alex Hampson won 21-11 against Archie Dunn.

In the semi-final both games were straightforward wins as Colquitt won 21-12 against Kelly, while Hampson beat Palmer 21-10.

The final swung one way and then the other as Colquitt took the first four ends. By end 20 Hampson held a one chalk lead at 13-12. A six end winning run saw Colquitt go within touching distance of the trophy to lead 20-13. Five consecutive singles for Hampson, saw the deficit close to just two chalks, only for Colquitt to score the single needed to secure a 21-18 victory to win the trophy for the first time.

The presentation was made by Tina Hampson, with Roy’s wife Jacqueline Williamson presenting the prizes to all competitors.

The Kennish Cup took place at South Ramsey Bowling Club on Sunday afternoon with 38 pairs taking part, with the competition played for a second time in an any combination doubles format. The competition was once again sponsored by Voice Over Sarah Hart.

Losing out in the quarter finals were home greeners Toby Hart and Alan Moore 16-21 to Marown pair Peter Jones and Glenn Boland. Ballaugh’s Shay and Tom Waterworth lost out 19-21 to Andy Kennish and Lee Dawson (Peel/South Ramsey). In the other half of the draw John Kennish and David Bradford (South Ramsey) won 21-15 against Kieran Krypner and Nathan Hamilton (Castletown), while an all South Ramsey tie was won 21–8 by Glynn Hargraves and Dido Kelly against Jenny Moore and James Teare.

In the semi-finals Boland and Jones eased through their game with Andy Kennish and Lee Dawson, having trailed 7-12 the Marown men scored heavily over six ends to win 21-12, while John Kennish and Bradford finished the game strongly to win 21-15 against Hargraves and Kelly.

The final got underway with the Marown pair winning the first three ends to lead 10-5, then the lead went to 12-7 after six ends. Some heavy scoring over distance in tough conditions saw Kennish and Bradford score 10 chalks with two three’s and a full house (four) to take the lead 18-14. By this point the rain had become particularly heavy, it took three singles for the South Ramsey men to see the game out 21-14 as they retained the trophy.

The presentation was made by South Ramsey Chairman Steve Moore, who thanked the sponsors for supporting the competition, the ladies for the catering, the team who helped run the competition, along with the measurers. James Teare then presented the prizes on behalf of the sponsors.

Ballaugh Bowling hosted the Spar Mixed Doubles on Sunday afternoon with a superb entry of 51 pairs taking part, with the glorious weather continuing from the following day. The green was in excellent condition, proving tricky for the 102 bowlers taking part.

Losing out at the quarter final stage were Sue Gawne and Brian Kelly (Noble’s/Marown) 12-21 to South Ramsey pair Jenny Moore and James Teare, Shannon McMullan and Joe Kneale (North Ramsey) got the better of Ballaugh pair Lynn Mayers and Stephen Swift 21-20. In the other half of the draw Michele Cubbon and Ed Trustham got over the line 21-19 against Kian Bradford and David Bradford (South Ramsey) 21-19, while another home pair Louise and Nigel Tebay lost 14-21 to Helen Withers and Karl Parker.

The first semi-final saw Moore and Teare up McMullan and Kneale, as the former pairs greater experience paying off with a 21-11 win. In the other semi-final the home hopes ended with Cubbon and Trustham losing out 15-21 to Withers and Parker.

The final started with the Marown pair edging ahead by one point 11-10 after seven ends, with the South Ramsey duo going on to win three consecutive ends, scoring a two, a three and a single to go ahead 16-11. A change in the playing order saw Parker go up, this seemed to have an immediate impact as they scored a three to close the deficit to two chalks at 14-16.

Jenny and James put an end to any hopes of a win, as they managed to see the game out with two doubles and a single, in between conceding a single as they wrapped up the game with a 21-15 victory to lift the trophy once more.

The presentation was made by Ballaugh Assistant Competition Secretary Mark Dimsdale, who thanked Julie Reilly and the club members for helping run the competition along with the ladies for providing the catering throughout the day.

In the Ladies main event Jenny Moore etched her name further into the history books, smashing more records along the way as the South Ramsey favourite picked up her fourth festival title following her previous successes in June 2016, September 2021 & 2023.

What made this win more impressive, due to previous success in the festival, is that Moore was four points back on all her opponents, starting off +1, with Jenny incredibly facing the prospect of being off -2 in the September festival, with the winner being docked three chalks for picking up the title.

With Moore having to score 20 chalks to her opponents 16 chalks to win, a good start was vital as Jenny took on her biggest rival on the Island for several years Janet Monk (Mooragh Park), as the four-chalk deficit was swiftly turned into a three-chalk lead after six ends to lead 9-6.

Jenny only relinquished the lead once from this point, crucially did not trail as the game was level at 13-13 after 14 ends. Jenny made her move once more scoring five chalks over three ends on a longer length to lead 18-13. Janet went on to pick up two singles, only for Moore to jump in with a double to restore her five-chalk lead at 20-15.

As Jenny headed for the corner, a good two bowls from Janet saw a glimmer of hope for Monk, as the Mooragh Park player headed to the crown. The Mooragh Park bowler picked up another single to close the score to 18-20. Monk then headed from the crown back to the corner. With nerves of steel Moore bowled in with a great last bowl to secure her second June festival title and fourth overall.

Whilst receiving the £1,250 first prize, Jenny also received the visitiom.com trophy for being the furthest local lady. Janet could console herself with the runners up prize of £625.

In the semi-finals Jenny put paid to the challenge of Clair Russell (Alkincoats PWA) with a 21-10 win, whilst Janet had a battle on her hands with Elaine Moore (South Ramsey), with the latter leading 14-9 Janet used all her experience to overturn the deficit and book her place in the final with a 21-17 victory.

Moore started her day with a comfortable 21-9 victory over previous festival winner Alexis Lunn-Gadd (Ossett Flying Horse), whilst Russell beat rising star Alex Edmondson (Pudsey BC) 21-14. In the other half of the draw Monk held off Emma Earlam 21-16 (Castle Sports & SC), whilst Elaine overturned a 10-16 deficit against Jayne Kent (Meersbrook BC) to edge home 21-20.

Having picked up the Tourism Title on Thursday morning, it is believed that Jenny is the first to achieve the feat of winning the ladies June main event and Tourism Title in the same week, and only the third person to do this overall following Katrina Caley (Bentley Colliery) in September 1995, and Jane Jones (Wirral) in September 1994. The week saw Jenny go 14 singles games unbeaten – seven games in the Main event giving her opponents a four-chalk head start and a further seven games in the Tourism.

Ladies Tourism

The Ladies Tourism was played down to the winner on Thursday morning on Noble’s 2 green, with Jenny Moore setting herself up nicely for the last 32 in the main event on Thursday afternoon, with a hard fought and nail-biting 21-20 victory over Louise Cotton (Wrockwardine Wood). Moore had led 17-8 at one point in the game, looked to be cruising only for Cotton to get hold of the jack to pull the deficit back to one chalk at 16-17 after 15 ends. Jenny got back in at the right time to maintain her lead, however both players alternated winning ends from this point until the end of the game for the score to be tied at 20-20. Cotton led out and played a good lead bowl approximately 18 inches past the jack. Showing no sign of pressure Jenny played a front toucher gently nudging the jack to count one for game. Louise was unable to beat this, which sealed the Tourism title for Jenny.

Moore reached the final thanks to a 21-15 win over Jayne Kent (Meersbrook BC), whilst Cotton finished her game with Hazel Borradaile (Netherfield BC) strongly to get over the line 21-19.

In the quarter finals Moore beat Katie Morgan (Denby Grange) 21-14, whilst Kent beat Sharron King (Kirkham) 21-12. In the other half of the draw Cotton started her day with a 21-15 win over Karen Hill (New Mill), whilst Borradaile just got over the line 21-20 against Caroline Bushell (Lindal BC).