GAME ONE, The talking point of the opening day of the 2018 Over 60’s Men’s Crown Green Bowling Season was undoubtedly the weather with heavy rain causing a lot of cancellations.

Those games that were played however failed to provide any surprises with all going to form and we start with Castletown B who had a good 6-2 win over Douglas B at Castletown. The highlight of this match was a great battle between Castletown’s Terry Jackson and Tony Creer with the latter man taking the win 20-21.

In  a match at the Villa where the Home Green was running superbly well despite all the rain Douglas A took a 7-1 win over Ballaugh B in a match played in great spirit and in warm sunshine which we hope will continue for the Season.

Onchan B hosted Port St Mary A at Onchan Park and here it was the visitors who came away with a 5-3 win despite a spirited effort from the Onchan side who had Gary Lee and Kelvin McNicholl showing good early season form.

Last Season’s League Champions Castletown A travelled just down the road to Port Erin and immediately posted ‘a statement of intent’ as they came away with a convincing 6-2 win with perhaps the performance of the day being the 21-7 win by Derek Allen over Mike Hargraves.

South Ramsey who have gained some new players this season had a 5-3 win over Nobles B in a match that saw some very close games.

Nobles A hosted Peel Sunset C and this resulted in an easy 8-0 win for the men from Nobles Park.

Because of the weather the Ballaugh A match against Onchan A took place on Friday 6^th April and this was a tough battle which ended with a 4-4 scoreline.

GAME TWO. The second fixtures of the new season started in much better weather with the players enjoying bright sunshine .

Castletown A continued their good opening form with a 7-1 home win over Port St Mary B with the only winner for the Port St Mary side being Brian Lowe who beat Derek Lewney 21-19. The Castletown B side also had success with a 5-3 victory over North Ramsey B in a strange match where the North Ramsey side actually won one more game than Castletown B but then had to give away three walkovers because of a shortage of players for the Ramsey side.

Douglas B hosted Peel Sunset A and it was the Westerners who showed that they will be a force to reckon with this season as they came away with a 7-1 win. Bob Banning was the only winner for Douglas B with a fine performance in his 21-9 defeat of Alec Taylor.

Marown played Port Erin at Crosby and showed fine form in a 5-3 defeat of Port Erin and I feel that the Marown Team could well be in the mix for the League Title this time.

Ballaugh A, a team that I think could cause a few surprises this season travelled into Douglas to play Nobles Park B and returned home with a 5-3 victory after a playing a good Nobles B team.

Onchan A hosted North Ramsey A in what promised to be a very close match and although the home side ran out 6-2 winners the scoreline could be regarded as being a little deceptive as their were some very close games which could have gone either way.

Peel Sunset B lost 3-5 to Nobles A in the Sunset City despite a very spirited effort and some close games and the Peel Sunset C side went down 7-1 to Onchan B with Eddie McAvoy being the only winner for the Westerners.

South Ramsey had one of the longest treks in Manx Bowls as they travelled to play Port St Mary A and it was the Port St Mary side that won 6-2 with Robert Callister being the only winners for the Northerners.

So after the opening week of the 2018 Season there have been no great shocks and although some Teams have only played one match the League Table does not give a true picture but of those who have played two we still have four unbeaten with those being, Castletown A, Nobles A, Castletown B and Port St Mary A.

Game 37 of the Tower Insurance over 60’s League saw League Leaders Castletown A  play the second of two games in a week against close rivals Peel Sunset A  with a win for the Southerners making it almost impossible for anyone to displace them at the top.

Right from the start Castletown A put their stamp on the match and they ran out 6-2 winners with only Tony Carroon and Jeff Oates picking up points for the Peel side.

The Castletown B side travelled to Marown and found themselves on the wrong side of a 7-1 score line with only Billy Jones picking up a win for the Castletown team.

Port St Mary A had a 5-3 home win against Nobles Park A while the Port St Mary B lads had a 5-3 away win against Peel Sunset C.

North Ramsey A travelled a few miles down the road to beat Ballaugh B 5-3 while the North Ramsey B men had possibly one of their best results of the season beating Douglas A 5-3.

Douglas B lost 6-2 to Finch Hill at the Villa with the two winners for Douglas being Bob Banning and Tony Creer.

Onchan A were held to a 4-4 draw by South Ramsey at Onchan Park with the Onchan Club’s B Team also playing out a draw against Nobles Park B.

Port Erin travelled to the Sunset City where they were beaten 5-3 by Peel Sunset B.

So as we came to Game 38 on Tuesday 29^th August Castletown A needed to win their  match against their own B Team and they would achieve enough points to win the League with no other Team being able to catch them.

As is often the case in games between two teams of the same Club this was going to be a tough battle but the Castletown A men eventually won 5-3 after a close match which meant that they had now built up an unassailable lead in the League.

Ballaugh A hosted North Ramsey A with the men from the Mooragh Park running out as 5-3 winners while North Ramsey B had an identical score when beating Ballaugh B 5-3.

Douglas B drew 4-4 with Nobles Park B at the Villa Marina and just a little way across the Town Finch Hill also played out a draw against Peel Sunset A.

Peel Sunset B had a good 5-3 home win against Marown while the Peel Sunset C side were beaten 8-0 in the South of the Island by Port St Mary A.

Port Erin beat Port St Mary B 6-2 and finally on the day South Ramsey drew 4-4 with Onchan B.

Finally in Game 38 Nobles Park A beat Douglas A 5-3 in a close match at Nobles Park.

Game 39 on Thursday 31^st August we saw Castletown A play out a tough 4-4 draw with Port St Mary A at Castletown with the reverse fixture seeing the same result between the B Teams at Port St Mary.

There was a third 4-4 draw of the day between Ballaugh B and Ballaugh A while a bit further up the road at the Mooragh Park we saw North Ramsey A get an 8-0 win over South Ramsey.

At the Villa Marina Douglas A had a good 7-1 win over Finch Hill with Arthur Halsall being the only winner for the Finch Hill side.

The Douglas B side travelled to Marown and were beaten 6-2 by the strong Marown side with Vic Sewell and Tony Creer being the winners for Douglas B.

At Nobles Park Lawrence Doogan and Brian Atherton were the only winners for Nobles B in their 6-2 defeat by Onchan A and at Onchan Park the Nobles A side were 5-3 winners against Onchan B.

Peel Sunset A beat Port Erin 7-1 with the winner for Port Erin being Seamus Whelan and Peel Sunset C were beaten 6-2 by Peel Sunset B with the C Team winners being Bert Quayle and Ray Hardman.

So as we come to the break for the September Bowls Festival we have Castletown A having already having sealed the League victory on 67 points and they are followed by Port St Mary A on 57 points with Peel Sunset A, Nobles A and Onchan A all on 56 points.

In  the Individual Merit we have Peter Kelly of Marown and Peter Oates of Castletown A both with 32 wins followed by Dave Faragher of Castletown A with 31 wins and Mike Thomas of Onchan A with 30 wins.

Thursday 10^th August saw the League Leaders Castletown A travel to Nobles Park to play the Nobles B Team in a match that went as the formbook would suggest with the Castletown men taking a 6-2 win with only Tony Birch and Lawrence Doogan achieving the magic 21 for the Nobles side.

Back at Castletown the ‘Towns’ B Team was having a battle for the win with Nobles A and it was the Douglas based side who took a 5-3 victory.

Peel Sunset A pulled no punches in their match with Ballaugh A taking an 8-0 victory in the West of the Island while the Peel Sunset B Team lost 6-2 to Ballaugh B.

Douglas A had a solid match at the ‘Villa’ to beat North Ramsey A 5-3 whilst the Douglas B Team  lost 6-2 to North Ramsey B at the Mooragh Park with Alan Robertson and Paddy Kinsella being the two winners for Douglas B.

Marown has an 8-0 win over Peel Sunset C at Crosby and in the South of the hi

Onchan A played the Onchan B Team and came this also went to form with Onchan A winning 6-2 while in the ‘deep South’ Port St Mary B beat South Ramsey 6-2.

So as we came to Tuesday 15^th August the question was whether a strong Marown Team could halt Castletown A’s run of victories and their were some very close games in this match but Castletown A ran out 6-2 winners with Steve Bridson and Ian Kissack being the only winners for Marown.

Castletown B travelled to Finch Hill and came back with a 5-3 win and a little further up the road at Nobles Park the Nobles A side beat Port St Mary B 7-1 with Peter Collins being the only winner for the Southerners.

Ballaugh A hosted Douglas A and despite the Douglas side being short two regular ‘first teamers’  they managed a 5-3 win while back at the Villa Ballaugh B reversed that result by taking a 5-3 victory over Douglas B.

In the ‘battles of the Parks’ North Ramsey A beat Onchan B 7-1 at the Mooragh Park while in Onchan Park it was Onchan A who beat North Ramsey B 6-2.

Port Erin beat Peel Sunset C 6-2 with Bert Quayle and Clyde Quine winning for the Westerners and just around the corner at Port St Mary the Port St Mary A Team beat Nobles B 7-1 with Brian Atherton winning for Nobles B.

South Ramsey put up a strong performance against Peel Sunset A but eventually went down 5-3 .

So after Game 34 we now have Castletown A consolidating their lead on 58 points with Port St Mary A second on 52 points closely followed Peel Sunset A and Onchan A who are both on 51 points.

On Friday 4th August the ‘Howland Pairs’ sponsored by Charlie Howland took place at Ballaugh Bowling Club with this event being very well hosted by the Ballaugh Club with their Ladies as ever providing great refreshments.
There was an entry of twenty nine pairs and the Trophy was won by Mike Hargraves and Stuart Garrett who beat John Keenan and John Maddrell 21-10 in the Final.
The losing semi-finalists were George Brew and Chris Penketh who lost 21-19 to the Keenan/Maddrell pairing and Arthur Halsall and Peter Hughes who lost 21-13 to Mike Hargraves and Stuart Garrett.
Many thanks to John Ryder and George Peach who ran the event for the Over 60’s League.

On Thursday 3rd August League Leaders Castletown A travelled to play Ballaugh B in the Tower Insurance Over 60’s League and despite some very close games it was the Castletown men who ran out 6-2 winners with Trevor Jones and Ray Parry winning the two for Ballaugh.
Castletown B however did not do quite as well when they hosted Ballaugh A and this time it was the Ballaugh men who took a 5-3 win.
At the ‘Villa’ it was an ‘all Douglas Bowling Club’ event with the B Team taking on the A Team and the A Team took a 7-1 win with Bob Banning being the winner for the B Team.
At Finch Hill the home side lost 6-2 to Nobles Park A with Sefton Dent and Arthur Halsall getting the wins for Finch Hill. The Nobles B Team hosted Marown and the lads from Crosby went back home with a 6-2 win under their belts with Lawrence Doogan and John Clague being the winners for Nobles B.
North Ramsey B lost at home 6-2 to Port St Mary A and the North Ramsey A travelled to Port St Mary B and a very tight match ended in a 4-4 draw with two games ending 21-20 and two ending 21-19.
Onchan A hosted Peel Sunset B at Onchan Park and in another match with some tight games it was the home side that took the victory 5-3.
The Onchan B Team travelled to play Peel Sunset A and once again this match had a 5-3 score line but on this occasion it was to the Peel team.
South Ramsey took the long journey to play Port Erin at Breagle Glen and it was the Southerners who ran out 5-3 victors.
So as we came to Game 32 on Tuesday 8th August the day started wet but cleared beautifully for a sunny afternoons bowls and the sun certainly shone in more ways than one for Ballaugh A as they beat Port St Mary B 8-0.
Ballaugh B travelled South to play a very strong Port St Mary A side and they really gave the Southerners a scare before eventually losing 5-3 to them. The result of the day for Ballaugh has to be the 21-10 by Maurice O’Reilly over the individual Merit leader Chris Oates.
Douglas B lost to Onchan A 7-1 at the Villa with Vic Sewell being the solitary winner for Douglas B and the Douglas A Team went to Onchan Park where they beat Onchan B 5-3.
Finch Hill suffered a home 5-3 defeat to Marown whilst a little further up the road at Nobles Park the Nobles Park A side beat Port Erin by the same 5-3 score.
With a result that hampers Peel Sunset A’s challenge for the top they were defeated 5-3 by North Ramsey A at the Mooragh Park while Peel Sunset B and North Ramsey B played out a 4-4 draw in the Sunset City.
South Ramsey travelled to play Castletown B and the went back to Ramsey after battling to a 4-4 draw with the Castletown side.
So after Game 32 we still see Castletown A maintaining their lead in the League and looking favourites now to win but there are still enough games for the others to catch should the Southerners falter.

Game 29 of the 2017 Over 60’s season saw League Leaders Castletown travelling to Onchan Park to take on challengers Onchan A.  This was a match that Onchan A had to win but ‘Town’ however had different ideas and came away with a 6-2 win with Robert Cowley and Colin Hinds being the only winners for Onchan A.

Onchan B however got some revenge for their Club as they travelled South to play Castletown B and got a great 7-1 victory with Billy Jones being the only winner for the Castletown team.

Ballaugh B hosted Marown and the men from Crosby took a 6-2 victory in this one with Ballaugh’s Bobby Clayton battling to a 21-20 win over Arnie Withers and Tom Lord doing well to beat Marown’s Stuey Clague to 19.

Douglas A travelled South to play Port St Mary B in a match that ended in a 4-4 draw while the Douglas B team were defeated 7-1 by a very strong Port St Mary A side with Arthur Ashcroft being the only winner for the Douglas side.

Finch Hill suffered a 3-5 home loss to Ballaugh A while a little further up the road Nobles A beat South Ramsey by the same margin.

North Ramsey A travelled to Port Erin to beat the Southerners 5-3 while North Ramsey B while the North Ramsey B side had a 5-3 victory over Peel Sunset C at the Mooragh Park.

Peel Sunset B played the Peel Sunset A team and it was the ‘high flying’ A team taking the match 6-2 with Gordon Corrin and Derek Clarke taking wins for the B team.

So as we started Game 30 it was North Ramsey B who had the unenviable challenge of slowing the League challenge of Castletown A but they found the Castletown men just too strong as they went back to Castletown with an 8-0 victory under their belts.

Castletown B hosted North Ramsey A and this match ended 4-4 with Castletown B bouncing back well from a 7-1 defeat in their previous match.

At the ‘Villa’ the match between Douglas A and Peel Sunset A literally ended ‘all square’ with the result being 4-4 and the score on chalks being 141 – 141. The Douglas B team travelled to the ‘Sunset City’ where they were beaten 7-1 by Peel Sunset B with Ray Osborne being the only winnerfor the Douglas side.

Ballaugh A had a 6-2 victory over Port Erin with Derek Cadamy and Bob Kay getting the two Port Erin wins.

Nobles A beat their B Team 5-3 while a little further North at Onchan Park Onchan B beat Port St Mary B 7-1.

For the second successive match early League Challengers Onchan A came up a against a team challenging for the League and again they lost 6-2, this time to Port St Mary A with Robert Cowley and Les Mc Clellan getting the wins for Onchan A.

South Ramsey hosted Finch Hill and the Northerners won this one 5-3 in a match with some tight games.

So after Game 30 we see Castletown A extend their lead to 6 points with them having 52 points with Port St Mary A being 6 points adrift at 46 points and Peel Sunset A a further point behind on 45 points.

Atrocious weather on Friday 21st July saw the cancellation of two matches while the rest were playing under very trying conditions with Greens holding quite a lot of water.
Ballaugh B hosted Port Erin and on a very wet day the Southerners put a lttle sunshine into their lives by taking a 6-2 victory with Bobby Clayton and Peter Corlett being the winners for Ballaugh.
At the Villa Douglas B lost 7-1 to Nobles A with Douglas player Les Quayle getting his first win with a 21-19 victory over Joe Bullock.
Douglas A travelled to play Port St Mary A on a Green that was only just playable and the men from the South won 7-1 although this could have been much closer with both Stuey Garrett and Tommy Rougvie only losing 21-20 and Keith Fearnley 21-18. The winner for Douglas was Keith Rise who inflicted a 21-11 defeat on individual merit leader Chris Oates, this being the first loss of the season for Chris.
Marown had a 5-3 win at home against Onchan B although Moore Kelly had a great battle with Ian Kissack to only lose out 21-20.
Nobles B and Finch Hill battled to a 4-4 draw while in the Mooragh Park North Ramsey B had a good 7-1 win over Port St Mary B with Bob Talbot being the only winner for the ‘Port’.
Onchan A struggling to keep up their push for the League entertained Castletown B and in what seemed a very close encounter the result was a very fitting draw.
Peel Sunset C entertained North Ramsey A with the Northerners taking a 7-1 win with Ray Hardman being the only winner for Peel beating Brian Colquitt 21-15.
Tuesday 25th July saw Douglas B travelling to play league leaders Castletown A with the team at the top taking a 7-1 win and back in Douglas the Douglas A Team had a 5-3 victory over Castletown B.
North Ramsey A had a 6-2 win over Finch Hill while the North Ramsey B side travelled to Marown where they lost 7-1.
Peel Sunset A had a great 8-0 home win over Port St Mary B and in the reverse fixture Port St Mary A made things even by beating Peel Sunset B 8-0.
Nobles A took a 5-3 win after their travels to Ballaugh A and Nobles B played to a 7-1 win over Ballaugh B at Nobles Park.
Finally Onchan B entertained Port Erin that resulted in a 6-2 win for the men from Onchan Park.
So after these matches were played we see Castletown A still at the top with 46 points followed by Peel Sunset A and Port St Mary A on 42 points and Onchan A on 41 points.

Wednesday and Thursday 13^th and 14^th July 2017 saw the qualifying rounds of the Over 60’s Championship held at Port Erin Bowling Green with the final 16 Qualifiers playing to an overall winner at the same venue on 19^th July.

Although the weather for the ‘Finals Day’ was not as bad as expected it was still very overcast with spells of rain throughout the day which caused difficulties for some with the bowls slipping on their wet hands.

Despite this problem we saw an afternoon of good bowls and some surprise results and the two semi-final matches were between Peter Wallis and Bernie McPhee both of Onchan and Ray Watterson of Port St Mary against Peter Oates of Castletown.

Peter Wallis but up a brave fight against his club mate Bernie McPhee but eventually Bernie who was on great form all afternoon was just too good on the day and ran out with a 21-15 win.

In the other semi-final many expected Peter Oates who had been playing so well in the earlier rounds to beat Ray Watterson but Ray produced some great bowls and beat Peter 21-11.

In the Final Bernie started well against Ray and although the game was always close Bernie was never behind at any point until the game reached 14-14 and then he had two very rare loose ends which gave Ray the advantage.

This was Ray’s opportunity and he grasped it with both hands and despite a spirited effort from Bernie it was Ray who eventually won 21-18 to become the 2017 Over 60’s Men’s Bowls Champion.

In his Winners Speech Ray thanked every one involved in organising the Competition and thanked all his opponents for the sporting and friendly way that they had competed with him.