LADIES OVER 60s LEAGUE :  Thursday morning, 30 April, two full houses were recorded. First of these was the home derby between Castletown A&B with the A ladies winning 6-0 (189-61). Three of the A team won to single figures with Pat Rigby just missing out on a win when she lost to 20 against Sue Peach.  Second 6-0 win was by Ballaugh A at home to Mooragh Park B (126-78). Michele Cubbon was the only player to win to single figures whilst Rose Waterworth had to battle hard to win 21-20 against Shirley Corteen.  There were four 5-1 wins of the morning; first of these was Mooragh Park A home to a two player short Finch Hill (114-52). Sole winner for Finch was Sue Caley who won to single figures as did Janet Monk for the Mooragh ladies.  Second 5-1 win was by Breagle Glen A home to South Ramsey (115-96) with all games going into double figures.  Sole winner for South was Elaine Moore who won to 10 whilst the closest game saw Trish Bull just edge Gillian Jopson 21-19.  Third 5-1 win was by Nobles Park away to Onchan (115-54)  with four of the Nobles ladies winning to single figures.  Stopping the whitewash was Maureen Payne who won 21-10.  Last of the 5-1 wins was by Marown A away to South Ramsey B (107-72).  Celia Joughin for the Crosby ladies and South’s only winner Sue Collier, both won to single figures with Mair Moore having a nip and tuck game with South’s Jacqui Cooper before crossing the winning line 21-17.  Peel took on Breagle Glen B at home – match finished three all, but Breagle took the win by four points (100-96) with Val Allwood for Peel and Voirrey Curphey for Breagle winning their games to single figures.  Breagle’s Alison Stockham had a tussle with Shirley Corrin eventually running out to win 21-17.  The following morning Breagle C were at home to Ballaugh B winning the match 4-2 (114-89) with Elaine Hawkins and Win Collister both winning to single figures for Breagle.  Closest games saw Dot Mylchreest for Breagle and Jane Teare for Ballaugh both win 21-20 against Gil Malpass and Susan Bigg.

This Tuesday morning, the Nobles Park ladies were on impressive form winning 6-0 (126-30) away to Mooragh Park B with all games being won to single figures.  Breagle Glen A were away to Finch Hill winning the match 4-2 (113-60) with Linda Dawson and Margie Tasker for the southern ladies winning to single figures. Two winners for Finch were Iris Kermode and Sue Caley who won 19 and 10.  Castletown B hosted South Ramsey B winning 4-2 and by five points (110-105).  Sue Collier for South was the only player to win to single figures with the closest game resulting in a 21-19 win for Town’s Pat Rigby against Lesley Murray.  Julie Stephens was the other winner for South winning her game to 18.  Peel made the short distance to Marown; match finished three all but the Crosby ladies won on points (98-93).  Rosie Winckle and Lyn Bolton for Marown both won to single figures with Philippa Taylor managing to cross the line 21-17 against Peel’s, Val Allwood. Breagle B took on Ballaugh A at home winning the match 4-2 (113-109). Two winners for Ballaugh were Barbara Graham who won to single figures and Julie Reilly who had a tussle with Jenny Cain eventually winning 21-20.  Rose Waterworth and Michele Cubbon nearly reversed the scoreline when they lost to 20 and 19 against Pauline Worrall and Jacqui Elliott.  Mooragh Park A visited neighbours Ballaugh B and although match was tied on games, Mooragh won points (115-87) helped by Pat Lenton and Janet Monk both winning to single figures. Closest game resulted in a 21-19 win for Gill Clarke against Mooragh’s Joy Morris.  Castletown A made their way north to South Ramsey A coming away winning the match 4-2 (99-89). Hilary Kermode for the Town ladies and Elaine Moore for South both won to single figures with Anne Oates edging it 21-16 against Helen Caley from South Ramsey. Jill Quayle was South’s other winner, winning to 10.  The following morning, Onchan travelled to a one player short Breagle Glen C winning the match 5-1, dropping only one point (125-83). Two close games resulted in 21-19 and 21-18 wins for Onchan’s Caroline Heathcote and Sue McCourt. Sole winner for Breagle was Steph Swift who won 21-20. 

LADIES OPEN AGE LEAGUE :  Breagle Glen A were on impressive form last Wednesday night, 29 April, scoring a full house (189-84) at home against Ballaugh B with four of their games being won to single figures.  Two highest scorers for Ballaugh were Alison Millard and Gail Curphey who lost to 16 and 14.  Another strong performance was by Castletown A who won 7-2 at home against Marown B dropping only six points (183-96) with five of their players winning to single figures.  Two winners for Marown were Rosie Winckle and Lisa Pugh who both won to 18 against Kellie Maddrell and Anne Oates.  Another good home performance was by Peel who won 8-1 dropping seven points only (182-118)against Castletown B with Diane Flemming and Beverley Wilson winning to single figures.  Lone winner for the Town ladies was Debra Cooper who crossed the line 21-14 against Niamh Stringer.  South Ramsey were also on fine form winning 6-3 (176-119) away at Ballaugh A with three of South’s ladies winning to single figures.  Two closest games of the match resulted in 21-18 wins for Ballaugh’s Barbara Graham and Caroline Parker against Lorraine Moore and Judy Kelly respectively.  Douglas visited neighbours Nobles Park coming away with a 6-3 win (157-132). Mel Molesworth, Erin Quayle and Pauline Cowley for the Douglas ladies, plus Joanne Kelly for Nobles all won to single figures.  Closest game saw Harley Garrett for Douglas just pip Jo Smith 21-17.  Mooragh Park travelled to Marown A and although Mooragh won the match 5-4, they lost on points (156-145) mainly due to Philippa Taylor, Helen Withers and Louise  Tebay for the Crosby ladies winning to single figures. Lyn Bolton for Marown and Shannon McMullan for Mooragh both edged home 21-18 against Bailey McMullan and Jayne Smith.

On Friday evening, Castletown A were again on devasting form getting a full house away at Breagle Glen B (189-71) with six games being won to single figures. Elaine Hawkins just missed out on a win for Breagle when she lost to 20 against Chris Price.  Marown A put in a solid performance away to Castletown B winning 8-1, dropping only five points (184-112) with Zoe Pearson, Lynda Cadamy and Clare Cooper all winning to single figures.  Stopping the whitewash was Sue Wilshaw who won to 16.  Another good 8-1 away win and dropping seven points (182-119) was by Peel against Marown B with Val Allwood, Emilie Moss and Louise Horsfall winning to single figures.  Saving Marown’s blushes was Sue Hammond who won to 14.  Ballaugh A made their way to Douglas coming away with a sound 7-2 win (175-110) with four of the Ballaugh ladies winning to single figures. Two winners for Douglas were Emma Sayle who won to 11 against Karen Young and Harley Garrett who just pipped Michele Cubbon 21-17.  Breagle Glen A travelled north to Mooragh Park coming away with a 5-4 win and by 11 chalks (165-154) with Janet Monk for Mooragh and Alison Stockham for Breagle winning their games to single figures.  Closest games of the match resulted in 21-19 wins for Mooragh’s Lacey McMullan against Trish Bull and Breagle’s Pauline Worrall against Jackie Hassall.  Ballaugh B played host to Nobles and although Ballaugh won 5-4 they lost the match by two points (149-151). Elaine Fenton and Gail Curphey for Ballaugh, plus Colese Creer and Lisa Bradshaw for Nobles all won their games to single figures with Ballaugh’s Alison Millard and Charlotte Neeson both creeping over the line 21-20 against Jo Kelly and Libby Andrade.

The Ladies Association Millennium Fours competition was held on Sunday on Nobles Park No.1 green in mainly fine, but somewhat blustery at times.  The competition attracted an entry of 15 teams of four with the format being two singles and a doubles, 15 off scratch.

Getting through to the semi-finals were : Fiona Kennish , Kim Hargraves, Jenny Moore and Rebecca Teare (South Ramsey/Castletown);  Lynda Cadamy, Philippa Taylor, Lyn Bolton and Sue Gawne (Marown/Nobles);  Clare Cooper, Jayne Smith, Debbie Leece and Louise Tebay (Marown), and Rose Waterworth, Caroline Parker, Michele Cubbon and Julie Reilly (Ballaugh).

Semi-finals : The first semi was between South Ramsey/Castletown v  Marown/Nobles. This was an extremely good match.  First game pitted Kim against Philippa.  Philippa started off the strongest leading 9-3 on the 7^th end and although Kim responded well, Philippa ran out to win 15-11. Second game saw Fiona take on Lyn and with some good lead bowls, Fiona led 10-7 on the 11^th end and despite Lyn scoring another two points, Fiona ran out to win 15-9.  Doubles game saw Jenny and Rebecca take on Sue and Lynda.  Jenny and Rebecca started off strong leading 14-7 on the 14^th end, but Sue and Lynda dug deep taking the next four ends to make the score 14 across.  Final end saw Jenny and Rebecca get the point needed to win 15-14.  Final points : 41-38 to the South/Castletown team.  The second semi was between Marown v Ballaugh.  This match was a little more one-sided.  Doubles game pitted Debbie and Jayne against Caroline and Rose.  Unfortunately for the Ballaugh pairing, Debbie and Jayne were on devastating form winning 15-0.  Second game was between Louise and Julie and on the 12^th end Louise led 10-5.  This lead was good enough for Louise to take the win 15-7.  Last game of this semi was between Clare and Michele.  Michele started off the strongest leading 13-6 on the 14^th end and despite Clare claiming doubles on the next two ends, Michele’s lead carried her through to win 13-10.  Final points : 40-22 to the Marown team.

Final :  South Ramsey/Castletown v Marown.  The first game of the final saw Kim play Jayne.  This game was initially evenly matched with Jayne leading by one chalk (5-4) on 7^th end. From this point, Jayne upped her game and despite Kim scoring another four points, Jayne ran out to win 15-8.  Second game was between Fiona and Louise. Unfortunately for Fiona, Louise was on exceptional form from the start and despite Fiona’s best effort, Louise won 15-4.  The third game was the doubles between Jenny/Rebecca and Clare/Debbie. This was an evenly contested game with the lead changing several times with the score level at 13 across on 18^th end.  With two good bowls on the following end, Jenny and Rebecca took the win 15-13  . Final points : 43-27 to the Marown four.

Many congratulations to Clare, Jayne, Debbie and Louise on their well deserved win and thanks to all the competitors for taking part and treating the spectators and supporters to some exceptional bowling.  Thanks must also go to Clare Cooper and Jenny Moore (competition committee) for the smooth running  of the competition and to Nobles Park for hosting the event.

Ladies Open Age League :  Last Friday evening the home derby between Castletown B&A resulted in a  full house for the A ladies (189-95) with four of the games being won to single figures. ‘B’ team ladies Jo Robert and Deborah Cooper battled hard before losing to 15 and 18 against Kellie Maddrell and Alison Kearsley respectively.  South Ramsey also scored a full house at home against a two lady short Douglas side (189-75).  Harley Garrett just missed out on winning a game for Douglas when she lost to 20 against Jackie Murley.  Marown A put in a solid performance away to Ballaugh B winning the match 7-2 (177-93) with four of Marown’s wins being won to single figures.  Two winners for Ballaugh were Victoria Johnson who won 21-16 against Helen Withers and Alison Millard who won to 14 against Clare Cooper.  Breagle Glen A visited the Nobles ladies and although Breagle won the match by only one game, 5-4, they scored highly (173-125) due in part to Claire Cain, Alison Stockham and Roz Cannon winning to single figures.  Game between Tina Hampson (Nobles) and Angie  Bennett went all the way to the wire with Tina edging it 21-20.  Ballaugh A made their way south to Breagle Glen B winning the match 6-3 (169-118) with four of the Ballaugh ladies winning to single figures.  Three winners for Breagle were Jean Thackrah, Pauline Worrall and Jacqui Elliott who won to 13, 16 and 14.  Mooragh Park won 5-4 at home to Peel  in a relatively high scoring game (173-154).  Closest games of the match saw Peel’s Emilie Moss getting the point needed to win 21-20 against Janet Monk and Joy Morris for Mooragh crossing the line 21-18 against Jo Corkill.  

Ladies Over 60s League :  Fixture 6 played last Thursday and Friday morning resulted in one match being a full house, one match finishing three all, with the remaining six matches finishing 5-1.  Mooragh Park A who recovered from their defeat last Tuesday put in a fine performance scoring a full house at home (126-44) against Castletown B with four of the games being won to single figures. Closest game saw Susan Kerruish for the Town ladies  losing to 17 against Chris Sims.  Castletown A were at home to Breagle Glen B; match finished three all but the Town ladies won on points (103-95).  Closest game resulted in a 21-17 win for Breagle’s Voirrey Curphey against Pat Rigby.  First of the  5-1 wins was by Breagle Glen A who put in a strong home performance against Marown dropping six points (120-63).  Lone winner for the Crosby ladies was Philippa Taylor who won to 15 against Trish Bull.  Another impressive 5-1 home win and dropping  only five points was by South Ramsey B against Mooragh Park B (121-75). Sole winner for the Mooragh was Diane Robinson who won to 16 against Julie Stephens.  Current leaders, Nobles, travelled west to Peel coming away with a solid 5-1 win (113-86). Stopping Peel’s blushes was Beverly Wilson who won her game to single figures.  The next 5-1 win was by Ballaugh A away to Onchan (116-92).  Stopping the whitewash was Maureen Payne who won to 11 against Rose Waterworth.  The final 5-1 win of the morning was by Ballaugh B at home to Finch Hill (119-96).   Wendy Cowin and Sue Caley both missed out on wins for Finch when they both lost to 20 against Brenda Bowyer and Elizabeth Faragher. Sole winner for Finch was Lil Smith who won to 14.   The following morning (Friday) saw the sixth 5-1 win by South Ramsey A away to Breagle Glen C (118-58).  Kay Primrose-Smith stopped South from getting a full house when she won to 13 against Lorraine Moore.

This Tuesday morning, Breagle Glen A were away to Castletown B. Breagle were on form scoring a full house (126-67). Marie Ashurst just missed out on a win for the Town ladies when losing to 19 against Trish Bull.  The Nobles ladies were at home to Ballaugh A and although they lost the match 4-2 they won on the all important chalks (105-95) mainly due three of the losing Noble’s ladies scoring 20, 19 and 18.  Marown hosted Castletown A winning 4-2 (116-96). Two close games resulted in a 21-20 win for Marown’s Rosie  Winckle and a 21-19 win for Town’s Barbara Young.  Ballaugh B drew three all at  home to Onchan but Onchan claimed the win dropping only seven points (119-105). Gill Clarke and Brenda Clayton for Ballaugh B won their games 21-20 whilst Onchan’s Kay McKiernan won 21-19.    Breagle B were home against South Ramsey B; match finished three all with Breagle claiming the honours on points (102-90).  Closest game resulted in a 21-19 win for South’s Lesley Murray.  Peel made their way to Mooragh Park B coming away with a 4-2 win (108-84) helped by  Terri Berry and Shirley Corrin for Peel winning their games to single figures.   South Ramsey A were home to neighbours Mooragh Park A .  Again this was another match that finished three all with South winning on points (93-80). Closest game saw Chris Sims for the Mooragh ladies eventually cross the line 21-15 against Helen Caley.  Breagle C visited Finch Hill; unfortunately Breagle were a player short and Finch two players short.  Given this, result was 4-2 to Breagle (91-66). Closest game saw Breagle’s Dot Mylchreest just pip Brenda Williams 21-19

The pre-liminary round of this year’s Jean Kelly Knockout competition was played last Wednesday and Thursday evening (handicaps in brackets).  On the Wednesday evening, South Ramsey (+38) were away to Castletown B (+59) coming away winning 8-1 and on points 218-159 with four of South’s games being won to single figures.  Lone winner for the Town ladies was Debra Cooper who won to 12.  The following evening Marown A (+24) travelled to Nobles BC (+30) winning 8-1 and on points 211-163.  Clare Cooper for Marown was the only player to win her game to single figures; stopping the whitewash was Sue Gawne who won her game to 19.  Douglas (+54) made their way to Ballaugh B (+55) coming away with a 5-4 win and on points 188-175, with six games being won to single figures.  Closest game saw Mel Molesworth winning to 14 against Ballaugh’s Charlotte Neeson.  Castletown A (+13) were at home to Mooragh Park (+39) winning the match 6-3 and on points 181-149 with four of Town’s wins being won to single figures.  Closest game resulted in a 21-18 win for Rebecca Teare against Mooragh’s Madison McMullan.  Marown B (+61) were away to Peel (+42) winning the match 5-4 and on points 216-199.  Emilie Moss for Peel was the only player to win to single figures with Olivia Berry for Peel just missing out on reversing the match score when she lost to 19 against Elaine Dewhirst.

Quarter finals to be held on Wednesday 6 and Thursday 7 May

British Merit Qualifier : The British Merit Qualifier was played at Douglas Bowling Club on Sunday afternoon attracting an entry of 24 lady bowlers. Weather was a little hit and miss but it didn’t deter the lady bowlers from treating spectators and supporters to some exceptional bowling.  Getting through to the semi finals were Sue Gawne (Nobles)  who had a nip and tuck game with Debbie Leece (Marown) eventually running out to win 21-16;  Janet Monk (Mooragh Park) who had  tough game against stablemate Lacey McMullan before winning 21-18;  Tracy Moore (Castletown) who won 21-18 after a good battle with her team mate Stella Watterson, and Louise Tebay (Marown) who had to dig deep to overcome Fiona Kennish (South Ramsey) 21-20. 

With all four semi-finalists playing well, the semi-finals were tough games as expected. First up was Janet against Sue.  With the score going to and fro between the two, Janet made a last minute surge to take the win 21-17.  The second semi-final was also close all the way through with Tracy just nudging it 21-19 against Louise.  Initially the final was evenly contested between Janet and Tracy, with Janet leading by one point (12-11) on the 17^th end.  Unfortunately for Tracy, Janet stepped up a gear and despite Tracy’s best efforts, Janet ran to win 21-15.

Janet, with hopefully Tracy, will represent the Isle of Man at the British Merit Championships being held at Pennfields B.C. (Dudley & District), on Saturday 11 July. Thanks must go to Clare Cooper, Jenny Moore and Caroline Whitehead (Competition committee) for the smooth running of the competition and to Douglas Bowling Club for hosting and providing refreshments throughout the afternoon.

LADIES  OPEN AGE LEAGUE : Last Friday evening South Ramsey claimed a full house at home to Breagle Glen B (189-59) with seven of South’s games being won to single figures.  Breagle’s Junior Bowler, Erin-Rose Woodward, took on South’s Sue Collier and although Sue was on form and won the game, Erin put in a very creditable performance.  Another solid home performance resulted in 7-2 win (185-131) for Breagle Glen A against Douglas.  Closest games of the match saw Breagle’s Roz Cannon and Douglas’s Mel Molesworth edging it 21-20 against Harley Garrett and Alison Stockham respectively.  Another 7-2 win (180-136) was recorded by Peel at home to Ballaugh B.  Beverley Wilson for Peel was the only player to win to single figures with Alison Millard just missing out on another win for Ballaugh when losing to 20 against Louise Horsfall.  Ballaugh A took on Marown B at home winning the match 6-3 (179-118) with three of the Ballaugh ladies winning to single figures.  Two tough games resulted in a 21-18 win for Ballaugh’s Yvonne Ward against Alex Clague and a 21-19 win for Marown’s Grace Cooper against Michele Cubbon.  Two rearranged games from Friday night’s fixtures due to Castletown A and Marown A ladies representing the Isle of Man at the weekend in the British Ladies Association Club Team Championship, took place on Tuesday night.  First match was between Castletown A at home  to Mooragh Park with the Town ladies winning 7-2 (174-134) with Hannah Drewett and Joy Stephens for Castletown plus Janet Monk for the Mooragh winning their games to single figures.  Alison Kearsley had a battle with Mooragh’s Madison McMullan eventually getting the point needed to win 21-20.  Second of the rearranged matches resulted in a 6-3 win (167-124) for Marown A at home to Nobles with three of the Crosby ladies winning to single figures.  The two closest games resulted in a 21-19 win for Marown’s Zoe Pearson against Dee Lewis and a 21-18 win for Nobles’s Tina Hampson against Debbie Leece.

LADIES OVER 60s LEAGUE :   Ballaugh B were on impressive form last Thursday morning scoring a full house at home against Castletown B (126-65).   Gail Curphey and Gill Clarke both won to single figures with Ann Kinvig and Brenda Clayton both winning to 14 against Judith Moore and Pat Rigby.  Two other teams who were on form were Mooragh Park A and Breagle Glen A with both teams winning 5-1 at home, and both dropping only one point –  Mooragh Park A  took on Breagle Glen B (125-87) with Lynn Mayers for Mooragh winning to single figures and Alison Stockham stopping a full house winning to 20 against Chris Sims.  Breagle Glen A played Mooragh Park B (125-52) with four of the southern ladies winning to single figures.  Lone winner for Mooragh was Mary Bruce, who won 21-20 after a tough game with Angela Bennett.  Peel ladies made their way east to Onchan coming away with a 4-2 win and by three points (105-102). Joyce Kelly for the visitors and Pauline Cowley for the home team both won to single figures with Mary Moffatt and Shirley Corrin for Peel both crossing the finish line 21-20 against Caroline Heathcote and Rosemary Quirk.  South Ramsey A put in a solid performance away to Finch Hill winning the match 5-1 (112-68).  Stopping a whitewash was an on-form Lil Smith who won her game to single figures.  Ballaugh A travelled the short distance to neighbours South Ramsey B coming away with a good 4-2 win (107-64) with three of the Ballaugh ladies winning to single figures.  The two winners for South were Sue Collier who won to 12 and Jackie Murley who won to 11.  The match of the morning was between Castletown A at home to Nobles.  Match finished three all with the Nobles ladies winning on points (109-98).  Jo Smith and Sue Gawne for Nobles won to single figures as did Sue Peach for Castletown.  Closest game resulted in a 21-19 win for Town’s Hilary Kermode against Paula Firth.  The following morning Breagle Glen C took on Marown A at home.  Unfortunately for Breagle, the Marown ladies were a little too strong winning 4-2 (108-88) with Rosemary Winckle for the Crosby ladies and Edwina Reid for Breagle both winning to single figures.  A nip and tuck game resulted in a 21-19 win for home-greener Kay Primrose-Smith against Elaine Dewhirst.   On Tuesday morning, three teams were on devasting form scoring full houses. First was by Marown A at home to Mooragh Park A (126-48) with Celia Joughin and Lynda Cadamy both winning their games to single figures.  Closest game resulted in a 21-13 win for Lyn Bolton against Janet Monk.  Second was Castletown A away to Mooragh Park B who also scored 126-48, with all games bar one being won to single figures.  Mary Bruce for Mooragh tried her best to stop the whitewash losing to 20 against Jenny Saunders. Third team was Nobles at home to South Ramsey B (126-54).   Paula Garrett and Paula Firth both won to single figures with Sylvia Kennaugh crossing the line 21-13 against Jackie Murley.  South Ramsey A took on Ballaugh B at  home winning the match 4-2 (117-85).  Two winners for Ballaugh were Gill Clarke who won to 15 against Anne Buck and Brenda Clayton who won to 18 against Jill Quayle.   Ballaugh A put in another good home performance winning 4-2 (120-95) against Peel.  Two winners for Peel were Mary Moffatt who had a good game with Barbara Graham eventually winning 21-20 and Beverley Wilson who won to 16 against Alison Millard.  Christine McDonald for Ballaugh was the only lady bowler to win to single figures. Onchan ladies travelled the short distance to Finch Hill coming away with a solid 4-2 win (108-84) with Kay McKiernon winning to single figures for Onchan.  Closest game saw Pauline Cowley win to 17 against Wendy Cowin.  Breagle Glen C visited nearby Castletown B winning the match 4-2 but tying on points (92-92).  Judith Moore just missed out on making the scoreline three all when losing  to 20 against Wyn Collister.  Home derby between Breagle Glen B&A resulted in a convincing 5-1 win for the A Team (119-71).  Sole winner for the B team was Jacqui Elliott who won to 14 against Angela Bennett whilst Margie Tasker was the only lady to win to single figures.

Ladies Over 60s league : Third set of fixtures took place last Thursday morning and although it is still early on, Ballaugh A began their bid for the league title putting in an impressive home performance scoring a full house against Castletown A (126-104).  Barbara Young and Sue Wilshaw just missed out on winning for the Town ladies when they both lost to 19 against Barbara Graham and Rose Waterworth.   Another strong performance saw the Nobles ladies win 5-1 at home against Breagle Glen A dropping only three points (123-74) with Jo Smith for Nobles winning her game to single figures.  Stopping the whitewash was Caroline Whitehead who won to 18 against Paula Firth.  Home derby between Mooragh Park B and A resulted in a convincing 5-1 win for the A ladies dropping only two points (124-68) with Maureen Hamilton and Janet Monk winning their games to single figures.  Sole winner for the B team was Joan Henderson who won to 19 against Chris Sims.  Another home derby resulted in a 4-2 win for Breagle B against Breagle C (114-91).  Two winners for the C ladies were Kay Primrose-Smith who won to 18 against Pauline Worrall and Gwen Tuck who won to 12 against Betsy Skelding.  Marown also put in a strong home performance winning 5-1 against Ballaugh B (118-60) with four of the Crosby ladies winning their games to single figures.  Stopping a full house was Gill Clarke who won to 13 against Elaine Dewhirst.  Onchan ladies travelled to South Ramsey A and although the match finished three all, Onchan just missed out winning by four points (92-88).  Judy Kelly and Elaine Moore for South plus Kay McKiernan and Maureen Payne for Onchan all won to single figures.  Finch Hill ladies travelled south to Castletown B coming away with a solid 5-1 win (112-77). Sole winner for Castletown was Elaine McElroy who won to single figures, as did Sue Caley and Lil Smith for Finch.  Linda Dobinson nearly claimed another win for Town when losing to 20 against Wendy Cowin.  Peel hosted South Ramsey winning the match 4-2 (101-70); interestingly, all six games were won to single figures.

Ladies Open Age : second set of fixtures took place last Friday evening.  South Ramsey made their way to Marown B coming away with a solid 8-1 win (180-105) with four of South ladies winning their games to single figures.  Two extremely close games resulted in 21-20 wins for South’s Jackie Murley and Lesley Murray against Grace Cooper and Martha Butler.  Sole winner for Marown was Lil Smith who won to 12 against Lauren Groen.  Castletown A also put in a strong performance away at Ballaugh B winning 7-2, dropping only five points (184-112). Hilary Kermode, Hannah Drewett and Anne Oates for the Town ladies won to single figures with the two winners for Ballaugh, Charlotte Neesom and Elaine Fenton, winning  to 19 and 18 respectively against Kellie Maddrell and Joy Stephens.  Another 7-2 scoreline was achieved by Douglas at home to Breagle Glen B (180-133).  Katie Jacobs for Douglas was the only player to win to single figures. Three nip and tuck games saw Douglas ladies Emma Sayle win to 20 against Jacqui Elliott; Rebecca Jacobs winning to 19 against Jean Thackrah, and Harley Garrett winning to 18 against Anita Roberts.  Two winners for Breagle were Voirrey Curphey who won to 16 and Pauline Worrall who won to 17.  Marown A visited Breagle Glen A coming away with a good 6-3 win (170-132) with three of Marown’s wins being won to single figures.  Closest games of the match resulted in a 21-19 win for Crosby’s Clare Cooper against Mavis Franks with Trish Bull and Caroline Whitehead both winning to 17 against Helen Withers and Jayne Smith.   Peel ladies travelled east to Nobles and although they lost 4-5 on games they won on points (140-125) helped by Val Allwood, Niamh Stringer and Beverley Wilson winning to low single figures.  Also winning their games to single figures for Nobles were Sue Gawne and Sylvia Kennaugh.  Closest game of the match resulted in a 21-18 win for Colese Creer against Peel’s Emilie Moss.  Ballaugh A ladies were away to Castletown B winning 5-4 and by 10 points (150-140) with  Michele Cubbon for Ballaugh and Susan Kerruish for Town winning their games to single figures.  Closest game resulted in a 21-17 win for Melody Marsh against Ballaugh’s Ali Quaggan.

The Ladies Association Triples competition was held on Sunday 12 April at Castletown Bowling Club attracting a very healthy 23 sets of triples with the competition being played 21 off 6. Weather was mostly sunny throughout the day even if a little chilly.  Getting through to the semi finals were Castletown’s Alison Kearsley, Hannah Drewett and Stella Watterson who won 21-18 against the South Ramsey trio of Jenny Moore, Fiona Kennish and Kim Hargraves;  Marown trio of Rosie Winckle, Lil Smith and Celia Joughin who had a comfortable 21-11 win against Peel’s Lynda Wilson, Niamh Stringer and Olivia Berry; Ballaugh team-mates Karen Young, Alison Quaggan and Sherriee Pedley who fought hard to win 21-19 against Marown’s Clare Cooper, Debbie Leece and Helen Withers, plus Castletown’s Chris Price, Jenny Saunders and Hilary Kermode who also had a fairly comfortable 21-12 win against Marown’s Louise Tebay, Lyn Bolton and Zoe Pearson.    First semi-final pitted Alison, Hannah and Stella against Rosie, Lil and Celia.  This was fairly even for most of the game, but the Castletown ladies just nudged ahead towards the end eventually winning 21-16.  The second semi-final saw the ‘Town’ trio of Chris, Jenny and Hilary having a slightly easier game to reach the final winning 21-9  against Karen, Sherriee and Alison.   This resulted in an all Castletown final – interestingly final pitted two mothers against their daughters (Hilary and Jenny against Hannah and Stella).  Chris, Jenny and Hilary had the much better start to the final claiming two 3s, a double and a single on the first four ends to lead 15-6.   Alison, Hannah and Stella scored a single on the next end, but Chris, Jenny and Hilary responded with singles on the following three ends to lead 18-7.  Spectators thought a comeback was on the cards when Alison, Hannah and Stella scored a three on the 10^th end, but unfortunately  Chris, Hilary and Jenny had other ideas taking singles on the following three ends to run out very worthy winners 21-10.  The scoreline did not reflect the high quality of bowling by the finalists and I’m sure if there is a rematch in the future the outcome might be different, but you never know!  Many congratulations to Chris, Jenny and Hilary on a good win.

Presentation of trophy and prizes was made by Clare Cooper, ladies competition secretary, who thanked Castletown for hosting the event and providing much needed teas/coffees and refreshments throughout the day; to all who entered and those who came to watch and support before handing over the trophy and congratulating Hilary, Jenny and Chris on a well deserved win.

The 2026 non winners competition was played at Ballaugh Bowling Club on Sunday attracting an excellent entry of 34 lady bowlers with spectators being treated to some exceptional bowling throughout the afternoon.  Getting through to the quarter finals were Margaret Tasker and Alison Stockham (Breagle); Keri Hampson (Nobles); Fiona Kennish (South Ramsey); Tracy Moore (Castletown); Julie Reilly (Ballaugh), and junior lady bowlers (and sisters) Bailey and Lacey McMullan (Mooragh Park).   First quarter final saw stablemates Margaret  and Alison  play each other with Alison taking the honours 21-17.  Second quarter final saw Lacey in fine form winning 21-7 against Keri. Third quarter final resulted in a 21-16 win for Tracy against Fiona with Bailey convincingly winning the fourth quarter final 21-9 against home-greener Julie. 

First semi-final was between Alison and Lacey.  This game could have gone either way as Lacey came back from 20-16 down to level the score 20 across. On the final end, and with Lacey lying two, Alison played a near perfect last wood to win the end and game 21-20.   The other semi saw Bailey take on Tracy.  Although both ladies played some good bowls, Bailey got her head in front and not looking back won 21-13. 

And so to the final between Bailey and Alison. Bailey again came out of the blocks strongly taking control of the game leading 19-7 on the eleventh end.   Despite Alison getting singles on the next four ends, Bailey was in no mood to take any prisoners and after two more ends won 21-11 for a well deserved title win.  I stand to be corrected, but I think Bailey, at 14 years of age, is the youngest winner of this competition.  Well done Bailey!

Presentation of trophy and prizes was made by Clare Cooper, Ladies Competition Secretary, who thanked Ballaugh for holding the competition and providing excellent refreshments throughout the afternoon;  all the lady bowlers for keeping the spectators entertained and the competition committee for their help in the smooth running of the competition before handing over the trophy and congratulating Bailey on her win.