John Kennish picked up an unprecedented 8^th Canada Life International Manx Championship in style at South Ramsey at the weekend to once again etch his name further into the annals of Island bowls history.  

Kennish ended the drought for his 8^th title eight years on from his last win with a 21-12 final victory on his home green over Marown’s five times champion Colin Kelly. This win signifies another momentous milestone for Kennish as it also flags his 100^th men’s singles open title as he becomes the first local ever to notch up an historic century.

The final was a cagey affair in the opening exchanges with Kelly edging into a 6-5 lead. Kennish then took control, but, Kelly dug in to find himself trailing by a solitary chalk at 10-9.  This is when Kennish went into an overdrive and with 7 unanswered points saw himself cruise into an unassailable 17-9 lead. Kelly, himself a great champion, dug deep but didn’t have enough to match the imperious Kennish on this occasion and the Ramsey man saw out a brilliant 21-12 win over his arch adversary.

The sight of arguably the Islands top two bowlers for the past decade in the final was like seeing the normal order of things restored after Kennish had failed to make it to the main event since his victory over Paul Dunn at Port Erin in 2006. There is no doubt that this must have played on his mind and he will definitely feel like he has exorcised some demons with this win, and who knows maybe 10 titles is not beyond the realms of possibility for the greatest of all Manx Champions.  

Kennish had to be at his best all day and started of with an extremely high quality opener as he saw off the challenge of Bob Clark (Castletown) 21-16 to book his place in the quarter finals. He was simply on fire in his next game against David Bradford (Onchan) and was too hot to handle as he picked up a magnificent 21-7 victory to set up a semi final showdown with Paul Skelly (Port St Mary). Despite giving it his all this was never going to be Skelly’s day and Kennish secured his final berth with a hard fought 21-13 win.

Kelly was equally as devastating on his run to the final and a 21-4 win over fellow Marown Bowler Ian Kissack in his first game on finals day set him on his way in fine style. He backed this up with a solid 21-12 win over former champion Phil Kerruish (Onchan) in the quarter finals before seeing off the challenge of Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly (Douglas) at the semi final stage.

The weekend however belongs to John Kennish who despite always looking like an unstoppable force on his home green had to live up to the billing and put in the hard work to pick up a well deserved title. He is without doubt the greatest local player of his generation to step onto a bowling green and if he continues in this fine vein of form who knows what is possible in both his on and off Island exploits.

Title favourites Onchan A remain on track to regain the Isle of Man Bank Men’s Division 1 title with a strong 9-1 win over Ballaugh A, further opening their lead at the top. Only Daniel Fenton was able to stop the rout as he picked up his teams only point with a mesmerising 21-9 win over then reigning Island Champion Glynn Hargraves.

Marown A however kept their good form going with a brilliant 8-2 win away at inform Port St Mary A to limit Onchan’s extension of their lead with the gap now standing at 8 points. This really is a magnificent win away from home against Port who are again a solid and stable outfit capable of beating anyone, especially on their own turf.

Douglas A were the surprise package of last weeks fixtures and move into third place thanks to a simply mind boggling 9-1 win over Castletown A at the Villa Marina. Every one of the Villa Men chipped in with solid displays and they were only 3 chalks away from an historic maximum with only Ian Watson preventing it with a 21-18 win over Steve Crampton.

Castletown B are still going strong in 4^th place after a great start to their campaign which they cemented with another strong home win, this time 7-3 over Frank Watson’s Peel A. Whilst the Towners are sitting pretty near the top the Govags find themselves too close to the wrong end of the table and they will be hoping to put more points on the board soon.

South Ramsey A are now back up and running after their heavy defeat at the hands of Onchan A and their own 9-1 this time away at the Crofts over Castletown C see them moving back up the table and I don’t think it will be too long before they move into third place.

The final fixture of the round in the top tier was the epic tussle between Port Erin A and North Ramsey A at Port Erin. The home side managed to edge the match on victories with 5 winners, however North had just enough to sneak the aggregate meaning it all ended with honours even on 5 points apiece.

Finch Hill A still top the tree in Division 2 and a solid 7-3 home win over Castletown D keeps them where they want to be. They have always been a solid home team with their home on Kensington Road and impenetrable fortress however if they pick up their share of away points there is no reason why they couldn’t finish off a brilliant start to the season.

Onchan B remain in second place and will be pleased to have matched their rivals result with their own 7-3 win away at Ballaygh C to keep their challenge going.

Finch Hill B didn’t fare as well as their first string and their 9-1 drubbing away from home at the hand of Peel B has opened the door for the Govags to move into third position.

Port St Mary B aren’t out of things just a point behind Peel in 4^th and a really impressive 8-2 victory over Nobles Park A away from home keep them in the hunt for promotion and even title glory.

As predicted the Division 3 lead has changed hands yet again and Marown B, an intriguing mix of youth and experience, now call top spot home after a good 7-3 home win over Port Erin B.

South Ramsey B were savagely axed of top spot by their own C team who claimed the spoils 7-3 in the local derby to move themselves into 4^th just 4 points off the summit.

Isle of Man Bank men’s division 1 leaders Onchan A turned on the style last week as they put a serious dent in the title challenge of highly fancied South Ramsey A, sinking them 9-1 on their own patch.

John Kennish, who was just back from a hugely successful campaign in the UK with 8 straight wins meaning he has qualified for 3 major finals days, was the only winner for the Northerners on a tricky green which really suited the visitors. With the Manx Championship scheduled to be on the same green at the weekend it would be hard to rule out one of them, or Kennish himself, going all the way and securing top honours.

Title holders Marown A, who themselves have some major players for the weekends championship, had to work hard to secure a 7-3 win just down the road at the Mooragh as they edged past a battling North Ramsey A team.

In reality the Crosby outfit would have been hoping to make up some ground on Onchan in this set of fixtures, and not drop a further 2 points behind. It’s difficult to see where they will make up the ground on their rivals which will put a lot of emphasis on the two head to head match ups with the first scheduled for June 9^th at Onchan Park.

Port St Mary A are still in third despite going down 7-3 away to Castletown A. Town are still trying to recover from an early heavy defeat and this win seems like business returning to usual, as they close the gap on 3^rd place, which is probably a realistic aim for 3 or 4 teams this season.

Douglas A travelled to a new look Ballaugh A where they picked some magnificent away points with an 8-2 victory. Whilst it is Douglas whose season is now really off and running its great to see a mix of old and new faces at forward thinking Ballaugh A who are really looking beyond this season, as they build for the future by bedding new blood into their top team.

Port Erin have started their campaign in the top tier admirably and a good 7-3 home win over highflying Castletown B will do their chances of survival or even a mid table finish no harm at all.

Peel A picked up their first win this terms as they beat Castletown C 8-2 to get some much needed points on the board and leapfrog their opponents in the league.

Division 2 leaders Finch Hill A picked up another strong win to keep their aspirations of silverware alive as they beat Nobles Park A 8-2 at Kensington Road.

Onchan B keep the pressure on in second place as they had to use all of the ammunition in their arsenal to win the war against Nobles Mixed A 6-4, after tying on games. Only two points separated the teams on aggregate as well so this really was a close encounter between 2 teams who should be in the shake up for promotion at the end.

Douglas B are now starting to fire and an 8-2 win moves them into 3^rd place in the table. They have some strong dependable players in their stellar line up and if they can get their best team on the green will be difficult to shift and have a real shout at top honours.

Castletown D will be delighted to chalk up their first win, but more so in the manner it was achieved. Trailing 4-3 on games, and behind on aggregate, a transformed Matthew Shanahan held his nerve and played magnificently to win 21-12 and seal the points for his side, and his place in the divisions team of the week.

It’s tight at the top in division 3 with all of the top 3 putting in strong performances to all keep their title hopes alive. South Ramsey B are back on top thanks to a superb 9-1 win away at Douglas C, whilst Port Erin B are only one point adrift thanks to their own strong away win, beating Peel D 7-3 in the sunset city. Hotly fancied Marown B come next only 2 points behind after they too picked up a great 7-3 away win, this time over Nobles Park B.

The highly anticipated Manx Championships takes place at South Ramsey this weekend and I am metaphorically salivating at the prospect of the most explosive and open championships in history.

Whilst seven times Island Champion John Kennish must be the clear favourite on his home green to win the title for the first time since 2006 there is literally a shopping list full of contenders who stand in his way.

Five times Island Champion Colin Kelly won the title last time it was contested on the green and will again be amongst the favourites along with double champions Kevin Quirk and Glynn Hargraves, who currently wears the crown. Neil Withers and Phil Kerruish are other former champions who have had recent success on the green and could definitely be in the shake up at the end.

There are a host of players looking to pick up their first title with David Bradford and Paul Skelly heading a list littered with young up and coming talent such as Jordan Cain, Bob Clark and Matthew Quirk however there will be no more popular winner than if Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly breaks his duck and adds this title to his collection.