News: Reports
Peel & Marown to Meet in Rayner Shield Final
Both Rayner Shield semi-finals took place last week with Douglas A hosting Peel A on Monday evening in good conditions. For Peel Gary Smith got the visitors off to a flying start beating Gordon Wynne-Smythe 21-5, whilst Tom Kelly won 21-9 against Jimmy Sansom. Villa captain Andy Cannell hit back with a 21-6 win, whilst Keith Rise dug deep to beat Dougie Allan 21-18. In the second half of the match Mervin Sayle performed well to beat Andy Kennish 21-17, Ian Moore won 21-14 against Peter Greenlees, Tommy McMeiken recording a third single figure win on the night for Peel only a Shaun Seal win against Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly would do. Seal performed well before finally losing out 16-21, which meant whilst Peel drew 4-4 on games, but their superior chalk difference of 17 (122-139) booked their placed in the final. Douglas can take consolation from a solid performance.
The following evening play went ahead despite the heavy rain throughout the day, the Marown green held up well for the visit of South Ramsey A, there was an excellent crowd up to watch this encounter. The match was incredibly tight with the 6-2 score line in favour of the Crosby men not reflecting the match or the performance put in by the visitors. First off was David Bradford who found his form to win 21-11 against John Gelling. Alan Moore performed brilliantly before agonisingly losing out 20-21 to Colin Kelly. This defeat was compounded by Dean Kipling getting over the line 21-19 against Dido Kelly. Visiting captain Glynn Hargraves had to win against Phil ‘Rambo’ Kelly for South Ramsey to stay in the match, however he found himself trailing 11-17, but dug deep to run out with a 21-19 victory to level the game at 2-2 with the visitors holding a nine chalk advantage (72-81). In the second half Marown A captain Paul Dunn romped home with a 21-9 win over Austin Hart to tip the chalks in the Crosby outfits favour, whilst Paul Kelly got a crucial hit at 18-18 with Stefan Kelly lying two to run out with a 21-18 win. This meant South Ramsey had to win the last two games on the green and this was by no means out of their reach with Steven Waters 20-19 up and putting up a good lead against Matthew Keggen and James Teare was 16-8 up on Neil Withers, however Keggen played two good bowls on the last end to seal the win for Marown. This result visibly deflated Teare, who ended up losing 20-21 to Withers with the match now decided. South Ramsey pushed Marown all the way on their own green and can take pride from their performance, losing by just eight chalks (156-148) after losing three games to 20, one game to 19 and another game to 18.
The final is to be held on at Port St Mary Bowling Club on Friday 11th September at 6:30pm. Marown will be looking to extend their record and capture the shield for the 17th time. A Peel victory would be their third in the competition, previously winning in 1983 and 1987.
Moore is Manx Champion
Ladies Manx Champion Winner 2020
Jenny MooreThe Ladies Manx Championship was held at Peel Sunset BC on Saturday 22nd August, a fitting venue as the competition was held in memory of Heather Horsburgh, who was a proud member of Peel and a key contributor to the ladies committee for many years. A raffle during the day raised £300 for the MSPCA, a charity which Heather held close to her heart.
With a strong entry of 51 women, the day looked to be a long one, with rain showers possibly adding time to the games. Competition committee members Gill Morgan and Tracy Moore kept the games running smoothly and the day was a brilliant success.
Losing in the quarter final stage were Nobles clubmates Beckie Teare and Clare Cooper. Beckie put up a fight against Philippa Taylor, but the former Peel player used her knowledge of the green brilliantly and managed to win the game 21-12. Clare came up against South Ramsey’s Jenny Moore, who had been playing brilliantly all day. Despite Clare’s best efforts, Jenny won comfortably with a score of 21-11. In the third quarter final game, Kim Hargraves played some great bowls to knock out Onchan’s Maureen Payne 21-10. The final match was the closest out of all the quarter finals, with Port Erin player Lynda Cadamy playing Mooragh Park’s Janet Monk. It really was a nip and tuck game, which could have gone either way, but Monk managed to shrug Lynda off and take the win with the final score of 21-18.
The first semi-final was Philippa Taylor against Jenny Moore, a close game with some great bowls. There was some impressive corner bowling, and Jenny managed to take the game with a 21-16 score. In the second semi-final Kim Hargraves took on Janet Monk, and despite having played well all day, Kim just struggled to shake off Janet, with Janet playing short round marks on the edges and leading exceptionally well. Final score was 21-10 to Janet.
The final between Jenny Moore and Janet Monk was another close game, closer than the score reflects. Jenny kept her incredible form and won the game 21-11. The presentation was made by Ladies President Sue Gawne, who thanked everyone for a wonderful day, with a special mention to Heather and how she would have loved the day. Special thanks went to Ann Gale, who has continued to support the Manx Championship with a cheque of £250.
Onchan Wins First Ladies Plate
Ladies Plate Winners 2020 - Onchan
The final of the Ladies Plate Competition was held on Friday (21st August) at Finch Hill Bowling Club, with Mooragh Park taking on Onchan who had a handicap of 15.
There was some fantastic bowling by both teams, and it was great to see supporters around the green. First game off was Libby Andrade v Maureen Hamilton, with the Onchan player comfortably winning to 9. Second game to come off was Joanne Kelly v Shannon McMullan, with the latter taking the win with a very close 19-21. Both players demonstrated some excellent bowling and it was definitely one of the matches of the night, with one of Onchans newer players Joanne really holding her own against the up and coming star of the future Shannon. North Ramsey players Chris Sims and Pat Lenton battled against Dee Lewis and Marilyn Ellison, managing to beat them with scores of 21-19 and 21-14 respectively. Final game of the first set of jacks was two junior girls, Grace Gawne v Aalish Howarth. Again, two players to watch in the future, with some exceptionally close ends, Grace managed to secure another win for Onchan with a score of 21-16. This left the scores after the first blocks off at 94 Onchan, 88 Mooragh Park before handicaps.
Caroline Corlett played Victoria Johnson and struggled to shrug the junior star off. Playing some brilliant bowls, North Ramsey player Victoria won the match 21-15. Maureen Payne fought against Janet Monk, but Janet played the green extremely well with some brilliant leads and beat Maureen to 9. Onchan players Jo Smith and Sue Gawne played Katie Johnson and Irene Goodall, keeping them to single figures with a 21-6 and a 21-5 win, which really secured Onchan’s victory as the first winners of this new competition. Final score was 175 Onchan and 141 Mooragh Park.
The presentation was made by Janet Latham, treasurer for the Ladies Committee, who thanked all involved for the running of the evening, and all the players who took part. Special mention was made to the juniors who all played exceptionally.
Disappointment for Finch Hill
The final matches before the semi-finals took place on Tuesday 18th August. The winners from each of the four groups will play on Tuesday 25th August with the final taking place on Tuesday 1st September.
In GROUP D Finch Hill knew that every point would count but just couldn’t get the full house that they needed against Castletown B who went home with 2 wins 120-80 (4-2). This left Finch Hill very disappointed and just 3 points behind Marown who now qualify for the semi-finals.
In GROUP C Port Erin A made certain of their place in the semis with a convincing win away to Peel Sunset. Port Erin only managed to win 2 of their games but these were to single figures which made all the difference to the final score with both teams playing brilliantly all morning. Final score 88-100 (4-2).
GROUP A leaders are Port St Mary A who finish 121 points clear at the top of their group and face Marown in the semis. They played at home this week against South Ramsey who managed just one win from Elaine Moore who had a close game against Chris Price who proved a very worthy opponent scoring into the mid-teens 15-21. The rest of the match was dominated by the Port St Mary team who are always at their best when playing at home. Final score 120-64 (5-1). Also in group A are Port Erin B who this week played against Onchan. The match was at Port Erin with Kay Primrose-Smith playing for the home team and gaining a good win against Marilyn Ellison. However, Onchan are a very good team and won the match. Final score 88-117 (1-5).
GROUP B qualifiers are Castletown A who are 111 points clear of the next team in their group. This week they played at home against Ballaugh. The visitors played well with 4 of their players reaching double figures but it wasn’t enough to make any difference to the final result and it was a full house for Castletown A 126-69 (6-0). Castletown A now face Port Erin A in the semi-finals. Also in group B and at the other end of the Island Mooragh Park were in top form on their own green and won their first match this season against the visitors Port St Mary B. Wins from Pat Lenton ,Maureen Hamilton, Peggy Freeman and Chris Sims gave the home team a comfortable win and a final score of 116-92 (4-2).
Lots to look forward to next week with the semi-finals on Tuesday and the first round of the JMS Trophy on Thursday.
Club Team Championship Commences
The preliminary round of the Club Team Championship took place last week with three matches taking place. The format this year is a straight knock out with matches played home and away decided on the total chalks scored over the two matches.
The closest match of the week was between Douglas and Noble’s with just 19 chalks separating the teams, with Douglas claiming a home victory by 37 chalks (192-155), whilst Noble’s took an 18 chalk victory in the return leg (190-172), however this wasn’t enough to recover the deficit from the first leg with the Villa team progressing to the next round by 19 chalks (364-345). There was very little to choose from between the two teams with the games ending up 10-10 over both legs.
Finch Hill played host to Onchan, with a couple of couple of new names turning out for Onchan, however it later transpired that the two players hadn’t been registered to play, therefore the results resulted in walkovers in favour of Finch Hill. This didn’t stop the Onchan men from taking a 17 chalk victory in the first leg (148-165), whilst in the second leg they ensured the players were correctly registered and romped home to a 42 chalk victory (189-147), winning by 59 chalks over the two legs (354-295) to progress to the next round.
Port St Mary made light work of Castletown with a 38 chalk victory in the first leg at home (185-147) winning 7-3 on games, whilst away from home they won 8-2 on games but only won by 26 chalks (189-163). Overall Port St Mary won the tie by 64 chalks (374-310) to take their place in the quarter finals.
Ladies Announcement
The final of the inaugural Ladies Association Plate competition is being held on Friday 21st August at Finch Hill Bowling Club between Onchan (+15) and Mooragh Park (SCR). This was previously published in The Courier last week as being held at Peel, however it has been confirmed that Finch Hill will be hosting this final. It is hoped that there will be a good crowd there to support both teams.
Nobles Storm Their Way to The Final
Friday saw the two semi-finals of the Jean Kelly Knockout Competition, with Port St Mary A hosting Castletown A (+20), and Nobles played Douglas at their home green.
Friday saw the two semi-finals of the Jean Kelly Knockout Competition, with Port St Mary A hosting Castletown A (+20), and Nobles played Douglas at their home green.
In the first semi-final, Castletown A showed their strength, with 5 winners overall. Kim Foy of Castletown just lost out to 20 against Katy Williams, and in another close game Kath Kinley fought against Port St Mary’s Chris Price, to come back from 12-0 down, fighting back to 20 just to lose the final match point. New Port St Mary player Nicola Cain beat Castletown’s Sue Peach to 4, a low loss, but it didn’t affect the overall match score. Final score was 150 Port St Mary A and 187 Castletown A.
In the second semi-final, Nobles had a massive hurdle to overcome, with Douglas starting on a high handicap of 90. Knowing that they couldn’t let their opponents gain more than 99 points between them, every Nobles lady stepped on the green determined to be ruthless. Although Douglas only managed to score 66 points between them, this score does not reflect the matches. New Douglas player Jane Lothain scored 16 against Nobles Tina Hampson, and Pat Kelly racked up 13 against Paula Firth. The rest of the Nobles ladies kept their opponents to single figures, securing their place in the final.
The final will take place at Onchan green on Thursday 27th August, and as always supporters and spectators are greatly welcomed and encouraged. Castletown, having won the Jean Kelly 5 times, will be looking to bring the trophy home, but Nobles, who have won it twice, most recently in 2018, will be putting up a fierce battle. With both teams having strong players, the match is set to be very close.
Front: Paula Firth, Debbie Leece, Rebecca Teare, Sylvia Kennuagh
Front Row L-R: Anne Oates, Joy Stephens, Heike Perry, Sue Peach
Sue Gawne wins Ladies Ramsey Town Cup
It was in glorious sunshine and a beautiful setting that Sue Gawne, who is President of the ladies section Isle of Man crown green bowling association, played her way through to the final and won the Ladies Ramsey Town Cup on Saturday.
The event was staged by North Ramsey bowling club at Mooragh Park with the cups presented by Laurie Hooper MHK.
There was a good entry of experienced and up and coming young bowlers which produced some good games.
Losing out in the quarter finals were Margaret Tasker against an on-form Jenny Moore 8-21 and Maureen Lacey whose challenge was ended by Sue Gawne 10-21. Kim Hargreaves had a very close game against Shannon McMullan and was unlucky to be knocked out 20-21 and Fiona Kennish had a great game against Lyn Bolton and just missed out 18-21.
The semi-finals proved to be very close games. Jenny Moore against Lyn Bolton, both from South Ramsey, had a fantastic game with some great shots. In the end someone has to win and it was Lyn who got to the finish line first. 20-21. The other semi was between Shannon and Sue. Even though Shannon played a brilliant game she just couldn’t hold off Sue in the final ends 16-21.
In the final Sue dominated the game having played well all day but Lyn had also played some amazing games against talented players but she just couldn’t catch Sue and the game ended 21-9.
The presentation was made by Mike Skelly and the prizes awarded by Laurie Hooper MHK.
Thanks were given to everyone who entered and all the helpers on the day.
Reigning champions beaten at Onchan
With just one match to go before the semi-finals on Tuesday 25th August Port St Mary A in GROUP A are still in pole position despite their defeat this week at Onchan.
The match was played in near perfect conditions and both teams claimed 3 games but Onchan just had the edge on points in what must have been one of the closest matches so far this season. Final score 97-94 (3-3). Also in Group A are South Ramsey who played host to Port Erin B. Unfortunately the home side were a player short but of the remaining 5 players four won their games and Moira Anderson was just piped at the post by Joyce Henry. Final score 104-92 (4-2).
In GROUP B Castletown A are out in front and set to secure their place in the semi-finals. Currently they have a 54-point lead but still have Ballaugh to play. This week they played away at Port St Mary against their impressive B team and were held to a 3-3 result but a comfortable win on points. Final score 92-110 (3-3). At the other end of the Island Ballaugh were at home to Mooragh Park. In very hot conditions the visitors kept there cool and won 3 games but the home side were the final winners 115-95 (3-3).
In GROUP C Douglas were at home against the visitors from Peel. Unfortunately the home side were a player short and the visitors romped home winning all 6 games, however, Kay Mckiernan and Pat Kelly both played exceptionally well and made sure that the visitors didn’t have it all their own way. Douglas have now played all their matches in this mini league and next week’s match between Peel Sunset and Port Erin A will be a nail-biting match for both teams with only 4 points separating them at the top of Group C.
In GROUP D Marown have now played all of their matches and will be on pins next Tuesday as the results come in. Their match this week was at Castletown against their newly formed B team and the final score of 41-105 (1-5) might not be enough to decide the winner of this group. Finch Hill have still got Castletown B to play, at home, and are, at the moment trailing Marown by just 123 points so it really couldn’t be any closer.
Moore Wins IOM Merit
The Ladies Association IOM Merit took place at Castletown last Sunday, and it really was a beautiful day for bowling. With 28 ladies all hoping to take the IOM Merit title, it was South Ramsey player Jenny Moore who became overall winner. Playing outstanding all day, she won the majority of her games to single figures, it was only Nobles player Alison Keggen who managed to score 13 against her in the semi-finals. In the other semi-final Port St Mary’s Chris Price racked up 19 against South Ramsey player Elaine Moore.
The mother and daughter final then saw Jenny comfortably beat Elaine, with a final score of 21-9. The presentation was made by Ladies President Sue Gawne, who thanked the competition committee for another fantastic day.
Onchan To Take on Mooragh in Ladies Plate
Last Friday was the semi-final round of the Ladies Plate competition, and in the first semi-final, Onchan had a close game against Port Erin, with Onchan just scraping through by 10 points, even despite Port Erin having 5 winners. With both teams off of scratch, it really was every point to play for, and Dee Lewis of Onchan managed to defeat Susan Inch to 6, which helped the away team with the final score of Port Erin 154 Onchan 164.
In the second semi-final Marown travelled up to Mooragh Park, where they unfortunately lost their place in the final. Once again the junior girls at Mooragh did themselves proud, with Aalish Haworth beating Elaine Dewhirst to 9, and Victoria Johnson beating Mary Alderson to 10. Final score, was Marown 160 and Mooragh Park 203, after the 55-point handicap for Mooragh.
The final will be held at Peel Sunset Bowling Club on Friday 21st August, Onchan will have a handicap of 15, and Mooragh Park will be off scratch.