News: Reports
Peel Sunset A are pushing to take the lead in the Over 60’s.
As we came to Game 5 on Tuesday 17th April we were asking ourselves whether or not Castletown A could maintain their early season form as they travelled to South Ramsey and their 6-2 win in the North of the Island showed us that they certainly could. The two winners for the South Ramsey side were Chas Grills and Robert Callister.
The Castletown B side hosted Onchan A and it was only fitting that in a match with a number of very close games that the end result would be a 4-4 draw.
Ballaugh A had a visit from Peel Sunset B and after a strong attempt from the men from the Sunset City to take the honours it ended in another 4-4 draw.
Douglas A hosted Port St Mary A at the ‘Villa’ and this resulted in a 7-1 win for the home side but it has to be said that the Southerners made them battle for every game with some very close results. In what could only be described as an epic game Stuart Garrett eventually managed to pip Bernard Thackrah 21-20 and Pat O’Donohue also had a 21-20 win over Ken Karran.
The Douglas B side travelled the short distance to Nobles Park to play a strong Nobles A team and it was the Nobles side who took the points here with a 6-2 victory with the winners for the Douglas B side being Bob Banning and Arthur Ashcroft.
Finch Hill A had a 6-2 home win over Nobles B with Brian Atherton and Chris Duggan being the winners for the Nobles B side in a match that also had some close battles with John Harris for the home side edging Tony Jones 21-18 and Peter Woods and Brian Cain of Nobles B also just going down 21-18.
Onchan B hosted a good Marown side and it was the Crosby men who took the honours 5-3 at Onchan Park in what appears to have been a competitive match.
Port Erin had a visit from Ballaugh B in what would seem to have been a really tough match with some close results and at the end it was the home side that run out as 5-3 winners.
North Ramsey B travelled to Port St Mary B and the Southerners won this 6-2 with the winners for North Ramsey B being David Lacey and David Thompson.
Game 6 saw Castletown A once more putting on a good show in beating Ballaugh A 7-1 at Castletown. Bob Unsworth being the only Ballaugh A winner in this one as he beat George Peach 21-16. The Castletown B side who are currently only three places behind the A Team in the League also managed a good win beating Nobles B 5-3 at Nobles Park.
Peel Sunset A who are serious challengers for the ‘League’ this season travelled to Onchan Park and came away with a good 5-3 win over Onchan A which keeps them in contention for a high League position. The Peel Sunset B Team also had a good 5-3 win over North Ramsey A in the Sunset City while the Peel Sunset C men lost 6-2 to Douglas A.
Port St Mary A got back to winning ways with a 6-2 win over Finch Hill A with Billy Long and Arthur Halsall picking up wins for the Finch Hill side. Port St Mary B travelled to Ballaugh where the home side took a 6-2 win with Colin Leece and Brian Lowe picking up wins for the Southerners.
Douglas B hosted Onchan B at the ‘Villa’ and despite good wins from David Galbraith and the consistent Bob Banning the Douglas men lost 6-2.
In a close match at Crosby South Ramsey put up a spirited fight but lost out 5-3 to a good Marown side.
So at the end of another week of Over 60’s Bowls we have Castletown A holding the lead with 12 points but Peel Sunset A who have a game in hand are only 2 points behind them and are level on points with Marown on 10 poiints. Only 1 point separate’s the next five Teams which in order are Castletown B, Nobles A, Douglas A, Onchan A and Port St Mary A.
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A Fitting Tribute to Sophie
Income Plus Services Jim Senior - Winners 2018
Jordan Cain, Stefan Kelly, Alan Kelly & Dave 'Dido' KellyThe Income Plus Services sponsored Jim Senior Team Fours was held on Sunday at South Ramsey with 19 teams taking part which resulted in the games being played as two pairs instead of the usual doubles and two singles games with the team with the highest chalks taking the win in each tie.
The competition was a massive success with the aim being to raise £1,000 in favour of Rebecca House Children’s Hospice. This target was easily surpassed thanks to the generosity of the local bowling fraternity who dug deep for this very worthy cause with £1,400 being raised thanks in part to those who couldn’t be there but still purchased raffle tickets ahead of the day. This amount will be topped up by a further £1,000 by Barclays to give a grand total of £2,400 to be passed on to Rebecca House Children’s Hospice in memory of Sophie Kelly, which is a charity close to the heart of the family of Dido and Lisa Kelly following the loss of their daughter last year.
In what was a fitting tribute to Sophie, the winners at the end of a long day were Sophie’s brother Stefan Kelly, Dad Dido Kelly and Grandad Alan Kelly ably backed up by Onchan’s Jordan Cain. They held off the home team of Lyn Bolton, Sid Bolton, Steven Waters and included Wayne Roberts (Port St Mary) to record a win of 38-31 in the final. It was great to see Alan Kelly back playing and he defied his years to play superbly throughout the day to help his team win.
Losing out at the semi final stage to the eventual winners by eight chalks (34-42) were the Ballaugh Team of Patrick Grant, Steve Grant, Tony Quine and Edward Trustham, along with the Ladies Team of Lil Smith, Mary Alderson, Elaine Moore and Gill Dixon who lost out by just five chalks (31-36).
The presentation was made by South Ramsey Chairman Steve Moore and thanks were given to the sponsors Income Plus Services and everyone for their generosity. Thanks were also given to Glynn Hargraves for organising and selling the raffle, all the club members who contributed in anyway from those running the competition, to the Ladies for providing the top notch refreshments throughout the day. Not to forget the improvement on the green and to those who helped on and off the green to prepare for the competition.
In Dido’s speech he became understandably emotional and thanked everyone who made today possible as Rebecca House had helped the family so much.
The winner of the 2 foot passenger IOM Steam Packet vouchers was Gill Morgan who eventually claimed her prize after purchasing £20 worth of raffle tickets!
Finally a personal thank you to everyone who helped source raffle prizes and to all the local businesses who kindly donated a prize:-
IOM Steam Packet, Splinters, Feltons, JJ barbers, Intersport, Teare’s Butchers, Farmer Combine, Ramsey Garden Centre, Allan Callow, Bourne Plaice and Trawler Man Chippy
Bradford Continues Good Form
The Association Singles was held on Saturday afternoon at Douglas Bowling Club on a superb surface.
The winner was David Bradford (South Ramsey) who defeated Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly in the final to 21-12.
Losing out at the semi final stage were Stefan Kelly (South Ramsey) and Edward Carlyle (Onchan).
Losers at the quarter final stage were South Ramsey’s John Kennish, Glynn Hargraves, Wayne Roberts (Port St Mary) and Walter McCarthy (Marown).
The presentation was made by competition secretary Matthew Keggen who thanked Douglas for hosting the competition, providing the refreshments and for preparing a superb green.
South Ramsey Close The Gap
In division one South Ramsey B travelled to Onchan A and were delighted to come away with a 4-6 loss, drawing on games. For the visitors Ben Dugdale had an excellent 21-10 win over Kevin Quirk, with Tony Dugdale also winning 21-14. James Teare performed well to beat Rob Monk 21-18, whilst Sid Bolton just got past Steve Crampton 21-20 to ensure the Ramsey men left with their spirits lifted.
Marown A had the pleasure of a trip down South to take on Port St Mary A. The two winners for the home team were Trevor Quayle who beat Phil Kelly 21-14 and Rob Cooil who beat John Gelling 21-11. Wayne Roberts nearly added an extra win for the home team but fell at the last hurdle 20-21 to Matthew Keggen who had to dig in after being behind the entire game. For the visitors Dean Kipling, Neil Withers and Colin Kelly all won to single figures.
Peel A made the short trip to take on Marown B and will have been pleased to come away with an 8-2 victory thanks to winning three close games. Tommy McMeiken and Gary Smith won 21-18, defeating Arnie Withers and Harry Barton respectively, whilst David Proctor beat Juan Killip 21-19. Ste Kelly and Tom Kelly both won to single figures. For the home team Brian ‘Boothy’ Kelly beat Jerome Surridge 21-11 and Steve Bridson had a strong 21-9 win over Frank Watson.
North Ramsey A didn’t have far to travel to take on South Ramsey A and came away with one winner, bettering their Rayner Shield result from the first week of the season. For the visitors Allan Callow prevented the whitewash with a comfortable 21-12 win over Alan Moore. For the home team Dido Kelly and John Kennish won to single figures, with Chas Grills manging to hold off John Cannan to win 21-18 in difficult conditions.
Douglas A played their first home league fixture of the season on what is without doubt the most improved and best surface on the island at present thanks to the hard work that the club has put in over the past year. The ‘Villa’ men only just missed out on a maximum with Castletown’s George Peach edging his game 21-20 against Gary Conwell. Green Keeper Ian Moore, Mervin Sayle & Keith Rise all won to single figures. Mike Hargraves was next closest to adding a second win for Castletown, however Jimmy Sansom won 21-18.
Port Erin A had a good result at home with a 9-1 win over fellow strugglers Douglas B, who lost three games to single figures, will feel slightly unfortunate not to take at least one more game with Graham Moore, Gordon Wynne-Smythe and Pat O’Donohue losing out to 19,18 and 17 respectively. Andy Cannell was the only winner for the visitors with an excellent 21-6 win over Dave McCabe.
Rearranged fixtures also took place this week with Port St Mary A defeating local rivals Port Erin A 8-2, the winners for the visitors were Dave McCabe beating Wayne Roberts 21-17 and Seamus Whelan who defeated Rob Cooil 21-20.
In the other rearranged fixture Peel A took on Castletown A with Peel using their home advantage to record a 10-0 win. For the home team Frank Watson, Tommy McMeiken & Gary Smith all won to single figures, whilst coming closest to winning for the visitors were Jordan Drewett, Jeff Kinley and Mike Hargraves who scored 20, 19 and 17 respectively.
In division two Castletown B are top of the table and they continued their strong start to the season with an 8-2 home win over Finch Hill A. Hot on their heels are Onchan B only two points behind, who had a 9-1 home win over Port St Mary C. Noble’s B kept the pressure on the top two with a 9-1 home win over Port St Mary B. At the other end of the table Port Erin B are finding life tough as they made the trek to Ballaugh whose A Team were in uncompromising mood and the trip would have been a long one home following a 9-1 loss.
In division three Ballaugh B extended their lead at the top to two points thanks to an 8-2 home win over Onchan C. Marown C sit in second place and will have been pleased to come away from Castletown with a 6-4 win against third placed Castletown C after drawing 4-4 on games but taking the aggregate on chalks. At the other end of the table Peel D sit only a point behind Douglas D.
Marown Stun Over 60s Champions
The Trend sponsored Ladies Over 60s League headed into its first double week and saw Marown and Douglas the only teams to win both their games.
On Tuesday newcomers Mooragh Park B collected their first win by defeating Ballaugh who were one player short 91-88 (3-3).
South Ramsey hosted Mooragh Park A in the Ramsey Derby and it didn’t disappoint. Both teams won three games each but crucially it was Mooragh who won their games more convincingly and won the match 112-98 (3-3). Two of the islands top lady bowlers faced each other as Elaine Moore took on Janet Monk. Janet just having the upper hand to win 21-17.
Onchan used their home advantage to good effect brushing aside Breagle 125-76 (5-1). Kay Primrose Smith beat Jean Quine 21-20 to ensure Onchan didn’t walk away with a maximum.
Champions Port St Mary won all six games as they defeated Villa 126-46.
Douglas won the first of their two matches with a narrow three point win over Port St Mary B and Castletown travelled to Port Erin and won 106-94 (4-2). Nobles hosted Marown with both teams sharing three wins each, Marown just had the edge on the day winning by three points 113-110.
Thursdays game of the day saw Marown host Champions Port St Mary who Marown have not beaten at home in the last seven years. The match was finely balanced with Mary Alderson and Marcia Pearson winning to 19 and 18 respectively for the home team whilst Rita Callister and Margaret Tasker winning 15 and 8 respectively. Marown won the last two games impressively with Philipa Taylor defeating last years merit winner Val McFarlane 21-4 and Shirley Whelan beating Wyn Collister 21-10 to give Marown an overall 107-93 (4-2) victory. I have previously stated Marown are one of the most improved teams in the league and I can only see them causing a few more upsets as the season unfolds.
Villa recorded a maximum score beating Mooragh Park B 126-62 with good individual performances from Margaret Corlett and Pat Kelly.
South Ramsey travelled one short to Ballaugh which gave the home side the advantage from the outset. South Ramsey players Elaine Moore and Helen Caley won to single figures which would have overturned the deficit but home player Voirrey Oates won 21-1 to ensure there was no upset on the cards and Ballaugh won 89-76.
Castletown and Peel Sunset ended being a low scoring game with both teams winning two games to single figures. Peel came out on top winning the match 91-87 (3-3)
In the other games Breagle lost at home to Nobles 76-111 (1-5). Port St Mary B lost 101-115 to Port Erin and Mooragh Park A lost to Douglas by three points 95-98 with both teams winning three games.
Double Week Wins For South Ramsey & Port St Mary
Week two of the ladies night league and a double week of fixtures began with a close encounter at Peel Sunset Bowling Club. A strong South Ramsey team managed to edge past Peel by six chalks winning 151-145 however Peel won 5-4 on games. On the night both teams were evenly matched however, South Ramsey’s individual scores were generally higher allowing them to hold on for the win.
Ballaugh welcomed a Mooragh Park team which is filled with both youth and experience. Mooragh won the match 159-106 (7-2). Gill Dixon and Alison Millard won for Ballaugh and Elaine Fenton almost making it three wins but just losing out 21-20 to Rosemary Quirk. Fantastic to see two young bowlers from Mouragh Park picking up their first wins of the season.
Purt Le Moirrey hosted fellow homegreeners Port St Mary. Linda Dawson won 21-17 against Wendy Kennuagh preventing a whitewash as Port St Mary won 185-96 (8-1)
Castletown A were visited by Marown who were unfortunately short a player. Final score 172-128 (5-4) to Castletown with newcomer Rachel Palmer just missing out on her first win losing 21-20 to Elaine Dewhirst. Close individual matches overall.
In the other matches on Wednesday Port Erin beat Castletown B 157-91 (7-2). Nobles won 188-80 (8-1) at home to Douglas and missed out by a maximum by a single chalk.
On Friday Nobles faced Castletown A who they have only beaten twice in the last seven years. Nobles players Jan West and Alison Keggen won to single figures as the home team won 162-135 (6-3).
Onchan Ladies were visited by Purt Le Moirrey in what was the closest match on Friday night. The result finished with a win for Purt Le Moirrey 157-165 (5-4). A testament to how close the match was Onchan won three games 21-20 and one loss of 21-19.
Douglas lost at home to Port Erin 88-182 (1-8) however it is good seeing another team introducing new members. Pauline Cowley won 21-14 against Susan Inch to stop a full house.
South Ramsey put in a dominant home performance against Marown winning the match 184-102 with Lyn Bolton, Elaine Moore, Kim Hargraves and Shelley Kennish all winning to single figures. Elaine Dewhirst prevented a maximum by beating Gill Morgan 21-16.
Peel Sunset picked up their second win of the season by defeating Mooragh Park 167-107 (7-2) with Janet Monk and Caroline Parker winning for the away team.
Finally Champions Port St Mary won comfortably at home to Ballaugh 176-82 with Gill Dixon winning for Ballaugh.
Looking ahead to next week the Prelim round of the Jean Kelly competition is played on Wednesday with a full set of night league fixtures on Friday including two big matches as Peel Sunset host Port St Mary and South Ramsey head down to Castletown.
British Merit Qualifier 2018
Lynda Cadamy (Port Erin) will represent the Isle of Man in the British Merit after winning the Qualifier at Finch Hill Bowling Club on Saturday 14th April.
In the final Lynda beat Marown bowler Lil Smith 21-10. Losing in the semi finals were Debbie Leece (Nobles) and Caroline Whitehead (Port Erin)
Avant Amenity Mixed Doubles
Avant Amenity Mixed Doubles Winners 2018
Jenny Moore, Mike Atherton (Sponsor), James TeareOn Saturday 14th April the Avant Amenity sponsored Mixed Doubles was held by Douglas Bowling Club on a superb bowling surface at the ‘Villa’.
The sunshine arrived just in time for the start and ensured a bright afternoon and great bowls from all taking part in what proved to be a great days bowls for competitors and spectators.
With twenty nine pairs taking part there were some very competitive matches from the onset and as we arrived at the Semi Final Stage we had Alison Keggen and Brian Kelly drawn to play Lyn Bolton and Trevor Quayle and Jenny Moore and James Teare to play Kim Hargraves and Alan Moore.
In the first of these Semi Finals we saw the pairing of Alison Keggen and Brian Kelly not quite maintaining their brilliant early afternoon form and eventually losing out 21-9 to the ever consistent Lyn Bolton and Trevor Quayle.
The second Semi Final was a much closer affair with Jenny Moore and James Teare being severely tested by Kim Hargraves and Alan Moore before eventually winning 21-19.
The Final started with Lyn and Trevor looking as if they would take the honours but Jenny and James although looking down at times were certainly not out and a dramatic last couple of ends saw Jenny and James run out 21-18 winners.
The prizes were presented by Mike Atherton of Sponsors Avant Amenity and in his winners speech James thanked the Sponsor and commented on the good condition of the Douglas Bowling Club Green.
Kennish ‘Cains’ the Opposition
Yet another superb display of bowling by South Ramsey’s John Kennish ensured a third consecutive Cain Cup victory at Castletown on Sunday.
Having beaten the impressive Wayne Roberts (Port St Mary) in the semi final 21-9 he then ran out from 10-10 to beat Onchan’s Phil Kerruish in the final to ensure the Cup, which was presented by the home club’s President Ron Williams, would remain in his already bulging trophy cabinet.
Kerruish’s path to the final was a little more difficult because after Matthew Keggen (Marown) had lost out 21-17 in the quarter final, he only just managed to beat Kennish’s clubmate Glynn Hargraves to 21-20 in an epic semi final tussle.
The other quarter finalists from a total of 36 players who entered this non-handicap, 21up event were David Bradford (South Ramsey) plus two home players, Mike Hargraves and David Faragher.
Peel Sunset A and Castletown A Set The Pace
Tuesday 10th April saw the third series of Over 60’s Games again troubled by very heavy rain which again led to some postponements.
Castletown B hosted Ballaugh B and the home side took a 7-1 victory with Bobby Clayton being the only winner for the Ballaugh squad with a good 21-14 win over Mark Saunders.
Douglas A welcomed Onchan A to the Villa with a slightly delayed start time which had been agreed to allow one corner of the Green to drain after some severely heavy rain. It proved to be quite a battle with some very close games but Onchan A eventually ran out 6-2 winners with Douglas A actually gaining the most chalks which goes to show how close the Match was.
Castletown A got permission from the Fairies to cross the Fairy Bridge to travel to Nobles Park A and the Southerners proved to be too strong for the Nobles A side with a 6-2 win. Stewart Cubbon and Kevin Firth were the two winners for the home side.
Peel Sunset A played North Ramsey B in the West of the Island and it was the home side who ran out 6-2 winners but once more it was a shame to see that the Northerners were unable to field a full team.
Port Erin hosted Douglas B in the scenic South of the Island and it was a close match which ended in a 4-4 draw.
Marown travelled from the Central Valley to the South to play Port St Mary B in a match that produced some close games but it was the Marown side that were 7-1 winners with Andy Sykes being the only winner for the Port St Mary Team as he beat Arnie Withers 21-18.
North Ramsey made a worthwhile trip to Douglas to take a 5-3 win from Nobles B although this Nobles side is proving to be a tough one to beat and certainly gave the North Ramsey side a good game.
Onchan B had a good home win over Peel Sunset B with a 6-2 win with only John Lightfoot and Phillip Clarke getting the required 21 chalks for the Westerners.
South Ramsey beat Peel Sunset C 6-2 with Lesley Halsall and Michael Callin getting the Peel wins in this one.
Game 4
Castletown A still look a formidable team and on this occasion they beat Onchan B 6-2 with Gary Lee and Peter Wallis picking up the wins for the men from Onchan.
Port Erin hosted North Ramsey B and despite the Northerners being three players short on the day they still managed a 4-4 draw.
Onchan A took a 7-1 victory in their match against Finch Hill A with the one Finch Hill win going to Arthur Halsall 21-17.
Douglas A went just up the hill to play Nobles B in what proved a tough match with the Douglas A side taking a 5-3 win and it was nice to see old campaigner Roy Williams playing his first game for some time and coming away with a 21-12 win over Peter Woods.
Port St Mary A hosted North Ramsey A and a strong performance from the Northerners saw them take a 6-2 win with only Ron Maycox and Doug McFarlane picking up wins for the home side.
Port St Mary B meanwhile travelled to the Villa to play Douglas B and here it was the Southerners who took a 6-2 win with the home team winners being Bob Banning and Tony Creer.
At Crosby there was a very tight match between Marown and Nobles A and in a match where there were three 21-20 scores the Marown side managed to take the honours 5-3.
Finally Peel Sunset B battled out a 4-4 draw with South Ramsey and Peel Sunset A tok a 7-1 win from Ballaugh B with Ray Parry being the only winner for the Ballaugh side.
So after the first four matches of the Season Peel Sunset A lead the League from Castletown A but with both being on 8 points. It is however early days yet and I am sure that there will be many twists and turns and changes before the end of the Season.