News: Reports
Weather disrupts the start of the Over 60’s Men’s Season.
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 6th 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.
Teare, Leece & Boland do the Treble
Jubliee Cup Winners 2018
Rebecca Teare, Debbie Leece & Glenn BolandAn entry of 14 teams competed for the Port St Mary Jubilee Cup mixed triples, sponsored by CTH Insurance.
After a damp start the sun came out and the green became very nice to play on. The first round matches were played to 21 off 3, allowing everyone to get a good run on the green. All other rounds were played to 21 off 6.
Making it through to the semi-finals were Tim Williams, Katy Williams and Jayne Kneen who took on Rebecca Teare, Debbie Leece and Glenn Boland, with the latter winning a close match 21-17. The other semi-final saw Janet Monk, Rob Monk and Jordan Cain win 21-13 after a slow start against Ray Watterson, Robbie Cooil and Ange Maddrell-Reeve.
In the final Rebecca, Debbie and Glenn got of to a good start winning the first three ends. Janet, Rob and Jordan fought back well to take the lead. The score got to 20-18 to Janet, Rob and Jordan, but Rebecca, Debbie and Glenn scored three on the last end to win the match.
Club President Robbie Cooil presented the Jubilee Cup to the winners on behalf of CTH Insurance, thanking them for their continued sponsorship. Robbie also thanked the Port St Mary Ladies for their usual excellent catering and the green keeper for the excellent playing surface.
Thank you to everyone who competed and came to watch.
World Club Championships
South Ramsey competed in the World Club Championships at Fox Lane, Leyland for the second time on Sunday April 8th but were unable to find a way to defeat their opponents Holme (Cumbria)
The team did fare better than last year losing out by a 5-3 scoreline with the three winners being Peter Collister who just got over the line 21-20, Jenny Moore who played well to earn a 21-14 victory proving once again that she can mix it with the men and Stefan Kelly who had a good 21-10 victory over Liam Baxter who has won the Cumbria merit.
Overall the team lost out by 22 chalks.
Holme 5 (149) South Ramsey 3 (127): Daniel Varcoe 21, David Bradford 13; Mark Ashburn 21, Glynn Hargraves 16; Tom Baxter 20, Peter Collister 21; Robert Grisedale 14, Jenny Moore 21; Stephen Ashburn 21, Alan Moore 12; Callum Baxter 21, Chas Grills 8; David Grisedale 21, James Teare 15; Liam Baxter 10, Stefan Kelly 21
Marown Make Strong Start
Marown A started their season on Wednesday evening with a strong 9-1 victory away to South Ramsey B, with Steven Waters preventing the whitewash with a 21-15 win over John Gelling, whilst Tony Dugdale came next closest for the home team before losing out 19-21. New signing Paul Kelly came back from 3-10 down to win comfortably and Dean Kipling made his return to the fold with a 21-1 win to make the absence of their top player Colin Kelly go pretty much unnoticed.
Looking at Marown’s squad of nine players, they have no weak links and will be the team to beat this season.
South Ramsey A started their season with a good 8-2 win away to newly promoted Marown B. Peter Kelly used all his experience to record an assured 21-13 win, whilst Chas Grills couldn’t quite get over the line against Juan Killip to lose out 19-21. One of three youngsters in the home team Bobby Thorne just fell at the final hurdle to lose out 20-21 to Alan Moore. The Marown B Team has a good mix of youth and experience which should stand them in good stead in their quest to remain in the top division.
Onchan A managed to edge their home fixture against Douglas A in part thanks to getting a walkover due to one of the Douglas players pulling out due to illness. Peter Slinger and Jordan Cain had good wins for the home side, whilst Mervin Sayle won to single figures. Gary Conwell made a confident start to the season with a 21-13 win over Adrian Skinner, whilst Ian Moore defeated Rob Monk 21-15. Stuart Garrett just got over the line with a 21-20 win over Kevin Quirk.
Douglas B took on North Ramsey A at the Villa with the home side losing out 3-7. For the visitors Allan Callow and Geoff Porter both won to single figures, and Steve Parker got over the line with a 21-20 win. For the home team Andy Cannell put in an assured performance to win 21-7 over John Cannan.
Two first division fixtures fell victim to the poor weather, these were Peel A v Castletown A and Port St Mary A v Port Erin A.
In division two Nobles A look to have a squad that could go back up to division one following a two year absence and they started their campaign with a 8-2 home win over North Ramsey B.
Castletown B started their quest to make an immediate return to the top flight with a 9-1 win over Peel Sunset B, with Gordon Corrin sparing the blushes for the visitors with an excellent win over Derek Lewney.
Onchan B won’t be far away at the end of the season as they started with a 8-2 win away to Nobles B.
At the time of writing Ballaugh A hadn’t played their first fixture, however they are one of four teams who will be looking to challenge at the top of division two.
In division three Marown C got their season off to a flying start with an 8-2 home win over South Ramsey C. The Marown lads will be looking to improve as they have in their previous two years playing together. Five years ago Marown pulled their B Team out of the league as they were unable to field a team, now they have two teams in the top division with their C Team competing to get promoted, which reflects the great work the club has done to promote new players to the game.
Douglas D have managed to hold on to their D Team for a second season, however they were only able to field six players, whilst the visitors Castletown C only fielded seven players but managed to come away with a 8-2 win.
Douglas C made a strong start to the season with a 7-3 away victory over Onchan C.
Finch Hill B had new signings Kevin Stannard and his son Sam both marking their debuts with wins, however they could not prevent their team from losing 3-7 at home to Ballaugh C.
On Thursday evening the first rounds of the Rayner Shield took place with bowls once again showing it is a sport for all ages with South Ramsey D having nine year old Ryan Hargraves winning 21-8, which helped his team take the victory over Douglas C to put their name in the hat for the next round. At the other end of the spectrum Over 60’s player Arthur Halsall was the only winner for Finch Hill A edging his game 21-20 over Neil Withers.
Bradford Wins Marown Floodlit Championship
Following the success of last year’s competition Marown once again held the opening tournament of the season with a strong entry of 94, played over four qualifying nights, with four qualifiers from each evening.
The competition commenced on Sunday evening with Colin Kelly, Tommy McMeiken, Rob Monk and Janet Monk all qualifying for Thursday’s finals night, with Tommy and Rob both being pushed all the way in their final qualifying games against Helen Martin and Clare Cooper respectively.
Monday evening’s action had a few shocks, with Marown B Captain Harry Barton coming through three tough games beating Island players Matthew Quirk and Peter Slinger, along with club mate Lil Smith. Margaret Tasker was the second qualifier of the night, seeing off the challenges of Jerome Surridge and Matthew Keggen. Trish Bull came through three games to take the third spot of the evening, whilst Glynn Hargraves had to defeat his better half Kim Hargraves to take the final qualifying place .
Tuesday evening saw two home greeners qualify with Conor Keenan, coming through two tough games to take the first spot, whilst Steve Bridson defeated club mate Phil Kelly to book his place. James Teare excelled to beat Neil Withers, then topped off his evening by defeating partner and top lady player Jenny Moore. The final qualifying spot went to David Bradford who came from behind in both of his games to defeat Phil Kerruish 21-19 and Paul Dunn 21-15 respectively.
The final qualifying night on Wednesday was a cold evening with Jordan Cain coming from 17-14 down to end the challenge of Alison Keggen with a 21-18 win to book his spot. The final three spots went to South Ramsey players, with Alan Moore, Stefan Kelly and junior Austin Hart booking their places.
Thursday evening was finals night with the draw taking place live on the night, with the last 16 being played down to the winner. Once again the rain managed to hold off and there was a good turnout to watch the conclusion of the competition.
Losing out at the last 16 stage were Port St Mary’s Trish Bull and Margaret Tasker, home greeners Harry Barton, Steve Bridson and Conor Keenan, James Teare and Alan Moore (South Ramsey) and Tommy McMeiken (Peel).
In the quarter finals David Bradford had to once again come from behind to defeat North Ramsey’s Janet Monk 21-17, whilst Austin Hart came from behind to level things at 20 across before clubmate Stefan Kelly played a good first bowl under pressure to end the challenge of Hart. Marown’s Colin Kelly performed well to defeat Jordan Cain (Onchan) 21-9, whilst Glynn Hargraves (South Ramsey) took his place in the semi final with a 21-15 win over Rob Monk (Onchan).
In the semi final Stefan Kelly pushed club mate David Bradford hard before losing out 21-17, whilst Colin Kelly booked his place in the final with a 21-13 victory after pulling away from Glynn Hargraves after a nip and tuck start to the game.
The final was eagerly anticipated with neither player being able to get a run on the other in the first half of the game, before Bradford pulled away to build a 16-11 lead. Kelly responded with a two to pull the score back to 13-16, before Bradford once again had a run to take a 21-14 win and the title.
The presentation was made by Neil Withers, with spot prizes from each qualifying evening for the highest break, furthest junior went to Austin Hart and furthest lady went to Janet Monk. Prizes were paid out to the last 16.
Thanks were also given for the excellent refreshments of hot dogs, soup, cakes and more throughout the week.
Congratulations must go to Marown on a well run competition which looks like becoming a regular fixture in the bowling calendar to start the season.
New Season Gets Underway
South Ramsey A Team 2017
Back: Chas Grills, Stefan Kelly, Dave 'Dido' Kelly, Alan Moore, Peter CollisterFront: John Kennish, David Bradford, Glynn Hargraves
In Division One South Ramsey A start the defence of their title with a visit to Crosby to take on the newly promoted Marown B, who will be looking to make a strong start to the season as they have several players who will be playing in the top tier for the first time. I am confident enough to predict that Marown B will retain their top flight status this season.
Marown A have one addition to their team this season with the addition of Paul Kelly from Douglas, with the Crosby men looking to close the gap to the top and build on last season’s Rayner Shield success, as they start with a visit to take on South Ramsey B.
South Ramsey will have their work cut out to once again prove they have the hunger to win the league for only the third time in their history.
Onchan A will be looking to improve on last season’s third place finish, they begin their season with the visit of Douglas A to Onchan Park.
Peel A have strengthened with the return of Tommy McMeiken. I can definitely see Peel building on last season’s sixth place finish and making the top four, whilst also having the firepower to damage the top three on their own turf.
Douglas B will have a fight on their hands to stay in the top tier this season, having narrowly avoided relegation in 2017. The Villa men commence their season with the visit of North Ramsey A.
Port St Mary A start their campaign with the visit of local rivals Port Erin A, who will hoping to make a better start to the season than they did in 2017, to avoid getting dragged into a relegation fight for another year.
In Division Two there are three A Teams sitting outside the top tier, Ballaugh who got relegated last season, Finch Hill and Nobles who were both relegated in 2016. Out of these Ballaugh are best placed to make an immediate return to Division One, with Nobles having the potential to do so if they field their strongest eight players in their A Team.
Also looking to go straight back up are Castletown B, whilst Onchan B finished runners up last season they will be keen to build on last season’s position.
At the other end of the table Peel C will be hoping to stay up after winning Division Three last season.
In Division Three Marown C now have the benefit of two years league experience behind them and they will be confident of building on their third place finish in 2017.
Douglas D look to have retained their fourth team for another season to give their new players the opportunity to gain vital league experience and improve on last season’s points total.
Finally I hope you have all wintered well and wish everyone an enjoyable season.
World Club Championships
Following their success in retaining the League last season, South Ramsey A have the opportunity to compete in the World Club Championships at Fox Lane, Leyland on Sunday April 8th where they take on Holme (Cumbria).
The competition is played in a group of four teams on a straight knockout basis. The other two teams in the group are Wharton Cons (Cheshire) taking on Eccleston (Merseyside). The winners from each game in the group then play off to qualify for the finals day on Sunday April 22nd.
Ladies Night League & Over 60s Season Preview
Jean Kelly Memorial Winners 2017
Back: Wendy Kennuagh, Chris Price, Kelly Maddrell-Reeve, Margret Tasker, Ann Maddrell, Trish Bull, Val MacFarlane, Win CollisterFront: Jayne Kneen, Katy Maddrell
As we approach the start of the 2018 CTH Insurance Sponsored Ladies Night League and Trend sponsored Over 60s League it is fantastic that we welcome four new teams to bowls. Castletown B into the night league, South Ramsey and Mooragh Park B into the Over 60s League and Finch Hill who are entering the Mixed Team Competition. It is great to see Finch Hill returning with some lady bowlers having last competed in the over 60s league in 2012 and the night league over 10 years ago back in 2005.
Port St Mary dominated the 2017 season winning the Night League, Over 60s League and Jean Kelly with individual success for Ann Maddrell and Val Macfarlane topping the merits. Port St Mary have won the league for the last four years but South Ramsey are close on their tail, closing the gap to just 85 chalks – an average of around 4 points a game. Nobles Over 60s picked up the JMS Shield beating Marown.
The top four teams in the night league have been the same for the last three years and I can only see the battle getting closer. In the over 60s Peel Sunset pushed Port St Mary A all the way and I predict another close encounter this year. A mention to Marown who in 2015 finished bottom of the league and in 2017 finished 6th and will look to further improve in 2018. With a strong set of mentors in Castletown A I can only see their new B team sitting nicely in the league.
The first competition of the season is the re-arranged Non Winners from 2017. This is to be held at Nobles Bowling Club Saturday 7th April players can enter via the website or contact Debbie Leece ([email protected]) or Heather Horsburgh ([email protected]).
Result Cards
From the start of the new season all night league match cards should be sent electronically as a photo to [email protected] as soon as the match finishes. These no longer need to be posted to Heather but please keep hold for a couple of weeks in case of any queries.
Over 60s match cards where possible should be sent as electronic photo to [email protected]. However, if this isn’t possible they should be posted to Alison Keggen and rung through to 425242. Anyone at the match, other than the captain, can send this through.
Good luck to all for the 2018 season
Mens Over 60’s Season Preview
Ismay Cup Winners 2017 - Castletown A
Back: Jimmy Young, Collin Holland, Ron Williams, Derek Lewney, Mike Hargraves, Dave Faragher Front: George Foy, Peter Oates, George PeachTuesday 3rd April sees the start of the Men’s Over 60’s Season with last years Champions Castletown A opening with a short trip to Port Erin which could see them having to dig deep to come away with a win. At this time of the year all Greens will be slightly slow and with Port Erin never being the quickest the Castletown men may find themselves under pressure from the home team.
Last seasons runners up Port St Mary A may find themselves with the same difficulties in their trip to Onchan B, again on a Green which is not the quickest and may suit the home team although I do expect the Southerners to come away with a win.
Onchan A travel to Ballaugh A for what could be a very close game and with Ballaugh having a couple of new players I will tip this one for a draw.
Peel Sunset A host Marown A and again I anticipate a tight match here but would expect home advantage to swing things in Peel’s favour but I wouldn’t be confident enough to bet on it.
Nobles A host Peel Sunset C and although the Westerners finished bottom of the table last year I expect them to do much better this term although on this occasion I would expect Nobles to get the win.
Douglas A host Ballaugh B at the ‘Villa’ and although the Douglas side look favourites on paper I think the men from Ballaugh will give them a tough battle.
Castletown B have a home match against Douglas B and again on paper the Castletown Team should be favourites. I expect the Douglas lads will be looking to improve on last years position and will give them a close game.
Port St Mary B host Peel Sunset B which will once again be a tough match and here we have two teams who are used to playing on a challenging Green so this will add to the interest and I am going to sit on the Fence and predict a draw here.
South Ramsey have a visit from Nobles B and I am not sure of the strength of either of these teams this season but will go for South Ramsey to use home advantage and take the points.
Finch Hill A see North Ramsey B coming into Douglas for a game which once again it is difficult to predict because although it is rumoured that Finch Hill have a number of new players we will have to wait and see who turns out on the day.
The last match of the opening Day will actually be played on the Wednesday as the North Ramsey Club are having to play all of April’s matches away from home due to difficulties with their Green at the Mooragh Park. This then sees North Ramsey A travelling to Finch Hill B and I really can’t see the home side being strong enough to beat the Northerners although I am sure that they will give it their best shot.
So that covers the first day of the new season which I think will see an intriguing battle for the League Championship and I think that this time Castletown A may well struggle to hold of the challenge that will be put up by a number of other teams.
I see a much closer battle with Port St Mary A, Peel Sunset A, Onchan A and North Ramsey A all being capable of posing a tough challenge to Castletown A.
Time will tell as to how bad my predictions are so for now polish up your bowls, pray for sunshine and enjoy your bowling.
Juan Kelly Cup
Juan Kelly Cup Winners 2017
David Proctor, Juan Kelly (sponsor), Glenn BolandMarown Bowling Club held an end of season Floodlit competition, hosting the inaugural Juan Kelly Cup, with the format being an any competition doubles, played over 15 ends with ends 5, 10 and 15 played as ‘power’ ends with the points scored counting double. The pairs were given a handicap based on their rankings in the Men’s and Ladies game. If scores were tied after 15 ends a one bowl shootout would take place, with a player from each team nominated to play the deciding end.
The competition in this format, attracted a bumper entry of 40 pairs, with some interesting pairings making use of the handicap system played over two qualifying nights, with four pairs qualifying from each night for the quarter finals.
The finals night was held on Wednesday evening, with a live re-draw taking place to determine who the pairings would play on the night.
The eventual winners were the pairing of David Proctor and Glenn Boland, who mastered the extremely wet conditions, defeating Bethany and John Kennish in the final to a 29-19 score line. Proctor and Boland were superb throughout the whole competition, winning all of their games to comfortable scores.
Losing out in the semi-finals were Clare Cooper and Rebecca Teare 20-22 to the runners up, along with Kim Hargraves and Stefan Kelly 19-27 to the winners.
Losing quarter finalists were Dave Pease and Steve Cook, Thomas Keggen and Dave McCabe, Jenny Moore and James Teare, Lil Smith and Maureen Payne.
At the conclusion of play the presentation was made by Phil Kelly, who thanked Juan Kelly for sponsoring the competition, the Ladies for the refreshments, the players for entering, and all those who stayed to support. Juan Kelly then presented the prizes. Spot prizes were also given for highest score in the first round, which also went to David Proctor and Glenn Boland, (37 points) with the biggest break being awarded to Fiona Kennish and Alan Moore (15 points) Credit must also be given to Marown for trying something different, with the excellent entry showing the support for the new format.
South Ramsey Retain Division One
South Ramsey A Team 2017
Back: Chas Grills, Stefan Kelly, Dave 'Dido' Kelly, Alan Moore, Peter CollisterFront: John Kennish, David Bradford, Glynn Hargraves
South Ramsey A retained the Division One title by beating Port St Mary A 6-4. South have been a dominant force all season and fully deserve to win back to back trophies and will look forward to competing in the 2018 World Club Challenge and going for a hattrick of wins next season.
Marown A pushed hard in the second half of the season to chase down South Ramsey but despite their best efforts settle for second place finishing eight points behind the champions.
Onchan A had already guaranteed third position but Douglas A, Port St Mary A and Peel Sunset A were all fighting for fourth position.
Peel slipped to a 8-2 defeat away to Onchan A leaving them to finish sixth. Douglas A picked up a 8-2 win over North Ramsey A but crucially Port St Mary A picked up four points in their defeat at South Ramsey A pipping Douglas by a single point to claim fourth position.
Castletown B finish bottom following their 8-2 loss at Marown A but Ballaugh A, Douglas B or Port Erin A could still finish in the bottom two. Douglas B sat out Wednesday having already completed all their matches so were sweating on the results from their relegation rivals.
Port Erin A who with only a few games to go were rock bottom found good form in their final few matches finishing the season off by defeating South Ramsey B 7-3 and keeping them in the top flight.
That left Ballaugh A, they went to Castletown A knowing they needed three points to jump Douglas B and save their season. On the night they lost two games 21-18 and another 21-17 and could only manage two wins losing 8-2 on the night and leaving them with Castletown B at the bottom.
Colin Kelly collected the division one merit on the final day of the season with David Bradford finishing second and Trevor Quayle third.
Marown B had already confirmed themselves as Champions and finished the season with a 5-5 draw at Peel Sunset B. Onchan B finished seven points behind the men from Crosby with Nobles B third and a further 20 points back.
Nobles B have enjoyed much success this season incredibly finishing nine points ahead of their A team. In their final matches Nobles B went down 7-3 away to Port St Mary B and Nobles A defeated Port Erin B 9-1.
Douglas C finish bottom along with Onchan C.
The division two merit came right down to the wire and Steve Crampton finished top of the shop signing his season off with a 21-9 victory. Kerry ‘Bod’ Boland finished second.
Division three had a great finale with Ballaugh C leading the division by two points ahead of Peel Sunset C. With both teams having one hand on the trophy the fixture list happened to throw them together on the last night of the season.
Ballaugh travelled to Sunset City and the match was close, only separated by eight chalks but it was Peel who won 7-3 and took the third division trophy.
The division three merit was also just as close, Dave Smith led the way but three other people were waiting to pounce should he have lost. Away at Ballaugh B Dave won 21-7 and collected the merit in only his second season of league bowls.
So the curtain has fallen on another fantastic season of league bowls. We thank our Sponsors Ellan Vannin Fuels for their continued support along with all the people behind the scenes that help with the running of the league.