News: Reports
Heroic Local Showing In First Ever County Match
The Paddy Power sponsored Isle of Man senior men’s team broke new ground on Sunday as they took part in their first ever Senior County Championship Match. Their historic inclusion into the Endleigh Insurance sponsored Crosfield cup was the culmination of so much work by so many people, which started way back in 2012, drew a capacity crowd for the home leg at Peel bowing club.
Logistically and financially this is the biggest and most complex project in the history of Crown Green bowls, not just on the Isle of Man but in Britain as there are four flights and UK travel to contend with and whilst there are always learning points from a venture like this, the day could not have run any smoother. It ended up a day in the sun, not only for the Manx men, but also for their opponents Shropshire who did their part in making this the most momentous day in the history of the game.
If organisational lessons were learned there were also some handed out on the bowling green with Shropshire in devastating form in both home and away legs. They are one of the favourites to win the entire competition and certainly held no punches against the Manxies. Our lads though can be extremely proud of how they played and whilst they didn’t win the match they certainly raised a few eyebrows with some scintillating performances of their own, in fact after four games in the away leg they actually led by three points.
The home side played well and despite some extremely close matches only picked up two wins, with Trevor Quayle recording a great 21-15 win over the talented Andrew Moss and young Adrian Skinner winning Endsliegh Insurance Man of the Match with his terrific 21-16 win against Andrew Judson. This is crown green bowls at the highest level and like all sports at elite level games are won and lost by fine margins and but for the rub of the green it could have been a very different story win the locals recording two 20’s a 19 and two 18 defeats. Ten more points from 5 games would have seen the draw 6-6 on games.
In Shropshire, as mentioned earlier, the team started superbly winning two of the first four matched and narrowly losing out 19 in the others to take a slender lead. John Kennish and Phil Kerruish led the way with good wins and Glynn Hargraves can be pleased to have played really well at this level. For me though David Bradford was the star of the show in the early stages and despite training 19-10, to arguably the best player in the Shropshire home side, he showed us what county bowling is all about having the resolve to fight his way back to narrowly lose out 21-19. The adventure into the unknown was always going to be difficult and their strength in depth really showed in the mid order; however we saved the best to last with Phil Kelly stealing the show with a mouth watering 21-11 victory over Peter Farmer.
Overall Shropshire won the 24 game match 477 to 358 but the local lads should be very proud of what they achieved in their first outing on the big stage. I cannot emphasise enough how much work has gone in the background to make this long standing dream a reality, and not just the player but the organisers and anyone who had ever had an association with Crown Green Bowls should be very proud of what was achieved yesterday. Shropshire may have won the match yesterday but without question the real winner was Crown Green Bowls on the Isle of Man.
Home Leg – Peel Sunset Bowling Club
Isle of Man 182 v Shropshire 241 – Colin Kelly 18, Martin Lloyd 21; Kevin Quirk 20, Richie Goddard 21, Neil Withers 18, Glyn Herbert 21; Paul Skelly 8, Darren Welling 21; Dean Kipling 20, Wayne Phillips 21; Stuart Garrett 8, Clay Flattley 21; Adrian Skinner 21, Andrew Judson 16; Jerome Surridge 16, Michael Beer 21; Chas Grills 5, Callum Wraight 21; Trevor Quayle 21, Andrew Moss 15; Peter Collister 8, Kiah Roberts 21; Barney Kelly 19, Wayne Rogers 21.
Away Leg – Sinclair Bowling Club
Shropshire 236 v Isle of Man 176 – Scott Haries 21, Glynn Hargraves 19; Spencer Clarke 16, John Kennish 21; Colin Beaman 21, David Bradford 19; Stuart Rutter 20, Phil Kerruish 21; Phil Emery 21, Matthew Keggen 17, Alex Jones 21, Jordan Cain 8,; Rich Lawson 21, Dido Kelly 7; Glyn Picknell 21, John Gelling 15; Alin Palin 21, Peter Slinger 6; Jamie King 21, Ewan Cooil 9; Peter Grimston 21, Paul Kelly 13; Peter Farmer 11, Phil Kelly 21.
Douglas stun League Leaders – Games 5 & 6
In another breathtaking Isle of Man Bank Men’s division one match league leaders Onchan A were narrowly beaten on their travels to Douglas A last Monday. The villa men were in fine form and managed to win four games and edge the aggregate by a solitary point to seal an historic 6-4 win over Onchan.
It may have been the wake up call that the leaders needed as they were back to their scintillating best on Wednesday as they bounced back with an 8-2 win over old enemy Marown A. Marown will be disappointed with the result after some good work saw them record a 9-1 win over Castletown A earlier in the week.
Douglas A finished a successful week with a 8-2 away win over Nobles A. Port St Mary were another team in fine fettle last week and they will have raised a few eyebrows with their 8-2 win over high flying South Ramsey A on Monday. They backed this up with a good 8-2 win away at Castletown A to really get some momentum going in their campaign. South responded with a midweek 8-2 win over Ballaugh A.
North Ramsey A are the only side still to have a 100% record and had another very successful week with respective 7-3 wins away to Port Erin A and at home to Castletown B. They face a sterner test against Douglas and Marown this week and it will be interesting to see how this ever improving team get on.
Port St Mary B are flying high at the top of division 2 and two 8-2 wins, most notably their home victory over second placed South Ramsey B will have done their title credentials no harm at all.
Douglas B are third and only two points off the top despite playing a game less. They still have a 100% record and a solid 7-3 win over North Ramsey B keeps them in the hunt for silverware.
Only four points separates the top five teams in division 3 with Peel C leading the way on 34. They are closely followed by Onchan C and Ballaugh C on 33 and Douglas C and Finch Hill B are both on 30.
Point Deductions – Game 6
Peel Sunset D deducted 4 league points for failing to fulfil their fixture
Ladies’ over 60’s Tuesday 5 May
The weather was the winner in the Trend sponsored over 60’s ladies’ league on Tuesday 5 May when only two of the scheduled seven matches took place.
Unfortunately Douglas could only field five players at Noble’s where the home team reached 120 points with Jan Osborne spoiling their party by winning her game to deny them a maximum. In the other game played Castletown had the better of Breagle by 4 games to 2 with Ann Hollingworth and Marie Ashurst winning to single figures. The two winners for the home side were Sylvia Maddrell and and Suzanna Ali while Joyce Henry almost added another game reaching 19 against Sue Peach.
Ladies’ over 60’s Thursday 30 April
There were some close matches in the Trend ladies’ over 60’s league on Thursday 30 April but that was not the case at Port St Mary where the A team extended their lead at the top of the table with a full house against their B team, despite valiant efforts from Roma Ware, reaching 19 against Win Collister, and Edwina Reid who lost out 20-21 to Wendy Kennaugh. Ballaugh also won by a fair margin in a low-scoring match with both teams having two wins to single figures, the highest losing score being 11.At Castletown the match ended level on games, with Villa ending with a four point advantage. It was a similar story at Douglas, level on games with Mooragh Park,but a 4 point win for the home side, while at Noble’s Peel Sunset won 4 games but lost by 6 points. Noble’s registered two 20’s with Lin Ruscoe just losing out to Cath Parker and Flo Price being edged out by Mona Kerruish. Onchan A won 4-2 on games and by 6 points while Onchan B lost 2-4 to Breagle but showed the importance of fighting for every point as they drew on points with Eileen Killey reaching 19 against Kay Primrose-Smith and Barbara Kennaugh losing out 20-21 to Audrey Gardner.
Ladies’ League Friday 1 May
Noble’s were top scorers in the C Tarlton Hodgson sponsored league on Friday 1 May when they visited Marown. Pat Withers and Lil Smith, to single figures, were the two winners for the home side while Joyce Ogden and Clare Cooper also won to single figures for the visitors. Purt le Moirrey could only muster two winners at Ballaugh, although both wins, by Chris Price and Chris Holland, were to single figures, as were three of the Ballaugh wins. There were three single figure wins at Peel, one to the home side and two to the visitors. There were also two games that went all the way, Kim Foy just losing out 20-21 to Joyce Kelly, balanced by Pat Robertson being edged out by Marie Ashurst to the same score. Port St Mary had a 6-3 win on games over South Ramsey with Alison Keggen winning to single figures as did Lyn Bolton for the opposition. The other two matches were closer affairs. Despite being a player short Onchan took six games against Port Erin to win by six points, the game of the match seeing Phil Dobson come through 21-20 against Eileen Thomas. It was a low scoring affair at Douglas with the home side winning two games to single figures and the visitors three. Although they won 6-3 on games Douglas claimed victory by just 5 points.
Sylvia Cashen ladies’ doubles
On a bitterly cold afternoon when the weather threw everything at the players, wind, rain and hail interspersed with sunny periods, a field of 22 pairs gathered at Port St Mary on Wednesday 29 April for the Sylvia Cashen Charity ladies’ doubles.
The weather did not spoil the occasion and there were some close and exciting games with a high standard of bowling on display.
Semi-finals: Marie Ashurst and Kath Kinley 21, Philippa Taylor and Heather Horsburgh 10; Jayne Kneen and Val Macfarlane 21, Chris Price and Rita Callan 9
In the final Val and Jayne played a mark up the side of the green superbly giving their opponents little chance to get in, finally running out 21-10 winners.
President Ann Maddrell made the presentation, pointing out that Val had won the trophy on 13 previous occasions and Jayne on six. She thanked all those who had entered and helped to raise £300+ for the Anti-Cancer (Breast care unit)
Thanks also went to Ray for the condition of the green, to Gill for running the sheet and the ladies’ fo baking cakes and doing the refreshments.
Another week, another Leader
The lead in the Tower Insurance Over 60’s League has changed yet again, after a black week for previous leader Peel Sunset A, who entertained reigning champions Castletown A on Tuesday and ended up on the wrong end of a 6-2 defeat, this was followed by a similar score line on their trip to Port St Mary A to compound a poor week for the westerners, however I am certain that they will come back from this setback stronger than ever. This allowed Douglas A to take over the mantle as top dog, with a fine 5-3 win on their trip to Onchan A, however the curse at the top say them drop at point at home to an accomplished Nobles A team to allow North Ramsey A to head the table after beating Finch Hill at the Mooragh 7-1 and then beating Nobles B by 6-2 at Nobles, this game was a lot closer than the score line suggests with Nobles having one player scoring 20 and two on 19. North Ramsey have 12 points from 7 games one ahead of Douglas A and South Ramsey, who beat Nobles B 7-1 in the north before visiting Onchan B and getting a 5-3 victory. On 9 points come Port St Mary who have a game in hand after two victories this week. Also on 9 points but having played 7 games come previous leaders Peel Sunset A, and Castletown B who also had two good wins
Next up come defending Champs Castletown A who like Port St Mary have a game in hand and are on 8 points along with Nobles A, while on 7 points are three clubs that also all have a game in hand these being Marown A, Ballaugh A and Peel Sunset B. This means that once the teams that have played a match more have to sit out their game there could be 10 teams within 3 points of the top. And this is not including the two Onchan teams who are going through a bad spell at present but both have the players to climb up the league. The Preliminary round of the Ismay Cup was also played this week and which pitted a lot of the top clubs against each other. Ballaugh A had a good away win over Nobles A by 6-3 while the other three games saw wins for home teams, Douglas A defeating Onchan B 7-2, Onchan A beating Finch Hill 7-2 and Port St Mary had a home win over South Ramsey with a 6-3 score line. Finch Hill gained some revenge on the Thursday when they used home advantage to beat Onchan A 5-3 in the League. The top fixtures next week are on Tuesday when Peel A’s tough fixtures continue with Douglas A turning up in the west, while third place South Ramsey entertain Castletown A. On Thursday Douglas travel down south to Port St Mary A, while leaders North Ramsey A have their turn to sit a game out. And a resurgent Marown visit Castletown A. Could I remind all captains that the postage rate is going up on 5th May and could they please put an extra 2p stamp on the result cards. Many thanks and good bowling
Ladies’ over 60’s Tuesday 28 April
Marown were left wondering whether their journey was really necessary as they travelled south to face Port St Mary A who were in rampant form, winning all six games to record yet another maximum. Villa had a good result against Onchan B, winning 5 games with Muriel Cain winning to single figures, Wendy McDowell being the lone winner for the visitors. Ballaugh also won 5 games, with Voirrey Curphey being Port Erin’s only winner, although Sylvia Shelbourne almost gave them another game reaching 19 against Maureen Trustham. Castletown had two winners at Peel, Anne Oates and Barbara Young who came from behind to pip Rose Corfield 21-20.The five Douglas Players did well to end level on games with Onchan A, but even a big win to single figures by Jan Osborne was not enough to give them parity on points. Noble’s won 4 games at Mooragh Park with two players winning to single figures, as did Lilian Slinger for the home side, to give them a good points advantage while the closest match of the morning was at Breagle where the home side won four games but with Sandi Lowe and Roma Ware reaching 19 for the visitors Breagle ended with just four points advantage.
County Match Preview
It is hold to contain my excitement and pride in the week leading up to the most important bowls match in the history of the Isle of Man.
A lot of hard work has been put in by a lot of people to make this dream a reality, and it is the culmination of all of these efforts that sees the Isle of Man take on Shropshire in the Crosfield Cup.
On Sunday 3rd May at 12:30 the first historic bowls will be sent simultaneously both Peel Sunset Bowling Club and Sinclair Bowling Club in Telford, Shropshire, as the Manx team aim to cause a few upsets and give their much more experienced rivals more than they bargained for.
In truth the step up to full county level, the highest level of Crown Green Bowls that there is, will be a tricky one and nobody is underestimating how mammoth the task is that lies ahead, but there is a buzz around the local bowls scene at the moment and maybe just maybe we can have our own minor victories.
The Island are drawn in a group with Shropshire, Lancashire and Staffordshire. Shropshire are not just odds on favourites to win the group but they are also one of the most fancied teams to win the whole competition so a good performance in the home leg is vital if the Manx men are to have any chance of causing a massive upset.
Shropshire have some of the biggest names in the game in their ranks and Callum Wraight and Richie Goddard are just two that followers of the bowls festival will regognise.
The travelling Manxies will have their work cut out as they travel to a green that none of them have ever even seen before and it will be a massive achievement to leave the green with some individual wins under their belts.
All that is left to do is to wish all of the players and everyone involved the best of luck and it would be brilliant if as many of you that can make the pilgrimage to Peel at 12:30 on Sunday to offer your support as the Island’s best bowlers embark on a new adventure. Whilst a win would be unbelievable the most amazing achievement has been to make it to this point, and anything else beyond will be a huge bonus.