Monthly Archives: August 2015

Maddrell’s Double Cream

On Sunday Ballaugh Bowling Club held the Maddrell’s Double Cream Mixed pairs. With 45 pairs, 10 up on 2014, is was always going to be a long day and so it proved with the last bowl stopping just after 9.20pm.

The eventual winners were Matthew and Alison Keggen, who obviously like the Ballaugh green as just over a month ago won the Spar Mixed pairs on the green. In the final they defeated Dave ‘Dido’ Kelly and Christine Price 21-11.

In the semi finals Alison & Matthew overcome Harry & Joyce Kelly while Paula Firth and Jordan Cain lost out to Dido & Chris. Losing quarter finalists were Katy & Tim Williams, Amanda Lawler & Neil Withers, Sid & Casey Bolton, Roger & Maureen Payne.

At the conclusion Chairman, Jenny Maddrell thanked Richard Faragher & Paul Bradford for running the competition, and the lady members of the club for running the kitchen and keeping everyone fed.

There was also an item of lost property found with a ring being found in the ladies toilets. To claim it please contact Paul Bradford on 482349.

The next competition is the Keenan 4s Mens Doubles on Saturday 5th September 2015 commencing 1pm. Entries to Richard Faragher on 497867 by Thursday 3rd September

Report by Richard Faragher

Derek Killey Memorial

The Derek Killey memorial mixed pairs played at Onchan raised £445.52 for the Isle of Man Stroke Foundation.

Onchan Club would like to thank all players and supporters who contributed so generously. And to Mrs Eileen Killey for providing the prizes to the winners John and Fiona Kennish and to the runners up Matthew and Alison Keggen.

Report by Marilyn Ellison

Kevin Quirk – Courageous, Deserved and Magnificent

Onchan had already won the Isle of Man Bank Men’s division one title going into the final fixtures and the only thing left to work out was the margin of their impressive victory.

They signed off a very impressive campaign with an 8-2 win over Nobles A to finish twenty one points ahead of runners up Marown A. I have already used almost every superlative in the dictionary to describe this great team, however I have saved a couple for club stalwart Kevin Quirk.

Less than eighteen months after we were left wondering if he would ever play the game to the best of his ability again, due to a series of major health scares, he not only goes and wins the division one merit but he wins all of his 24 games in his first full season back. There as so many descriptive words I could use to sum up Quirk and this achievement but I will simply go with courageous, deserved and magnificent. It’s great to see you back at your best.

Nobles will have been delighted with their two points as they finished above Peel A by the same number of points three places off the bottom, safe o rom the drop.

Marown A signed off in style with a 10-0 maximum victory over Castletown B, and the first outing for their innovative electronic scoreboard. They will be left pondering what they need to do to stop Onchan next term as they found themselves in no man’s land with fifteen points between them and the third placed outfit but a way off the top.

Castletown B were not as lucky as Nobles as a hard run in left them firmly rooted to the bottom of the tree with division two bowls looming next year.

Port St Mary A won the season long battle for third place by a solitary point over South Ramsey A. Both teams have been battling it out all season and Port will take a little satisfaction from getting one over on the team that beat them in the Rayner Shield.

It had been neck and neck all season in the battle for Division Two champions however in the final few games South Ramsey B turned on the style and challengers Douglas B just couldn’t live with their end of season form.

In the end South finished eight points clear of the men from the Villa with Port St Mary B completing the top three just four points further back.

Castletown C finished bottom after really struggling this season, there were encouraging signs from a couple of new players and I am sure after a period of rebuilding in division three they will be back in the higher echelons of the local game. Despite a good 7-3 win in their final fixture Nobles B finished second bottom just two points adrift of Port St Mary C.

The closest battle actually came in division three with Onchan C taking the silverware by just one point between them and runners up Peel C.

Both teams were on opposite ends of 7-3 results and despite a spirited win by the Govags away from home at Finch Hill B it just wasn’t to be, with Onchan emulating the success of their A team.

All in all it has been a magnificent season for bowls all round both in terms of the league, development and other initiatives that are really thrusting the sport to the fore. The IOMCCGBA would like to thank the Isle of Man Bank for their continues support of the Men’s leagues and it is hoped that this partnership can continue for many years to come.

Northern Lights Shine at Douglas

It was a Ramsey double at the Villa Marina on Saturday as South Ramsey’s John Kennish and Mooragh Park’s Janet Monk won the respective men’s and ladies Paddy Power sponsored Douglas Town cups.

Both players were at the top of their game all day on a tricky playing surface. Kennish found top gear and was on fire in the latter rounds. He put in an extremely impressive final performance defeating long-time rival Colin Kelly 21-13 in a top quality final.

His best performance was in the round before as he was simply unplayable against defending champion David Bradford, winning 21-7 to book his final berth. Kelly was also in good form in the semi-finals fighting off the spirited challenge of Steve Parker.

Parker can be extremely pleased with his days’ work eliminating a couple of Island players en route to the semis. If he can translate his end of season open form into his league performances next term it won’t be long before he is turning a few heads.

Monk was equally as impressive in the ladies competition as she saw off the challenge of plucky home greener Paula Garrett 21-15 in a top quality final. Garrett and Monk are the only two names on this trophy, and it was first blood to Monk to get etched into the annals of history as a double winner.

Garrett would have hoped to have gone all the way but she can take heart from a series of great wins over top quality opposition including an impressive semi-final victory over Margaret Tasker. Monk had to overcome an unknown force in the shape of Fon Edwards in the same round to make it to the final.

Edwards impressed all day. She is relatively new to the game and if she continues to improve at her current rate it will not be long at all before she has her own name engraved on one of the more coveted trophies.

Douglas would like to thank Paddy Power for their continued support and sponsorship. They have formed a formidable partnership not only with Douglas Bowling Club but with Isle of Man Bowls in general and their continued efforts are definitely propelling our sport in the right direction.

JMS Quarter-finals Thursday 20 August

The remaining two quarter-finals in the JMS handicap Knock-out competition took place on Thursday 20 August.

The quarter-final between Peel Sunset and Castletown was a strange affair with five of the seven games being won to single figures, four to Peel and one to Castletown, courtesy of Anne Oates. There was also an incident with a mobile phone on the green, which fortunately had little bearing on the result, but should act as a salutary warning for future games in this competition and in the league next year.

The other quarter-final was closer, with Port St Mary B winning 4-3 on games. With all the Onchan A players reaching double figures, Dee Lewis winning to single figures and Maureen Payne reaching 20 against Pauline Worrall, the visitors led 124-120 before the handicap kicked in. However their 15 point advantage on handicap saw Port St Mary B through to the next round 155-144.

Ladies’ over 60’s league Tuesday 18 August

The Trend sponsored over 60’s ladies’ league drew to a close on Tuesday !8 August, with Port St Mary A cementing their lead with almost a full house, dropping just one point, courtesy of Jenny Maddrell who just pipped Kath Looney 21-20. Second placed Onchan A did achieve a maximum at Breagle, the feature game being the battle between Hesba Skelly and Flo Kelly which Flo came through to win 21-20.Celia Joughin and Mary Alderson, to single figures, were the two winners for Marown when they visited Onchan B, the home side winning by 8 points .Mooragh Park were, unfortunately, a player short on their trip to Villa where they lost 4-2 on games. Their winners were Lilian Slinger and Ellie Cowell who came through 21-20 against Margaret Corlett. Although winning 4-2 on games Peel Sunset came second to Douglas by one point as Jo Oldam reached 20 against Heather Horsburgh and Patsy Rush lost out to Mary Moffatt by the same score.

Edwina Reid spoiled the party for Nobles, denying them a full house, while Castletown won 4-2 against Port Erin, three of their wins being to single figures, as was Carl Kaye’s for the visitors.

Congratulations to Port St Mary A’s Tricia Bull on winning the individual merit, fending off Joyce Kelly in second place and team-mate Margaret Tasker close behind in third.

Ladies’ league Friday 21 August

The final matches in the C Tarleton Hodgson and Son Ltd sponsored ladies’ league took place on Friday 21 August. Port St Mary celebrated winning the league by producing a maximum against Port Erin, while South Ramsey did enough to cement second place, winning 6-3 against Purt le Moirrey whose three winners were Tracy Moore, Chris Price and Linda Dawson. A 7-2 win over Onchan, whose two winners were Libby Andrade and Marilyn Ellison, left Castletown just 40 points below South Ramsey but well clear of fourth placed Nobles, who lost out 5-4 to Mooragh Park on the night. Joyce Ogden came close to reversing the games score reaching 20 against Rosemary Quirk. Ballaugh finished the season on a high at Douglas, winning 6-3, with all 9 players scoring 16 or over and dropping just 11 points. Despite ending near the bottom of the table Peel Sunset rallied in their last match with Joyce Kelly and Heather Horsburgh winning to single figures while Cath Parker came through 21-19 after a tough battle with Lil Smith.

Congratulations go to Elaine Moore who won the league merit. She was closely followed by her South Ramsey colleague Lyn Bolton with Val Macfarlane of Port St Mary in third place.

North Ramsey A win Ismay Cup and move closer to the double

With only six more games after this week’s Tower Insurance Over 60’s League the race for the title remains the same with North Ramsey A still three points clear of Castletown A after both teams had a couple of difficult fixtures on paper if not so on the green, North Ramsey A entertained Onchan A and had a good 6-2 win while down south Castletown hosted Ballaugh and had a 7-1 win to keep some pressure on the leaders, with North Ramsey heading to Peel A in the second fixture they managed to keep their heads in front with a close 5-3 victory with Ray Kelly and Jeff Oates both getting 19 for Peel as did John Radcliffe for North Ramsey, Castletown A also had a daunting trip to the Villa to play Douglas A who had a couple of reserves playing, Town eventually coming away with a 5-3 win to keep in contention, Port St Mary A look secure in third place on 44 points 6 behind Castletown A and 9 behind North Ramsey A, but they are 5 points ahead of Onchan A who had a free game on Thursday, Port had a superb 7-1 win at home to Marown on Tuesday, before they visited Nobles B and again came away with the points in a 5-3 victory. On 37 points come Peel A, closely followed on 36 points by Castletown B, Douglas A, Nobles A and Marown, with South Ramsey on 35 points and Ballaugh on 34 there will be some changed to this order as Peel A Castletown B and Douglas A have all played a game more than their pursuers. Peel B and Finch Hill are on 28 and 27 points respectively, with Onchan B on 19, Port Erin and North Ramsey B on 17, Port St Mary B and Nobles B on 14 and Douglas B on 2 points. Could I remind all players about Mobile Phones should you carry a phone on the green and it goes off you lose your game to the score that you have when the phone goes off., so please make sure that you do not have your phone on the green with you. As this has happened again this week. The individual merit is still lead by Mike Hargraves of Castletown who has won 27 matches as has Stuart Garrett of Douglas, Chas Grills of South Ramsey has won 26, Geoff Porter of North Ramsey has 25, Peter Kelly (Marown) Ron Maycox (PSM), Tony Carroon (Peel) and George Peach (Castletown) are all on 24 wins. I would like to verify that my article about PSM B failing to fulfil a fixture was not intended to reflect on Port St Mary Bowling Club as a whole, but just the team involved. The Ismay Cup Final was played in glorious weather at Nobles Green on Wednesday with two of the top teams in the Over 60’s doing battle. North Ramsey A versus Port St Mary A. The match resulted in a win for North Ramsey by 7 games to 2, although the result was a lot closer than the score line suggests. North Ramsey won the first four games off to give them a brilliant start, Brian Lowe of Port St Mary beat Steve Gill 21-20 to keep Ports hopes alive, and with Chris Oates adding to Ports tally the North Ramsey lead was down to 4-2, the three remaining games were all relatively close but in every case the North Ramsey men just came out on top against the Southerners winning to 18-19 and 20 to ensure the cup went North. Both teams played very well in a excellent match. I would like to thank Nobles for the use of the green and hospitality, Ian Kissack for his excellent refereeing, and George Brew, John Clague and Colin Gook for measuring. The Ismay Trophy was presented to Mike Skelly of North Ramsey by executive member Ray Griffin who also presented the winners and runners up medals to everyone involved. Mike accepted the Cup on behalf of his team and thanked Port St Mary for a good game and his team for their effort. Ken Karran, Ports skipper congratulated North Ramsey and thanked his team.

Port St Mary Ladies Complete Double

Port St Mary Ladies completed their first double by winning both the League and Jean Kelly in the same year. It has been a great year for the Ladies of Port St Mary who also ran out champions in the Over 60’s League with Trish Bull picking up the Over 60s League Merit.

Congratulations also to Elaine Moore who by winning tonight completed a personal double of being Manx Champion and Ladies Merit Winner in the same season.

Elaine Moore 2015 Ladies Manx Champion
Elaine Moore 2015 Ladies Manx Champion

Final League Table

Nobles Mixed A (2012)

Ismay Cup

DateMatch #HomeScoreAway
PrelimNobles Mixed A6-3(158-124)Peel Sunset B
Round 1Nobles Mixed A-:-Port St Mary B
Quarter FinalNobles Mixed A4-5(161-167)Marown A