Monthly Archives: September 2021
Caroline Parker Wins Ramsey Town Cup
A disappointing entry did not deter the spirit and friendliness of North Ramsey Bowling Club at this year’s Ladies Ramsey Town Cup played on Saturday 28th August at Mooragh Park. Conditions could not have been better with sunshine all afternoon.
Following great games in the opening rounds the first semi-final was played between Victoria Johnson and Anne Kean with a convincing win for Victoria 21-3. The second semi was between Caroline and Janet Monk. This was a much closer game with both players fighting for every point and lying 19 across in the final stages. On the last end Caroline secured the final point she needed to win her place in the final 21-19.
The final between Victoria and Caroline was a convincing win for Caroline who had been playing really well all day. The score does not reflect the standard of play with Victoria demonstrating her considerable talent but Caroline was so accurate and retained the jack for most of the match clinching her victory with a 21-1 win.
The prizes were presented by Peggy Freeman, who is Chair of North Ramsey, and she thanked all the members for helping on the day, especially the male members who had prepared the green and carried out all of the measuring as well as running the sheet. She also gave thanks to the anonymous local business who sponsored the event and made the considerable prize money possible.
Greenlees Wins Pre-Festival Autumn Shield
Peel Bowling Club hosted the Pre-Festival Davison’s sponsored Autumn Shield on Sunday attracting a strong entry of 96 as visiting bowlers were welcomed back to the Island. All players were off a handicap of +6 in order to get through the field in good time with a 10:00 start time it was a long day for some on a green that was running well throughout the day.
Losing out in the quarter finals were home greener Tony Carroon who had his challenge ended by club mate Peter Greenlees 12-21, whilst Gareth Jones (Dalton Cricket) lost out 13-21 to Reg Temporaza (Onchan). In the bottom half of the draw Marown’s Neil Withers battled well before losing out 19-21 to Jamie Fitzpatrick (West Kirby Victoria), while Tony Carter (Fairfield) lost to the same score to Glynn Hargraves (South Ramsey).
In the semi-final Fitzpatrick trailed 10-12 to Hargraves, before moving up a gear as the former ran out with a 21-14 win to take his place in the final. The other semi-final was close throughout with Temporaza leading 19-18, a double took Greenlees into a 20-19 lead only for Temporaza to level things up at 20-20. On the last end a good first bowl from Greenlees to Temporaza’s jack was enough to take a 21-20 win to go through to the final.
The final got underway in front of a good crowd who had stayed to watch the final under the excellent floodlights. With the green having lost some of the pace from earlier in the day neither player was able to take firm control of the game in the early stages.
With the score tied at 14-14 after 12 ends, it looked like Fitzpatrick was making his move as a two on the following end took him into the lead by two points at 16-14.
Greenlees responded brilliantly, as he kept his composure, taking his time with every bowl as he got in with a single, then headed over the crown playing a good length as he scored two consecutive doubles followed by another single to get within touching distance of glory as he led 20-16. Fitzpatrick responded with a good two to reduce the deficit to 18-20 and headed for the corner. Two short bowls gave Greenlees some room to go in for game, which he did as he changed his peg to claim his first open competition win.
Greenlees has shown that with dedication and a positive mentality that it is possible to get to a standard in a short space of time to be able to compete with and beat the best as he came through a field of 96 bowlers, which included a resounding victory over the seven time Manx Champion Colin Kelly in the early rounds.
The presentation was made by Peel President Dougie Allan who thanked Davison’s for the generous sponsorship, the club members for assisting throughout the day, along with competition secretary Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly for organising and running the competition. A special mention was also made on the ongoing improvement seen in the Peel green over the past couple of years. Vice President Lennie Kerruish was then introduced to present the prizes with over £700 paid out with Greenlees taking the £250 first prize as the competition finished just under 12 hours later.
In his speech Peter became understandably emotional as he dedicated the win to his father in law Ray Osborne who has since passed away, as it was Ray that introduced him to the game after Peter had moved to the Island four years and was wondering what to do, he took up bowls and hasn’t looked back since taking up the game.
Temporaza & Kennish Win Keenan 4’s
On Saturday Ballaugh Bowling Club held the 32nd Keenan 4’s which was first played for in 1989. There were 35 pairs entered, the weather being fine starting cloudy but improved throughout the day.
In the top half of the draw the first quarter final was an all South Ramsey affair with Alan Moore and Glynn Hargraves taking on Stefan Kelly and Stuart Marshall. A tight game at 17 across after 13 ends Alan and Glynn sealed the win 21-18. The second quarter final was between Bob Clark (Castletown) and David Bradford (South Ramsey) versus Marown stalwarts Paul Dunn and Neil Withers 16 across after 17 ends, then Clark and Bradford won the game 21-16.
In the bottom half of the draw the third quarter final was between visitors Andrew White and Colin Crawford (Two Gates) and Glenn Moore and Tony Smart (North Ramsey). White and Crawford showed their class with a 21-10 win. The final quarter final was between home greeners John Keenan and John Maddrell against Andy Kennish (Peel Sunset) and Reg Temporaza (Onchan). Kennish and Temporaza were always ahead winning 21-12.
In the semi-finals Moore and Hargraves beat Clark and Bradford 21-15, whilst Kennish and Temporaza beat White and Clark 21-16.
In the final Kennish and Temporaza took the first four ends without reply from Moore and Hargraves giving them a buffer to win 21-13.
At the conclusion Club Captain John Maddrell thanked John Keenan for sponsoring the event for the 32nd year, Matt Moffat, the green keeper for preparing the green, Pat Mason and her team of ladies for the catering. John also thanked Richard Faragher, Maurice O’Reilly & Trevor Jones for running the competition so efficiently.
FULL HOUSE FOR MAROWN A LADIES
Last Wednesday night Marown A scored a full house at home against Peel in the ladies crown green bowling open age league. The win was helped greatly by four of the Marown ladies winning to single figures. Joyce Ogden and Mary Moffatt had a tough battle with Joyce eventually winning to 18. Douglas had a good 5-4 win away at Mooragh Park with the closest game being between Victoria Johnson (Mooragh) and Jane Lothian with the latter winning to 19. Michelle Cowley and Paula Garrett (Douglas) plus Janet Monk for Mooragh, all won to single figures. Port St Mary travelled to Onchan coming away with a convincing 7-2 win. Two winners for Onchan were Paula Firth and Jo Smith who won to 6 and 16 respectively. Castletown derby ended with the A team just missing out on a maximum by four points. Preventing this was Linda Dobinson (B) who won to 17 against Amanda Lawler. Marown B travelled to Port Erin with the Marown ladies winning by 6 points. Jenny Cain and Jacqui Elliot (Port) plus Clare Cooper for Marown all won to single figures. Closest match of the night was Ballaugh at home against South Ramsey. Ballaugh won by three points with four of the games being won to single figures.
Over 60s ladies league: Two rearranged fixtures were played last Thursday. Results : Mooragh Park A 64 (1), Marown 116 (5); Onchan A 113 (4, Peel 88 (2)
On Tuesday morning Port St Mary A played Onchan B at home whilst Onchan A took on Port St Mary B. Both matches resulted in full houses for PSM A and Onchan A with PMS A winning by 67 points and Onchan A winning by 66 points. Two teams who just missed out on scoring maximums by two points were Ballaugh and Castletown A. Ballaugh played Port Erin at home with Julie Reilly and Jane Teare for Ballaugh both losing to 20 against Voirrey Curphey and Steph Swift. Castletown A were away to Mooragh Park A with Anne Oates for Castletown just losing to 19 against Maureen Hamilton.
The IOM September Festival commences on Monday morning. Wishing all competitors, organisers and helpers a successful and enjoyable week of bowling.
South Ramsey A Edge Closer To Title
In Ellan Vannin Fuels Division One the match of the week, was for a second successive week at Crosby between Marown A and South Ramsey A, with the visitors arriving in the knowledge they had already beaten Marown on their own green this season, that the home team would be looking for revenge and to close the nine-point gap between the teams at the start of play.
First off the green was Neil Withers with a resounding 21-11 win over Tony Dugdale, who was standing in for Dave ‘Dido’ Kelly. The visitors responded with David Bradford taking out one of Marown’s big hitters as he continued his good form to beat Paul Dunn 21-10. The next game off was the shock of the night as Stefan Kelly carried his Rayner Shield Final form into his game as he found an edge to play along on the park side of the green to go into a 15-8 lead against seven time Manx Champion Colin Kelly, who got in and looked to get into his trademark corners as he scored three quick-fire doubles and a single to level things up at 15-15. Stefan got back in at the perfect time and headed straight for the edge that had served him well all game to run out with a convincing 21-15 win. The last game in the first half was between Phil Kelly and Peter Collister with the latter recovering from an 8-14 deficit to go 17-14 ahead and then led 20-18 only for Kelly to muster all of his experience to respond with three singles to win 21-20 and leave the match finely poised at 2-2 at the half way stage.
The second half got underway with the excellent floodlights coming into play, it was Dean Kipling who was next off with a 21-8 win over Alan Moore as the former trailed 7-8 to go on a 14 point scoring streak to run out on his opponent playing an edge of the green. Next off was South Ramsey captain Glynn Hargraves who beat Matthew Keggen 21-11. Chas Grills for the second week running pulled off another great result as he beat Paul Kelly 21-18, with the latter having played the same opponent in the Rayner Shield semi-final and winning 21-5 this was a remarkable turnaround from Grills. The last game off sealed a 4-4 win on games for Marown with John Gelling recovering from a 1-9 deficit and still trailed at 8-14 to kick up a few gears to see the game out with a 21-16 win over James Teare.
The chalks could not have been closer between the teams as South Ramsey edged the aggregate by a solitary chalk (138-139) to win 4-6. The teams have been well matched in head to heads in the league this season, as whilst Marown won 7-3 at South Ramsey earlier this season they also took the aggregate by a solitary chalk. The result extends the northern men’s lead to 11 points over Marown A with four games to play.
Peel A bounced back from their two defeats the previous week to beat Douglas A 7-3 at home as they stayed in contention with an all-important home fixture to come against South Ramsey A. The home team may yet see this as an opportunity missed as they had two losers to 20-21 with Shaun Seal impressing with his win over Andy Kennish having recovered from a 11-20 deficit, while Kevin Firth also inflicted a rare home defeat on Tommy McMeiken. Ian Moore was the other winner for the Villa men as he beat Tom Kelly 21-14. All the home team wins were comfortable for Peel with George Gadsby leading the way with a 21-6 win over Keith Rise, while Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly beat Andy Cannell 21-12 with the latter tasting defeat for only the second time this season.
Castletown A were missing a couple of regulars, despite this they managed a good 9-1 home win against Ballaugh A who are in danger of being cut adrift as they sit nine points from safety.
North Ramsey A are pretty much assured of their first division status for next year following their 7-3 home win over Peel B, with the visitors edging further towards safety as they attempt to retain their top flight status for another season having just come up to Division One.
Noble’s A who are all but mathematically relegated will not have been disheartened by their 4-6 loss at home to Port St Mary A as they lost out on the aggregate by just four chalks (142-146), they will look to find their level in Division Two next year as the club looks to rebuild after a tough year. The positive attitude and efforts from the club members this season has been exemplary.
Onchan A just missed out on a whitewash as they won 9-1 at home to Marown B with Peter Kelly ‘spoiling’ the party as he won 21-19 against Frank Watson.
In Division Two South Ramsey B were quite possibly the biggest winners this week without even playing as the teams around them all dropped points.
Port Erin A went top by a point as they hit 101 points for the season, but may feel this was an opportunity missed as they lost 7-3 away to Finch Hill A who are eight points further back on the Breagle Glen men in fifth place. The Finch men may be a bit too far back to make a long awaited return to Division One with only four games remaining.
Marown C took four vital points off third placed Onchan B, as they were defeated 4-6 at home with the visitors on 99 points, the Onchan men are well placed to return to Division One for the first time since the ‘noughties’.
Castletown B are a bit further back on 94 points, they suffered a mini disaster as they lost 6-4 away to Douglas B, losing out on the aggregate by just two chalks (132-130), while Peel C won 8-2 at home against South Ramsey C.
With the club in its 100th year Port St Mary B played their last ever home match on their current green and they signed off with a 10-0 home over Finch Hill B, with the club now looking to the future with some positive news hopefully to come shortly, with work having already started on clearing the site (see picture). Also pictured is Louis Callister (3rd from right) the clubs oldest member, who has been around for 93 years of the clubs 100 year existence.
In Division Three Onchan C stayed in top spot on 114 points despite suffering a second straight 7-3 away from home to Douglas C.
Ballaugh B won 7-3 at home to Marown D, the home team sit in second place behind Onchan with a game in hand and more importantly with a 14-point lead over third placed Ballaugh C who have played a game more, it should merely be a formality for both teams to be promoted barring a mini disaster.
Elsewhere in Division Three South Ramsey D enjoyed a good week with an 8-2 home win over Douglas C, Castletown C beat Ballaugh C 7-3 at the Crofts, while Port Erin B won 6-4 at home to Peel D.
September Festival Preview
The Isle of Man Bowls Festival gets underway next week with a host of top names from across the game hoping to be the lucky winner who gets their name on the trophy and the winners cheque for £3,000. The event is being held for the first time since September 2019, with three festivals not taken place since then due to the pandemic and border restrictions.
On the first page of the draw five-time winner local man John Kennish is in the draw but unlikely to be taking part, whilst three-time winner Ian Nicholson (Hale) will be looking forward to his return to the island as he goes for win number four.
In the next section is David Jackson (Houghton) who won the coveted trophy in 1998, whilst South Ramsey’s David Bradford was a teenage winner in September 2002, soon after the finals moved from the Villa to Noble’s will be in the mix.
Paul Bailey (Thongsbridge) winner in 2007 and current holder John Bailey (Castlefields) who has two wins to his name from 2017 and 2019 are the stand out names on the next page with a potential match up in the fifth round providing they navigate their way safely through the early rounds.
Alan Gilpin (Hale) won the Festival as far back as 2004 whilst Jack Dyson (Thongsbridge) won more recently in 2019 could face each other in their 2nd round game
The following page is littered with previous winners and big hitters with two-time winner Martin Gilpin (Hale), Callum Wraight (Castlefields) is seeking his first festival win, 1990 winner Kevan Shaw (Red Lion) and Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly (Peel Sunset) whose success came in June 2000 are likely to face off throughout the week.
Dave Phillips (Lloyd Hotel) is the only previous winner in his section of the draw, but there are several names who are more than capable of causing an upset.
Marown’s Neil Withers won the June Festival in 2013, whilst you have to go back a lot further for Onchan’s Phil Kerruish win which was back in 1991, with the two local men possibly facing each other in the 3rd round.
Colin Kelly, who won the Champion of Champions at the famous Waterloo Bowling Green in Blackpool in late September 2019, won the Festival in 2008 and is one of the unlucky few to be in the preliminary round.
Aside from those already mentioned there are some top names from the game, who have won some of the biggest competitions across, whilst others are capable of raising their game to cause an upset.
With six greens in use and several different competitions throughout the week, there is plenty of bowls for everyone it should make for a great week of bowls.
Have a great week!
Moore & Teare Go One Better to Win Sowerbutts Trophy
Port Erin Bowling Club hosted the F.M. Sowerbutts Memorial Trophy Mixed Doubles on Bank Holiday Monday. The competition was well supported.
Bowing out at the semi-final stage were Marown Pair Debbie Leece & Neil Withers to Elaine Moore & Glynn Hargraves (South Ramsey), whilst in the other semi-final it was an all-South Ramsey affair with club mates Fiona Kennish and Steven Waters who were beaten by Jenny Moore & James Teare.
In a repeat of the 2020 final Jenny and James got off to the better start with Elaine and Glynn the current holders of the trophy taking the first end then lying four in the corner only for James to play a great counting bowl. From there Jenny and James took control of the game to go into a 16-6 lead. Elaine and Glynn got back in to score a single, a four in the corner and another single to pull the deficit back to 12-16 to threaten a comeback. With the comeback on Jenny and James responded with two singles and a double to go 20-12 ahead and then conceded a single. On the last end Jenny and James were counting two, with Elaine being slightly unlucky with her last bowl connecting with the jack but carrying it through to Jenny’s bowl to secure the one point they needed to take a 21-13 victory and in doing so went one better than the previous year.
The presentation was made by Janet Shilling who thanked everyone who had entered, the club members for their support & providing the refreshments. In his speech James thanked Port Erin for running the competition along with Janet Shilling for sponsoring the competition in memory of her father.