Author Archives: Mark Kneen

20 Years in the Making for Kelly

Colin Kelly was at the top of his game at Nobles on Saturday as he lifted the coveted Association Cup which he last won two decades ago in 1995.

Kelly seemed to thrive in a new format which saw both greens used, with players alternating between games and had the measure of both almost instantly.

In the final he overcame the colourful ‘green machine’ Jordan Cain 21-14. It was all change in the final with Kelly playing Cain’s preferred short round pegs and the runner up heading for the champion’s usual choice of full corners.

Jordan played well all day and had some exceptional results but just didn’t have enough in the tank as he struggled to get on terms with Colin.

Both players had excellent results in the semi-finals with Cain, the only player in the last four not to have won a festival on the same green, taking Neil Withers a part 21-6. Our eventual champion will also be very pleased with his work as he dispatched long time adversary John Kennish 21-17.

Losing out in the quarter finals were Kevin Quirk, Ray Maddrell, Stevie Kelly and Rob Monk.

Matthew Keggen and the competition committee should be praised for the new format which worked tremendously well. The recent changes have seen an increase in entries and if we continue in this vein I am sure the sport will flourish for years to come.

Association Cup Winner 2015

Post published by Mark Kneen

A Sport for All

Grown Green Bowls on the Isle of Man has seen resurgence as of late with a lot of development work taking place at all levels of the game. Neil Withers is working tirelessly to make the sport truly accessible from the grass roots up with the new ‘Bowls for All’ project.

The work he has started could see him meet, and potentially exceed, his aspirations of making the game more accessible by providing more coaches, more equipment and providing more sessions where newcomers to sport can try for free in the very near future.

Neil is looking to achieve his aims by sourcing funding to purchase necessary equipment and coaching aids, and subject to meeting the criteria requested this project will be a massive step forward for the sport.

He is also keen that clubs wanting to benefit from the scheme put something back and really open themselves up to people wanting to try the game. To achieve this he has tied it in with existing work in the bowls development plan to launch a charter standard.

Development officer Mark Kneen has adjusted the charter to encompass all the aspirations of the ‘Bowls for All’ scheme and a draft of the proposed three tiered charter will be circulated around clubs soon.

It is envisaged that clubs achieving level 1 Charter Club status will reap the rewards by receiving equipment and support to continually develop their club as a breeding ground for new players. Neil should be commended by his vision, foresight and tireless effort to achieve his goal which will definitely seal a victory for bowls on the Isle of Man.

Post published by Mark Kneen

Marown A on a March in May

Marown A are beginning to find top gear in Isle of Man Bank Men’s Division 1 as they move into second spot after a strong week, and begin closing the gap on leaders Onchan A.

They had two home games last week and began by beating Peel 9-1 before following this up with a very impressive 8-2 win over high flying Douglas A to leapfrog them in to second spot.

They are 18 points adrift of the leaders with a game in hand, so if they can win big in that and keep chipping away at the remaining deficit we could be in for a grand stand finish, one thing is for sure though weeks like this where they pick up two more points than their rivals will certainly help.

The leaders had a tougher start to their week with a tricky trip to South Ramsey A in the match of the week. In an extremely close affair Onchan A snatched a 6-4 victory, after drawing on games won, by just two points with 135 to South’s 133.

Onchan will be very pleased to have left their second trip of the week to Ramsey with nine points as they seemingly beat North Ramsey with ease at the Mooragh. That said the match was a lot closer than the score line suggests with North finding themselves on the wrong side of a 21-20 and two 21-19’s.

South’s second match of week got their season back on track as they beat a plucky Finch Hill A 9-1 at home. South are now in fifth place and will be hoping to get some momentum back in their season as they will be aiming for at least third place, although they will be hoping for better.

Port St Mary A had the best week of all though with two 9-1 home wins. They started the week in fine fettle against North Ramsey A and finished the week with another impressive victory over Castletown B.

They are I fourth place and will expect to overtake Douglas as they have a game in hand, they are only four points off Marown so there is no reason why they can’t push all the way for second place.

Ballaugh A also had a great week recording two wins to move out of the bottom two. They had to fight hard to overcome a belligerent Nobles A side 6-4 on Monday before ending their week on a high recording a 7-3 score line against Port Erin A.

Onchan B top Division 2 after a strong 9-1 win over struggling Castletown C. Douglas B are next on equal points with Onchan, but with a game in hand, after they had to scrap it out to finish 7-3 away at Nobles B. North Ramsey B were the biggest movers of the week as they recorded a brilliant 10-0 maximum over Ballaugh B.

Onchan C complete the set in Division 3, with an team from the Park on top in every division. They had a good 7-3 showing at home to Finch Hill B. Both themselves and Peel C now have a gap between them and the chasing pack after the Govags recorded an 8-2 win over their D team.

Post published by Mark Kneen

Onchan Express Back on Track – Games 7 & 8

Isle of Man Bank Division One leaders Onchan bounced back from last week’s defeat with two ruthless results to steam ahead of the chasing pack. They started the week with an extremely impressive 8-2 win away over a strong Port St Mary team before further stoking the fire behind their title defence with a 10-0 home win against struggling Ballaugh A.
Ballaugh will be disappointed with their showing though after a very impressive 7-3 win over Castletown A just two days earlier. Port were back to winning ways on Wednesday with an 8-2 victory at Nobles.
Whilst Monday’s performance against Port was extremely impressive it is the Champions ability to deliver devastating maximum results against the lower ranked teams which I think will see them on track for another title. Any other teams with title ambitions will need to take note and up their game if they want to halt the momentum of the Onchan express.
Douglas A have started the season on all steam ahead and followed up last week’s victory over the champions with two more solid performances to move into second place. They took North Ramsey’s 100% record with frightening ease as they won 9-1 on Monday before beating Peel 7-3 on their travels. This is a team with fire in their belly and they will be hoping to challenge for a top four place come the end of August.
Marown A are the most likely challengers to Onchan’s crown and are now in third place having played a game less than the top two. If they are to mount a serious quest for top honours they need to start now and will be pleased with two strong showings with a 9-1 win over Nobles before adding to North Ramsey’s woes by beating them 8-2 on their own patch.
South Ramsey A are a side who started the season with true title ambitions and after sitting out on Monday will be genuinely disappointed to have only left Castletown A with a 6-4 win. They need to get going, and get going fast if they want to get their hands on the silverware.
At the top of the Division Two tree South Ramsey B will be very happy with their progress this week beating Ballaugh B 8-2 before a recording great midweek win by the same score over high flying Onchan B.
Douglas B are in second place and despite a great start winning 8-2 away at Peel B they will be disappointed to have suffered their first setback of the season going down 6-4 at home to Port St Mary C.
Oncahn B and Port St Mary B are third and fourth respectively and just two points off Douglas B and six off the top. Port and Douglas have both played one game less than our current leaders and I think the winners of this hotly contested league will come from these four.
Onchan C are now the team to beat at the top of Division Three after two strong performances last week they began with a brilliant 10-0 whitewash of Ballauch C and followed it up with a battling 7-3 at Nobles C to move four points clear.

Post published by Mark Kneen

David Becomes Goliath with Manx Championship Victory

 David ‘Drof’ Bradford (Onchan) etched his name into the record books as he beat Trevor Quayle (Port St Mary) 21-15 to win the Canada Life International Manx Championship. The final was a breath taking conclusion to an enthralling two days action with both players playing their part.

Bradford, who is fast becoming a colossus of the local game, added the coveted trophy to his ever increasing collection and despite being only Thirty years old will be relieved to have got this monkey off his back, as many past greats have failed to get their hands on the illusive holy grail of Manx bowls.

In the final, despite an even start, Bradford eventually moved through the gears quicker surging into a 16-8 lead over Quayle, who had played like a champion all day. Just when it looked like he might be running away with it his opponent dug deep, and using all his resolve mounted a spirited fight back. It was not to be for Trevor, and after seeing one of his best leads beaten at 20-15 adrift; he saw his second bowl go through a seemingly impossible gap to fall just short of his own quest for glory.

Whilst Bradford deserves all the plaudits and accolades afforded to him, spare a thought for Quayle who was at times equally brilliant over the course of the weekend. He started finals day in ruthless form with a 21-8 win over Mike Hargraves (Castletown) before turning on the style to eliminate eight times champion John Kennish (South Ramsey) in the quarter finals and followed this up with a hard fought 21-18 win over double champion Glynn Hargraves (Onchan) to book his final berth.

In my mind Trevor has been one of the most underrated players in the local game over the past few years, and this final appearance comes as no shock to me, and I by no means think it will be the last time we see him vying for silverware on the big stage. As they say in bowls ‘next end lad’ and I expect to see Trevor straight back in and gunning for glory the next time he steps onto the green.

Our champion had a trickier start to the day, however, and trailed 16-19 to former champion Neil Withers (Marown). With the scores finely poised at 19-19, and Neil lying in two for game his luck changed as a strike he sent flicked off the short wood to cut his opponent down to one and save game. It didn’t stop there and with him lying one next end to go to all but across his opponent went all out for the win with a questionable full blooded strike at his bowl, and in the process took his own wood off the green to see Bradford through by the narrowest of margins.

It takes a champion to come through at seemingly impossible odds and Bradford is a true champion. In the quarter finals he was too hot to handle for Alan Moore (South Ramsey) running away to a 21-9 win before meeting a battling Ewan Cooil (Port St Mary) in the semi-finals who made him work all the way to get over the line at 21-16. Cooil can also be pleased with his weekends work and he played some great bowls, none more so than beating home greener Paul Kelly (Douglas) 21-10 in the quarters.

With an entry of over 60 players for the first time in a good few years there were many highlights of the weekend but two players who shone for me were Michael Collister (Port St Mary) and Mervin Sayle (Finch Hill).

Despite his tender age Collister has struggled in the past few seasons, since winning the Clague Kermeen Trophy, and his performance was a real return to form and he should be very proud of his efforts. He not only qualified for finals days but made it to the quarter finals where he pushed Glynn Hargraves all the way 21-20.
Sayle, who is now playing in division one, showed his true pedigree with the upset of day one eliminating two time champion Kevin Quirk (Onchan) 21-9 with a devastating display.

At the conclusion of the competition IOMCCGBA President Phil Kerruish thanked Douglas for hosting the competition and Canada Life International for their continued support and sponsorship of the event, but the day belonged to Bradford.

It is the end to what has been a long wait for him after he sprung to the fore in 2002 by becoming the youngest ever winner of an Isle of Man Bowls Festival, at the tender age of seventeen. Since then he has emerged as true talent with the potential to reach the highest level, not only on our shores but also in the UK. Now he has a title under his belt the only question I have left to ask is how many more will he add?

His win qualifies him for the British Senior Merit and the famous Champion of Champions competition and with the Island team now represented at Senior County Level I know he will turn a few heads on every green he steps on. Well done Drof, this is your moment lad and you deserve to enjoy every second of it.

Post published by Mark Kneen

Canada Life International Manx Championships

There is a real buzz of anticipation around crown green bowls on the Isle of Man right now in the wake of our first ever Senior County Championship match, and I am delighted to say that this has rolled over into the Canada Life International Manx Championship at Douglas this weekend with a bumper entry of 62 players.

There are some mouth watering clashes in the top half of the first round draw which starts at 12pm on Saturday starting with double champion Kevin Quirk taking on Paul Skelly. Defending and 8 times champion John Kennish will have his hands full with the talented veteran Stuart Garrett who is more than capable of causing an upset, especially on his own patch. Two of our Manx young guns slug it out too in the early stages with Matthew Quirk set to take on in form Rob Monk, who has had the recent taste of success and will be hungry for more.

In the bottom half David Bradford, who has had numerous victories on the Villa and must surely be a favourite for his first title, has a very tricky opener in the shape of Jerome Surridge who is capable of beating anyone if he brings his A game. Bradford’s stablemate Jordan Cain will also be hoping to etch his name onto the coveted trophy for the first time but will have to be at his supreme best to do so as former champion Neil Withers, who will be hoping to add to his own trophy cabinet, stands in his way. There is a re-run of the Rayner final clash between Adrian Skinner and Dean Kipling with the latter looking for revenge after he was turned over at Peel in their previous encounter.

There are other interesting ties scattered through the draw with two big in house South Ramsey clashes which see Alan Moore take on Chas Grills and 3 times Champion Andy Kennish takes on in form Dave ‘Dido’ Kelly. I will also be interested in seeing how young Stefan Kelly fairs against double champion Glynn Hargraves and lets not forget that we have a multitude of other former champions in the field including 5 times winner Colin Kelly who starts his campaign against Bod Boland.

With such a high quality field it will be anyone’s game on Sunday when the last 16 slug it out to see who will be crowned 2015 champion, and I don’t know why but I get a sneaky feeling that we will see a new name join the illustrious roll of honour.

To view the draw click here

Kneenys Tips

Quarter Finals
Trevor Quayle v John Kennish, Rob Monk v Glynn Hargraves, David Bradford v Dean Kipling, Matthew Keggen v Phil Kerruish

Semi Finals
John Kennish v Rob Monk, David Bradford v Matthew Keggen

Final
John Kennish v David Bradford

Winner
David Bradford

Post published by Mark Kneen

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.

Post published by Mark Kneen

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.

Post published by Mark Kneen

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.

Post published by Mark Kneen

Onchan on a Charge – Game 4

Bowls is back! If the first few entertaining weeks fixtures were the appetisers last Monday’s gargantuan war of attrition between South Ramsey A and Marown A was most definitely the main course, and after such a delight it leaves me wondering what truly spectacular mouth watering dish will be served for dessert.

It is very rare in an eight aside bowls match for the entire fate of the game to rest on the solitary figure standing on the mat, lying game down, with the final bowl of a 296 point affair in his hand, but last Monday it happened.

They say cometh the hour cometh the man and Dido Kelly was more than ready to prove the old adage true as at 20-19 ahead he found himself lying two down after a brilliant fight back from a very worthy adversary, five times Island Champion Colin Kelly.

As things stood if Dido failed to change things Colin would seal a well earned 6-4 win for the visitors, but Dido never knows when he is beaten. With one of the best bowls you will ever see full corners he trailed the jack to his back bowl to win his game, tying the match on aggregate and ensuring it was his side who were on the right end of a well fought 6-4 victory.

This was just one of the many highlights of one of the most evenly matched entertaining encounters you could ever wish to experience. Carlsberg don’t do bowls matches but if they did it very well might play out like this one. Credit goes to all 16 players who stepped onto the green and it’s a shame either side had to lose,

Oblivious of events up north league champions Onchan A ruthlessly went about their task of defending their title with a 10-0 dismantling of Castletown B. Winning big at home is the key to any victorious championship quest and with both of their openers at the park ending in maximum victories where they concede on average 71 points against they have definitely thrown the gauntlet down to the challengers.

Both Marown and South have the pedigree to beat Onchan in head to heads but it is the champions devastating consistency which could be the key to their success.

Douglas A followed up last week’s hard earned draw with South Ramsey with an extremely impressive 9-1 away victory over Castletown A to leapfrog the men from the crofts into third place.

At the top of division two it was first against second as league leaders South Ramsey B travelled to the Villa Marina to take on an inform Douglas B side. Despite young Stefan Kelly’s performance of the night for the visitors, beating Roy Williams 12-5, it was the home side who took victory with an extremely impressive overall team performance seeing them come away with a comfortable 8-2 win. They will be tough to beat this season if they keep this form going and now top the table with the visitor’s four points behind in second place.

Port St Mary B had to fight at home to overcome a spirited Onchan B side 6-4 and now find themselves in third spot.

With Peel C, Ballaugh C and Douglas C all picking up good 7-3 home victories its very tight at the top of division three with them on 22, 22 and 21 points respectively from the first three games.

Post published by Mark Kneen