News: Announcements
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.
2018 Fixtures
The website has been updated with all Mens and Ladies fixtures for 2018. Including the Rayner, Ismay, Mini Cup and Jean Kelly competitions. The opens will follow in the next couple of days but nearly all the dates are rolled over from last year.
The Mixed Team and new Club Championship dates and draws will follow this week.
North Ramsey are faced with issues regarding their green which has meant over the last week spending a lot of time revising all of the prepared fixtures. The mens night league, ladies night league and mens over 60s fixtures have been adjusted so that all North/Mooragh games in April are away from home. The ladies over 60s have not yet been adjusted as we await confirmation how they will proceed. This will give the Mooragh Park Green another month to improve.
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.
Marown ‘Mix’ Things Up
Mixed Team Winners 2017 - Marown
Back: John Gelling, Mary Alderson, Shirley Whelan, Lil Smith, Philippa Taylor, Phil KellyFront: Colin Kelly, Neil Withers, Matthew Keggen Paul Dunn
The Ellan Vannin Fuels Mixed League was brought to a conclusion on Thursday evening.
The competition commenced in early May, with 14 teams entering the competition, the teams were split into four groups playing each team in their group home and away, earning two points for a win on chalks, one for a draw. The winners with the most points from each group then qualified for the semi-finals.
The four group winners were South Ramsey A, Port St Mary A, Marown A, and Onchan A. The draw for the semi-finals put South Ramsey A v Marown A and Port St Mary A v Onchan A. The semi-final fixtures were held on neutral greens. Last year’s winners South Ramsey were disposed of comfortably on Noble’s one by Marown, who had a convincing win by 39 points. The other semi-final was a lot closer with Port St Mary booking their place in the final winning by 10 points to book their place in the final.
The final was held on a fantastic Peel green, who were able to show off their new floodlights, against the backdrop of a stunning sunset.
The final got underway with Matthew Keggen first off for Marown, with a 21-18 win over Paul Skelly in a good quality and entertaining game to watch. Second game off was Phil Kelly who overcame the strong challenge of Chris Price to win 21-14 to extend Marown’s lead to 10 chalks. The third game off was Dan McCabe who had a comfortable 21-12 win over Mary Alderson, to reduce the deficit to one chalk for Port St Mary. This was swiftly followed by Neil Withers who won 21-8 defeating Margaret Tasker to extend Marown’s lead to 14 chalks. The last game of the first blocks on the green went to the wire, with Wayne Roberts just getting home with a 21-20 victory over Philippa Taylor, reducing the deficit to 13 chalks.
The second set of games all became vital, with Jayne Kneen leading 15-6 over Paul Dunn, with Dunn having to dig deep to get back into the game, however Kneen managed to get over the line with a 21-15 win to reduce the deficit to seven points for Port St Mary. Ewan Cooil put in a good performance for his team to turn the match on its head with a 21-5 win over Shirley Whelan to swing the match in favour of Port St Mary for the first time on the night by nine chalks. In the penultimate game, it was a blockbuster of a game with the men currently sat first and second in the division one merit facing off. After a slow start Colin Kelly built a commanding 15-6 lead over Trevor Quayle, with Kelly finishing the game off 21-13 to reduce the deficit to one chalk for Marown. At this point the last game of the evening was finely balanced between Lil Smith and Patricia Bull, with the match score being 4-4 on games only a win for Marown’s Lil Smith would do. The game could so easily have gone either way, however Smith wasn’t to be denied and became the hero of the night for her team, getting over the line 21-19 to secure a win by one chalk for Marown, who in doing so secured their first Mixed League title and are the only fifth team to take the title since its inception in 2005.
At the conclusion of play after what was a thrilling final, the presentation was made by the President of the Men’s Association Clare Cooper, who congratulated Marown on their win, thanked the sponsors Ellan Vannin Fuels for their continued support of the competition, Peel for hosting the final, and the spectators who came to support.
Mixed Team 2017 Runners Up – Port St Mary
Back: Paul Skelly, Ewan Cooil, Dan McCabe, Wayne Roberts, Trevor Quayle
Front: Trish Bull, Margret Tasker, Jayne Kneen, Chris Price
All To Play For
We’re heading into the final of week of the summer bowls season. It seems to have been a great success extending the season through September with clubs and players able to enjoy more bowling before the weather turns for winter.
There is still plenty to play for in the Ellan Vannin Fuels sponsored Men’s Leagues with Division and Merit titles up for grabs.
Starting with division one current champions South Ramsey A look to have done enough to secure back to back titles holding a comfortable 12 point lead over Marown A.
The battle at the bottom of division one rages on with Castletown B throwing Ballaugh A and Douglas B back into the relegation battle following their 8-2 win over Douglas B last week.
At the bottom Port Erin A sit on 53 points, Castletown B 59, Ballaugh A 60 and Douglas B 64.
Douglas B look safe on those points but they have played a game more than their relegation rivals and sit out on Wednesday. It will be season defining game when they make the trip up north to face South Ramsey B on Monday knowing they need to pick up points to distance themselves further.
Port Erin A who are rooted to the bottom of the league have two home games this week, first on Monday against fellow relegation candidates Castletown B and South Ramsey B on Wednesday.
Ballaugh A collected an important two points when they took the aggregate in a 6-4 win over Port Erin A last week. With a tough home match against Marown A followed by Wednesdays away trip to Castletown A they will have their work cut out to stay in the top flight, which they have been a part of since winning the division two league in 2008.
Castletown B who face Port Erin A on Monday then go to Marown A who have only dropped six points out of the available 50 in their last five home matches. Their Monday night encounter with Port Erin A could be the make or break game for the Balley Chashtal Men who were promoted only last season.
Division two and three have only one game remaining which are being played Monday or Tuesday night.
Marown B have already confirmed themselves as Champions as Onchan B had to bring their match forward to Friday and required a 10-0 win to have any hope of winning the league. They could only manage a 8-2 win over their C team confirming Marown B as league winners.
At the bottom of the table Douglas C who have struggled this season will finish bottom with Onchan C finishing above them.
It has been tight at the top of Division three for most of the season with Marown C, Peel Sunset C and Ballaugh C exchanging blows and places along the way. Marown C have fallen off the pace but should they hang on to third place it would be a great achievement in only their second season of bowls.
This leaves two teams Ballaugh C 126 points and Peel Sunset C 124 points. Incredibly the two teams meet on Tuesday at Sunset City which will provide a fantastic backdrop to the climax of division three.
In the League Merits. Trevor Quayle has been top of the division one merit for virtually the entire season having lost only one game 21-18. Chasing him are Colin Kelly, David Bradford and Neil Withers who could all still win the merit with two games to play.
Steve Crampton has already confirmed himself as division two merit winner with Kerry ‘Bod’ Boland runner up.
The division three merit has four players tied on 16 wins with chalks dropped separating them. Dave Smith, Paul Quirk, Arthur Moore and Ian Moore will all await each others results to find out which one has grabbed the merit.
Good luck to all the teams and players for the final weeks bowling.
Kennish at the Double
Mens & Ladies Manx Masters Winners 2017
Following the success of the Juniors, there was definitely a feel good factor around the green, with the Ladies and Men’s event immediately following the Juniors.
The Ladies event was an invitational 16, with the Men’s event being an invitational 32.
The eventual winner in the Ladies competition was the current Ladies Manx Champion Shelley Kennish, who overcame the challenge of teammate Lyn Bolton to win 21-20 after being 20-16 down.
Kennish came through her semi-final game with an assured win over last years winner Elaine Moore (South Ramsey), whilst Bolton had to dig deep with a 21-17 win over Chris Price (Port St Mary).
Kennish didn’t have it all her own way though, having to battle back from 19-10 down in her quarter final with Rebecca Teare (Nobles) to run out with a 21-19 victory. The other losing quarter finalists were Clare Cooper (Nobles), Philippa Taylor (Marown), and Gill Dixon (South Ramsey).
Glenn Boland carried his good form into the Men’s Manx Masters by winning his first game, demonstrating that he is one to watch out for in the Men’s game.
Not to be outdone by his daughter Shelley, John Kennish who is also the Men’s Manx Champion managed to retain the Men’s Manx Masters, with a resounding 21-6 victory over Neil Withers (Marown) in a good quality final.
In the semi-finals Kennish ended the challenge of Colin Kelly (Marown) with a 21-13 victory, whilst Withers booked his place in the final with a 21-15 win over Stuart Garrett.
Losing out in the quarter finals were Paul Skelly (Port St Mary), Dave ‘Dido’ Kelly (South Ramsey), Nathan Cooil (Castletown) and Phil ‘Rambo’ Kelly (Marown).
At the conclusion of the competition thanks were given to Feltons for their continued sponsorship of the Ladies and Men’s competitions, the South Ramsey Ladies for the excellent refreshments provided throughout a long day, those who helped run the competition and prepare the green.
Finally good luck to Jenny Moore, Shelley Kennish and John Kennish who will all be representing the Island next weekend (23rd/24th September) in Blackpool at the Waterloo in the Champion of Champions by virtue of their success in other competitions.
Boland Wins Junior Manx Masters
Junior Manx Masters Winner 2017
Glenn BolandThe Junior Manx Masters was held on Saturday morning at South Ramsey, with 15 juniors taking part, with Glenn Boland (Nobles) overcoming the challenge of current Junior Manx Champion Harry Barton (Marown) with a 11-5 victory in a good quality final.
It was an excellent morning of bowling, with the early stages split into three groups of five, with the three group winners automatically qualifying for the semi-final, along with a runner up from the three groups who had the best aggregate. Glenn didn’t have it all his own way, after a narrow defeat in the group stages against Bethany Kennish, Boland kept his cool to take the last spot in the semi-final courtesy of results in his other group games, showing he had not let his head drop despite the setback.
In the semi-final Glenn managed to end the challenge of last years winner Bethany Kennish, whilst Harry beat Austin Hart to book his place in the final.
At the conclusion of play the presentation was made by John Kennish, who thanked Stonemasons IOM Limited for the generous sponsorship, all those who were there to support the juniors.
Friends Provident Men’s Doubles
Friends Provident Men’s Doubles Winners 2017
Jordan Cain, Katy Williams (Friends Provident) & Nathan HamiltonAn Entry of 32 players (16 pairs) played at Port St Mary Bowling Club.
The 32 players were split into 2 groups, A and B, based on the league merit tables and which league the individuals play in, with group A being mostly 1st division bowlers.
One player was drawn from each group to make up the teams. This made for many close matches in every round of the competition, including the final which was won 21 – 20 by Jordan Cain & Nathan Hamilton against James Teare & Glenn Boland.
Losing at the semi-final stages were Alan Moore & Tom Collins and Glynn Hargraves & Derek Kneen.
With the weather also behaving itself, a very enjoyable afternoon was had by all.
At the Presentation, the President Of P.S.M. Bowling Club Ken Karran thanked the sponsors Friends Provident, the greenkeeper Ewan Cooil, the Ladies catering team, and everyone else that helped on the day.
Ken Karran then introduced Katy Williams of Friends Provident to present the prizes.
This open was added to this season’s schedule after some extra dates became available. After a lot of good feedback on the day from the players and spectators it is hoped that event will go ahead again next season.
Bailey is cream of crop
Mens September Festival Winner 2017
John BaileyJohn Bailey (Llanrwst) was the cream of the crop as he picked up his first title in the main event at the Isle of Man Bowls Festival last week, having been successful in the Tourism competition in previous years.
He began his day with a last bowl victory over Neil Rigden (New Longton), before getting the better of former champ Wayne Ditchfield (Kirkham) in the semis.
His opponent, Mark Hughes from Crossgates, began with a 21-16 win against Chris Slater (Colwyn Bay); then cruised to the final by beating another Welsh player, Gwerydd Buckland (Bangor City).
The destination of the Derek Killey memorial trophy was ultimately decided by a great spell in the middle of the game when Bailey notched up five successive two’s to turn a deficit into a seven point advantage.
He led 19-12 at this stage, however Hughes then dug deep to increase his total to 16, but it was not to be for the Crossgates man, who had won the Tourism event back in 2012, as his opponent scored the two required to taste victory with a 21-16 scoreline.
Competing in the quarter-finals of the ladies main tournament were locals Lyn Bolton (South Ramsey) and Caroline Parker (Mooragh Park); Lyn making it through to the semi-finals, whilst Caroline lost out in her opening game.
This final was fought out between Anita Richardson (Hoylake & Melrose) who had beaten Bolton, and Angela Gaut (Wrockwardine Wood) who eliminated her fellow Shropshire opponent, Julie Pearce (Meole Brace) in the last four.
Gaut, who had also been successful in the Tourism competition on previous visits, trailed her opponent in the early stages, before moving ahead 16-15 after 18 ends.
Richardson then put five chalks on the board, compared to just one for Gaut, and was on the brink of her first success leading out at 20-17.
Having been beaten in a pre-festival competition and not wishing to lose out in two finals on the Island, Gaut showed her battling qualities and notched up the four points needed to win the ladies September festival rose bowl.
Lyn Bolton won the Blanche Kaye memorial cup for the furthest Manx player in the ladies contest; whilst her club-mate Alan Moore did likewise in the men’s tournament, collecting the Chris Quayle memorial shield.
A wet Thursday morning saw the conclusion of the men’s and ladies Tourism competitions, with five locals in action – Matthew Keggen (Marown) bowed out first game and John Kennish (South Ramsey) lost in the semi-finals; whilst in the ladies, Margie Tasker (Port St Mary) and Philippa Taylor (Marown), both missed out by just one point; the latter beaten by Elaine Moore (South Ramsey), who fell at the next hurdle.
The men’s final saw two of the sport’s big names go head to head, as Wayne Ditchfield (Kirkham) took on Terry Glover (LCC), both having won major honours off-island as well as previous Isle of Man festivals.
Held on Noble’s number one green, the game was evenly balanced all through; they were level at nine apiece, again at 13, and then at 17 across, before Glover recorded the four points needed for victory.
Close-by on number two green, the Meole Brace club provided three of the last four in the ladies contest, with club-mates Julie Pearce and Alison Cotton battling it out for the championship.
Cotton took control in the early stages and led 18-13, before her adversary fought back to move ahead 20-18, however Pearce couldn’t carry on her good run of points and Cotton clinched the title by the closest of margins and completed a double over her fellow club members.
Rounding up the remaining competitions that took place throughout the week, Kevin Quirk (Onchan) just missed out on a win in the men’s consolation, going down 21-20 to Rob Winnington (Castle) and in the ladies consolation, it was Sue Hill from the Meersbrook club who triumphed over Elizabeth Foster (Orrell Rovers) with the same scoreline.
The visit Isle of Man.com flyer saw Mike Coupe (Hoghton) get the better off Neil Wright (Norton Central). Helen Martin (Mooragh Park) lost to the eventual winner in her semi-final.
Jamie King added to the tally of wins for the Wrockwardine Wood entourage when he was successful in the last chance mixed event with a 21-16 victory over Colin Johnstone (St Bernards).
King then went on to partner Sarah Fox (Woodlands Park) in their mixed doubles success. They beat Joan Jolly (Acregate) and Michael Burrows (Orford Warrington Memorial).
Neil Wright also made it into two finals, having taken part in the men’s doubles, which was one of three pairs competitions completed on Thursday evening; he partnered Ian Nicholson (Kendal Vic) to victory over Michael Davies (Netherton Park) and Stuart Sutton (Fairfield).
There was a local triumph in the open pairs when Neil Withers and Paul Dunn (Marown) defeated Craig Gant (Thongsbridge) and Duncan Reeves (Netherton Cons).
Lynda Cadamy from Port Erin competed in the ladies doubles final with Sandra Beveridge (Lansil), but missed out when beaten by Jacqueline Owen (Whitefield) and Eileen Pye (Acregate).
Thanks go to the Department of Economic Development for their continued support, of what is without doubt one of the premier events on the bowling calendar. Also Manx Telecom who provided a unit to help spread the news around the internet.
A big thank you as always to the many helpers who gave their time at all the venues used throughout the week; and a special mention to David Higgins who is stepping down after 15 years as helpers’ coordinator for the men.