News: Announcements
Onchan Commissioners’ Ladies’ Doubles
Onchan Commissioners Ladies Doubles Winners 2017
Jenny & Elaine MooreThere was an entry of thirteen pairs for the Onchan Commissioner’s ladies’ doubles played on Wednesday 19 July. The competition started in cloudy conditions with the rain biding its time till the start of the semi-finals when a short heavy shower was followed by fine drizzle for the remainder of the afternoon.
Quarter-finals: Margaret Tasker and Tricia Bull 21, Elaine Dewhirst and Lil Smith 15; Lin Ruscoe and Paula Firth 21, Barbara Young and Joy Stephens 12; Elaine and Jenny Moore 21, Linda Dobinson and Ann Hollingworth 7; Lyn Bolton and Philippa Taylor 21, Josie Harding and Flo Price 14.
In the first semi-final, although both pairs played some good woods, Margaret and Tricia had the edge, winning 21-13, while it was a similar story in the other where Lyn and Philippa were unable to reproduce their form from earlier rounds, Elaine and Jenny progressing to the final with a score of 21-14.
In the final Jenny and Elaine made the better start with two 2’s taking them to 10-6 after two ends, when Tricia and Margaret got three singles to close the gap to 9-10. From that point, despite some good bowls from the Port St Mary pair, the pair from South Ramsey had the upper hand, allowing the southerners to record just one more single, coming through to win 21-10.
Libby Andrade thanked all those who had entered and all the Onchan Girls who had helped in any way with the smooth running of the afternoon, before introducing Anthony Allen, Chairman of the Onchan Commissioners, to present the prizes
Onchan Step Up Their Challenge
Onchan A 2017
Back: Kevin Quirk, Peter Slinger, Rob Cowley, Mike Thomas, Phil KerruishFront: Jordan Cain, Robert Monk, Adrian Skinner, Matthew Quirk
Onchan showed last week how they are ready to mount a serious on the two sides above them in men’s crown green bowling league. In week 13 of the Ellan Vannin Fuels-sponsored league, they turned out a very strong team at Castletown B on Monday night when they came away with a 10-0 victory. In doing so they closed the gap on the leading two Division One sides by a single point.
The whitewash included an impressive 21-3 win for Mike Thomas and identical 21-9 score lines for Robert Monk, Jordan Cain and Matthew Quirk.
The problem for the chasing teams is that reigning champions South Ramsey A don’t look like they are about give any ground away to the teams below them. Last week they took on local rivals North Ramsey A at the Mooragh and handed out a clinical 9-1 beating, Steve Walmsey won 21-13 for the North but that was there only joy of the night as they were firmly put in their place.
Second placed team Marown A took on Douglas B at the Villa and ended the night with nine points which included impressive 21-3 and 21-4 wins for Bob Clarke and Paul Dunn respectively.
Peel A were held 5-5 by Castletown A over in the Sunset City, a good result for the visitors but the home side were left feeling they should have done better after losing ground on the teams above them.
South Ramsey B entertained Port St Mary A but could only manage two winners on the night as the away side powered to an 8-2 win with Trevor Quayle maintaining his unbeaten run. Ballaugh A were at home to Douglas A with the Villa men having much the better of the evening with a solid 8-2 win .
In Division Two league leaders Onchan B were at home to Peel B and ended the night with 7-3 win, but second placed Marown B had an impressive 9-1 win over Finch Hill A closing the gap to One point on the leaders.
Noble’s B in third place looking to close in on the top two teams had a 8-2 home win over Port Erin B to keep up their challenge. In the remaining games Post St Mary C had a good 8-2 win over Onchan C, Port St Mary B defeated North Ramsey B 7-3 at the Mooragh.
Lying at the bottom of Division Two Douglas C suffered a crushing 10-0 home defeat at the hands of Noble’s A which sets them three points adrift at the foot of the table.
Division Three fixtures saw Peel D take on Peel C in what turned out to be a well supported and fiercely competitive game, it resulted in 5-5 draw with Peel D down 3-5 on games but winning the aggregate but the five points keep Peel C level with Ballaugh C at the top of the table. At the wrong end of the table Finch Hill B and Douglas D both suffered heavy defeats.
Port St Mary Win Jean Kelly
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
Port St Mary Ladies have won the Jean Kelly Memorial Competition for a fourth time beating Nobles by 17 chalks 178-161.
For once the weather suited the occasion as the two teams, Port St Mary and Nobles, met at Onchan on Thursday 6 July for the final of the Jean Kelly Memorial competition. It was gratifying to see so many spectators there, enjoying the evening sunshine and some fine bowling.
There were some very close games and when the first block of five games came off, Port St Mary had a narrow lead of four points once Nobles’ handicap was taken into account. The last four games were shared with Nobles having good wins from Rebecca Teare and Debbie Leece, but wins from Tricia Bull and Chris Price, to single figures, gave the victory to Port St Mary 178-161.
The main difference was the winning team’s consistency, with each of their players scoring at least 16 points. The other winner for Nobles was Clare Cooper, while Sylvia Kennaugh reached 19 against Jayne Kneen and Paula Firth lost out 20-21 to Wendy Kennaugh.
Association vice-president, Sue Peach, thanked the two teams for giving us such a good match, and also thanked all those who had come along to support the event, before introducing Moore Kelly, who sponsors the event so generously every year.
Moore thanked his family and friends for providing the food for the buffet, which was much appreciated by players and spectators alike. He then introduced his daughter-in-law, Ruth Kelly, to present the prizes.
Runners Up – Nobles
Front: Sylvia Kennuagh, Lisa Boland, Paula Firth, Debbie Leece, Lin Ruscoe
Life Membership for Les Benson
Les Benson Life Membership Presentation
Les Benson (left) presented by Chairman Peter PartingtonLes Benson has been presented with a lifetime membership for long service to Finch Hill Snooker & Bowling Club following a staggering 25 years as Treasurer.
Whilst he is stepping down from his role and will no doubt leave big shoes to fill, he is very much involved playing regularly for the Over 60s and occasionally in the night league.
The club wish to extend their thanks for his dedication and service to the club and he was presented with his life membership by current Finch Hill Chairman Peter Partington.
Ladies’ Championship
Ladies Manx Championship Winner 2017
Shelley KennishThe IOM Ladies’ Championship, sponsored by Ann Gale and Dave McTaggart, took place at Nobles 1 on Saturday 1 July. The two main disappointments of the afternoon were the entry of 21 players, and the weather which was not at all appropriate for July. Although scheduled to take place over two days the entry meant it could be completed in one afternoon.
What the field lacked in quantity it made up for in quality and there were some very close matches particularly in the latter stages.
Kim Hargraves had a tough match against Julie Reilly in the last 16, winning 21-20 to reach the quarter- finals where she met Paula Firth. Despite Kim getting off to a flyer and leading for most of the game, Paula’sgreater experience told as she pulled back from 17-20 down to win 21-20.
In the first quarter-final, Shelley Kennish seemed to be running away with her match against Lynda Cadamy, leading 19-8 after 18 ends, at which point Lynda moved up a gear pulling back to 19-20, but was unable to keep it going as Shelley took the next end to move into the semi-finals 21-19.
The other two quarter-finals were also evenly matched with Elaine Moore and Helen Martin being level at9-9 after13 ends, from which point Helen had the edge to win 21-15, while Gill Dixon took some time to get going against Janet Monk, at one point being 15-7 down. Although she had the advantage over the final ends she was unable to make up the deficit, going down 21-15.
Quarter-finals: Shelley Kennish 21, Lynda Cadamy 19; Helen Martin 21, Elaine Moore 17; Janet Monk 21, Gill Dixon 15; Paula Firth 21, Kim Hargraves 20.
In the semi-finals Janet And Shelley upped their game, although neither of them got off to a good start. After 13 ends Helen was leading 11-7 at which point Shelley regained possession of the jack and refused to relinquish it, while Paula had the better of the early exchanges in her match against Janet, leading13-9 after 15 ends. Janet allowed her just one more point coming through to meet Shelley in the final 21-14.
Semi-finals; Shelley Kennish 21, Helen Martin 11; Janet Monk 21, Paula Firth 14.
In the final a cagey start saw the protagonists level at 6-6 after 7 ends, from which point Shelley was in the ascendancy. Although Janet got hold of the jack a few times, such was the standard of Shelley’s play, she was unable to keep hold of it and Shelley ran out to take the match, and title “Manx Champion”, 21-13.
Association president, Rosie Winckle, thanked Nobles for the use of their green and the help of their members, both in providing refreshments and round the green, and heather for running the sheet. Special thanks went to Ann and Dave for their sponsorship of the event
Girls’ Junior Championship
Junior Girls Merit Winner 2017
Bethany KennishThe sun shone at Marown on Sunday 2 July for the Junior Girls’ Championship, the winner of which qualifies to represent the island in the Ladies’ Junior Merit at Heswall in September.
There was an entry of six, who were drawn into two groups of three each group being played as a round -robin. The two group winners then played a final to find a winner.
The six girls who took part were Shannon and Madison McMullen, Aalish Howarth, Bethany Kennish, Rebekah Kelly and Katie-Lee Kelly, and all six acquitted themselves well. It was nice to see so many spectators who must have been impressed by the standard of play, and it bodes well for the future of the ladies’ game on the island to have such a talented group of youngsters coming through.
The two group winners were Rebekah Kelly and Bethany Kennish who the played a final match to 15.
The two girls were evenly matched and after 12 ends the score was 7-7, at which point Bethany was in the middle of a string of six ends which took her to 10-7. The ends were then shared with Rebekah unable to make up the deficit, Bethany coming through to retain her title 15-11.
Heather Horsburgh thanked Marown for the use of their green and their help with the event before introducing Association president, Rosie Winckle, to make the presentation.
Cain Cup
Cain Cup Winner 2017
On the day his daughter, Shelley, won the Ladies Championship the virtually unstoppable John Kennish added Castletown’s Cain Cup to his tally of six open victories already this summer, a tally that also includes the Manx Championship.
Playing a mixture of short and long lengths throughout the day the South Ramsey stalwart triumphed 21-9 over Marown’s Phil Kelly in the final having previously seen off teammate David Bradford in the semis while ‘Rambo’ Kelly had seen off Tom Kelly (Peel) in the other last four game.
From an impressive field of 37 entrants, with all games 21-up off scratch, the losers in the last eight were Peter Collins (Port St Mary), Glynn Hargraves (South Ramsey), Bernie Durcan from Port Erin and also Ian Watson from the home club.
The Castletown club also decided to hold some spot-prize competitions and the winners here were Dylan Marsh and Glenn Boland who shared the best Junior prize, John Ruscoe whose name was drawn out from all those players who lost in their first game while Durcan doubled up by taking the best over-60 prize. Kennish was also a double winner as he, not surprisingly, also won the best break prize – quite apt really for a man who is also the Island’s snooker champion.
At the end of the day the home chairman Hilary Kermode combined with club treasurer Linda Richman, who did a sterling job throughout in running the event, and between them they presented all the prizes.
June Festival Blog
Derby Shocks As Nobles B Upset A Team
Nobles B Mens Team 2017
Lawrence Doogan, Kerry 'Bod' Boland, Glenn Boland, Kevin Firth, John Ruscoe, Mark Quinn, Paul Leece, David QuayleWith TT week over all three divisions featured this week in the Ellan Vannin Fuels sponsored Mens League before another week off for the June Bowling Festival.
Tie of the round on paper was Onchan A vs Port St Mary A. Port St Mary had two of their strongest players missing and Onchan eased to a 7-3 win beating the southerners by 39 chalks. Matthew Quirk and Jordan Cain both won to single figures and Trevor Quayle maintained his 100% record. Stand-in and stand-out performer was Steve Franks who beat Phil Kerruish 21-18.
Title favourites and defending champions South Ramsey A picked up a comfortable 8-2 win on the road at Castletown A. Dave Hollingworth beat Stefan Kelly and Peter Oates came from 18-12 down against Dave ‘Dido’ Kelly running out 21-18 to salvage some points for the Balley Chashtal men.
Marown A remain second after their visit to Mooragh Park to play North Ramsey A winning both halves of the match 3-1 to take the aggregate and an 8-2 win back to Crosby. The final match score doesn’t reflect a couple of the games with both Neil Withers and Colin Kelly lying game down before winning 21-19 and 21-20 respectively. Geoff Porter and Tony Smart picked up wins for the home side.
Peel Sunset A bounced straight back from losing last week to defeat Port Erin A 9-1. There were big wins for Peel in most of the games but Seamus Whelan 20 and Steve Durcan 19 came close to snatching some precious points. Peel remain third but sit out the next round of matches and will wait to see where they are at the half way stage.
Douglas A went over the mountain to face South Ramsey B and despite winning 7-3 will feel they missed out on a 9-1 win having lost two games 21-20 with Ben Dugdale and Sid Bolton sneaking over the line against former home greeners Gary Conwell and Andy Kennish.
Douglas B remain at the foot of the table but clawed a couple of points back by beating relegation rivals Castletown B 6-4
In Division Two Onchan B still lead the way at the top at the after a 7-3 away win at North Ramsey B.
Nobles B faced up against their A team and incredibly won 8-2 to keep themselves in third position and challenging for promotion.
Port St Mary C were hoping to create a similar derby upset against their B team but it wasn’t to ‘B’ as they went down 7-3 and by a large 44 chalk margin. Port St Mary B finally close to within a point of the C team in the league and will be hoping to kick on after a poor first half of the season.
Finch Hill A have struggled making their home green a fortress this season, but will be happier following a 7-3 win over promoted side Port Erin B.
The gap now at the bottom of Division Two is over 20 points with both Douglas C and Onchan C well off the pace. Douglas C went down 9-1 away to Peel B whilst Onchan C lost 8-2 home to Marown B. Both will be staring down the barrels of relegation in September without a massive turnaround.
A similar gap exists at the bottom of Division 3 with both Finch Hill B and Douglas D over 20 points behind their nearest rivals. Douglas D lost 9-1 at home to Peel D and South Ramsey D beat Finch Hill B 7-3
Another club derby took place this week with Ballaugh B taking on their C team who sit 20 points ahead of them in the league. The match must have been a thriller with the two sides playing out a true draw 4-4 on games and 136-136 on the chalks. Youngster Patrick Grant continued his impressive form beating Dicky Watson 21-20 in a game which was the difference between a 5-5 draw and a 7-3 loss.
With Ballaugh C drawing Peel C leapfrogged into top spot with a crushing 9-1 165-108 victory over Nobles C. Marown C who started the season well, have slipped off the pace in their last couple of games and lost at home to Castletown C 8-2
With a week off for festival the league will return on the 26th June for round 13 and will complete the first half of the season. No matter what results are thrown up South Ramsey A will be top of the League going into the second half of the season and are favourites to retain their title. Marown A and Onchan A will fight all the way for top spot and Peel A, Douglas A and Port St Mary A will not give up their own pursuit easily of a top three finish.
The week of the 26th also sees the Quarter Finals of the Rayner Shield and Plate. Tie of the round in the shield sees Port St Mary A making the trip away to South Ramsey A who have not lost a home match since July 2015. On that night it was Port St Mary A who defeated them 7-3 picking up the aggregate by a single chalk.
In the Plate Port St Mary B have setup a southern derby against Port Erin B and the sole remaining Division One team Ballaugh A are away to Onchan C.
Festival Preview
This years June bowls festival is a very different one for me as it my first as a non resident of the Island. I have always been filled with anticipation and excitement of the top class bowling an atmosphere the coming week held in store, but to actually be one of the visiting holiday makers has stepped things up to another level. I now understand what all the pro Isle of Man bowls week Facebook statuses from the UK bowling fraternity are all about, I literally can’t wait for it, so when I was asked to write the preview for it I was like a kid in a sweet store and grabbed the opportunity with both hands!
Some things never change however and as always when I run through each section of the draw to pick out the potential winner I am awestruck by the quality of the field and the number of potential victors. This is going to be a great competition.
In my heart I will always want a Manx winner and I think with events out of their control meaning they had to pull out of the County Championships it would be fantastic if we had one this time around. For most of them this year the two bowls festivals are their only real chance to have a seat at the games top table and take on the best of the best.
The first section of the draw is simply littered with players wanting to make their mark and claim the main prize. Visitors Paul Bailey (Meersbrook) and Callum Wraight (Castlefields) will fancy their chances of going a long way and the winner of Lee Johnstone (St Oswalds) and Danny Ferris (Norton BC) could also have a very good week, Jordan Cain (Onchan) and Stuart Garrett (Douglas) are two locals who are more than capable of making a finals day appearance.
It gets even more difficult to predict what will happen in the next section and you can never write off Andy Spragg (Callow BC). The charismatic Steve Freer (Castlefields) would be a very popular winner with both locals and visitors alike as he always brings his unique flair to the party. Mark Hughes (Crossgates) is now regularly making it to the latter stages and there is no reason why he couldn’t do it again. Young Conor Chamberlain could also go well if he finds his form. From a local perspective we also have a players capable of mixing it with the best in the shape of Kevin Quirk (Onchan), Dave ‘Dido’ Kelly (South Ramsey) and Rob Monk (Onchan).
There are former winners and runners up everywhere I look as I scroll down the page and defending champion Kez Smith (Crossgates) will have his work cut out to retain his crown with the likes of Kevin Shaw (Westhaoughton), Carl Armitage (St Oswalds), Chris Barton (Wirral) and Colin Kelly (Marown) all in close proximity. Don’t be surprised to if Stevie Kelly (Peel) turns a few heads and causes a few surprises.
There are chances in the next section and for me it’s wide open. Another former champion Gax Lalley (Crossgates) will fancy his chances of making it to the latter stages however in form Trevor Qualye (Port St Mary), who currently leads the local division one merit, has the potential to do very well indeed.
Wayne Ditchfield (Kirkham) and Dave Jackson (Railway) will both expect to make it to the latter stages however there will be only room for one of them, that is of course if the get past local David Bradford (South Ramsey) who on his day can beat absolutely anyone and everyone.
Jack Dyson (Thongsbridge) will be hoping to add his name to the trophy however with seasoned campaigners such as Martin Gilpin (Kendal Vic), Rich Goddard (Castlefields), Rob Fitzpatrick (Wirral) and Marown’s Neil Withers all on the same page it would be a very good week at the office if he was to leave with the crown.
Ian Nicholson’s (Kendal Vic) name jumps of the next page and hits me between the eyes as the man most likely to be in the final shake up from the next group, however it will be interesting to see how Billy Speed (Castlefields) and young Stefan Kelly (South Ramsey) fare.
Stuart Mort (Kirkham) and Matt Kelly-Wally (Belvedere) will both fancy a long run out over the week however experienced locals Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly (Peel), Phil Kerruish (Onchan) and Manx Championship runner up Pete Slinger (Onchan) will all be wanting their own day in the sun on Friday.
News has filtered through to me that local favourite John Kennish (South Ramsey) is unable to take part in the competition this year due to work commitments which really opens up the next section of the draw. I can’t even begin to work out who will make best use of this and it will definitely pay dividends for someone and Paul Chamberlain (Stretton Anglesey) may just be the man to cash in.
James Wilcox (Crossgates) is probably favourite to make it to finals day out of the final 32 in the competition however locals Matthew Quirk (Onchan) and Matthew Keggen (Marown) are both well placed to stop him.
Well that’s it for now, draw analysed and like me you are probably no clearer to picking a winner than I am. What should shine through, however, is the quality of the field and the week of bowls we have in store for us and as I said at the top I literally can’t wait for it to start.