In Canada Life International Division One this week Marown A hosted long time league leaders South Ramsey A at Crosby as they looked to avenge their 8-2 away defeat earlier in the season and a 5-3 defeat in the Rayner Shield Final on Friday evening. The northern team started the match four points ahead of their opponents.

South Ramsey struck the first blow of the night with visiting captain Glynn Hargraves winning 21-7 against Phil Kelly. Neil Withers hit back with a solid 21-15 win over Dido Kelly, while team mate Colin Kelly performed well to see off Bob Clark 21-9, with the score at 11-9 to Kelly a 10-chalk streak got him over the line, whilst Marown captain Paul Dunn had a convincing 21-12 victory over Stefan Kelly as he gained immediate revenge for Friday’s Rayner Shield result.

In the second half of the match Paul Kelly trailed 15-16 against James Teare, with the former running out with a 21-16 win. Another matchup from Friday saw Peter Jones claim a 21-19 win over David Bradford with Jones performing well to reverse Friday’s result. South Ramsey did pick up their second win of the night with Peter Collister recording a good 21-13 victory over Dean Kipling, while Harry Barton ensured it was an unhappy trip home for the visitors as he sealed an 8-2 victory for his team with a nail-biting 21-20 win over Jordan Cain. Just 13 chalks separated the teams (146-133) on the night. Marown now sit top, two points ahead of South Ramsey with just four games left to play the title is now within their grasp.

Perhaps the surprise result of the night was Port St Mary A with their visit to take on Onchan A, as they recorded a 4-6 away victory over the Onchan men. Two single figure wins to 21-8 from Paul Skelly and Tim Williams over Sid McKnight and Neil Dunwell respectively was enough to seal the aggregate by seven chalks (132-139), along with a good performance from Nathan Hamilton who beat Andy Kennish 21-13. Dan McCabe picked up their fourth win as he held off Mike Thomas 21-19. For Onchan Reginald Temporaza performed well as he beat Trevor Quayle 21-14, with Kevin Quirk seeing off Wayne Roberts 21-12.

Not far behind in causing an upset on Monday were Castletown A who beat Marown B 5-3 on games but lost the aggregate by five chalks (138-143) to ensure the Crosby men didn’t go away with a defeat to leave the result 5-5 on the night. The chalks for Marown were helped massively by John Gelling with his 21-5 win over Chris Lever doing the damage to the Town men. Glenn Boland impressed with a 21-12 victory over Mark Moorley, while captain Darren Kerruish beat Juan Kermode 21-16. Winning for Town were Peter Oates as he beat Brian Kelly 21-13, with Nathan Cooil seeing off Jerome Surridge 21-18, while Ron Williams got home 21-19 against Karl Parker.

Peel A were just five chalks off recording a 10-0 win at home to North Ramsey A, with Gary Merrill beating Geoff Rice 21-18 for the visitors, with team mate Rob Monk winning 21-19 against George Gadsby. For Peel two 21-6 wins from Dean Kinley and Tommy McMeiken helped their cause, while Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly was pushed the hardest with his 21-17 win over John Cannan.

Douglas A hosted Peel B at the Villa, with the home advantage being used to good effect with a 9-1 win. Gordon Corrin was the lone winner for the visitors as he beat Alistair Lothian 21-3. For the Villa men Kevin Firth beat Michael Kavanagh 21-6, while Keith Rise won 21-9 against Dougie Allan.

The bottom two teams faced off at Breagle Glen on Monday night with the home team Port Erin A getting the better of Onchan B 6-4, however the result did neither team any favours in their bid to get out of trouble. David Cain trounced Bernie McPhee 21-1, with Bernie Durcan winning 21-6 against Colin Spence. For the visitors Mark Kelly was their best winner as he beat Derek Allen 21-9.

In Division Two South Ramsey B now have a 17-point advantage over second placed Ballaugh A, following their 10-0 home win over Onchan C on a tricky home green. Three of their players are in a battle for the individual merit with Tony Dugdale, Alan Moore and Bryan Corner occupying the top three spots. 

It is a two-way fight for second place after third placed Marown C closed the gap to second by a point following their8-2 home win over Castletown B, while Ballaugh A came away from Breagle Glen with a 3-7 win over Port St Mary B.

Elsewhere Peel C slipped to a 4-6 home defeat to South Ramsey C, losing the aggregate by 4 chalks (140-144), Finch Hill A came away from Noble’s Park with a 3-7 win over Noble’s A, while Ballaugh B won 7-3 at home as they edged the chalks (141-137) to take the aggregate.

In Division Three the top two clashed at Mooragh Park, with North Ramsey B seeing off Noble’s B 9-1 to all but end the visitors hopes of winning the league. Phil Salmon prevented the whitewash with a 21-17 win over Geoff Porter. 

Marown D couldn’t fully capitalise on the heavy defeat inflicted on Noble’s B, however they did win 4-6 away to Finch Hill B to close the gap by five points to sit just three points off second spot. Jay Waters stayed firmly in the hunt for the individual merit with a 21-17 win over Peter Woods.

Elsewhere South Ramsey D returned to winning ways with a good 8-2 home win over Peel D, while Castletown C took five games off Douglas C at the Crofts with young bowlers Junior Keggen and Sam Quayle both impressing with 21-13 wins over David Beynon and Ashley Halsall respectively. The Villa men won the aggregate by 10 chalks (129-139) to secure a 5-5 draw on the night.

Mixed Team Championship

South Ramsey A topped Group A to make it six wins out of six, as they beat Onchan A 8-1 at home by 80 chalks (181-101).

North Ramsey A signed off their campaign with a 7-2 home win over Castletown A, as they won by 43 chalks (181-138).

In Group B Marown A also kept up their 100% win record, as they won 2-7 in their away fixture with Douglas A, winning by 27 chalks on the night (138-175).

Port St Mary A and Port Erin A clashed at Breagle Glen, with the PSM team taking six individual victories and winning by 29 chalks (177-148).

Mixed Team Plate

In Group A Noble’s dodged a heavy defeat away to Peel to top the group in their 5-4 defeat as they lost out by just six chalks. With both teams finishing on 10 points a superior chalks for and against for Noble’s was enough to reach the final.

Castletown B signed off with a 6-3 win over North Ramsey B, taking the chalks by 38 (158.120).

In Group B Ballaugh marched on to top the Group with 12 points following their 9-0 win away to Marown B, although the Crosby Team did score well (126-189).

South Ramsey B also finished the group with a win by the smallest of margins (152-153) as they beat Douglas B at the Villa. The home team could take some consolation as they won 5-4 on games.

South Ramsey A now face Marown A in the final of the Championship, while Noble’s take on Ballaugh in the Plate final on Wednesday 24^th August with the venue to be confirmed.

The Isle of Man Team took part in the 2022 BCGBA Senior Supplementary County Championship which was held on Sunday at Fox Lane, Leyland with the team returning to this format of the competition after last playing in it in 2014, having played in the Crosfield Cup in 2015 and 2016 the men have not had the opportunity to represent the Island for six years in a team competition.

Drawn in Group 1, as expected the opposition was tough with South Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and Cheshire awaiting.

In the first round of matches the eight man team were up against South Yorkshire, with the Manx men drawing 4-4 on games with Jordan Cain, Bob Clark, Neil Withers and Matthew Quirk all winning, with the latter the best winner. Paul Dunn just missed out 20-21 as the team lost out by just 12 chalks (142-154).

In their second round match Greater Manchester were the opposition, once again they managed to win four individual games with the winners being Jordan Cain, Bob Clark, Paul Dunn and Neil Withers with the latter winning 21-8. Losing out in close games were Glynn Hargraves (19), Colin Kelly (18) and Matthew Quirk (15) as they lost this one by a margin of just four chalks (145-149).

In their final match they faced Cheshire. The team didn’t let their heads drop after two narrow defeats as this time out they dug deep to pick up a 5-3 victory on games and ultimately win the all important chalks as they won by a healthy margin of 23 chalks (140-117) to pick up two points for the victory. Individual wins to single figures arrived from David Bradford and Bob Clark, while Colin Kelly, Jordan Cain and Neil Withers also won.

South Yorkshire ended up topping the group, going on to the reach the final where they came up against Derbyshire who prevailed in Group 2, in a group that included Potteries, Cumbria and North Midlands. In the final South Yorkshire edged out Derbyshire as they won by just five chalks (145-140) to take the title home.

The Isle of Man Team who were managed by Phil Kerruish and assisted by Juan Kermode finished in a very respectable second place in the group to match their best performance in this competition, as they also finished +7 on aggregate chalks to show they can compete with other counties. In the first two rounds of matches they lost out by 16 chalks – just two chalks a man to show the very fine margins between victory and defeat.

To put this into perspective the Isle of Man have just 13 bowling greens available on the Island, with a limited pool of bowlers to choose from. Whilst other counties have hundreds of greens to play on and thousands of bowlers to pick from, it could well be argued that the Isle of Man are punching above their weight.

A great team effort overall, with Jordan Cain, Bob Clark and Neil Withers each winning all three games played on the day. The day can be considered a success for the Island Team, who demonstrated a good team spirit and togetherness as they went unbeaten on match games in all three rounds. Thanks must also go to everyone who helped organise the trip.

The 3R’s Limited Rayner Shield final was held at Castletown Bowling Club on Friday evening, between South Ramsey A and Marown A, with the current top two teams on the Island going head to head, with many neutrals predicting a 4-4 result with the match to be decided on chalks.

As now is commonplace for team finals both captains agreed to do the draw ahead of the match, with a short video of the draw put together to generate a bit of interest. This appeared to pay off with over 120 spectators in attendance to watch events unfold, on a fine evening for bowls with fantastic support for both teams.

First off the green for South Ramsey was captain Glynn Hargraves who was 4-4 early in the game with Sam Clague. Hargraves went on a good run against Clague who scored just one more point as the South Ramsey man changed the mark played every end to win 21-5. Next off to level things up on games was Marown’s top man Colin Kelly who was up against Dido Kelly with the Marown man leading 12-3 in the corners Dido played well to fight back to 11-12, only for another good run from Colin in the corners resulted in a 21-13 win for the Crosby man.

Marown went 2-1 ahead thanks to Dean Kipling who led 14-8 against James Teare, with both players scoring seven chalks each from there this was enough for Kipling to win 21-15. The last match of the first half was a blockbuster of a game between Manx Champion David Bradford and new signing Peter Jones, with the latter being familiar with the Castletown green having played in the Ballacashtal many times over the years. The big difference in this game was Bradford was able to score a double on five occasions, with Jones scoring two doubles Bradford edged home 21-17 in a good quality game. At the half way stage it was 2-2 on games with South Ramsey ahead by just five chalks (69-64).

In the second half of the match the two new South Ramsey players proved their determination to pick up their first Rayner Shield win with their new team as Bob Clark surged into a 13-5 lead against Phil Kelly, Clark performed well on his former home green to win 21-12. Jordan Cain performed brilliantly on the night as he went 20-7 ahead against Neil Withers, with the latter having to play a lot of reaching bowls just to stay in the game. Three quickfire doubles from Withers pulled the score back to 13-20 as he threatened to get a run of ends together. A great last bowl from Cain secured a good 21-13 victory to put South Ramsey 4-2 up on games and 22 chalks ahead (111-89).

The match was effectively over at this point with both of the remaining games for South Ramsey well into double figures, with Peter Collister trailing Paul Kelly 13-14 the South Ramsey man went 16-14 ahead only for Kelly to run out with a 21-16 win as he scored seven chalks over four ends. The last game of the night saw Stefan Kelly who was perhaps the underdog in his game with Marown captain Paul Dunn, yet Kelly put in a good performance playing corner to crown and back to lead 9-3. Dunn responded brilliantly hitting some good strikes as he went into the lead 17-16 by end 28. Kelly kept his composure and refocused to score five consecutive singles to win 21-17, with the result sealing a 5-3 victory (chalks 148-127) for South Ramsey and ultimately proving to be a good confidence boost for Kelly.

The presentation was made by competition committee officer Steve Moore, who thanked Rob Matthews from 3R’s Limited for sponsoring the competition, Castletown Bowling Club for the use of the green and their club members for assisting throughout the evening. Rob Matthews of 3R’s Limited was then introduced to present the Rayner Shield to South Ramsey captain Glynn Hargraves, who offered his commiserations to Marown and congratulated his side for a superb team performance. South Ramsey’s win sees them take their sixth win in the competition, along with retaining the title they picked up last season.

South Ramsey A			Marown A
David Bradford	21	17	Peter Jones
Dido Kelly	12	21	Colin Kelly
Glynn Hargraves	21	5	Sam Clague
James Teare	15	21	Dean Kipling
Bob Clark	21	12	Phil Kelly
Jordan Cain	21	13	Neil Withers
Peter Collister	16	21	Paul Kelly
Stefan Kelly	21	17	Paul Dunn
5 Games Won	148	127	3 Games Won

In Canada Life International Sponsored Division One this week fourth placed Marown B stunned their nearest league rivals Onchan A at Crosby with the home team winning 9-1 to close the gap on the Onchan men to just seven points. For Marown Matthew Keggen was the only single figure winner as he beat Neil Dunwell 21-9, with Jerome Surridge beating Phil Kerruish 21-17, Brian Kelly won 21-18 against Reg Temporaza while John Gelling had to use all his home green knowledge to see off Kevin Quirk 21-19. Matthew Quirk was the lone winner for Onchan, as he beat Glenn Boland 21-15.

South Ramsey A had a short trip down the road as they took on local rivals North Ramsey A at Mooragh Park on a wet and blustery evening. After the first half of the match the score was 2-2, with Paul Allison having a superb last two ends against Stefan Kelly to win 21-20, while John Cannan beat James Teare. It could have been a lot worse as David Bradford held his nerve to beat Steve Walmsley 21-20. In the second half South Ramsey dominated as they won three games comfortably, with Peter Collister pushed the furthest by Adrian Skinner who lost out 18-21 to ensure the league leaders took a solid 2-8 win on the night.

Second placed Marown A had their away game with Douglas A rearranged to Wednesday evening due to a waterlogged Villa green, however they ended the week matching the league leaders with their own 2-8 away win. All of the away wins for Marown were comfortable with 15 the highest their losers could get to. The two winners for Douglas were Keith Rise who beat Neil Withers 21-18, while Gordon Wynne-Smythe also won 21-18 against Harry Barton. Marown A now host South Ramsey A at Crosby on Monday night as they look to close the gap.

Onchan B slipped to a heavy 1-9 home defeat to Peel A, with Dave Smith the best winner for the Peel Men as he won 21-1 against Mike Kelly. Preventing the whitewash was Steve Parker who edged home 21-19 against Michael Kavanagh.

Peel B look a good bet to remain in the top division as they beat Castletown A 7-3 at home. Peel captain Paul Quirk beat Juan Kermode 21-11, with Robert Middleton their best winner as he won 21-6 against Derek Lewney. All three wins for Castletown from Ian Watson, Ron Williams and Mark Moorley were to a 21-15 score line.

With just five games left to play Port Erin A are barring a miracle heading for an immediate return to Division Two, as they are 25 points from safety following their 10-0 defeat to Port St Mary A at Breagle Glen. David Cain and Bernie Durcan were the best scorers in their 17-21 defeats to Dan McCabe and Tom Collins respectively. Trevor Quayle was the best winner 21-5 against Steve Durcan.

In Division Two league leaders South Ramsey B show no signs of relenting as they beat bottom team Ballaugh B 9-1 at home, with the visitors needing to pick up some good results soon with just five matches left to play.

Marown C suffered a huge upset the following night with a strong South Ramsey C Team winning 9-1 at home. The experienced Peter Kelly was the only winner as he beat Anthony Kelly 21-11, while his son John just lost out 20-21 to Christian Caley. For the home team captain Tony Hart won 21-8 against 2021 Rayner Plate hero Stuey Clague.

Ballaugh A reclaimed second spot from Marown B thanks to their 8-2 home win over Noble’s A. John Keenan handed out a tough lesson to Jim Callister with the latter slipping to a 21-1 defeat. The two winners for Noble’s were Alex Yates who beat Barry McDonald 21-12, a score matched by Martyn Hobson who seen off Gordie Moore.

The closest match in Division Two was between Onchan C and Port St Mary B at the Park with the visitors coming away with a 4-6 win. The Port men won the crucial two-point aggregate following a 4-4 draw on games courtesy of two 21-9 wins from Derek Cain and Ken Karran who beat Brian Aspden and Kelvin McNicholl respectively.

Castletown B recorded a solid 8-2 home win over Douglas B, while Finch Hill A beat Peel C 7-3 at home as they snatched the aggregate by just one chalk (142-141).

League leaders North Ramsey B aren’t home and dry just yet in Division Three, after their 3-7 away win over Peel D. Ian Gray impressed for Peel as he beat Tony Smart 21-12, while Andy Jackson just edged it 21-20 against John Corteen. For the Mooragh men their best winner was Brian Colquitt who beat Charlie McMeiken 21-11.

Second placed Noble’s B closed the gap on the league leaders by two points as they beat Ballaugh C 9-1 at home. Just missing out on a 10-0 win with Paul Cubbon beating Michael Johnson 21-19. Three single figures victories from Terry Bates, Ciaran Broad and Stephen Corkill, along with a 21-14 win from junior bowler Alex Hampson helped their cause on the night. Noble’s still have a game in hand on North Ramsey as they look to close the gap further.

Third placed Marown D needed a better result than their 7-3 home win over Castletown C to make up ground on the teams above them. Richard Bregazzi was their best winner as he beat Gerry Bradley 21-2, while individual merit leader Jay Waters stayed on course with a 21-8 victory. Juan Drinkwater was the best winner for the visitors with a 21-6 victory over Keith Watterson.

Finch Hill B recorded a solid 8-2 home win over Douglas D with Sam Stannard-Duke, John Harris and Peter Woods all winning to single figures. For Villa Clark Kelly impressed with a 21-17 win over Guy Smith.

The final match of the week was between Douglas C and South Ramsey D at the Villa, with the home team winning 8-2. John Ferguson recorded his first ever 21-0 win in the league to hand out a tough lesson to Ryan Hargraves, while Nick Firth beat Frank Feeney 21-9. Captain Franz ten Donkelaar tried to show his team the way with a 21-6 win over Trevor Latus, however Chris Brown was their only other winner as he beat Ashley Halsall 21-20.

Marown A take on South Ramsey A in the final of the 3R’s Limited Rayner Shield at Castletown tomorrow evening with just four points separating both teams in the league it could be too close to call.

The Crosby men have won this competition 16 times to date, with their last success a stunning comeback against South Ramsey A in 2018. South Ramsey are the current holders and have won the competition five times, with four of those wins arriving from 2015 onwards.

Over the past 10 years these teams have faced off in four finals with both teams picking up two wins each.

Game 1 – David Bradford vs Peter Jones

Bradford is without doubt the man in form for both teams, having picked up three open wins in the past few weeks, with his second Manx Championship being one of them to follow up on his 2015 success. A Festival winner as a teenager in 2002, Bradford is a regular winner of opens, has won the Manx Masters on three occasions.

Marown have undoubtedly strengthened their ranks with the mid-season signing of Jonah who has been a regular for Merseyside over the years, and has been a frequent visitor to the Isle of Man for the Festival. Jonah has recently relocated to the Island and is starting to settle into life on the Isle of Man having picked up his first Open win since moving over as he beat team mate Neil Withers in the final of the Douglas Town Cup.

Game 2 – Dido Kelly vs Colin Kelly

A pre-festival winner of the Autumn Shield, recent open winner at South Ramsey with the Jim Kernan Cup, Dido’s main focus these days is towards his club team as he rarely enters opens. His club record is second to none over the past three league seasons and that is in a team that includes David Bradford.

Colin is a seven time Manx Champion, the most decorated player appearing in the final. Colin has won the Festival once, is probably unlucky not to have won it more. His defining and proudest moment was winning the Champion of Champions title in 2019. His last Manx Championship success – won on his home green won’t have been far behind though. Too many open wins to mention is fair to say with one in the bag so far this season.

Game 3 – Glynn Hargraves vs Sam Clague

Hargraves suffered two defeats in the final of the Manx Championship in 2007 and 2009, before going on to win back to back titles in 2012 and 2013 the second of which was at Castletown, to become the first father and son to win the coveted trophy, with his Dad winning in 1987 at South Ramsey. Retaining the trophy in 2013 Hargraves became one of just four people to do so after winning the title for the first time. A previous Manx Masters winner and has won two singles opens to date this season.

‘Sammy’ was a surprise package in the Association Cup in 2020, as he went on to win beat an in form Paul Dunn in the final at Castletown. Clague made the move to Marown over the winter. A former home greener at Castletown, which his team will be hoping to use to their advantage on Friday evening.

Game 4 – James Teare vs Dean Kipling

T-Bag came into the A Team in 2019, winning an impressive 18 out of 22 games as a replacement for John Kennish, no mean feat in itself. T-Bag is a regular winner of Mixed Doubles competitions, and has picked up more than one Men’s Doubles title. James is comfortable with the added pressure of appearing in finals, once he gets into his groove he can be difficult to stop.

Kipling picked up his one and only Manx Championship in 1992 at Port Erin beating Dennis Gelling in the final. Dean doesn’t get in opens as much these days, but is a big game player and is as important to Marown off the green as he is on it. His record representing the Isle of Man is up there with the best.

Game 5 – Bob Clark vs Phil Kelly

The 2021 runner up in the Manx Championship, Bob has stepped up his performances over the past 18 months, with his new approach towards his game paying off. Bob picked up the Dreswick Cup last year recovering from a 20-14 deficit against Glynn Hargraves to win 21-20 and in doing so became the last winner on the old green. He wasn’t quite able to repeat the trick this year coming up against team mate David Bradford in the final. Following a move to South Ramsey over the winter, he hasn’t disappointed with his performances.

Rambo won the Manx Championship in 1994 at Noble’s on his former home green with a 21-20 win in the final over John Saunders, he was the first winner of the Manx Masters in its current format. Rambo has been in good form recently picking up the June Player of the Month having won the Heywood Gelling beating Marown’s ‘big three’ on the way to victory.

Game 6 – Jordan Cain vs Neil Withers

Jords was runner up in the final of the Manx Championship in 2019, with Colin Kelly the only man able to stop him on the day. Having spent nine years at Onchan, Jordan made the move north for a fresh challenge, he is starting to settle in well as he gets to grip with the South Ramsey green.

For Nev home green glory arrived in the Manx Championship in 2009, with a 21-19 victory over Glynn Hargraves, however his finest moment was winning the June Festival in 2013. A winner of multiple opens over the years. Nev is one half of the best doubles partnership in recent years, with the pair proving difficult to shift.

Game 7 – Peter Collister vs Paul Kelly

Collie famously did the double winning the 1983 June Festival and Tourism competitions and was one of the most consistent players in the 80’s and 90’s. After a lengthy spell out of the game Collister returned to league bowls full time in 2013. Collie turned 60 earlier this year, however he is in fine form for his team this season having lost just two league fixtures to date, picked up the Noble’s Cup last weekend with John Kennish.

PK is well travelled having learnt his craft at Noble’s Mixed, turning out for Castletown, Douglas and has now settled at Marown. Another who doesn’t get in many singles opens, however he has picked up two mens doubles wins so far this season. Another former home greener, who loves to have a strike.

Game 8 – Stefan Kelly vs Paul Dunn

The Peel Town Cup last year wasn’t Stefan’s first singles win, this was actually achieved in the U.K. a few years earlier beating John Kennish en-route to victory. ‘Stiffy’ as he is affectionately called by his team mates has won several doubles titles with a variety of partners. Relishes the big games and performs well when needed.

Dunner was hot favourite to become Manx Champion in 2020 and didn’t disappoint. He has become a regular winner of Opens over the past few years, with his time and dedication towards his bowls now reaping dividends, he is one of Marown’s most consistent performers in recent seasons, is going well in the individual merit as he currently occupies top spot.

Noble’s Bowling Club hosted the Noble’s Cup Mens Doubles on Saturday with 24 pairs taking part.

Losing out in the quarter final stage were Onchan pair Kevin Quirk and Steve Parker, Walter McCarthy and Karl Parker (both Marown), Ciaran Broad and Michael Johnson (both Noble’s) along with Charlie Bell (Marown) and Steve Hampson (Noble’s).

The semi-finals were well contested with Marown duo Paul Dunn and Neil Withers lost out 19-21 to South Ramsey pair John Kennish and Peter Collister, whilst Derek Allen (Port Erin) and Alec Taylor (Peel) were defeated 15-21 by home greeners Alex Yates and Jim Callister.

The final went the way of the more experienced pair Kennish and Collister who ruthlessly won 21-5 against Yates and Callister in just eight ends to pick up the £100 first prize.

At the conclusion of the competition the presentation was made by Tina Hampson, who thanked Steve Moore and the club members who had helped with the running of the competition. Thanks were also given to sponsor Stuart Hampson from Burgerman Catering and Tanfastic.

The BCGBA Senior Individual Merit was held at Hawcoat Park Sports Club in Barrow-in-Furness on Saturday with the two qualifiers from the Isle of Man taking part in proceedings. A whole day of wet weather did put a dampener on the day.

Manx Champion David Bradford was on in the first set of games against Andy Fergus from Greater Manchester, with Bradford leading 16-5, his opponent then found his length to ultimately runout with a 21-19 victory.

Peel favourite Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly was drawn against Gareth Hughes from Wales, with Barney always being behind in the game he battled back to 18-19 only for Hughes to score the two chalks needed to progress.

The final had 2019 runner up Gary Owen (Potteries and District) up against previous winner Callum Wraight (Shropshire) with the latter storming into a 10-0 lead, who then went 20-4 up. Owen managed to get a run of ends together only to lose out 21-9 for Wraight to pick up his second win in this competition following his win on Merseyside in 2009.

It was another busy week of bowls in the Canada Life International bowling leagues, with a double week.

In Division One League leaders South Ramsey A started their week at Breagle Glen as they took on Port St Mary A with the visitors picking up a 3-7 win. Winning for Port St Mary were Trevor Quayle who beat Stefan Kelly 21-9, Paul Skelly beat Dido Kelly 21-11, whilst Robbie Cooil beat South Ramsey captain Glynn Hargraves 21-17.

On Wednesday South Ramsey A fared much better as they beat Onchan B 9-1 at home on a tricky green, with the home team handling it extremely well as they won four games to single figures, with David Bradford winning 21-1, whilst Bob Clark, Dido Kelly and Glynn Hargraves all won 21-2.

Marown A started their week off matching the leaders result as they came away from the Crofts with a 3-7 win over Castletown A. Winning for the Town men were Ron Williams who beat Peter Jones 21-13, Chris Lever won 21-16 against Paul Kelly and Mark Moorley won 21-20 against Harry Barton. Marown did manage to prevent the result from being any more damaging as Neil Withers beat George Foy 21-20.

On Wednesday evening Marown A recorded an 8-2 home win over North Ramsey A, as they lost one point this week to South Ramsey A. Three single figure wins from the home team came from Paul Dunn, Paul Kelly and Neil Withers. Winning for the visitors were Paul Allison who beat Sam Clague 21-19, whilst Rob Monk heavily defeated Harry Barton 21-7.

Douglas A slipped to two defeats as they were well beaten 1-9 at home to Onchan A, ended their week with a 3-7 away defeat to Castletown A.

Peel B started the week well with a 10-0 home win over Port Erin A, but ended it with a heavy 9-1 away defeat to Onchan A.

Marown B slipped to a rare home defeat as they lost 3-7 to Peel A at Crosby, bounced back to win 2-8 away to Port Erin A. The Breagle Glen men are in danger of being cut adrift as they currently sit 18 points from safety, which is a lot to make up with just six fixtures left to play.

Pacesetters South Ramsey B had a good week in Division Two as they recorded the biggest win in the second division, beating Noble’s A 9-1 at home. Four single figure wins from the home team proved their dominance, with Martyn Hobson being the lone winner as he had a comfortable 21-15 win over Austin Hart.

On Thursday night South Ramsey B were away to Port St Mary B, they matched Monday’s win to stretch their lead at the top to 11 points.

Second placed Marown C had a slender one-point lead over Ballaugh A prior to their league fixture, with the Crosby men coming away with a solid 2-8 win to extend their lead to seven points and consolidate second place. The two wins for Ballaugh could have gone the other way as Richard Hainge beat work colleague Jamie Joughin 21-17 to ensure he had office bragging rights, whilst John Keenan reminded his opponent he is still tough to shift on his own green as he beat John Kelly 21-18. The visitors had three close wins from Kevin Kelly, Stuart Clague and Walter McCarthy. Ballaugh’s hope of promotion appear to be fading away.

On Thursday night Marown C hosted Finch Hill A with the home team suffering an upset as they lost out 4-6, with the chalks going in favour of the visitors (147-148).

At the bottom of the table it is looking like a three-way fight between Onchan C on 51 points, Port St Mary B and Ballaugh B with both teams on 48 points.

In Division Three North Ramsey B could only come away from Crosby with a hard fought 4-6 win over Marown B, which allowed Noble’s B the opportunity to close the gap as they won 8-2 at home to Port Erin B on Tuesday evening.

On Thursday evening Noble’s B took their turn to sit the fixtures out as North Ramsey B hoped to capitalise on this with a home fixture with Douglas C. The Mooragh Park men didn’t disappoint as they won 9-1 to sit top by 13 points.

In third place Marown D headed north to take on South Ramsey D, as they looked to make up ground on second place Noble’s B, the visitors came away with a 3-7 victory, with Sam Colquitt winning the battle of the Juniors with a 21-13 win over Ryan Hargraves.

Peel Sunset Bowling club hosted the popular Peel Town Cup on Saturday afternoon, attracting a perfect entry of 46 men, with Ballaugh being the venue of choice in a bid to attract a healthy entry. The green was in good condition with the rain falling in the early stages of the competition, the weather improved as the day went on to end in sunshine. With handicaps ranging from +3 to +9, once again it made for an interesting day with some shock results. There were a number of high profile casualties early on with some excellent ties, as the handicaps did the trick with plenty of high scoring games throughout the competition.

Losing out at the quarter-final stage were Peel man Dougie Allan (Peel) who lost out to Steven Waters (South Ramsey) 19-21, Walter McCarthy (Marown) was beaten 18-21 by Philip ‘Pip’ Pemberton (Peel). Marown man Colin Kelly had his hopes of victory dashed by Bob Clark (South Ramsey) with the latter winning 21-14, whilst Glynn Hargraves (South Ramsey) won 21-15 against Derek Allen (Port Erin).

Both semi-finals were well contested with Waters (+6) just losing out to Pemberton (+7) 19-21, as the latter reached the final, whilst the two South Ramsey teammates faced off in the other semi-final with Hargraves (+3) getting the better of Clark (+3) this time out as he won 21-17.

The final got underway with Hargraves having enjoyed previous success in this competition in 2015, whilst Pip was making his first appearance in a final of a singles open. Pemberton made the stronger start building on the four chalk start on the card, playing a round peg to extend his lead to six chalks after eight ends with the score 13-7 to the Peel man. Hargraves responded to take five consecutive ends on a short round peg to edge ahead 14-13. A great last bowl on the following end from Pip when lying two down sent him on another mini-run as he won four of the next five ends to lead 18-15.

A change of tactics saw the South Ramsey captain opt for a longer length, with this appearing to work as Hargraves went 19-18 ahead and was counting two for game only for Pip to bowl in to level the game up at 19-19. A good lead on the following end wasn’t beaten, with Pip missing the opportunity to count for two to pile on the pressure. At 20-19 a loose end from both players resulted in Hargraves somewhat fortuitously scoring a single to level the game at 20-20. On the deciding end Hargraves composed himself picking a mark from the gate to the glass shelter approximately two thirds the length of the green and put up a good lead bowl 15 inches to the side of the jack. Pip left his first bowl just over two foot short, with Hargraves improving on his first bowl to play a side toucher, leaving Pip no other option other than to attempt to kill the end or trail the jack, however he got slightly low on the line as Hargraves claimed a 21-20 victory and with it his second win in this competition.

At the conclusion of play the presentation was made by competition secretary Dave ‘Barney’ Kelly, who thanked the sponsors IOM Seafoods for their continued support, and Assistant Tournament Director nine year old Arran Dunn for his efforts throughout the day. Club President Lenny Kerruish was then introduced to present the prizes, he thanked Ballaugh for hosting the competition, their Ladies for catering, the greenkeeper for preparing the green and anyone else who had helped on the day.

The Dreswick Cup was held for the first time at Breagle Glen with an entry of 35 who took part on a tricky green with a good afternoon of bowling. The competition was once again sponsored by The Albert Hotel – Port St Mary.

In the quarter finals the current holder Bob Clark (South Ramsey) got the better of his captain Glynn Hargraves with a 21-14 win, whilst home favourite Trevor Quayle (Port St Mary), ended the challenge of Neil Dunwell with a 21-16 victory. Manx Champion David Bradford put paid to the hopes of Seamus Whelan (Port Erin) with a 21-10 win, whilst another South Ramsey man went on to reach the semi-final with Peter Collister seeing off Wayne Roberts 21-14.

In the first semi-final Clark got the better of Quayle in a keenly contested game with the South Ramsey man getting home 21-18 win to take his place in the final, while in the other semi-final Bradford put paid to Collisters’ hopes of a third win in this competition as the latter lost out 21-15.

In the final Bradford made the better start as he leapt into a 10-6 lead, however Clark clawed his way back into the game, with Bradford enjoying considerable success with his strikes being the main difference early on in the game with the score at 13-12. Bradford then settled on a mark over the middle of the green from the Café to the glass shelter and back as he scored eight consecutive chalks to run out with a 21-12 victory and seal his second win in this competition, with the last title picked up in 2005.

At the presentation Club President Margaret Tasker thanked the Port St Mary ladies for providing the refreshments, Wayne Roberts for running the competition, along with anyone else that helped on the day. Long standing sponsor of the competition Pat O’Meara from the Albert Hotel was then introduced to present the prizes.