VICE-PRESIDENTS TROPHY 2014
The Club’s second pairs competition of the season, The Vice-Presidents Trophy, took place on Saturday 28th June and fortunately the rain stayed away on an overcast afternoon.
As usual, the pairings were drawn randomly and by a remarkable coincidence, Jim Finnimore and Alex Rimmer were drawn to partner each other for a second successive pairs event, having been finalists in the Spring Pairs held earlier in the season. Jim and Alex were clearly intent on going one better this time and progressed to the final in the top half the draw with wins against Kyle Dawes and Pat Jones (21-12), Mike Milne and Harvey Wright (21-13) and Jim Halsall and Geoff Rimmer (21-16).
Their opponents in the final were Kevin Leddy and Don Parish who had survived a scare in their first game, narrowly overcoming Irene Nowell and Fergal Wright 21-19. This was followed by another impressive win against Luke Dawes and Mike Dunlop, the final score being 21-14.
The final was expected to be close but Jim and Alex had had to play an extra game and this proved to be a disadvantage as Kevin and Don cruised to a 21-4 victory with Kevin leading the way with some excellent bowls, ably supported by Don.
A Plate competition was run for those pairs losing their 1st game and this was won by Irene Nowell and Fergal Wright with a 15-11 success in the final against Brian Jones and Margaret Langley.
Author: George Hitchmough
June Message from the Chairman
June Message from the Chairman
I have been delighted to hear all the positive feedback from our members and visitors about the excellent condition of our green and the tidiness of the surrounds. It is the committee’s priority to maintain these standards and with the continued support of everyone involved in the green maintenance I am confident we will do this.
At the AGM it was announced that the club were looking into the possibility of providing floodlights. I am under no illusion that this will be a testing project with many logistical and cost issues. We have received quotations and that has given us a clear indication of what we can achieve. Mike Burrill is in the process of putting together a planning permission application which he couldn’t start until we had the quotes from the floodlight companies. I will keep you all updated on the progress.
The competitions and round robins are receiving impressive turnouts. Congratulations to Eileen Rawcliffe and Joe Parker for winning the Spring Pairs.
Talking of competitions the club are holding a photography contest. We would love to see your photos of anything that is connected to the bowling club. The best 3 will receive a prize at the awards night and some of entries will be shown on the website and Facebook. It is very simple to enter just email your pictures to secretary@hesketharmsbowlingclub.co.uk
In last month’s message I asked any ladies that wanted to form an afternoon team to come forward. Some did, so there will be a list going up on the notice board.
There are plenty of activities coming up so please visit our website, find and like us on Facebook, email the Secretary ‘secretary@hesketharmsbowlingclub.co.uk’ or phone me on 07761733024.
Keep up the good work.
Chris Harding
CORONATION CUP
CORONATION CUP
Sunday 15th June saw 19 players compete for the Coronation Cup and it was pleasing to see a couple of members playing in their first club handicap.
The top half of the draw saw Brian Jones progress to the semi-final with wins against Mark Rowlinson (21-12) and John Walton (21-17). Brian’s semi-final opponent was Irene Nowell who had come through two tough games against Mark Eustace (21-19) and Jim Halsall (21-20). Irene had also had to play a preliminary round game and this proved to be a disadvantage in the semi-final with Brian running out a comfortable 21-8 winner.
Brian’s opponent in the final was Jim Finnimore, still in fine form following his succes in the Botanic Garden’s President’s Cup the previous day. Jim reached the final with wins against Mike Dunlop (21-12), Dave Bedford (21-19) and John Stennett (21-13).
With both players starting on +2 a close final was expected and with Brian leading 11-10 it looked like going down to the wire. However, by winning 5 out of the next 7 ends, Brian took a decisive 18-12 lead and although Jim acored a couple of singles to narrow the gap, Brian was able to score the three chalks required to secure a 21-14 victory. Congratulations to Brian on winning The Coronation Cup for the second time, having won it previously in 2009. Well done also to Jim who narrowly missed out on an impressive double of two tournament wins in one weekend.
A plate competition was held for first round losers and this was won by Mike Dunlop, who defeated Mark Rowlinson 15-14 in a close final.
The next competition is to be held on Saturday 28th June, when members will play for The Vice-President’s Trophy (1.00pm start). This will be a pairs event and members are reminded that guests will be welcome to take part in this competition.
Spring Pairs
SPRING PAIRS 2014
The much improved weather attracted an excellent entry of 17 pairs for the Club’s latest competition, the Spring Pairs. For these events, the pairings are drawn randomly and with some of the Club’s top bowlers in the field, some strong pairs were formed.
In the top half of the draw Jim Finnimore was paired with Alex Rimmer, a losing finalist in this competition last season. Their first two games were close affairs but Jim and Alex eventually won through to the semi-finals with 21-20 wins against Mike Dunlop and Irene Nowell and Richard Rawcliffe and Jerome Wilson. The semi-final saw them make more comfortable progress, winning 21-13 against Joan Bond and Kevin Leddy.
In the bottom half of the draw, Joe Parker ( a former winner of the Chairman’s Shield pairs) was drawn to partner Eileen Rawcliffe, who won this competition with Margaret Langley in 2012. This was to prove a formidable pairing and Joe and Eileen won through to the final with wins against Margaret James and Ted Moule (21-18), Chris James and Jon Roberts (21-13) and Geoff Rimmer and Mavis Thompson (21-8).
The outcome of the final was difficult to predict but despite Alex and Jim counting with two at the first end, it was Eileen and Joe who took control of the final by winning 5 of the next 6 ends, including three 3s and a 4 to take a commanding 19-6 lead. Despite Alex and Jim fighting back to make it 11-19, Eileen and Joe were able to score the two singles they needed to clinch victory.
Forthcoming Events:-
Saturday 7th June – Round Robin (2.00pm start)
Sunday 15th June – Coronation Cup (singles handicap, 1.00pm start)
Message from our Chairman
Message from the Chairman May 2014
All,
The new season is up and running!
Thank you all for paying your subscriptions promptly. I would also like to pass on my gratitude to the Captains for helping to collect the money in and pass it on to the Treasurer. The 2014 membership numbers are going to be very similar to the previous year.
Our eight league teams look in very good shape for player numbers and there are already signs that some of them will be challenging for silverware. If there are any members that are looking to play league bowls for the first time or there are current league players wishing to play in an additional side please speak to me and I will put you in touch with the appropriate captain.
Congratulations to Barry Coates for lifting our first competition of the year, the Rose Bowl. Thank you to all that took part, it was an excellent turn out.
If there are any ladies that would like to discuss the possibility of forming a ladies afternoon league team please contact me.
There are plenty of activities coming up so please visit our website, find and like us on Facebook, email the Secretary ‘secretary@hesketharmsbowlingclub.co.uk’ or phone me on 07761733024.
Carry on the good work.
Chris Harding
May Round Robin
MAY ROUND ROBIN
The Club’s May Round Robin was won by Jim Halsall on a score of +9, while Jim Finnimore was a close second with +7.
The next weekend Round Robin is due to take place on Saturday 7th June, starting at 2.00pm.
All members are welcome to take part regardless of bowling experience.
These events are an ideal introduction to the game and an oppurtunity to meet up with other members of the Club.
ROSE BOWL COMPETITION
ROSE BOWL 2014
Sunday saw an excellent turnout of 31 members taking part in the first club competition of the season. Fortunately, the weather was kind and the Rose Bowl was played for in sunny conditions.
In the top half of the draw, last year’s beaten finalist Barry Coates was looking to go one better and progressed to the semi-final with wins against Pat Jones (21-14), Alan Bond (21-16) and Mark Rowlinson (21-19). Barry’s semi-final opponent was John Stennett, who had enjoyed victories against Ann Burns (21-15), Joe Parker (21-18) and Margaret Langley (21-9). The semi-final was expected to be close and with Barry leading 11-10 it looked as though it would go down to the wire. At this stage, however, Barry won six out of seven ends to surge into a 20-11 lead and although John rallied to narrow the gap to 15-20, Barry was able to score the single he required to reach his second Rose Bowl final with a 21-15 success.
In the bottom half of the draw, Chris Harding was progressing to the semi-finals with tough games against Jim Halsall (21-14), Mike Dunlop (21-18) and Ray Sutton (21-14). His opponent in the semi-fiinal was Brian Jones, who had overcome Jason Chapman (21-7), Jimmy Langley (21-13) and Sue Davies (21-16). With the advantage of a +2 handicap it was Brian who started the semi-final strongly, winning 5 of the first 6 ends to lead 9-1. Chris fought back though and from 12-7 down won 7 consecutive ends to take control of the match at 17-12 and eventually won through to the final with a 21-16 win.
The final saw Chris, playing off scratch, conceding a +4 handicap against Barry Coates and this was to prove difficult to claw back. In a close game, neither player won more than three consecutive ends and when Chris levelled at 16-16 it appeared that greater experience would win the day. However, with Chris counting two on a long mark in the corners, Barry reached up and trailed the jack to leave himself counting two. Although the match was level again at 18-18 after the next end, Barry was able to score the three singles he needed to win the 2014 Rose Bowl final by a 21-18 margin.
The Club would like to thank Jimmy Langley for his generosity in donating a bottle of whisky as a raffle prize, raising £39.00 for club funds. Thanks also to Jason Chapman for his assistance in selling the tickets.
The Raffle was won by Jayne Eustace and presented to her by Bill Nowell our Club President
Members are reminded that the next weekend event will be a Round Robin, to be held on Saturday 10th May at 2.00pm.
APRIL ROUND ROBIN
APRIL ROUND ROBIN
16 members took part in the Club’s latest Round Robin on Saturday 12th April. In third place, with an aggregate of +15, was Mark Eustace. Pat Miller was second with a score of +18 but the clear winner was Mike Dunlop on +22.
The next event will take place on Sunday 27th April when the first competition of the season will be held.
The Rose Bowl singles will start at 1.00pm and members are asked to register by 12.45pm.
GREEN AVAIABILITY
ALL MEMBERS PLEASE NOTE:-
BURSCOUGH LEAGUE – RE-ARRANGED FIXTURE
Please note that the green will be unavailable for use this Sunday, 13th April from 5.00pm onwards as the Ospreys have a re-arranged Burscough League fixture.
GREEN BOOKING
Please note that the green will not be available for members on Sunday 11th May from 12 noon onwards as the green has been booked by an outside organisation.
ROUND ROBINS
ROUND ROBINS
The first weekend round robin of the season took place on Sunday 6th April and was won by Don Parish with an aggregate of +16, with Jim Finnimore second on +15.
The next weekend round robin will be held this coming Saturday, 12th April starting at 2.00 pm.
Jim Finnimore’s Tuesday round robins are also up and running. These social bowling sessions start every week at 10.00 am and all members are welcome to attend.