Ormskirk Bowling Club

Thanks to all those that turned up this morning to help out.  The spiking of the grass green was hard work, but was successfully completed.  All the gutters got cleared of leaves, part of the hedge got clipped back and the clubhouse had a bit of a clean.  All in all a very productive morning.

As we just move over into November, our Winter Bowling Ladder has a new leader.  After a rush of matches that would have tested the most determined of marathon runners, Nick ‘The Slaternater’ Slater has fought his way to the top of the tree.  His tried and tested exercise regime of pulling pints at the beer festival seems to have paid off.  Notable scalps have included the 2016/17 Ladder Champion, Steve James.  The current top 10 is listed below.

The drizzle just started as the first bowls were being bowled and steadily increased in the early stages on the comp but this didn’t deter the 18 hardy bowlers. The 9 pairs were divided into 2 groups for a round robin.

Group A saw Angie Barklem and Nick Slater win all their games to get through to the final, although they had a close game against Eric Barklem and newcomer Mark Gibbs winning 9-8 ( Mark had to play with 4 woods in that game as the heavier rain was not helping Eric’s bad cold).

Group B saw John Leadbetter and Ian Gill just sneak through with 3 wins and a draw – they drew their first game against Dave Roper and Brian Green 6-6 and then narrowly beat heir main rivals, Steve James and Dave Hulse, 7-6.

Although the weather had cleared up by this stage, it was straight to the final. Unfortunately Angie and Nick could not reproduce their earlier form and some excellent leading from John meant a 9-3 win for him and Ian.

Steve James our Chairman, who had prepared some lovely sandwiches for the occasion, presented the trophy.

The Chairman’s Cup will be held this coming Sunday (21st October).  Entry will be £2 per person, with pairs drawn out of the hat.  Exceptions will be made where parents/relatives want to play with children or if you want to bring a beginner as a partner.  Please arrive by 12 noon and we will aim to start as soon as possible after we have made the draw.  It will be round robin with final details depending upon numbers.  Last year the comp was won by Dave Ball and Mike Fagan, with Peter Ashcroft and Kevin Wilcox as runners-up.

The Club held its final junior session late this afternoon. A mini competition was held under the floodlights, with older players/relatives playing with the juniors in a round robin tournament. Deserved winners were Joey and Joe, with Joe loving the trophy he was presented with.

junior seasons will start again next season and if anyone knows of any potential young players (7-16) who may want to give it a go then get in touch with Ian Gill.

Winter membership at Ormskirk Bowling Club runs from the start of October through to the end of March.  Come and bowl whenever you want on our fabulous artificial green for just £25 (if you are an existing full member there is no extra charge).  If you want you can also join our winter bowling ladder.  Further details can be found on this website, or by contacting Ian Gill on iangilly66@gmail.com.

Congratulations to Ian Mayne who won the Lethbridge Cup tonight, beating Tim Hodge in the final.  Tim had beaten Ian Gill in the semi final to reach the final.

The presentation night after the final saw Ian Mayne also receive the Ormskirk League Pairs Trophy with Ian Gill.

Ian Gill was also presented with the DC Scott Trophy for having the best averages in the Ormskirk Premier Division.

In terms of teams prize money was awarded to our Club for finishing as the runners up in both the Premier Division and  the 1st Division, with Ormskirk Castle gaining promotion to the Premier Division.

All in all another successful night for players from Ormskirk Bowling Club

The Charity Pairs Competition held today was a great success with 42 people of all ages taking part.  In total £470 was raised on the day which will rise to £970 for Queenscourt Hospice, as Barclays will match the amount pound for pound.  Many thanks should go to Octogon Wealth Management of Burscough who sponsored the event; the Co-op in Aughton who provided the tea and coffee; Iceland in Ormskirk who provided the biscuits; and finally to all those who brought along raffle prizes. One of the biggest thank you’s should go to Eric Barklem for planning the event and for organising it on the day.

The day started with heavy drizzle but it wasn’t too long before the rain cleared and there was a fantastic day’s bowling.

The day culminated in a final between Steve (Uncle) Jones & Andrew Arnold against Ian Gill & Mark Woods. After a tense final end with Ian & Mark lying game, Steve kept his cool and delivered a matchwinning bowl to take the title.

Our planning consent for the lighting and shelters etc has now been granted by the Council.  Thanks to Ken Knowles for his work on this.

One of our planning requirements was that we had to paint our container green and thanks to Ted Baker, John Leadbetter, and Ian & Matthew Gill (when he wasn’t having a ‘rest’) this was done tonight.  Thanks to all that helped.