Finch Hill Bowling Club hosted the Apollo Blinds-sponsored mixed doubles competition on Sunday. 

The event got underway with some very strong starts, notably from the Marown pairings of Clare Cooper with Sid Bolton and Debbie Leece alongside Paul Kelly. 

At the quarter-final stage home greeners Lil Smith and Les Brookes had a Titanic game to eventually overcome South Ramsey’s Kim Hargraves and Austin Hart to progress into the semi-finals.  

Also winning through to the last four were two Noble’s pairs, Tina and Steve Hampson together with Roz Cannon and Juan Drinkwater. 

In the semi, Smith and Brookes continued their winning streak by beating the Hampsons to progress through to the final, while Jayne Smith and Walter McCarthy also won through against Cannon and Drinkwater.  

Smith and McCarthy began the final with a flying start, taking a maximum four chalks, but Smith and Brookes were unfazed and immediately took the next end to open their account with several single-shot wins.  

The weather was by now deteriorating rapidly but this didn’t dampen the determination of either pair. It was nip-and-tuck all the way until the final end when Smith and McCarthy ran out the eventual winners.  

A special mention must go to the two juniors in the completion, Arran Dunn (Marown) and Grayse Blencoe (Mooragh Park), who played an exceptional first-round match against Cannon and Drinkwater, only narrowly losing out with a final score of 19-21. They are certainly future stars in the making. 

The presentation was made by Chris Reynolds of Apollo Blinds who kindly sponsored this event. 

For more information about local crown green bowling, visit the Isle of Man County Crown Green Bowling Association website at https://www.iombowls.com/

JOYCE OGDEN