The Western men's team travelled to Limavady last Saturday bidding to reach the quarter-finals of the Inter-Zone competition once again. In what looked like an extremely tricky tie away to North-Western, an improved performance was going to be needed by Western to ensure another day out.
The first game of the day saw Trevor Morrison's rink take on the experienced Ryan O'Neill of North-West. The Western rink got off to a great start and led 4-0 after two ends. But O'Neill hit back and was soon level at six shots all after six ends.
But Morrison and his rink then upped their game and won a single on each of the next three ends to go into the final end three shots to the good. Morrison then played a good last bowl to lie shot until O'Neill responded with a fine shot of his own to take a single on the last end to pull the overall score back to 9-7 in favour of the home side.
On mat two, Harry Gawley from Western took on Trevor McIntyre. It turned out to be a difficult afternoon for Gawley, as McIntyre, who was ably assisted by his third Leigh Harrison stormed into a 7-0 lead after three ends.
The Western side got a brief respite as they picked up a much needed four in the fourth end, but this proved to be a brief blip on the North-Western score card as they went on to claim the next four ends and stretch their lead to 13 shots to four.
But the fighting spirit within the current crop of players was clear to see in the last two ends. The away side, who were surely demoralised at this stage, kept on fighting and managed to pick up a couple of twos in the last two ends to finish up on a scoreline of 13 shots to eight in favour of NorthWest.
Paul Wilson and his rink were also up against it in the third game of the first half. The game was tied at six shots apiece after six ends and it looked to be going to the wire until the North-West rink, skippered by Nishy Logue, found an extra gear and pulled away over the last four ends to go on and win the game by 13 shots to six.
At half-time things were not looking great for Western as they trailed on a scoreline of North-West 33 Western 23.
If Western were going to get anything from the tie, they had to act immediately, and that's exactly what they did. On Mat 3, Gary Burke, who was playing through the pain barrier, chalked up a 5-0 lead quickly after two ends.
This was matched by the Graham brothers, David and Alan on mat 1. It was a quick turnaround for Western and for the next few ends the tie was in the balance.
On mat 2, Jude Morris came up against a tough opponent in Keith McCullagh. The North-West rink was in top form and went into a 2-1 lead after two ends. But the third end proved decisive in the overall scheme of things. With McCullagh lying a massive six shots, Morris played a superb bowl to chop and lye the holding shot and take the shot himself. A celebration to match the shot followed but McCullagh kept piling on the pressure and soon went into a 9-2 lead.
But again Morris and his rink showed their worth by claiming eight shots in three ends to lead by one going down the last. But a sloppy end allowed North-West to pick up a four, and to win the game by 13 shots to ten.
The Grahams were relentless in their efforts to pull back the half-time deficit and they won seven out of the ten ends to win by 17 shots to seven. Not to be outdone, Burke was also in terrific form and with his rink matching his own exploits; they ran out easy winners on a scoreline of 17 shots to two.
The comeback was complete and the final score read North-West 55 Western 67. It was a terrific fight back by the Western side, and with this victory they have answered a few critics. The spirit within the side seems to be very evident and this latest victory can only inspire them even more.
Western now move into the quarter-finals where they will meet the experienced Mid-Ulster side on 13th January in Enniskillen. Another big performance will be needed by the home side, but with confidence flowing through the team, another win is definitely within their reach.
Representatives decided
On Wednesday, 29th November, the Western representatives for the National singles were decided in the Unionist Hall, Enniskillen. With a large entry in the competition, the region was guaranteed three spots in the finals.
In the first final, George Hurst of Lakeland came up against Harold Nixon from Rossory. It was Hurst who got off the mark first with a single in the first end, but this proved to be his last for a wile as Nixon raced into a 4-1 lead. A glimmer of hope was offered to Hurst when he picked up a single in the following two ends to reduce the gap to one, but a good finish to the game saw Nixon book his place in Ballymoney, winning the game by eight shots to three.
The second final was between Gerry Vennard and Benny Hunter. From the very start, Hunter took control of the game, chalking up a single and a four in the first two ends. The Coa player went on to claim six out of the eight ends and ran out a comfortable winner on a scoreline of 11 shots to three.
The final game was between Michael McGrade (Jnr) of St Joseph's and Dessie Carson from Wellington. Although Carson picked up a two in the first end, he struggled to deal with the young St Joseph's player and was soon trailing by six shots to three. A further four for McGrade in the next end sealed the win and booked his place in Ballymoney.
All three bowlers have excelled themselves throughout the competition and deserve their place in the National finals. Hopefully they will progress even further and we wish them the best of luck.
National Junior Finals
Young Kilskeery bowlers Richard Cluffy and Christopher Beattie claimed the Junior Pairs title on Wednesday 29th November when they defeated the Gransha pair of Andrew Crawford and David Burleigh in the Unionist Hall, Enniskillen.
The Kilskeery pair started well by claiming two singles in the first two ends, but Burleigh fought straight back in the third end to notch a single of his own.
The next end was crucial as Beattie grabbed a three to put them ahead once again before adding a further two singles in the fifth and sixth ends to go 7-1 in front. At this stage, the game looked over as a contest, but Burleigh and Crawford fought to the end and picked up a single in each of the last three ends to go down by seven shots to four.
The standard of bowling in the final was great to see and bodes well for the future of bowls in the Western region. The young Kilskeery pair will now represent Western in the National finals and we wish them the best of luck for that competition.
In the singles category, there was also an interesting final. This involved David Burleigh, who had lost out in the pairs, and Niall Freeman from St Joseph's. Burleigh looked to be making amends for his defeat in the pairs when he raced into a 6-1 lead after four ends. But Freeman had other ideas, and grabbed the next three ends quickly to tie the score at 6-6 after seven ends.
The St Joseph's youngster then killed the game off by scoring a further single and a crushing three in the next two ends before Burleigh responded with a single in the last end. Freeman ran out as the winner on a scoreline of ten shots to seven and deserved his place in the National finals.
It was another disappointing night for Burleigh but nothing could be taken away from Freeman, who will now travel to Ballymoney full of confidence that he can put in a serious challenge for the title.
National Triples Final
Six triples returned to the Forum last Thursday night to compete in the final stages of the National qualifiers. In the first game of the night, Rodney Kelly overcame Harry Gawley to set up a semi-final with Davy Graham who had beaten Wayne Knox in his quarter-final tussle.
The semi-final between Graham and Kelly was predicted as being a tight one, but with Kelly in fine form, he went on to take the game by eight shots to five. His rink of Bob Browne at lead and Basil Stubbs at second helped him claim five out the eight ends and reach the final.
The second semi was between Mickey Cadden from St Joseph's and Ivor Armstrong. Armstrong picked up a double in the first end and never really looked to be in any trouble after that. A four in the third and fifth ends sealed a final spot effectively as the Wellington triple took a 10-2 lead with only three ends remaining. They ran out 12-4 winners and thoroughly deserved their final spot.
The final was a predictably close affair and after six ends there was only one shot separating the sides with Kelly holding the slenderest of margins. The game was then turned on its head and Armstrong, along with Ernie Clarke at lead and Raymond Carroll at second, upped their games to grab a three and a two in the final two ends to claim a fine win on a scoreline of ten shots to six.
With all three members of the triple performing well, Armstrong's side were well worth their win and will look forward to representing Western in the National finals in Ballymoney in the near future.
