Spanish National Bowls Squad

Test Match Spain v Guernsey
@
Emerald Isle Bowling Club
20th & 21st February

     SPAIN BREAKS THE MOULD
AGAINST GUERNSEY
Perry the Peregrine Falcon, Spain’s mascot, took his usual pride of place overlooking the main green at Emerald Isle for the practice day on Friday the 19^th of February. It wasn’t long before he was looking decidedly bedraggled and would have been happier had he been a duck! The lower green resembled the other complexes sports facility, a swimming pool and consequently no play was possible during the morning. We managed to while away the time with discussion and having rustled up a D.V.D. player showed a coaching DVD entitled Bowls Ballistics, no that really was the title!
Many thanks to the owner and staff of Emerald Isle for closing off an area for us, making it completely private and as the weather was starting to improve we had an early lunch and soon had practice going on the top two rinks.
Saturday, the first day of the Test Match, commenced with the Team from Guernsey parading with Spain and after the raising of the flags to the National anthems the players were introduced to rapturous applause from a lonely dog and our two travelling groupies Wendy and Dennis Wood, who came all the way from the Costa del Sol to support us.
It is a pity that more local folk did not come to witness bowling at its best during the Test Match! Maybe local publicity could have been stronger and I will provide dates for your diary that will be too good to miss.
32 games, with a mixture of Pairs, 2 Wood Triples, 3 Wood Triples and Singles were played in the forthcoming Commonwealth Games format to be held in Delhi India later this year. Guernsey are a Test playing Nation and their Men’s Team just pipped Spain, to an automatic qualifying place for World Bowls 2012 being held in Adelaide Australia, in the Atlantic Championships in Johannesburg last year, so they could not be taken lightly. Spain’s Ladies, of course, did qualify during that Tournament.
Our visitors were here to hone their skills on our outdoor artificial surface, as that is the type of green to be used in Delhi.
With 32 points on offer, a winning total of 16 and a half, or more was needed and as Spain has habitually lost Test matches on the first day only to put the Management through torment by winning the last day, going on to win overall, the omens were not good. This weekend was to see a change to all that and Spain finally broke the mould by winning 17 games and losing only 5 on the very first day!! So now we had an unassailable position. One small step for the players, one giant leap for Spain. I’m sure I have heard that somewhere before!
Day two started with weather warnings, but thankfully the forecast rain did not materialise and we were able to complete the Test Match and I am happy to report that another good day was had by Spain enabling us to run out winners, overall, by the commanding margin of 24 and a half to 7 and a half and an impressive shot difference of plus 218!
Many thanks to Guernsey for their spirit and good nature and we wish them well in the Commonwealth Games, also thanks to the Spanish Team who on this occasion were represented by Yvonne Briden, Debbie Colquhoun, Jan Dando, Sheri Fletcher, Lynn Greenland and Sabrina Marks for the Ladies and Paul Brown, Nick Cole, Mick Johnson, Tony McKenna, Alex McNeil and Russell Marks for the Men, a job well done.
Spain can now be seen as a force to be reckoned with and “Lord” John Bell of Wigmore, where is Wigmore? The Performance Director of Bowls England calls us England B from the Costa del Channel, due to our exploits against his England Team of the past two years and his full Commonwealth Games Team is to play Spain
on the 8^th and 9^th of May this year and that is a date for your diary that you really shouldn’t miss!! England are packed with World-class bowlers in every department as are Wales who visit us on the 16^th and 17^th of April, another date you should pencil into your diary.
2 Test matches of the highest quality the like of which have not been seen on our shores before! Don’t miss them!!
May I take this opportunity to offer our facilities to all other Test playing Nations as next year the Atlantic Championships are being held in Cyprus, again on artificial surfaces similar to ours.
See you on the Green

Nick R Bunbury
Manager Spanish International Lawn Bowls Team

Spain v Guernsey Scores

Points
Saturday am 6 Prs
Score
Esp
Guer

Sheri Fletcher v Jean Simon
27-11
1
0

Yvonne Briden v Lucy Beere
15-09
1
0

Jan Dando v Jackie Nicolle
08-18
0
1

Russell Marks v Nigel Collins
15-17
0
1

Nick Cole v Matt Le Ber
27-11
1
0

Mick Johnson v Gary Pitschou
25-12
1
0
Saturday 1pm 6 Singles & 2X2wood Triples
S
Paul Brown v Gary Savident
21-04
1
0
S
Nick Cole v Nigel Collins
21-06
1
0
S
Russell Marks v Matt Le Ber
10-21
0
1
S
Lynn Greenland v Shirley Petit
21-02
1
0
S
Sabrina Marks v Pauline Leadbeater
21-07
1
0
S
Yvonne Briden v Jackie Nicolle
21-06
1
0
T
Sheri Fletcher v Lucy Beere
27-07
1
0
T
Mick Johnson v Gary Pitschou
13-20
0
1
Saturday 4pm 6 Singles & 2x2wd Triples
S
Debbie Colquhoun v Lucy Beere
21-17
1
0
S
Jan Dando v Jean Simon
21-18
1
0
S
Sheri Fletcher v Gwen De La Mare
21-19
1
0
S
Tony McKenna v Gary Pitschou
17-21
0
1
S
Mick Johnson v Don Batiste
21-09
1
0
S
Alex McNeil v Garry Collins
21-09
1
0
T
Yvonne Briden v Jackie Nicolle
21-08
1
0
T
Nick Cole v Matt Le Beur
23-13
1
0
Total Points to date
17
05
Sunday am 4 Triples

Mick Johnson v Matt Le Beur
22-20
1
0

Nick Cole v Gary Pitschou
19-23
0
1

Sheri Fletcher v Lucy Beere
17-17
.5
.5

Yvonne Briden v Jean Simon
20-14
1
0
Sunday pm 6 Pairs

Yvonne Briden v Lucy Beere
16-15
1
0

Jan Dando v Jackie Nicolle
24-17
1
0

Sheri Fletcher v Jean Simon
21-08
1
0

Mick Johnson v Gary Pitschou
22-12
1
0

Russell Marks v Matt Le Ber
28-14
1
0

Nick Cole v Nigel Collins
11-15
0
1

Total overall points
24.5
7.5
Total overall Shots
Spain
638
+218
Guernsey
420
+177
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Practice Game against
Greenlands Bowls Club
@
Torrevieja 30th & 31st January

We went to Greenlands Bowls Club for a day and a half practice session in preparation for playing Guernsey at Emerald Isle Bowls Club in February. We normally do our practice sessions between ourselves, but this proved to be a great success with very good opposition. There were 6 Ladies & 6 Men on both sides playing in the Commonwealth Games Format of Singles, Pairs & Triples. On the first day we played 6 Pairs. At the end of the session the points were level but we were ahead on shot difference. Some very close games. On the second day we played 6 Singles & two 2bowl Triples.
After this session, the points were still level but Greenlands had overtaken us on shot difference. The final session consisted of 2 Men's Triples & 2 Ladies Triples.
We won 2 & lost 2 keeping the points level but we managed to win on a shot difference of 12. A very close call and just what we needed for our practice. The games were enjoyed by everyone on both sides. So much so that the Greenlands Captain, Derek Toozer, said he would like to keep it an annual fixture with more people playing. This was welcomed and will be looked into.
On behalf of the Spanish National Team, I would like to thank Greenlands for the use of their Green. Also the Caterers who donated the Water free of charge. I would also like to thank Bob Donnelly for Umpiring and the Markers in the Singles.
We welcome any Club to Challenge the Spanish National Team to a match. If anyone is interested please contact Pat Metcalfe Spanish National Coach. My email is on the Contact us page.
Unfortunately we do not have a photographic record of the above match because we didn't have a camera between us.

Written by Pat Metcalfe

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SPAIN V PORTUGAL
10/11^th November 2009
@
VILAMOURA BOWLING CLUB

Wowee!!!!! What a Test Match this turned out to be. It was the most exciting one we have had against Portugal. Down to the last bowl of the last game.
After a very long day driving to Portugal, everyone arrived safely at the Vila Gale Marina Hotel.
Apart from some gusty winds on the way down, the weather was great.
The first day was our practice day, and the Team worked hard to master the speed of the grass greens which were very heavy and very tricky in places. On 1 rink you had to send the bowl straight down the middle and slightly against the bias to get it to come back to the centre.
The first day of the Test Match started with the opening ceremony of raising the Portugese & Spanish Flags. We then started our warm up exercises. Since coming back from South Africa, we have been doing our warm up exercises to 60s music. This was the normal start to everyday for some of the countries in the Atlantic Championships. Ruth Compton, Assistant National Coach, takes the Team through their paces every time. This time some of the Portugal Team joined in and enjoyed it as well.
The first games were played using 1 rink on the second green because there were only 7 rinks on the main green. In the morning session there were 4 Pairs & 4 Triples. The Ladies & Men played 2 Pairs & 2 Triples. The Ladies won 1 and lost 1 in the Triples and the same in the pairs. The Men won 1 and drew 1 in the Triples and lost both pairs. Jackie Breslin & Dominic Mills lost their Pairs match by 1 shot after going into the last end 2 down on the board. 14 – 15. The afternoon games were Singles & Rinks. The Ladies won 1 Singles and lost 1. Ann Eagle beat Janeth Rocha 21 – 14. In the Rinks Yvonne Briden’s Team with Mary Cockell, Lynn Greenland & Carol Meare, won their match and we lost the other 1. Our Men lost both Singles and won 1 Rink and lost the other. Russell Mark’s Team with Dominic Mills, Fred Roberts & Jackie Breslin, beat Stewart Banks Team 27 – 17. At the end of the first day we were minus 6 points.
The second day started much better. In the morning session, the Ladies won both their Triples and 1 Pairs game. Unfortunately the Men lost both the Triples and Pairs. Paul Brown & Nick Cole were 16 all going into the last end and lost by 1 shot.
We were now minus 10pts. overall. Not a good start for the afternoon session.
We had to win 7 of the 8 games left.
Russell Marks was the first to finish in the singles against Gerry Jones. He won his game 22 – 17.
The day before, Gerry had beaten Nick Cole in the singles 21 – 17.
Nick Cole beat Amadeu Rocha 22 – 12. We were starting to feel confident because the Ladies won both their singles games.
Carol Meare beat Mary Banks 21 – 15. Peta Rhodes beat J. Drewer 21 – 18.
We needed three more wins. Mick Johnson’s Rink with Tony McKenna, Paul Brown & Alex McNeil, won their game by 1 shot after being 15 – 4 up. Portugal scored 10 shots on the last 5 ends to catch up and finish the game 15 – 14 to Spain.
Unfortunately Jackie Breslin’s Rink lost 16 – 20.
The final games now became “must wins”. Yvonne Briden’s Rink with, Diane Ridley, Lynn Greenland & Maggie Lawley, won their game comfortably 19 – 8. The overall points were now level. Everything depended on the last game, skipped by Sheri Fletcher with, Mary Cockell, Sabrina Marks & Jan Dando.
On the 8^th end Spain was 4 – 8 down. On the 11^th end they were 6 – 11 down.
We were starting to get a bit fidgety.
On the 12 end Spain picked up a 4 making the score 10 – 11. We were back in the game. On the 13^th end Portugal scored 3 and we were back to square one.
The Management were starting to pace up and down. On the 16^th end it was 14 all. I went and got our Mascot, Perry the Falcon, and started shouting for every bowl that came up the green. Everyone else joined in. All the other games had finished and everyone was at the end of the rink.
Spain scored 2 on the 17^th end putting us ahead for the first time in the game at 16 – 14. We were on the edge of our seats. Most of us on our feet.
Every bowl that came up the green from both sides, was cheered. On the last end, Sheri and her Team decided to give the mat away so that she could have the last Bowl. Before both Skips had their first bowls, Portugal were holding shot. Spain had 3 seconds. The Portugal skip’s first bowl was a bit too heavy and went through the head without making any impact. Sheri tried a blocker with her first bowl but it didn’t quite stop where she wanted it. The Management & the other Spanish Team members were starting to worry about the four back bowls, all against Spain. The Portugal Skip was on the mat to deliver her last bowl. You could hear a pin drop. She delivered it with a couple of yards of weight hoping to trail the jack to her back bowls. As the bowl started to reach the head, it straightened up and took a line past the head. Sheri didn’t have to bowl her last bowl and went 1 down, winning the game by 1 shot. Well, you can imagine the relief and elation from the crowd of Team members and spectators. We had our 7^th victory to win the Test Match overall by 2 points. 33 pts Spain & 31 pts Portugal.
At our post Match meeting, the first thing that Manager Nick Bunbury said was “don’t do this to us again”. Our history of starting slow and building up to the last session against Portugal, remains in tact once again, but, this one was too close for comfort.
Every single Team Member on both sides played their part over the 2 days of the Match. There was some fantastic bowling in all disciplines. Well done to everyone.
A big thank you to Amadeu & Janeth for the organisation of these 2 successful days. Thank you to the Umpires who were flown in from Scotland especially for the Test Match.
There was a Gala Buffet Dinner at the Hotel to finish of a great Test Match. Amadeu, on behalf of Portugal, presented Graham Marlow with a Plaque to commemorate the event and we look forward to Portugal visiting us in Spain 2010.

IBERIAN CHALLENGE

Organised by John Colquhoun for Spain & Tony Gilbert for Portugal, this is a competition played with most of the Husbands & Wives plus friends of the Spanish & Portugal Teams. The game was played on the 2 mornings at the same time as the Test Match using the second green. Portugal won overall and John presented the trophy to Tony Gilbert at the Gala dinner, Prizes were given for the top winning Rinks on both sides. A great time was had by all.

Written by Pat Metcalfe. More photos in the gallery
Spanish National Team Coach

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Report City of London

This was an invitation game in which our International Men’s Squad played City of London Bowling Club at Emerald Isle Bowling Club on 2^nd to 4^th October.

                    CITY OF LONDON BOWLING CLUB

What a weekend it turned out to be, great weather, hot, hot, hot & some very exciting & noisy bowling.
On Friday 2^nd October, all the Players were introduced onto the Green individually by the Team Manager Simon Evans & Spanish Team Director Graham Marlow.
The CVs of the City of London players was awesome. The youngest is 20 yrs old and the current Middlesex Under 25 Singles Champion. Every one of their records was very impressive.
Our Guys were really going to be up against it.
The 1^st format of games was 6 Pairs. Our Guys really arose to the occasion and I am very proud to say that Spain played exceptionally well & won 5 of 6 matches with the City of London conceding 4 games before reaching the 18 ends. The game that Spain lost was also conceded at 14 ends.
There was some exceptional Bowling on both sides and I lost count of how many dead ends there were. The firing on both sides was very accurate and effective with Bowls going everywhere.
In the afternoon the format was 2 Fours & 1 Triple. Spain won all 3 games.
At the end of the 1^st day Spain were 8 – 1 ahead overall.
On Saturday morning, the format was 2 Triples & 1 Four. Spain won 2 out of the 3 games, a Triple and the Fours. The losing Triple was lost on the last end by 2 shots.
In the afternoon the format was 3 Fours. City of London won 2 out of 3 of the games. There was also a point for the overall score in the Fours games, which, went to City of London.
The overall score at the end of the 2^nd day was 11 – 5 for Spain.
On Sunday, the final day, Spain had to win 2 games to be sure of the overall win.
The format was 6 Singles and 2 Pairs. We won 2 Singles games very close together. The management could now relax a bit. We went on to win 2 more Singles & lost 2.
We were well up in both Pairs matches. City of London could see that all Singles matches had finished and sportingly conceded both Pairs at 14 ends so that both sodes could socialise before lunch.
We then went into the Restaurant and had a 3 course Sunday Roast followed by speeches from Graham Marlow & Simon Evans.
On behalf of the Spanish International Team & Management, we would like to thank Emerald Isle BC for hosting the Match. Thank you to the Umpire & Markers who took part. All of them were kept very busy. Thank you to the Restaurant and Kiosk staff for looking after our needs. A special thank you goes to June Jones for her exceptional organisation of all things necessary for the smooth running of this Competition.
The table of scores is below.
                      SPAIN V CITY OF LONDON

      Points
Friday am Pairs
Ends
Score
Spain
C of L

K Jones
15
26 - 06
    1
    0

J Muldoon
16
05 - 31
    0
    1

M Tew
16
22 - 10
    1
    0

R Marks

19 - 16
    1
    0

J Breslin
17
21 - 01
    1
    0

F Roberts
13
26 - 01
    1
    0

Friday pm 2 fours 1 trips

4
M Johnson

17 - 11
    1
    0
4
M Tew

17 - 11
    1
    0
3
R Marks

21 - 17
    1
    0

Total Points to date

    8
    1

Saturday am 2 trips 1 four

3
M Johnson
16
18 - 08
    1
    0
3
M Tew

15 - 17
    0
    1
4
K Jones

20 - 11
    1
    0

Saturday pm 3 fours

M Johnson

18 - 17
    1
    0

J Breslin

06 - 32
    0
    1

R Marks

14 - 21
    0
    1

Total shots extra point

    0
    1
Total shots to date

   11
    5

Sunday 6 singles 2 pairs

S
M Johnson

21 - 12
    1
    0
S
B Manser

21 - 09
    1
    0
S
T McKenna

10 - 21
    0
    1
S
M Tew

17 - 21
    0
    1
S
R Marks

21 - 13
    1
    0
S
K Jones

21 - 20
    1
    0
P
F Roberts
14
22 - 09
    1
    0
P
J Breslin
14
25 - 07
    1
    0

Total points

   17
    7

Photos in the gallery.
Written by Pat Metcalfe

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Atlantic Rim Games
Johannesburg South Africa
4th - 16th May 2009

After a long journey we arrived in Johannesburg to a friendly greeting by our host at the Guesthouse, Debra. Everyone was looking for a good night sleep. The next morning we met our Jeppe Quondam host club members who drove us around for the whole week. We had 2 hours practice on the first morning and a trip to the Wanderers Club in the afternoon. What a place. The IPL Cricket was going on and the noise from that was very exciting. Fireworks when a wicket went down and when a 6 was scored.We were introduced to Garfield the resident cat who has his own little house outside the Wanderers clubhouse. For the rest of the week we had plenty of practice morning & afternoon on the Jeppe green. The club had arranged for some very stiff opposition against us which gave us the competitive practice we needed. They also put on a Brai (BBQ) for us on the last day. Nick Bunbury presented them with a plaque to commemorate our stay. We cannot thank the Jeppe Quondam Club & all it's members for their tireless help, enough. Thanks to you all. We would also like to thank Debra for looking after us. The fact that we were all together in the same place was brilliant for Team bonding and created a great Team spirit.
Onto our main Hotel the City Lodge, and we get settled in ready for the first weeks competition. I won't go into the scores as I am sure that most of you will have been checking them on the world bowls site. What I will say is that the scores do not reflect the games. The Guys and Gals have performed very well throughout. The Guys were basically robbed of a quarter final place by a decision being overturned. When they were playing Scotland & USA, the weather became very severe and everyone was called of the green. Most of the games were stopped at 14 ends. The pairs against USA were 13 ends. At this time all our Teams playing were up on the board so the subsequent decision was in our favour. The decision was that the games were finished and that the scores stood as they were. We found out next day that the USA had lodged an appeal. Spain were 2 up on the board at the time the game was stopped and USA thought they could qualify here for world bowls and lodged the appeal. Consequently that day, all games were reduced to 3 hours and at the end of the day the last 4/5 ends had to be played. The Ladies won their game but, the Men lost in the trips and drew the pairs. They then had to win at least 2 more games to ensure a quarter final place which, unfortunately didn't happen. The sad thing is that the USA couldn't qualify at this tournament. Their qualifying tournament is the Asia Pacific Games later this year. The Ladies also missed out on a quarter final place by losing to the Nederlands, and on shot difference.
We now start this week in the Singles & Fours which are playing as I write. I have just been informed that Pete Bonsor has won his first game against Cyprus 21 - 4. I will do another report at the end of this week and will load all the photos when I get back to Spain.
What a week this turned out to be. The Ladies Fours had a good week losing to Canada by 1 shot on the last end. Holding 3 the Canadian skip with the last bowl played a tap & lie to win by 1 shot. They played very well against England and held their own until the last few ends when England gave the mat away and with her last bowl Sandy Hazel played a tap & lie to turn over a 3 shot down to 1 up. This continued for 6 ends and Spain held their 2 on the last end finishing 12 - 15 to England. On the morning of the last game in the round robin we heard that the ladies had qualified for their place at World Bowls in 2012. Everyone was elated. They missed out on a quarter final place on shot difference. Carol Meare started her campaign in the singles against Nederlands winning her first game. Carol grew in confidence as the week went on and played some brilliant bowls. Carol ended up in a quarter finals and had to play against England, she played well, but Ellen Faulkner was on top form and didn't allow Carol any leeway at all.
The Men started the week very well and played some great bowls. Unfortunately they didn't manage enough to qualify but they had got into the quarter finals in the fours. They had to win this game to qualify. They were drawn against Wales. The game was very close all the way through when eventually Wales pulled away and won the game.
Altogether the Team has played 54 games of bowls over 2 weeks, 25 for the Ladies & 29 for the Men, and have not let themselves down anytime during the Tournament. Some Countries said that their games against Spain were among the hardest they had to play. We should take that as a great compliment. Well done to all the Guys and Gals who performed their best bowls here in South Africa. I am very proud to have been part of this Team and I hope we continue to build up our reputation on the World Stage. The only way is up!

Written by Pat Metcalfe, Spanish National Coach.
PHOTOS IN THE PHOTO GALLERY & MORE TO COME LATER

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World Cup
Warilla Australia
2009

The Tournament this year was reduced to 6 days, so included a busy schedule with 3 games on some days with an early start of 8.45 a.m. and a late start of 9.00 p.m. The competition was split into two groups of 11, everyone playing each other and the top 4 qualifying for the quarter finals, on paper my group was the harder group but we do not bowl on paper so anything goes. The first day I had 3 games and set my target at a minimum of 4 points, as two of the games were South Africa and Malaysia. I was disappointed at the close of play when I had 4 points but had only lost on a tie breaker to Malaysia, with my last bowl falling against the bias out of the head instead of inwards to lose 2-1. The second day saw me against Thailand and Leif Selby of Australia, the tournament favourite, again my target was 2 points anything more would be brilliant. Firstly Thailand, I raced away with the first set 14-2 and then somehow lost the second set, a phenomenon which happens all too easily in set play, another tie breaker which I lost 4-0. My head needing shaking as I have just lost 2 tie breakers and now I must play the top seed Leif. The first set Leif won 9-5 but with a change of jack length I managed to win the second set 8-4. I was now in familiar territory, in the tie-break I scored 4 on the first two ends so only a disaster would rob me of a huge victory. I gave away the mat which, in hind-sight, was not a great tactic as Leif reverted back to his familiar full length jack which had won him the first set. After 7 bowls I was 4 down with my last bowl to come, I decided to drive hoping to remove at least one Aussie bowl. I succeeded and managed to get 2 bowls out which gave me my 2 points for the day in a complete reversal of my morning thoughts. I was now back in control of my destiny knowing that 5 wins would put me through to the last 8. I still had India, Japan, Singapore, Ireland and the local Aussie star playing for Malta. India and Japan went as the plan with 2 straight set wins then came Shaun Parnis (The Maltese Falcon) a semi finalist last year and the local crowd favourite. A must win game as he was currently third above me in fourth. Although my win over Leif Selby was fantastic this was my best game so far with regard to tactics and overall performance. I won in two sets and Shaun in his own words told me that I had been just too good for him. This left me with the knowledge that 1 win out of the last two would do it for me and I had Singapore and Ireland to come. Singapore in the afternoon beat him and I am through what could be easier!! Crash, I lost the first set 9-5 and did not really know how. I needed the good old head shake again. This was administered by Lisa who had watched every bowl of every match and could see all my hard work wasting away on to Tee Chiak Chia aka Ronnie. With Lisa's voice rattling in my ears I won the second set 12-1 and won another tie break 2-1. My last game was Ireland and winning a set meant I finished 3rd in the group my mind was elsewhere and I lost my only game to 2 sets and finished 4th. This performance was the result of complacency and not winning a set had cost me dearly as I now played the New Zealand No1 Jamie Hill, who had only conceded 3.5 sets in his 10 matches. Once again I got the hairdryer treatment from Lisa. A great start in the quarter final saw me 3 up after 8 ends with 1 bowl each remaining, I was 2 down a drove to remove the two shot bowls, but was horrendously tight and edged Jamies third bowl left at a complete right angle to give him a measure for three which was a tied set. However, he decided to draw with his last bowl to make sure but moved the jack about 5 inches which reduced his count to a definite 2, Phew!!.
The next set was over before I knew it, after 5 ends I was 7-0 down I changed my thoughts to the Tie break and played a new length to become accustom to where I thought Jamie would play (full length!!) This was the case and my plan paid off, I won the tie-break (yes another one) and was in the semis.
Semi Final Day the two Malaysians first and Safuan showed his Skip Fairul (Boy) why he was the defending champ and won in straight sets. The crowd was building and I was on second against the Aussie Leif Selby. With Karen Murphy on after in the Ladies Final there was standing room only. With approximately 500-600 people watching I sent the jack to about 32metres and proceeded to draw straight in front about 4 inches away from the jack, the shot changed hands a total of 7 times with every bowl. Leif winning the end drawing to the edge of the ditch. This was the format for the whole game with the last bowl being crucial and the giving away of the mat a killer. The first set 10-1 to Leif the second set went much the same way. I played as well as I had in the competition but with Leif playing to the top of his ability I was left behind. In the second set I ended up with a personal goal of scoring a shot which took me all of my ability to get as Leif was now on fire. Second set was déjà vu losing 10-1.
I received my Bronze medal and was proud to have achieved this result and I had won over a hostile crowd with a game worthy of the final.
I would like to thank the members of Greenlands for their fund raising with special thanks to Bill Pain, Eve Blythe and Rosemary Cairns and my No1 supporter, Manager, Photographer and Hair Dryer Lisa.
Written By Pete Bonsor. Photos in the Gallery

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Spain v Jersey
Emerald Isle Bowls Club
27th & 28th March 2009

SPAIN JERSEY

What a great start by Spain on the first day with the men winning all their matches. The Ladies won two and lost two. A great start for the Team going into the second day with a cushion of 12 pts to 4pts. The second day started with the Triples and Pairs. The Men's triples went all the way to the last end. 15 all on the 17th end. Spain were holding 3 shots and Jersey's 22yr old Michael Rive played an extraodinary draw shot nd took the jack away to 5 Jersey bowls waiting just behind. Mick Johnson cut it down to 1 shot narrowly missing drawing the shot for Spain. 15 - 16 to Jersey. The Rinks in the afternoon ended up another last end thriller. Spain were 1 up on the 17th end of the game and Jersey were holding 3 on the last end. Mick Johnson, with his last bowl, drew the perfect shot 2 inches from the jack and Spain won 17 - 15. The Ladies again won two and lost two. Sabrina Marks beat Chris Grimes in a very hard fought game of Singles. Sabrina lost to Chris on the first day so this was a special win for her and the Ladies Team. She also won the Pairs with Sheri Fletcher. The overall points for the two days were 22 Spain 10 Jersey. A great weekend. Fine weather and a good crowd also helped to make it special. Our most grateful thanks go to June Jones for her very efficient organisation and the Emerald Isle Bowls Club for hosting this event. Thanks also to the Umpires and Markers for giving up their time.

Jersey manager Jean presented Nick Bunbury, Spanish Team Manager, with a Glass Plaque to comemorate the event.

MORE PHOTOS IN THE GALLERY
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Tiger Bowls
(Hong Kong and China)
written by Dominic Mills

Having travelled for what felt like two days we arrived in
Hong Kong to 29 degrees of heat 120% humidity
and one of the most wonderful places I have ever visited.

The first day was spent wandering around in a jet lagged daze and involved getting lost on a regular basis. This was to become a regular feature of our travels for the ten days.

We were fortunate enough to be drawn at the Police Officers club for the first day in Hong Kong, which was outdoor carpet, so we dutifully practiced all afternoon. What we didn’t know was that the organiser Jackie Wong had arranged an exhibition match for us at the Hong Kong Football Club that night on grass. So the afternoons practice was forgotten as the grass in HK is very heavy.

Luckily the next day we only took one game to adjust back and managed to qualify for the cup stages at the Cricket Club so it was back to heavy grass. Unfortunately the third acclimatisation process took longer and the Welsh, Malaysians and Thailand boys made sure it was harder still. While we gave a good account of ourselves the format of two sets of three ends and a final set of two ends meant we had no margin of error.

So it was off to China and the first day brought two games against the International Barbarians and the Welsh, again. With the greens running at 9 seconds we now felt comfortable with the weight to the extent that we beat the Ba Bas by 4 shots and lost to the Welsh by one shot when we put the jack in the ditch and it went the wrong way. We arrived for day two with a great chance of qualifying, and then we saw the green. We were playing the China team skipped by the organiser of the tour who had ordered the green soaked overnight and had got the green down to 6.5 seconds for the first game (to be fair they did speed up to 7.5 seconds in the afternoon). This favoured them slightly more than us and we were well beaten. Things didn’t get easier when we played the Fijians with three of the silver medallist from World Bowls in the trips.

We had a great game but came out second best. The pressure was really on to beat the Canadians last years semi finalists it didn’t look good for the first 6 ends as they built up a healthy lead. We stuck in and managed to pick up a 6 and a 3 on the last two ends to win by a shot.

The next morning we had to beat Central China to stand any chance of qualifying and with the greens back to under 7 seconds we weren’t able to pull it off and bowed out of the competition.

We all enjoyed ourselves tremendously and the experiences we had of not only bowling against some top quality bowlers but also of making new friends and experiencing two marvellous cultures will stay with me forever. To anybody who gets the opportunity to do something similar I would say “go for it” I promise you will have the time of you life.

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Cyprus Report
written by Jackie Breslin.

The 7^th European Team Championships, Cyprus

Waiting for the Parade

Well that was the week that was, do you remember the Television show by that name?, Rain, Thunder and Lightning, Hailstones and 60 mph gales that was the weather for the entire week we were bowling in Paphos, Cyprus in the above event.

Bad weather on the horizon

The conditions apart the trip was a great success, admittedly we were a little disappointed in finishing seventh when 3rd or 4^th was looking good for a long time but you are playing against some classy bowlers and I am pleased to report that we held our own with the best of them, with each of the team coming away with some long lasting memories of some great results.

The facilities at the Athena Beach Hotel were first class as was the organization of the whole event despite the weather. The markers and umpires deserve a massive thank you for the work they did in horrendous conditions, especially on the Thursday when play did not finish until 10.00pm.

I have to mention the performance of Russell Marks who was so close to being the best overall individual a couple of extra set wins might have just secured it. The whole team must be congratulated on the way they handled all the situations and their general behaviour was a great credit to them and many new friends were made, especially in the Scottish camp, as Sabrina Marks drawing with Mo Monkton deprived England of the title, thus gave the trophy to Scotland by 2 points.

Sabrina Marks with the Scotland Team
winners of the European Championships

The event moves to Holland in 2 years time and to whoever represents Spain I am sure will enjoy this wonderful competition, I have now played in the last two and have had a fantastic time in each.

Finally a special thanks to Maureen, Sandra, Billy and Bob four supporters from the Costa Del Sol who travelled over, what wonderful people they are and I am sure that we shall be seeing more of each other over the years to come.

More Photos in the Gallery

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Test Match v Costa Del Sol
@
Benavista Bowls Club Estepona
November 1^st & 2^nd

After a long drive to Malaga Province by most of the Spanish Squad, we were greeted by some horrendous weather. Our practice day was abandoned after 2 ends when the heavens opened and flooded the Green. We stayed at the Bowls Club and had our lunch, which had already been arranged for us. Our thanks go to Sharon, Mel and the rest of the Staff, for their hard work all over the weekend, by keeping us fed and watered.

Before I go into the main report, I would like to make a special thank you to 4 Ladies. Lucy & Emma from Global Currency Exchange, our new sponsors of the Spanish Team Shirts. An extra special thank you to Pat and Mal Davies and her sister Diane of the Bowls Shop. They worked until 3am on Friday embroidering the badges and Logos on all the Team Shirts and then drove all the way down to the Hotel, arriving at 10.30pm, so that we could have them for the start of the Test Match. This effort, I class, as above and beyond the call of duty. We will be forever grateful Ladies, thank you.

A big thank you to the Benavista Bowls Club and their President Gordon Adams, for allowing us to use their Green. Everyone was so helpful and kind. The weekend was supposed to be divided between Superbowl Bowls Club and Benavista, but, due to the bad weather and poor drainage of the green at Superbowl, we spent the whole weekend at Benavista. The games had to be rescheduled and staggered throughout the weekend because we now only had 6 rinks to work with instead of 12. We also had the use of the floodlights.

A big thank you to Murray Johns for his co-organisation of this event, and his band of Ladies and Gents who Umpired and Marked the games. Also the people who turned the scoreboards to make sure that the scores were added every end.

On each of the two days there were 8 games for the Ladies and 8 games for the Gents.

16 games over 2 days.

(4 singles – 4 pairs – 4 triples and 4 rinks on each day with 2 pts a win and 1 for draw)

After the first session in the morning the Costa Del Sol had a commanding lead of 12 pts to 4 pts. At the end of the day, Spain were 14 pts and Costa Del Sol 18 pts. Still 4 pts behind but a very good come back by Spain.

This is becoming a pattern for the National Squad. It has been suggested that this is a ploy by the players to wind up the Managers, Selectors and Coaches knowing that they can come back and win. I must say that it does my voice no good at all while shouting and trying to wake them up. We also know now, why Graham Marlow is a bit thin on top. It is because he is always pulling his hair out.

    President Gordon Adams handing over the              Spanish National Team with
    Green to National Team Manager Nick                   Sponsors Lucy & Emma from
    Bunbury and Murray Johns for the                            Global Currency Exchange
    Costa Del Sol

1^st Day Results

Ladies Singles Spain CDS

Spain 2 losses Costa Del Sol 2 wins 0 4

Ladies Pairs