History was made (again) on Saturday afternoon as Fred Alexander claimed the George Welch Trophy for an amazing 14th time, winning the 2019 Major Singles championship. Fred first claimed the Trophy back in 1984 and his last win was in 2015 and by notching up another win Fred certainly places himself in hallowed St Ives bowling history.
The Final was played out in really difficult conditions- a clear blue sky but a really strong wind, a fast green and temperatures that topped out at 16 degrees. Our President Kevin Latham was the marker for the final which pitched Fred Alexander against Chris Wood. The start of the match was quite frenetic. Ends were won by each player and some big scores were made- Chris claimed four shots on end 2 and three on end 8 while Fred took three shots on end 3 and two on end 6. After that early flurry the score was 9-9 after 9 ends. Fred made the first breakaway winning five ends in a row to build an 18-9 advantage. Chris took end 14 but Fred was building a good lead as he took the next four ends to lead 23-10. Chris was able to close the gap to 23-16 after 21 ends but Fred took five of the next seven ends to cross the line on end 28. The final score was 31-18. Commiserations to Chris who had some memorable wins to make the final. Congratulations to Fred on regaining the Trophy and playing some marvellous bowls along the way.
0 Comments
Last Thursday, the ladies celebrated the club's 60th birthday in combination with Presidents Day. Unfortunately the weather was very unfriendly with steady light rain - so no bowls played! However, members and visitors had a great day with morning tea, card games and a trivia competition - followed by a delicious lunch.
Many thanks to the many visitors who travelled from far and wide to join us. Visitors included Lesley Swales - NSW Womens Bowls Director, Julie Hayden - District President and the many presidents and representatives from other clubs in the district. Finally, a huge thank you to the ladies who cooked and worked so hard to made the day such a success. On Saturday it was Semi-Final time at St Ives in the Major Singles.
On Rink 8, Fred Alexander took on Chris Carey. Chris had come through his quarter final match against Michael Macourt earlier in the week. Fred made a fast start jumping to 8-1 ahead after just five ends. Chris pulled that lead back winning the next four ends. As the match progressed it was a back & forth affair but Fred was always just keeping his nose in front. Fred took ends 22, 23 and 24 to establish a 6-shot advantage, only for Chris to pick up 3 shots next end. So it went on, each player alternating wins until eventually Fred crossed the finish line having notched up a 4-shot haul on end 30. The final score was 31-23. On Rink 9, it was Joe Shofer against Chris Wood. This was another close battle with the players alternating wins to keep the score close. Joe kept just ahead, leading by four shots after end 11 and stretching that to eight by end 15. The game started to turn as Chris began a run of winning five ends in a row to bring things level at 22-22 after end 26. After a run of singles it was Chris that pushed in front with 3 shots on ends 33, 35 and decisively on end 36 to win the match 33-27. The Final will be played next Saturday with our President, Kevin Latham, the honorary marker. The combatants will be Fred Alexander and Chris Wood- best of luck gentlemen! Greg Smith & Graeme Manning played in the Zone 9 President's Reserve Pairs Final at Harbord BC on Saturday. The pair had battled through four matches to reach the final including a Semi-Final win over fellow St Ives' players Ross Yates & John Swann. In the Final the opponents were from Balgowlah- Paul Terry & Sean Semler. It was a close match but unfortunately Greg & Graeme fell just short losing the match 16-21.
Well done fellas- a great effort. For more on the final see the Zone 9 Website here St Ives played host to a very special occasion on Sunday with the Zone 9 President's Reserve Pairs competition matching TWO St Ives teams in the Semi-Final. In the morning Ross Yates & John Swann had come through in an amazing cliff-hanger 23-22 against V. Solway & D. Erskine (Lane Cove). Ross & John seemed out of it when trailing 3-22 with just five ends to go. Then the comeback began!
Greg Smith & Graeme Manning played out a tight, low-scoring affair against R. Manning & K. Alderton (Belrose), finally sealing the victory 17-16 to set up the all-St Ives semi-final. It was Greg & Graeme who booked their final spot 24-17. The Final will be played next Saturday at Harbord BC where Greg & Graeme's opponents will be the Balgowlah pair Paul Terry & Sean Semler. Elsewhere, in the State Pairs Rod Silber & Chris Carey fell in Round 3 at Harbord BC, losing a heartbreaker 20-21 to R. Berry & B. Brown (Dee Why). Over at Asquith BC, in the Senior Pairs our two remaining sides also couldn't make it past the Round 3 hurdle. Steven Goddard & Chris Bergman lost 13-22 to another Dee Why combination C. Freeman & J. Boreham. Fred Alexander & Wilson Cheng lost to J. Saragozza & R. Wise (Belrose) 10-19. Well done to all our competing teams and best wishes to Greg Smith & Graeme Manning for next weekend's final. |
Categories
All
Archives
April 2024
|