The Seniors competition got underway on Tuesday. The reigning Champion, Scorpions Stephen 'Cinto' Johnston is still standing. We had 354 participants and are now down to six. the remaining quarter finals will commence at 7:30 on 11th February on 11th February in Greenisland Club.
Whitehead Trojans vs Railway Blues, at the Grange Bar Ballyclare on a chilly Tuesday night, with Storm Chandra brewing outside. The weather was looking pretty rough, with heavy rain and strong winds forecasted, but the Trojans still made the journey.
The teams have had a mixed bag of results recently. Their last meeting ended in a 7-7 draw, so it'll be interesting to see how things play out tonight.
Stephen Hamilton got the Trojans off to a good start winning his first frame of the night after Ryan Stewart went in off on his break. Robin Kerr, Josh McIroy (a magnificent swerve shot after running out of position on the black), Gareth Curlett and Wes Smith won the next four frames convincingly giving the blues a 4-1 lead. Stephen Hamilton then won his second frame of the night before Chris Hobson won the final frame of the session. 4-3 at the break with everything still to play for.
Second session began with a win for the blues, Craig Laughlin winning his first frame of the night. The Trojans fought back well winning the night two, Stephen Hamilton making it 3/3 on the night and Matthew Thompson, 5-5. Wes Smith produced an incredible shot the get onto the black in the 11th frame then Josh Mcilroy put the blues on the hill after a scrappy frame, 2/2 for McIlroy. The penultimate frame was won by Gordon McKintry. 7-6 to the blues with one frame to play. Craig Laughlin held his nerve to to take out a lovely finish and get the win for the Railway!
A highly competitive game played in great spirit! Thanks to the Trojans for making the journey and all the best for the rest of the season.
Stadium welcomed the Times Tigers to their bar for this weeks league action Tigers looked to start off well with John Fulton winning the break and with a good break he started to clear the table, John being a very capable player it looked inevitable to be a break and dish however a surprising miss stopped that in its tracks and Stadium player Thomas Orr stepped up to the table, cool, calm and collected he punished his opponents mistake with a nicely put together clearance, 1-0 to Stadium. Next game the exact same situation played out with Tigers Stephen Simpson unable to see out his chance at a break and dish, while Bryan Elwood stepped up to the plate and took his opportunity and taking the win to put his team to 2-0. Scott Pettigrew stepped up next to stop the rot and not let stadium continue to build a lead. Sam Sloan then took the next game after a back and forth game to take it back to even at 2-2. Phillip Watson somehow pulled out a win in the next following a turbulent game putting stadium back in the lead 3-2. Both captains stepped up next in a battle to either level the score or extend a lead, after a great battle on the table it was Stadium captain Chris McCurry who came out victor with a beautiful double on his last ball which was also a combination shot with the white into the black, 4-2 Stadium. John was up again for the Tigers and very much the same as his first game he got a good break and went about clearing the balls this time he got down to the black although a break and dish was not on the cards for John yet again as he missed the black leaving it over the middle pocket, first game for Johnathan Drake of the Stadium and a big task to ask but he stepped up and went about clearing the balls, unfortunately for him though he missed the pot on his last ball although it did find a different pocket so did the white, a simple drop in black for John stopping the rot again and finishing off the first half. Scoreline 4-3 to Stadium
Players of note: Bryan Elwood, Chris McCurry and Phillip Watson all winning 2/2 on the night
Honourable mention to John Fulton and Scott Pettigrew both with 2/3 wins
Colts raced out of the blocks against Times Bar Scorpions with a tidy win for Alan Harris, Joe
Patton with a sublime break and dish with a smashing last red to get on the
black and Aaron Watters via an in off the black from Stephen Johnston. Sensing
danger the scorpions talisman Paul Kerr stopped the rot, Darren Haddock brought
the arrears back within one and Davy Blair levelled. Aaron Leslie had a tasty
reverse dish to take the a 4-3 lead. Stephen Johnston made it 5-3
followed by another from Aaron Leslie and another from Stephen Johnston to put
Scorpions on the hill at 7-3. Joe Patton was superb 3very tidy finishes in the
match but Scorpions ran out 9-5 in a match that was much closer than the
score line suggests.
With Scorpions getting three points it was imperative for Titans to do the same... And thats what they did against Galacticos. The bonus point has brought Galacticos level with Scorpions in second place.
In other matches Bay city Bowlers 6 Legion 8, Q Club 14 Ladies 0,
The second half started with Gary Fitzsimmons with a great black winning his
3rd frame of the night. Bowlers’ Ian McMillan won the next frame. The Trojans
then took control of the match winning the next 5 frames wins for Stephen
Hamilton, Matthew Thompson, Girvan Fleming and Gordan McKinty. Players of
the night were Trojans Gary Fitzsimmons, Matthew Thompson and Stephen Hamilton
all winning 3 out 3 frames.
Pink Ladies hosted Times Bar Scorpions in Greenisland WWMC. Scorpions’ Darren Whiteside got the ball rolling with a swift whitewash. Davy Blair made it 2 and Paul Kerr broke n dished sublimely to make it 3. Aaron Leslie made it 4 and David Blair chipped in his second to make it 0-6. Aaron Leslie nearly potted the cue ball and the black but held on to make it 0-7 at half time.
Darren Whiteside was up against Joan Bustard, who made a fabulous debut, but it was Darren Whiteside who won the frame sealing the 3 points for the Scorpions. Paul Kerr made it 0-9 before Tracey Cooke experienced her second frame without a shot as Aaron Leslie ripped out a lovely break n dish. Lee McIlreevy made it 0-10 followed by Davy Blair and Darren Whiteside. The biggest cheer of the night came from Angela Willis’ fans as she took advantage, mopping up her remaining balls, after Lee McIlreevy went in off, in off to secure the Pink Ladies’ solitary frame. Final score Pink Ladies 1 Scorpions 13.
Times Tigers welcomed the Galacticos to the Shore Road. It was a sobering lesson for the Tigers in the first half with 2 wins each for Roger Smyth and Gee Crawley and a win each for Jack and Chris Carson and only Tom McGurk getting on the scoresheet for the Tigers.
The second half saw more of the same! Roger completed his hat trick of wins on the night and Chris Carson won his second. Tom McGurk grabbed his own second of the night to leave the score at 8-2 at this stage and the win guaranteed for the Galacticos and this sparked a little bit of hope for the Tigers. Scott Pettigrew grabbed another for the Tigers and then Tom McGurk grabbed his third of the night to bring the score to 8-4. Could the Tigers get an unlikely losing bonus point?? Nay said the Galacticos with another double from Jack and Chris to leave the final score 10-4. Special mention to Chris, and Roger for the Galacticos and Tom McGurk of the Tigers for 3/3 wins on the night! And to Gee and Jack with 2/3 wins on the night.
But spare a thought for the poor captain of the reigning champions, Mr Womb Ferret himself who was unlucky in both his games to brilliantly and impressively pot 6 balls and then foul and so go on to lose both!! A great nights craic as always, with some fine darts thrown in for good measure and the beer was it's usual high standard!!
Tigers 4 Galacticos 10
In other matches: Grange 6 Q Club 8, Colts 11 Stadium 3, Titans 9 Blues 5, Legion 5 Spartans 9.
The Times Tigers came to the Grange bar on Tuesday night to face the Railway Blues. The first time the teams met this season, the Tigers destroyed the Blues by a 10 frame margin!
The Tigers started well winning the first two frames of the night, Scott and John with the wins! Blues pulled one back through Gareth Curlet with a good black. Johnny put the Tigers 3-2 up with a great finish! The Railway won the next 3 frames, Rambo, Sammy and Matthew taking the wins! Matthew had a fantastic break and finish giving the Blues a 4-3 lead at the break.
John took out a great finish to level the scores at the start of the second session. Robin and Skinny then put the Blues in a commanding 6-4 lead. The Tigers wouldn't lie down, winning frames 11 and 12, Stephen and Johnny getting the wins. 6-6 with everything to play for, Gareth Curlet held his nerve to put the Blues on the hill. The Railways January singing Rambo Crowe showed his class winning the final frame and giving the Blues their third league win on the bounce as Blues leapfrog Tigers in the table. A closely fought contest played in a great manner! Unlucky to the Times Bar Tigers and thanks for a great game.
The Bay City Bowlers welcomed league leaders Q Club Titans to Carrickfergus. It was an encouraging start for the home side, with Davie Craig putting early points on the board. Tight second and third frames followed, where Stuart Kelly first leveled and then Brian Kelly edged the visitors into the lead.
In the fourth, Craig once again demonstrated his quality with another well earned win. The next frame was closely contested, but the visitors began to build momentum. That shift became decisive when Brian Crilly produced a superb break and dish, sparking an onslaught that continued for the remainder of the match.
Despite the Bowlers’ best efforts, it was clear why Q Club Titans sit atop the league standings. The visitors led 5–3 at the break and then powered through the second half, claiming seven of the remaining games to secure a convincing 12–2 victory.
The match was played in great spirit, and the Bowlers wish Q Club Titans every success in their title charge.🎱
Times Bar Scorpions hosted the Grange. Gary Neesan, a seasoned campaigner, ripped out a beautiful reverse dish to get the ball rolling for the Ballyclare men. Lee Mcilreevy broke and dished in the next to level the scores. Johnny Mackay was a fraction off on his last ball for another break and dish letting Stephen Johnston in for an 8 ball clearance. In a more tactical game Darren Whiteside made it 3-1 to the Tigers Bay men. Paul Kerr soon made it 4-1followed by a Aaron Leslie vs former Scorpion Michael Wilson who looked to have played a great containing safety only for Aaron to play a wonder pot and sink the black. Paul Kerr round off the fist half with another for the Scorpions at 6-1. Grange are too strong to just roll over and Johnny Mackay won the first frame of the second half. Paul Kerr chipped in with his 3rd of the night for Scorpions before Michael Wilson added to the Grange's total after Lee McIlreevy snookered himself on his last ball (11) Steak v Hatch - YouTube. Aaron Leslie secured the points for Times Bar Scorpions. Uel Wallace and Thomas Fleming took the next couple for the Grange and the final frame went to Lee McIlreevy. Final Score Scorpions 9 Grange 5.
In other matches:
Stephen Johnston 0 vs 4 Ryan Scott
Rhys Mclaughlin 4 vs 0 Lee Mcilreavy
Denise Esdale 0 vs 4 Stephen Herron
Aaron Watters 4 vs 2 DarrenW
Tom McGurk 4 vs 3 Jim Gilchrist
Paul Kerr vs Robert Hawkins pp
The next round will be redrawn.
Well done everyone.
In the eighth league match of the season all teams paid respects to two former players who sadly passed away this week. Doagh Dragons' Tyler McConnell aged 37 and Bay City Bowlers' Tommy Hutton aged 91 were remembered in a minutes silence before the matches.
Whitehead Rangers Trojans vs Whiteabbey Legion
The Legion got of to a great start with Andrew Buff winning a great tactical match between him and Stephen Hamilton. Darren O'Neil then won the next frame for Legion. The Trojans then won next frame with a grain finish from Christopher Hobson. The next 3 frames were won by the Legion which give them a great lead 5 frames to 1. Gordon McKinty then won the last frame of the first half 5- 2 to the Legion. The second half got of to another great start with Andrew Buff and Rab Butler winning their frames. The Trojans start the fight back with Christopher Hobson winning a tight frame against John Rainey. Then Trojans Stephen Hamilton, captain Girvan Fleming and Matthew Thompson winning the next 3 frames made it 7- 6 to the Legion. Then the Trojans come back was stop by Legion Rad Butler winning the last frame of the night final score was 8 - 6 to the Legion seeing legion move up to 7th in the league.
Stadium vs Spartans
Spartans got off to a good start with Robert Hawkins punishing
Lewis Neill when he failed to complete what was turning out to be a great
clearance, 1-0 Spartans, next up Stadium Vice Captain John English was able to
make the most of his opportunities and get the game back to an even 1-1, Bryan
Elwood was up next against Alan Johnston, the latter of the 2 is the one that
would come out on top after Bryan rattled the black and left just enough space
for Alan’s last red to pass into the same pocket, 2-1 Spartans, Mark Millar Jnr
stepped up next for stadium, very fortunate to get a shot as Thomas Fleming was
on fine form and potting them off lampshades, Thomas the player who came away
with the win as Mark not able to make the most of his chances, 3-1 Spartans, up
stepped Stadium Captain Christopher McCurry next hoping to stopped the rot,
unfortunately unable to do so as Kenny English showed his experience to see out
the win in what was a back and forth game, Spartans 4-1, still hoping to find
some form and a few wins Stadiums William McCullough was next at the table
against the very experienced Trevor Whiteside, Trevor able to use that
experience to punish William on his missed chances, Spartans 5-1, James
Robertson was up last for Stadium in the first half, bit of misfortune at times
but ultimately outplayed by Alan, 1st half finishes 6-1 Spartans in a much
closer game than what the score line shows.
Galacticos vs Colts was 9-5 keeping Galacticos within touching distance of the leaders.
The second half had unfortunately more of the same from Stadium's perspective as Billy Pawson was able to come out on top after a long gruelling frame filled with many snookers, Spartans 7-1. Lewis Neill was able to get one back for Stadium with a quality performance against the NIPA over 60’s Champion Robert Hawkins, Spartans 7-2, Christopher hoping to be able get on the back of that momentum next however after losing the lag was broke and dished by the top quality Thomas Fleming, Spartans 8-2 and the win now confirmed, with the chances of a bonus point looking slim for Stadium that soon become impossible with Big Kenny winning the next for Spartans and getting them to 9-2, a great battle in the next game between Mark Jnr and Trevor with the latter coming out on top in the end, Spartans 10-2, Alan able to claim the next in a long back and forth frame, Spartans 11-2, Robert able to take out a nice finish and finish off the night well for Spartans. Stadium 2 Spartans 12 in a second half that was very much one sided.
Titans vs Grange was 7-7 seeing the Larne men rescue a vital 2 points to stay within touching distance of the league leaders.
Tigers vs Pink Ladies saw the Tigers move up to eighth in the league with a convincing 12-2 home win.
Bay City Bowlers vs Q Club Larne was a 4-10 away win moving the Larne men into the top half of the table.Railway Blues vs Times Bar Scorpions. Lee McIlreavy put the Tigers Bay men ahead with some confident potting. Darren Whiteside made it two and Davy Blair soon made it 3. Josh McIlroy stopped the rot with a great finish for Blues. Stephen Johnston soon made it 1-4 before a vintage display from Gareth Curlett as he broke and dished to reduce the arrears to 2-4. Paul Kerr made it 2-5 in favour of the boys from Times Bar at half time. Josh McIlroy took out another fine finish for Railway Blues but Paul Kerr, Stephen Johnston and Darren Haddock got Scorpions over the line and secured all three points. Darren Whiteside took out a well worked out break and dish, cutting a tricky black but inadvertently potted the cue ball too, giving Gareth Curlett and early Christmas present and technically his second break and dish win of the night. Davy Blair soon made it 4-9 and captain fantastic, Lee McIlreavy took out the finish of the night to make it 4-10. This result sees the Times Bar Scorpions finally put a bit of distance between their rivals going into the international break.
Carrick & District Pool League sponsored by SKC Gaming NI would like to wish all of our players, officials, carers and managers the best of luck as they head off to foreign lands to represent Northern Ireland in the European Championships next week.
Davy Blair confidently took the first frame, swiftly followed by wins for Lee McIlreavy, Paul Kerr, Darren Whiteside and Stephen Johnston. The Scorpions clinically took their chances and ended the first half 7-0. Davy Blair sealed all three points in frame 8 and the Scorpions continued their dominance on the affairs of the evening and soon it was 13-0.
In the final frame Bowlers Ryan Ward took out a sublime 8 ball finish to save the whitewash.
Colts hosted the Railway Blues as it was Halloween, The Colts dressed accordingly.
The first four frames were shared, with wins for G Burns & H Warwick for the he side & R Craig & R Brown for the visitors. J Patton won the fifth frame before the Blues hit back taking the next two frames, courtesy of R Kerr & R Stewart, giving the visitors a halftime lead 3-4.
H Warwick won his second frame of the night to level up the match. The the next four frames where shared, two from Josh McIlroy for the Railway & JP & A Watters in-between. With the score at 6-6 it was all in the balance giving both teams at least a Bonus Point but wins for the Colt’s pair A Watters & J Patton (his third of the night) secured the win for the Colts with an 8-6 victory.
The Whitehead Rangers' Trojans hosted the newest team in the league, Stadium. The young team got of to a great start with two great finishes from Bryan Elwood and Lewis Neill.
The next frame was another great game with both players showing some great skills with Stephen Hamilton potting the black to give the Trojans the frame.
The next 3 frames were won by the Stadium with some great finishing from Chris McCurry and William McCullough. The last frame of the first half was won by Trojans man of the match Stephen Hamilton.
The beginning of the second half Lewis Neill won his second frame of the night. Gary Fitzsimmons won the next frame to give the Trojans their 3rd frame of the night. The next 3 frames were won by the Stadium taking them to 9 frames with 2 frames left which were won by the Trojans . Making the final score 5- 9 the the Stadium. Some great finishing from the Stadium
The Pink Ladies had a home derby against stablemates, The Galacticos.
The Pink Ladies also in party mode got off to a great start, winning the first two frames with wins for Tracey Cook & Kathleen Wilson. Tracey’s win came after P Harris unintentionally sunk the black ball mid frame. Kathleen doubled the lead with a great finish.
Galacticos soon kicked into gear and took the next eight frames in a row with 2 wins each for P Harris & J Carson 3 for G Wallace & 1 from Dk Whiteside.
Marion King was gifted a third frame for the pink ladies as Derek went in off after potting the black. Kathleen took her second of the night getting the ladies their fourth frame. With two frames left and a chance of their first bonus points pink ladies dreams were quickly stubbed out when Jack Carson won his third frame of the night and Chris Carson took the last frame to complete a 4-10 Victory for the Galacticos to keep them writhing touching distance of the top two teams.
Grange 8 Tigers 6
Q Club 6 Spartans 8
Legion 4 Titans 10
In the Carrick District Pool League sponsored by SKC Gaming NI Ltd we had some great matches in the sixth league match of the season.
Carrick Bowlers hosted Greenisland Colts.
A fixture that both teams always look forward to once again delivered in a nip-and-tuck battle that went all the way to frame 14.
Frame 1 set the tone for the night, with a frame filled with drama right to the end, but it was eventually won for Bowler David Craig after Colt Colin Beckinsale rattled a black. Frame 2 followed suit, but this time Bowler Ian McMillan would jaw a black in the middle to leave a tap-in black for Colt Alan Harris to level it at 1-1. The Colts then went on to win the next three frames, with wins for Joe Patton, Andy Mackey, and John McClean, to lead 4-1. The Bowlers stopped the rot in Frame 6, with Ryan Ward stepping up and sinking a fine long black to seal his victory (2-4). The last frame of the first half was a tense affair, but Ian McMillan would seal the win with a brilliant black down the rail to make it 3-4 at the break. The second half began with a repeat of Frame 1, with Bowler David Craig securing a win over Beckinsale again. This time, Craig pounced on an error to take out a superb clearance that ended with a good cut black into the middle.
At 4-4, it was all to play for, and Bowler Darren Clifford was in no mood to be denied, with a fantastic penultimate doubled red to make it 5-4 to the hosts.
The Colts weren't done yet, but in what was quickly becoming a topsy-turvy match of consecutive frames won on the bounce, the Colts stepped up to take the next three frames in determined fashion. Wins by Joe Patton, Alan Harris, and Dee Harris put them on the hill at 7-5. However, this game wasn't done yet, and Bowler captain Richard Topping stepped up for the Bowlers after a highly unfortunate in-off in his first frame to shake that off and secure the Bowlers at least a bonus point with one frame remaining.
Frame 14 would decide it all, and it saw the reliable and ultimately Player of the Match, Joe Patton, take on Bowler Ryan Ward to decide the outcome of a competitive match. In a frame where both had their chances, Patton's experience shone through, and he would deny the Bowlers a draw and secure the Colts a hard-fought victory.
The Bowlers would like to thank Captain Harry Warwick and all of his team for making this fixture go ahead after a delayed start and wish them every success going forward.
Stadium hosted Q Club and the Shankill men got off to a good start with a great performance for Lewis Neill for his first win of the night, Q club would fight back in the next making it 1-1, Jason Vorhees punishing Mark Millar Jnr after he missed his black for a B&D, Q club would then go ahead 2-1 with William Irvine taking out a lovely B&D not allowing Bryan Elwood to the table, Stadium captain Chris McCurry stepped up next and put his team back on an even playing field 2-2, a back and forth battle happened next between William McCullough and Ciaran O’Toole unfortunately for William his last shot to get onto the black left him with only a nasty bank shot to try and pot the black, Ciaran then punished him when he missed, Q Club back in the lead 3-2, Adam Crossett would then keep the stadiums hopes alive getting them back to level again 3-3, neck and neck going into the last game of the first half both teams both teams wanting to be the one going into the second half with the lead, it would be the Q club that achieved this with Jason stepping up and winning his second of the night in what was quite a long and technical frame, an inexperienced James Robertson failing to call full ball and fouling as a result give his opponent 2 shots and the advantage he needed to make a clearance and take the frame, Q club go into the break 4-3 ahead.
Back for the second half and Lewis would yet again get stadium back level with his 2nd win of the night, before Q club yet again firing back and retaking the lead, Mark Abram would win the next to extend Q clubs lead to 6-4 and claim at least a point, Mark Millar Jnr stepped up next taking out a nice finish to get Stadium back within 1, Chris up next got off to a flyer with what should’ve been a reverse clearance but unfortunately fouled on his last ball, with a lot of work for Marty Kane to do he chose the sensible option to snooker his opponent however Chris tried a ballsy shot and got probably the fluke of the century (sorry Marty!) getting his team back level and also making sure of a point 6-6, Bryan would step up next and put Stadium in the lead for the first time since frame 1 and securing at least the draw, with the everything to play for Lewis stepped up next for Stadium and looking like he was going to B&D to finish off a great quality come back and win for league new comers Stadium he unfortunately left himself horrible on his last ball and trying to pot it ended up potting the black instead ending the night 7-7, a well contended match and one that could’ve went either way ended up in a well deserved draw between the teams
Players of mention: Chris McCurry 2/2 and Lewis Neill with 2/3 for Stadium. Jason Voorhees with 3/3 and William Irvine with 2/3 for Q Club.
Times Tigers v Whiteabbey Legion
Legion started off like a house on fire, racing to a 6 nil lead with wins for Andy Arbuthnot, Tristan Scott-Heyes, Gareth Robinson, Rab Butler, Darren ONeill and Dessie Robinson. Sam Sloan won the last frame of the first half to give the Tigers a little bit of hope! Andy Arbuthnot soon quenched those hopes winning against John Fulton to put the legion 7-1 up. A little bit of Tigers fight back continued with fine wind for Stephen Simpson and Johnny Eccles, before man of the match Rab Butler won his second of the night to secure the win for the Legion. Score at this stage 8-3. Wins for Tom McGurk and John Fulton have the Tigers hope of a losing bonus point bringing the score to 8-5 but that man again Rab Butler won the last, his third of the night, to leave the score 9-5 to the legion.
A great night, a great performance from the Legion and especially that hallion Butler! He was already in great form given Man Utd’s win on Sunday, tonight’s hat trick might just put him on the beer again for another few days!!
Times Bar Scorpions travelled down to Whitehead Glasgow Rangers Club to face the Spartans hoping for a win to keep their title challenge on track. They did just that, comfortably winning both sessions 5-2 for a 10-4 victory.
Lee McIlreavy set the tone breaking and dishing against Robert Hawkins followed by wins for David Blair, Paul Kerr and Stephen Johnston (another break and dish) as Scorpions raced into a 4-0 lead. Thomas Fleming and Kenny English steadied the ship for the hosts but Paul Kerr won the last frame in the first session for the visitors. David Blair took out a reverse dish against the unfortunate Billy Pawson who only got one shot (break shot) in his two racks played. Spartans won two more frames courtesy of the experienced yet fortunate Alan Johnston and Robert Hawkins, but wins by Darren Whiteside, Paul Kerr, Aaron Leslie and Stephen Johnston with another break n dish kept Scorpions top of the League table on frame difference from Andy Quinn's Q.Club Titans.
Titans v Trojans
First up to the table was Aaron Wright for the titans with a great battle against Chris Hobson which some would say was tighter than a star table's pockets which seen Aaron first on the black only to miss and leave chris a great opportunity to take the frame only to play a great cut on the black and run the white into the corner pocket making the score line 1-0 Titans quickly followed was wins from current top of stats Stuart kelly and northern ireland seniors champion brian crilly /riley patterson and dean mcdonagh making score line 5-0 but it was the crafty pensioner stephen hamilton that would kick the Trojans off with their first frame with a win over Alan Corrigan, 5-1 with the Seniors champion (Crilly) take the next in fine fashion also stuart/riley and dean making score 9-1 but yet again stephen hamilton pulled out the stop sign with a strong performance and win over Aaron wright 9-2 again wins for stuart kelly and riley patterson 11-2 with last frame still to play seen gary fitzsimmons take the last of the night making score line 11-3 Titans.
Galacticos hosted Granges and it was the Ballyclare men who took first blood with Gary Neeson edging out a scrappy frame but Gary Wallace equalised for the home team with a pinpoint clearance.
Gee Crawley put the Galacticos 2-1 up with a nice clearance before Jackie Murdock levelled after another tactical frame.
Jack Carson regained the lead for the Greenisland men, capitalising on a hung black but Uel Wallace equalised again for the Ballyclare men but Gary Wallace gave the home team a 4-3 half time advantage with a patient frame.
Paul Harris put the defending champions two frames ahead with a delectable positional shot on the black before Chris Carson put the Galacticos 6-3 up.
Jack Carson and Wallace guaranteed the three points for the Greenisland men with the next two frames.
Paul Harris furnished us with finish of the week next ripping out a magnificent reverse dish.
The Carsons rounded off an 11-3 win with a couple of crispy finishes.
Railway Blues had a convincing 13-1 over Pink Ladies.
Titans had a massive win of 13-1 v Stadium and reduced their frame difference with Scorpions at the top.
Galacticos had a hard fought victory against legion and are still within touching distance of the top two.
Spartans won 9-5 over Colts.
Grange and Railway Blues had an epic 7-7 draw.
Bay City Bowlers took the points with an 11-3 win over pink ladies.
Tigers had 11-3 win over Trojans
The reigning champions, Railway Blues were up against Whiteabbey Legion.
Blues captain, Ryan Stewart won the first frame after Andy Arbuthnot left his last ball in the jaws. Rab Butler and Darren O'Neil won the next
two for the legion. Robert Craig and Ryan Stewart took the next two for the Blues giving them a slender lead at half time. Second half was also close with the legion winning it 4/3
to the legion to take it to a decider. Captain, Mark Porter eventually won it for the legion to secure safe passage for his team into the next round. This was a great advertisement for the fun and competitive league that we have.
Legion will play Grange Bar, who defeated Greenisland Colts 8-4.
Scorpions hosted Stadium in the prelims of the Acorn Blinds Knock Out Cup. Brian Elwood potted a great doubled black to give Stadium the lead. The Times Bar Scorpions reeled of five frames on the trot before Lewis Neill had a great reverse dish to keep the Stadium in the match. 5-2 at the interval. Scorpions came out with all guns blazing as Stephen Johnston secured made it 6 and Darren Whiteside had a well taken break and dish to put the Times Bar Scorpions on the hill. Stephen Johnston secured safe passage to the next round with his second hat trick in two days. Final score Times Bar Scorpions 8 Stadium 2.
Scorpions will play Bay City Bowlers next week after an 8-2 victory over Pink Ladies.
Q Club Larne won 8-3 at Trojans and will face Greenisland Galacticos who defeated Times Tigers 8-2.
Quarter Finals:
Times Bar Scorpions progressed with a convincing victory at Bowling Club of 8-2 to reach the semis.
Scorpions meet Grange, who came from behind and won a play off frame 8-7 over Legion.
Q Club Larne beat Galacticos by 8-7 in a playoff frame and will meet their stablemates Titans. They disposed of Spartans in rapid fashion.
Semi Finals
Q Club vs Titans
Scorpions vs Granges
Colts had chances in the opening couple of frames however Davy Blair put the visitors 0-1 up. Colt’s John McClean was on a reverse dish to level the match at 1-1 taking out all seven reds only to see the final black hang in the jaws of the pocket and let his opponent in. The Scorpions’ Darren Haddock rose to the challenge and potted all seven yellows and a tap in black that was over the corner pocket.
L McIlreavy and P Kerr extended the lead before Colt’s A Watters pulled one back to 1-4. Scorpions won the last two frames of the first half giving them a 1-6 lead at the break. Once again missed chances from the Colts in the next two frames saw the Scorpions increase their lead 1-8 to secure all three points,
J McClean got the Colt’s Second frame 2/8 beating Scorpions Paul Kerr. The eleventh frame went to Darren Haddock, his third of the evening. Joe Patton got the Colts third frame of the night. Scorpions won the last two frames of the evening to complete a convincing 3-11 victory.
Best on the night were D Haddock & D Blair both with hat tricks of wins. Times Bar Scorpions remain top of the table.
The
new world masters champion, Rhys McLaughlin, faced Aaron Rolston. It was
Rolston who kept his cool and took the first frame of the night for the
visitors. Brian Crilly showed his class and levelled up for the Titans. Riley
Patterson and Dean McDonagh added to the home side’s scores. Aaron Rolston stopped the rot with a clinical
break and dish in the sixth frame giving hope of getting some momentum back for
the champions. Stuart Kelly, Brian Crilly and Ryan McKillopp took the score to
7-2. Ryan Marcus took the next frame with a great finish and a superb long red.
Crilly and Harris had a great tactical battle in the 11th frame for Crilly to
pull out the finish of the year to take the match and frame 8-3. Kelly, with a
clinical break and dish, saw the match reach 9-3 before Ryan Marcus and Chris
Carson took the last two frames.
Players of the night: Crilly 3/3 Kelly 2/2. This home victory moves Titans to second place in the league table.
Times Tigers vs Stadium
The
Tigers welcomed league new boys, Stadium to the Times Bar. Lewis Neill got the
visitors off to the perfect start with a win over Stephen McWhirter, but wins
for Tigers’ Johnny Eccles, Scotty Pettigrew and Kye Robinson put the hosts 3-1
up. The Stadium responded with wins for Blain Jordan, Willy McCullough and John
English to leave the score 4-3 at halftime.
The
second half started just like the first! Lewis Neill got his second victory
over McWhirter and Kye Robinson got his second win of the night for the Tigers.
Score at this stage 5-4 to the Stadium. Captain for the evening John English
then hit his second win to extend the Stadium lead before Scotty Pettigrew once
more beat Bryan Joseph to reduce the deficit, and leave the Stadium winning 6-5
with 3 frames to go. Tom McGurk edged a win to get the sides level. Both sides
hoping for a win or at least a draw at this stage but knowing at least a bonus
point was secure! Frame 13 saw 2 unbeaten players on the night go head to head,
with Kye Robinson and John English meeting, both having won 2 out of 2. A great finish from John put the Stadium on
the hill. Last frame between Scotty Pettigrew and Kyle Robertson was an edgy
affair with both players having chances on the black. Ultimately Kyle held his
nerve and came out on top to secure the win for Stadium moving them into the
top half of the table. Final Score Tigers 6 Stadium 8
Players
of note, John English with 3/3, Lewis Neill with 2/2 for the Stadium.
Trojans vs Railway Blues
The
Trojans welcomed the Railway Blues to Whitehead with both teams looking for
their first win of the season with the Trojans drawing their first 2 league
games and Blues losing their first two games. The Blues got off to great start
with Ryan Stewart winning the first of the night. The next frame was won
by Trojans’ Stephen Hamilton with a great 8 ball clearance and frame 3 was also
won by the Trojans Gordan McKinty. Railway Blues then kick into gear and took
the next 3 frames via Josh McIlroy, Matthew Hagan and Rab Brown. Last frame of
the first half was won by Matt Thompson of the Trojans to make it 3- 4 to Blues
at half time.
The second half started with the Blues taking the first two frames (Ryan Stewart, Wes Smith) to take a commanding lead 3 - 6 but the Trojans were not prepared to lay down and won next two frames (Stephen Hamilton, Maroof Balogun). The 12 frame was a very close game with Blues Robert Craig winning it for the Blues taking them one frame away from their first win of the season. Game 13 was one of the quickest games of the night with Rab Brown put the black ball into the middle pocket far too early and losing the match. So the Trojans need to win the last frame for another draw and the Blues for their first win of the season. After some great pool by both players (Trojans’ Gordon McKinty and Blues Gareth Curlett) Gordon took out a great finish to win and give the Trojans another draw. Top players for Trojans Stephen Hamilton 2/2 and Gordan McKinty 2/2. Top player for Blues Ryan Stewart 2/2.
In other matches, where home team captains chose not to send in reports...
The Pink Ladies remain at the foot of the table after a 1-13 tanking from Q Club Larne.
Grange continue their rise up the table with a 9-5 victory of a decent Spartans team.