Disappointing result for Seniors

Ballymena Seniors (63) v Ulster Transport (75)

On rink 1 Jonathan Millar, James Gaston, Mark Torrington and Sammy Allen took on B Thompson. The Ballymena men on the whole outplayed their opponents and on the majority of the ends they lay shot(s), however time and time again with a mixture of skill and good fortune the Ulster Transport skip changed the head in favour of the home rink to eventually claim victory by 20 shots to 17.

Steven Shields, Graham Wilson, Andrew Morrison and Nigel Robinson played W Johnston on rink 2 and there was never much in the match, but scores of 4,1 and 3 between the eighteenth and twentieth ends saw the Ballymena men home by 22 shots to 12.

Scores were level at 5-5 after 6 ends on rink 3 where Steven Falls, JR Nicholl, Andrew Kyle and Steven Coleman took on D J Dilworth. The whole complexion of the game changed on the next three ends when the home rink collected a counts of 6,3 and 3 to lead by 12 shots. The Braid foursome never got going after this and ended up on the wrong side of a 28-9 score line.

David Torrington, Andrew Bonnar, Andrew Duncan and Jim Baker were involved in a low scoring game against S McKinley on rink 4. After 10 ends the Ballymena men lead by 6 shots to 5 and ten ends later the visitors still held a one shot lead, however the home rink scored a single shot on the final end to tie the scores at 15-15.

Seniors Claim Stunning Cup Victory

Ballymena Seniors 74 v Ulster Transport 73

On Thursday night Ballymena Seniors returned back to Ulster Transport in the NIPGL Senior Cup. With two thirds of the game played Ballymena trailed by over 20 shots and at about 10.00 o’clock in the evening and with 3 rinks finished Ulster Transport held a 9 shot lead. Andrew Kyle’s rink however still had 3 ends to play and in an amazing finish the Ballymena men claimed an unlikely victory when Kyle’s rink won the last 3 ends to set up a quarter final tie against Belmont.

David Duncan, James Gaston, Jonathan Millar and Sammy Allen made a poor start against D J Dilworth on rink 2. A count of 7 shots on the third end saw the home rink lead by 10 shots and they continued to find the going tough trailing by 17 shots after 16 ends. To their credit the Braid foursome never gave up and won 4 of the remaining 5 ends to go down by 26 shots to 12.

On rink 4 JR Nicholl, Steven Falls, Jimmy Hodges and Steven Coleman trailed by 2 shots against B Johnston after 10 ends, but scores of 5 and 2 over the next two ends brought them back in to the game. Ulster Transport then scored 5 singles to level the game, but the Ballymena men put in a big finish to win by 24 shots to 16.

Steven Shields, Graham Wilson, Andrew Morrison and Nigel Robinson made a great start against S McKinley on rink 5 and raced in to a 9 shot lead after 6 ends. The home rink fought back over the remainder of the game and by the end they had got within 2 shots of the visitors with the Ballymena rink recording a 16-14 victory.

The game of the night took place on rink 3 where David Torrington, Andrew Bonnar, Andrew Duncan and Andrew Kyle took on Brendan Thompson. The Braid men were finding the going tough and after 15 ends it was the home rink who lead by 16 shots to 8. Three ends later the score was 17-12 and with all the other rinks finished the Seniors trailed overall by 9 shots. The next end saw the visitors score 3 shots to reduce the deficit to 6. The penultimate end did not build well for the Ballymena men and Andrew Duncan was forced to drive and kill the jack. The visitors lay well on the replayed end and when Andrew Kyle played an excellent bowl to take out the closest opposition bowl the Braid rink lay 6 shots to tie the overall score. The final end was a nervy affair, but it was the Ballymena men who claimed a single to claim victory.

Maximum for Seniors

Ballymena Seniors (73) v Falls (61)

Ballymena Seniors finished the week on a very positive note when they travelled to Falls in the NIPGL Senior Division 1 on Saturday and claimed all of the points on offer.

On rink 1 Jonathan Millar, Graham Wilson, Andrew Morrison and Nigel Robinson were drawn against M Merritt and for most of the game the visitors were behind but 7 shots scored between the 15th and 17th ends saw them take the lead for the first time. The Ballymena men still lead by a shot going in to the last end and it was up to the Ballymena skip to draw the winning bowl to claim a hard fought 18-16 victory.

David Torrington, Andrew Bonnar, Andrew Duncan and Jim Baker took on S Elliman on rink 2. The Ballymena rink lead right from the start of the game and scores of 3 and 5 on the 12th and 13th ends gave them an 8 shot cushion which they would carry for the remainder of the game to leave the final score at 22-14.

JR Nicholl, Steven Falls, Andrew Kyle and Steven Coleman were involved in a close tussle with P McGarrity on rink 3 and after 20 ends the Braid rink held a 2 shot lead. The final end was a loose end with the Falls rink lying game, but Coleman ditched the jack to leave the home team with only a single shot as the visitors claimed victory by 16 shots to 15.

James Gaston, Jimmy Hodges, Mark Torrington and Sammy Allen made a good start against P McEwan to lead by 8 shots to 2 after 5 ends but the Falls rink gradually came back in to the game and with only one end remaining the scores were tied at 16-16. When the Ballymena skip went to play his last bowl there were several shots against him however with the help of a fortunate connection with another bowl he claimed shot to win the game by 17 shots to 16.

Next Saturday Ballymena Seniors entertain Blackrock @ 1.00pm in the Irish Cup.

Away Day Woes For Senior Park

Ballymena Senior Park (56) v Shorts (95)

Ballymena Senior Park travelled to Shorts in the NIPGL Senior Division 2 last Saturday however they found the going tough and returned home empty handed.

On rink 1 Keith Burnett, Neal Garrett, Robert McCready and John Elliott lost six singles over the first 6 ends but four ends later the scores were tied at 6-6. The visitors won 5 of the next 6 ends to take a 2 shot lead, however with the help of three counts of 3 shots over the closing ends it was the home rink who claimed victory by 19 shots to 15.

Nigel McFadden, Derek Greer, John Millar and Arnold Kenny made a poor start against B Livingston on rink 2 and after 7 ends they trailed by 12 shots to 0. The visitors did come back in to the game over the remaining ends, but they could never recover from the bad start going down by 26 shots to 13.

The Shorts rink skipped by J McCreight were always ahead of the Ballymena rink of Robert Mark, John McAnally, George Beattie and Alex Wilson on rink 3. The visitors only trailed by a shot after 9 ends, but the home rink finished the stronger to claim victory by 21 shots to 14.

Andy Hill, Rowly Woods, Gary Shaw and Tommy Hill were always on the back foot against A Gray on rink 4 when the visitors trailed by 9 shots after only 3 ends. The margin was 12 shots after 11 ends and although the Ballymena rallied over the next few ends to cut the deficit to 7 shots it was the Shorts rink who scored heavily over the remaining ends to run out victors by 29 shots to 14.

Next week Ballymena Senior Park have a home game against Forthriver

Ladies back to Winning Ways To Go Top.

Ballymena Ladies (93) v Ballymoney (52)

Ballymena ladies got back to winning ways last week in the PTWBA Senior League when they travelled to Ballymoney and inflicted a heavy defeat on their local rivals and claim top spot in the league.

Jennie McCready, Marie Houston, Iris Millar and Barbara Cameron were in dominant form against B Logue on rink 1. The home rink could only score five singles and two ‘2’s and were no match for the Ballymena ladies who went on to record a very comfortable 22-9 victory.

The scores were level at 5-5 after 8 ends on rink 2 where Linda McCullough, Barbara Burnett, Erin Smith and Sarah Jane Coleman took on M Robinson. The game changed in favour of the Braid ladies over the next 5 ends when they scored 15 shots without reply and in the end they ran out emphatic winners by 27 shots to 11.

A count of 5 shots on the eleventh end to the visitors changed the whole complexion of the game on rink 3. Up until this point Megan Wilson, Gladys Power, Dorothy McKee and Sile Garvey were involved in a close tussle with M Shaw with scores tied at 11-11 but the home rink never really recovered from the loss of these 5 shots with the Ballymena ladies finishing 21 shots to 18 ahead.

Jean Rainey, Kathleen Hoey, Pat Allen and Jennifer Dowds found themselves 8-0 down after only 3 ends against M Johnston, but successive counts of 4 shots over the next 2 ends saw the visitors draw level. The rest of the game however belonged to the visiting rink who won the majority of the remaining ends to claim victory by 23 shots to 14.

Next week the ladies are at home to Londonderry.

Heavy Defeat for Ladies ‘B’

Ballymena Ladies ‘B’ (18) v Ballycastle (46)

Ballymena Ladies ‘B’ travelled to Ballycastle last week, however they came home empty handed as the Ballycastle team recorded a comfortable victory.

On rink 3 Lorraine Harris, Mabel Magee and Jackie Hogg did not make the best of starts against M McGill and they found themselves trailing by 11-0 after 6 ends. The Ballycastle ladies continued to pile on the pressure and the visitors could only score on 4 of the 18 ends as the home rink claimed victory by 26 shots to 6.

Eileen Courtney, Manuel Shields and Gwen McAuley put up a good fight against K McGill on rink 2 and after 12 ends there was only one shot separating the rinks, however in a strong finish it was the Ballycastle ladies who went on to record a 20-12 victory.

Next week Ballymena Ladies ‘B’ are back in action next week when they entertain Kilrea.

Ballymena Midweek Triples played two matches recently. Both were very close with Ballymena victorious at Ahoghill by 3 shots but losing out at home to Old Bleach by 2 shots.

Ballymena Triples (53) v Ahoghill (50)

On rink 1 Eddie Leckey, Barbara Burnett and Jimmy Larkin made a great start against D McNeill and with the help of a count of 6 shots on the 7th end they lead by 13 shots to 2. Unfortunately for the Braid triple they could only win two more ends as the Ahoghill triple came back to win on the last end by 17 shots to 16.

Sally Carson, John Houston and Paul Davison took on J Marks on rink 2. Again the Ballymena triple started well to lead by 7 shots after 10 ends. The Ahoghill triple finished the stronger and a single scored on the final end brought the match level at 17-17

Keith Burnett, Mabel Magee and Alan McAuley were involved in a high scoring game against J Harris on rink 3. Scores were level at 11-11 after 10 ends, but a count of 5 shots on the next end was enough to give the Ballymena triple the edge as they went on to win by 20 shots to 16.

Ballymena Veterans 1 (54) v Ulster Transport (33)

Ballymena Vets 1 entertained Ulster Transport last week and they put in an excellent performance collecting all the points on offer.

On rink 3 Eddie Leckey, Wilfie Stewart, Dessie Shaw and John Millar were involved in a close game against N Neilly. After 12 ends the scores were level at 14-14 but 9 shots over the next 4 ends in favour of the home rink saw the Ballymena men go on to record a 23-20 victory.

Jimmy Shields, Alan O’Loan, Sammy Watson and Davy Balmer were in great form against B Simpson on rink 4. The match was all but over as a contest after only 6 ends with the Ballymena men holding a 15-3 lead. The home rink continued to rack up the shots during the remainder of the game to win by 31 shots to 13.

Ballymena Veterans 2 (27) v Forthriver (39)

Last Monday Ballymena Vets 2 travelled to Forthriver however it was not a good afternoon for the Braid men with Forthriver claiming maximum points.

On rink 1 Gary Shaw, Derek Greer, Peter Millar and Arnold Kenny took on R McKitterick. The first 11 ends were nip and tuck with the visitors holding a 1 shot lead but the game changed on the 12th and 14th ends when the home rink scored two counts of 5 shots on their way to a 20-13 victory.

On rink 2 Liam Lyness, Sammy Small, Robert McCready and Harold Smyth were up against D Smyth. This game was similar to that on rink 1 where after 11 ends the visitors held a 1 shot lead however the home rink won five of the remaining ends to record a 19-14 victory.

Ballymena Veterans 3 (28) v Ulster Transport (48)

Ballymena Vets 3 travelled to Ulster Transport last week and although both teams recorded a win, it was Ulster Transport who claimed the overall victory.

Jimmy Alexander, Bill Wood, Tommy Crooks and Don McKee found the going tough against S McClure on rink 1. The scores were level at 1-1 after 2 ends but it was all one way traffic after this with the home rink claiming an emphatic victory by 35 shots to 5.

There was little to choose between the players on rink 2 where Joe Kyle, Keith Burnett, Robert Mark and Billy Scullion played D Sterritt. With only 3 ends remaining the visitors held a slender one shot lead and scores of 1,6 and 2 ensured that the visitors did not go home empty handed with the final score reading 23-13 in favour of the Ballymena men.

Ballymena Veterans 4 (26) v Forthriver 2 (37)

Forthriver were the visitors to the Old Ballymoney Road green to play Ballymena Vets 4. Each team recorded a win but Forthriver claimed the overall victory.

On rink 4 Sammy Rainey, Jimmy Maybin, Joe McKernan and Jim Cameron made a good start against J Edgeworth but by the eighth end the scores were level at 7-7. The Ballymena men won all but one of the remaining ends to record a comfortable victory by 17 shots to 8.

Tommy Glass, Clifford Dennison, Roy Kernohan and Jackie Barr did not have the best of days against N Adams on rink 5. The Braid rink held a one shot lead after 6 ends, but the Forthriver rink won the next 6 ends to open up a 16 shot lead and they went on to claim victory by 29 shots to 9.

Next week Ballymena Vets 1 travel to Whitehead, Ballymena Vets 2 entertain Curran, Ballymena Vets 3 have a home tie against Whitehead 2 and Ballymena Vets 4 are away at Curan2.

NIPGL Under 25 Trial Match

Congratulations to the following Ballymena players who have been selected to play in the NIPGL Under 25 trial to be held on Thursday 17th June 2010 at Ulster Transport at 6.00 pm – Andrew Bonnar, Alistair Coleman, Stephen Coleman, Andrew Duncan, David Duncan, James Gaston, Steven Shields, David Torrington, Mark Torrington, Christopher Wilson and Michael Wilson

NIPGL Championships

The 4th round of the NIPGL Triples will take place on Tuesday 15th June (Tonight). David Duncan, Jonathan Millar and Andrew Duncan have a home tie against D J Wilson (Dunbarton) and J R Nicholl, Andrew Kyle and Steven Coleman travel to Ulster Transport to play B Thompson.

The NIPGL Fours have reached the quarter final stages. Ballymena have only one remaining rink left in the competition with Steven Falls, Nigel Robinson, Andrew Kyle and Jim Baker travelling to Salisbury to play J Warnock on Friday, June 18.