Bowling News - August 2024
The ILB Championship Week finished in early August. In the men's senior trips semi-final Paul Crowe, Zach Martin and Michael Keegan of Bray lost to Christy Kelly, Ollie O’Brien and Paul Doyle of CYM. The latter went on to win the trophy. In the men's senior fours semi-final Bray's Walter Doyle, Mark Hughes, Niall Shelley and Peter Gough lost an exciting game by a single shot to Greg Murphy, Derek Brown, Derek McCarthy and Frank McCarthy of CYM. Dropping two fours did not help the Seasiders.
In the ladies junior pairs semi-final Terri McKeon and Bernie Tracey of Bray beat Rita McIntyre and Marian Fagan of Skerries with an amazing comeback after being 18-5 down. However they lost the final to Deirdre Kinsella and Nuala Fitzpatrick of Sportslink in a close match.
The all-Bray men's junior singles semi-final resulted in John McGrath progressing to the final at the expense of Liam Collins. In the final John was narrowly beaten by Pat Linnane of North Kildare.
In the ladies junior singles semi-final Bray's Patricia Fitzgerald beat Hilda Huddleston of North Kildare. Patricia went on to win the final when she beat Lorna fitzgerald of DLGBC (a previous winner). It was the first time since the competition's foundation in 1977 that the trophy had come to Bray.
Ex-Bray members, John Cheevers and Mark Byrne, were part of the team that won the Junior Fours (Mecredy) Cup for Greystones.
Back to club matters and Gabriel Cahill was heard to complain about the duration of his four-bowl pairs (18-ends) club championship match. Colm Heaslip was passing the ground around three in the afternoon and saw the game getting underway. He later returned during the evening and was amazed to see the same bowlers still slogging it out four hours later. Gabriel and his partner, Philip Bredin, eventually lost!
Two Bray ladies made the Junior Inter-Association tournament in Ward Park, Bangor, Co. Down. They were Theresa Martin and our new junior ILB singles champion, Patrica Fitzpatrick. Sporting their new gear the ILB team played the NIPGL to a nail biting finish on the Friday with a share of the overall score. The next day they were beaten by a very experienced Parks team who were the eventual winners.
In spite of some very noisy Bray supporters at the Shott Cup Final in Blackrock, it was the grass experts from Crumlin that won the day.
Billy Kane left us to join his wife, Jean, in the next world. He was an accomplished bowler at Irish Glass Bottles, Bray and Dun Laoghaire bowling clubs. Always ready to help novices, he was proud of his role in coaching one of Dun Laoghaire's finest, Anto Gray. Before bowling Billy won many trophies as a midfielder with Dublin football clubs, St Joseph's, TEK United and Dunleary Celtic. With the latter he won the FAI Junior Cup.
PJ Treacey, husband of Bray BC's Chrissie Sheppard, also passed away in August. Many years ago, he, together with Des O'Toole and Mick Kelly, dug and planted the grass all around Bray's (grass) green.
Ex-member Pat Cronin reminisced about his bowling days with the club. Bray's senior bowlers were quite reserved on the green, preferring to let their bowls do the talking for them. He said the place only got lively when a noisy Northern team came south for an IBA Cup match. Playing with a senior team one day, Pat began to loudly encourage his own side. Roddy O'Leary told him to be quiet and mind his own rink. Not one to take things lying down, Pat replied that he might just throw Roddy over the nearby hedge! But after the match they were friends again.
Patrick Brosnan, Bray BC.
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