A fantastic entry of 29 junior bowlers from all over the island entered the Junior Manx Championship at Onchan Bowling Club on Sunday.

There was a good crowd in attendance with numbers approaching 100 at one stage.

Once again there were more girls than boys through to the latter stages, which was fantastic to see, with some great bowls played by all the juniors.

Losing out at the quarter-final stage were Graiagh Smith (Douglas), who lost 8-21 to Madison McMullan (Mooragh Park), while home greener Grace Gawne ended the hopes of Toby Hart (South Ramsey) who was defending the title he won last year with a 21-17 win.

In the other half of the draw Maddy’s sister Shannon McMullan (Mooragh Park) saw off club mate Grayse Blencoe with a 21-5 victory, while another Mooragh Park player, Victoria Johnson, received a bye as her opponent felt unwell.

In the semi-finals Gawne was up against McMullan, with the score 7-5 to Grace after the first 12 ends - both managing to keep their opponent to singles.

From there they each picked up twos, but it was Gawne who prevailed with a 21-15 win, scoring five doubles to take her spot in the final.

In the other semi-final Shannon McMullan made light work of her team-mate Johnson with a 21-9 win.

In the final Grace, with home advantage, made the better start to take a 6-2 lead after five ends.

After 17 ends, and playing extremely well, Grace had built up a big lead at 16-8 to look the strong favourite for the title. But Shannon, with a bit more experience and having won the title in 2019, dug deep to work her way back into the game by winning six consecutive ends on a longer length.

This reduced the deficit to only one chalk at 15-16.

Grace responded just in time, scoring a good two to lead 18-15. Shannon immediately responded to score three consecutive twos over the middle of the green to see the game out and be crowned Junior Manx Champion for the second time with a 21-18 victory.

Credit must also go to Grace for her part in a good final. She will get another couple of chances to win the title, with this the last time that Shannon is eligible to play.

The presentation was made by Isle of Man Crown Green Bowling Association competition committee officer Steve Moore, who thanked all the juniors for taking part, Onchan Bowling Club for providing the refreshments and measurers.

Association president Philip Kelly then presented the prizes, congratulating the juniors on the standard of bowls throughout the day.