Castletown Rifle Club celebrated another successful season at its annual prize presentation dinner which was held at the Garrison recently.

The club's top honour, the Holt Trophy for club champion, was awarded to Nigel Christian who finished the 2025-26 Winter League season with an average score of 96.60, narrowly edging out Richard Arthur on 96.27.

Several trophies found their way into the hands of father-and-daughter duo Neil and Rhian Masson.

Neil collected the Taubman Cup for the best Class D average, the Danger Mouse Trophy for recording the most top scores among Class D shooters, and the Costain Cup after posting an excellent score of 92 in the demanding 90-second shoot.

Rhian enjoyed a memorable season of her own, winning both the Golf Links Rose Bowl, a combined 15 and 25-yard handicap competition, and the Commissioners' Shield.

Among the season's knockout competitions, Robin McFee claimed victory in the Lord Gort competition, the club's traditional pre-season shoulder-to-shoulder scratch event.

His triumph came after surviving a tense semi-final re-gauge, before eventually lifting the trophy. McFee also added the Reverend Fred Trophy to his collection.

One of the season's most memorable moments came in the Toot's Disc Shoot singles final.

It was a classic contest of hare versus tortoise between John Paul Bridson and Steve Gardner. Bridson appeared to be in complete control before missing his second-to-last disc twice, allowing Gardner to steadily close the gap.

Gardner eventually claimed victory by only one hundredth of a second, which was believed to be the closest finish in the competition's history.

The rivalry continued in the semi-final of the pairs event, where Bridson teamed up with Mike McGreal, and Gardner partnered Neil Masson.

With both pairs required to knock down 10 discs, the judges could not separate them and declared a dead heat. A reshoot was ordered, with Gardner and Masson ultimately emerging victorious before going on to secure the doubles title in the final.

Other competition winners included Richard Arthur, who won both the Metropolitan Cup and the W.E. Corrin Trophy, while Phil Corrin lifted the Clarke Trophy.

Steve Gardner collected the Tony Brown OBE Trophy for the best Class C average. The club also thanked Andrew Bell for organising and running the season's competitions.

Arthur also enjoyed success beyond the island this season, finishing third in Class B in the West Kent Rifle League Short Range Championship postal competition.

Looking ahead, Castletown Rifle Club will be running a six-week introduction to target shooting course from next month.

Anyone interested in taking part can obtain further information by contacting [email protected]

JP BRIDSON

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