News 2021

L.O.B.C. v Royal British Legion - 4th September 2021

The outdoor bowls season came to an end with the final competition of the summer between Lerwick Outdoor Bowling Club (LOBC) and the Royal British Legion (RBL) played in perfect weather conditions. Twenty eight bowlers entered and LOBC committee drew the teams into 6 triples and 2 pairs. The games were played over 5 rinks and at the end of play the total shot count was 101 for RBL and only 77 for LOBC.

The RBL team of Willie Coutts (skip), Rhona Goudie and Nui Coutts had a good win over Alan Smith (skip), Bob Brandie and Gordon Stevenson beating them 20 -10 while Findlay Jack (skip) and Margaret Johnson also competing for RBL beat Brian Freeman and John Anderson by a single shot to win 19 - 18.

Wins for LOBC came from Caroline Smith (skip), Anne Robertson and Eric Muir who beat Andy Walterson (skip), Robert Scougal and Ian Scott 18 - 9 and also from Colin Gillespie (skip), Mike Bailey and Anne Barron with their win over Alex Elphinstone (skip), Ronnie Gair and Derek Baines on the last end picking up 2 shots to win by 15 shots to 14.

However, the game with the largest shot difference determined the overall outcome of the competition with John Jarmson (skip), Jean Jarmson and Ann Napier playing for RBL all on top form beating Chris Simmons (skip), Davie Blanche and Norman Manson in a high scoring game to win 39 - 16.

Ian Scott accepted the trophy on behalf of RBL from LOBC vice president Caroline Smith.

Champion of Champions - 28th August 2021

The winners of Lerwick Outdoor Bowling Club premier knowckout competitions are eligible to compete for the Champion of Champions trophy.

This year Wasana Coutts, Tam Terris. Chris Simmons, Willie Coutts and Eric Muir were all singles champions. However, Eric Muir was unable to compete as off island therefore the four remaining bowlers played each other over six ends and the overall winner would be the bowler with the highest shot count.

In the first round, Terris beat Wasana Coutts 10-1 and Willie Coutts beat Simmons 7-6.

In the second round Simmons beat Wanana Coutts 6-3 and Willie Coutts beat Terris 6-1.

Going into the final round the total scores were, Willie Coutts 13, Simmons 12, Terris 11, and Wasana Coutts 4 which meant an exciting finish to this competition with only 2 shots separating the top three.

Wasana Coutts had a close win over Willie Coutts 5-4 but Terris beat Chris Simmons by four shots 6-2 to draw level with Willie Coutts on a total of 17 shots.

This meant shots against would determine the winner and Terris only had 9 shots against to Coutts' twelve and was presented with the trophy.

Ladies and Gents League Finals - 22nd August 2021

Willie Coutts beat Chris Simmons in a very close final of the Gents League. This was played over three sets of ten ends and in the first set Coutts and Simmons both won 5 ends each but Coutts had the higher shot count to win 8-6.

In the second set Coutts won the first 4 ends without reply to race into a 7 shot lead but then lost the next 5 ends and was 3 shots adrift going into the final end. However he then drew 3 shots closer to the jack and the second set ended in a 10-10 draw.

This meant Coutts had 1.5 points and Simmons 0.5 points therefore they had to play the third deciding set. After 4 ends both players were even on 4 shots and both picked up singles on the next 2 ends to be all square again.

Simmons added 3 shots over the following two ends to lead 8-5 with only two ends remaining. Simmons needed to win this set to match the 1.5 points Coutts had accumulated and to take the final into an extra end. However on the 9th end Coutts, with the highest shot count of the afternoon, drew all 4 of his bowls closer to the jack to go ahead 9-8 and then picked up a single on the last end to win this tightly contested final 10-8 and was presented with the trophy by Caroline Smith.

In the Ladies League competition, Wasana Coutts came out top of the league winning all her matches making it a husband and wife double and was presented with the trophy by Caroline Smith

Last Ditch Trophy - 21st August 2021

Twelve bowlers entered the competition for the Last Ditch trophy, open to Lerwick Outdoor Bowling Club members who have not won or been runner up in any competition during the season. Players were split into two sections with the winner of each group going through to the final.

Ewen MacRitchie's reached the final by beating George Young 5-2, Derek Baines 4-2, Findlay Jack 4-2 and Robert Scougal 7-1 only losing to Ann Napier 2-6 with all games over 5 ends.

The other finalist, Colin Gillespie, a new Lerwick Outdoor Bowling Club member, also only lost one game in the group stage when Theresa Terris beat him 5-3. In the other games Gillespie had wins over Sandy Stewart 8-2, Jean Jarmson 4-3, John Jarmson 6-5 and Ronnie Gair 11-2.

In a tightly contested final which was played over 6 ends MacRitchie was leading by a single shot going into the final end when Gillespie delivered a bowl that just beat MacRitchie's to draw level which meant an extra end was played. Gillespie also won this end to win his first trophy with the club.

Competition Finals - 14 & 15th August 2021

The Gents Championship was won today by Chris Simmons, who beat Alex 21-9. Tam Terris was victorious in the Veterans.

Four more Premier Competition finals took place this weekend although the Greens was won by Chris Simmons when Alan Smith withdrew before the match started.

In the Pairs, Andy Walterson and Ian Scott defeated Norrie Wiseman and Gibbie Pottinger in a game of very high quality.

The Handicap Trophy saw Eric Muir defeat Alex Elphinstone to win his first major competition and the Ladies Championship had Caroline Smith and Wasana Coutts level at 20-20 but in the race to 21 shots, Wassana played an excellent final end to win the trophy.

Sweetie Lowrie - 8th August 2021

A calm, mild but overcast day greeted bowlers who competed for the Sweetie Lowrie trophy in a ladies and gents singles competition played as a knockout with each game over 2 sets of seven ends and, if tied, a playoff over 3 ends to decide the winner.

To get through to the final in the gents competition, Chris Simmons beat Derek Baines in 2 sets and also had a win over Alex Elphinstone after drawing the first set and winning the second by 2 shots. The other finalist, Willie Coutts beat Ewen MacRitchie in 2 sets and also Colin Gillespie in a tight game, winning the first set by a single shot and winning the second set 9-5. In the final, Simmons lost the first two ends to go 3 shots behind Coutts but then won the remaining 5 ends to win the first set 6-3. In the second set Simmons won 6 of the 7 ends to take the set and receive the trophy.

In the ladies competition, finalist Wasana Coutts beat Theresa Terris in the first semi-final in two straight sets to go through to the final to meet Anne Robertson who also beat her opponent in the other semi, Ann Napier, in two sets. In the final, Coutts started strongly in the first set winning the first 2 ends on long jacks but Robertson delivered a shorter jack on a re throw jack in the next end and won the remaining ends to take the first set. The second set was much closer with Robertson only winning by 1 shot 5-4 to win the trophy.

The Moira Smith Ladies Pairs and Jim Laurenson Trophy Mens Pairs - 25th July 2021

In perfect weather conditions, twenty bowlers competed for the Laurenson Memorial trophy, a one day knockout pairs competition for men with each game played over 10 ends.

Following 4 rounds of play Chris Simmons (skip) and Ian Scott emerged as winners. Their route to the final saw them beating Ewen MacRitchie and Bob Brandie in a very close semi final to come from behind after the 4th end to win by 9 shots to 7. The other semi final was between Donald Campbell (skip) and Alex Elphinstone playing Norrie Wiseman (skip) and Graham Wiseman which resulted in a clear win for Campbell's pairing 21 -6. In the final Simmons' side were behind by 4 shots after only 2 ends but then won 7 of the following 8 ends to win this competitve game by 10 shots to 5.

Also competing on the green at the same time the women played for the Moira Smith Memorial trophy, similarly a pairs format over 10 ends.

In the first semi final Margaret Johnson (skip) and Theresa Terris lost narrowly 7 - 9 to Caroline Smith (skip) and Anne Barron. The other semi final, likewise very close with Anne Robertson (skip) and Rosie Jamieson only beating Nui Coutts and Rhona Goudie by 1 shot to win 9 -8. In the final both Smith and Robertson teams were equal on 4 shots after 6 ends but in this tightly contested game the lead changed hands several times and Smith's side were leading by 1 shot going into the penultimate end. However, they dropped a single on this 9th end to bring both teams level on 7 shots and another single on the final end resulted in an 8 - 7 win for Robertson and Jamieson.

George Robertson Memorial Trophy - 17th July 2021

Twenty four bowlers competed for the George Robertson memorial trophy, a rinks competition with 4 players in each team and where each player only delivers 2 bowls. The committee select the skips and then draw leads, seconds and thirds from a hat. The six teams were split into 2 groups, red and black with all the teams playing three games receiving 2 points for a win and 1 for a draw.

The first round of games over 7 ends resulted in a win for Robert Scougal, Ian Scott, Alex Elphinstone and Chris Simmons (skip) over George Younger, Neal Redfern, Rose Jamieson and Ewen MacRitchie (skip) by 9 shots to 5, Bob Brandie, Margaret Johnson, Billy Hay and Alan Smith (skip) also won 6 - 5 against Rhona Goudie, Mike Bailey, Eric Muir and Willie Coutts (skip) while Graham Wiseman, Derek Baines, Norrie Wiseman and Andy Walterson (skip) beat Shauna Terris, Ronnie Gair, Graham Jamieson and Tam Terris (skip) 19 - 6.

In the second round of games also over 7 ends Simmons' side had a single shot win over Terris', and Smith's team beat MacRitchie's 12 - 5 and Coutts' beat Walterson's team 12 - 6.

Going into the final round of games only Simmons' and Smith's teams were on maximum 4 points. Simmons lost his game against Coutts by 4 shots to 7 and Walterson beat MacRitchie 19 - 6.

However the winners of the afternoon were Smith's team which received the 2 points to be the only team with a maximum 6 points when Terris's side had to concede with an injured player during play.

Jarmson Two Bowl Mixed Pairs - 10th July 2021

Rosie Jamieson and Ian Scott (skip) were on top form to win the Jarmson two bowl mixed pairs trophy.

Eight couples entered this competition which was played in ideal weather conditions. The pairings were drawn into 2 sections with 4 teams each playing the others in their section and the winning team of both sections going through to the final. Each game was over 10 ends with each player only delivering 2 bowls per end so consistency and accuracy were required by the players.

In the first section, Chris Simmons and Caroline Smith (skip) played excellent bowls to reach the final by beating Catherine Robertson and Donald Campbell (skip) 13 shots to 7 and then beat Andy Walterson and Rhona Goudie 11 - 5, although in this match they were behind by 2 shots at the halfway stage but went on to win the next 5 ends in a row to finish 6 shots ahead, and they also had a good win over Alex Elphinstone (skip) and Anne Robertson by 10 - 4.

In the other section, winners Scott and Jamieson had a close game against Willie Coutts (skip) and Nuy Coutts losing the first 3 ends to go 4 shots behind but they fought their way back into the match to win by a single shot 8 -7. In their second game they dropped a single on the first end but only lost another 2 ends to run out winners by 11 shots to 4 against Ewen MacRitchie (skip) and Margaret Johnson. In the final game of their section they again dropped a shot in the first end but by the 9th end they were all square with Billy Hay (skip) and Ann Napier on 7 shots. However, they won the final end by 3 shots to win the game 10 - 7 to go through to the final to meet Simmons and Smith.

In the final, also over 10 ends, Scott and Jamieson won the first 2 ends to take a 4 shot lead and by the half way point were 5 shots ahead. On the 6th and 7th ends both teams picked up a single but on the 8th Jamieson and Scott went ahead by 6 shots with only two ends left to play. However on the 9th end Smith and Simmons put some pressure on their oppenents by delivering 3 bowls out of their 4 closer to the jack to reduce the gap to 3 shots with only 1 end left to play. However, Scott and Jamieson made sure on this final end and scored 2 shots to run out winners by 11 shots to 6 and were presented with the Jarmson mixed pairs trophy by Mrs Jean Jarmson.

Following the presentation, Club President, Ewen MacRitchie thanked John and Jean Jarmson for organising the competition and for the delicious refreshments provided during the afternoon.

Morton Lodge Open Pairs - 4th July 2021

Twenty four bowlers entered the Morton Lodge Open Pairs competetion and were divided into three groups of four pairs in each with the winning pair of each group along with the top losing pair going through to play in the semi finals. Each team played 3 games of two sets of 6 ends with a three end tie break if equal on sets won.

In group 1 Mike Bailey and Anne Barron reached the semi final by beating Margaret Johnson and Blondie Campbell in the first set by 9 shots to 5 and drawing the second set 4 all. They also beat Billy Hay and Gibbie Pottinger in two straight sets and Willie and Nuy Coutts in a tie break after both teams won a set each.

Ian Scott and Alex Elphinstone also reached the semi final by first beating Ronnie Gair and Graham Wiseman in straight sets and then Chris Simmons and Eric Muir in a tie break but lost a close match to Andy Walterson and Rhona Goudie in a tie break.

Caroline Smith and Anne Robertson won their group to go through to the semi finals although they lost their game against Bob Brandie and Rosie Jamieson on a tie break. They beat John and Jean Jarmson on a tie break and also beat Ewen MacRitchie and Allan Smith but this time in straight sets.

Joining these 3 teams in the semi finals were Walterson and Goudie who qualified as best overall runner up on shot difference. Walterson and Goudie then went on to reach the final by beating Smith and Robertson in two sets to meet Bailley and Barron who had a win over Scott and Elphinstone in the other semi final following a tie break set.

To reach the final both teams had played a minimum of 48 ends, if no 3 end tie breaks were added, and the final was over an additional 2 sets increased to 9 ends with an additional 3 end tie break if required. This competition started at 10 am and finished at 6 pm thankfully with the whole day in glorious sunshine.

In a very tight first set of the final, Goudie and Walterson lost it by only 1 shot to Barron and Bailey but in the second set Barron and Bailey delivered consistently closer to the jack and won by 12 shots to 3 to win the Morton Lodge trophy in two straight sets.

Lerwick Outdoor Bowling Club thanks Morton Lodge for sponsoring this competition and to members for providing refreshments during the all day event.

STS Competition - 26th June 2021

Eight triples played today for the STS Trophy, kindly sponsored by Stuart Terris. The game was played over two sets of 8 ends in a Hatnight format.

After the first set of 8 ends, the team of John Jarmson, Ewen Macrichie and Andy Walterson were in the lead with 17 points with Emma Moncrieff, Willie Coutts and Alan Smith on 13 points.

After the second set of 8 ends, John's team increased their points to 28 but the eventual winners of Emma Moncrieff, Willie Coutts and Alan Smith scored 30 for the afternoon making them the winners.

Mundie Mid Summer Cup - 19th June 2021

The Mundie Midsummer Cup was presented to Lerwick Outdoor Bowling Club in 1999 by George and the late Babs Mundie and is played annually on a Saturday close to the summer solstice as an individual fun competition.

This year 20 bowlers entered and were drawn into 10 pairs to play 3 sets of six ends and where each player changes their team position after each end; lead would go on to play skip and skip to play lead. Teams change rink after each set of 6 ends. Delivering four bowls each, the bowl nearest the jack scored 3 points, the second bowl scored 2 points and the third 1 point and at the completion of the 18 ends, the player with the highest overall point score would be the winner.

After the first round of 6 ends, Willie Coutts was ahead with 18 points, Alex Elphinstone in second place with 15 closely followed by Alan Smith on 14.

John Jarmson took the lead following the next 6 ends scoring a massive 20 points to jump to 32 points with Coutts now in second spot on 30 points and Ian Scott jumping to 3rd place with a total of 23 points.

The final round of 6 ends saw Jarmson drop to second place only gaining 6 points to end the competition on 38. Coutts also only scored 6 points in this round to finish joint third with Billy Hay who added 14 points to his score to level with Coutts on 36 points.

However, the outright winner gaining 17 points in the third round to finish on 39 points was Alex Elphinstone who was presented the Mundie Midsummer Cup by the club president Ewen MacRitchie.

L.O.B.C v Morton Lodge - 12th June 2021

Lerwick Outdoor Bowling Club (LOBC) team captained by Caroline Smith had a convincing win over Ian Scott's Morton Lodge side.

30 bowlers entered this competition and were drawn into 5 teams of triples for each side with each game over 16 ends and the overall total shots for each side determining the winner.

In the first game Willie Coutts (skip), Sandy Stewart and Eric Muir (LOBC) had a good win, beating Alan Smith (skip), John Anderson and Graham Wiseman 21-8.

The second game resulted in a loss by the same margin of shots - 13 for the LOBC side of Findlay Jack (skip), Margaret Johnson and Teresa Terris to Gibbie Pottinger (skip), Elma Scott and Norrie Wiseman,10 shots to 23.

The LOBC team of Chris Simmons (skip), Shauna Terris and Billy Hay finished strongly to come from behind to beat Alex Elphinstone (skip), Robert Scougal and Anne Robertson by 16 shots to 9 and LOBC again won the next game with Caroline Smith (skip), Anne Barron and Jim Wood beating Graham Jamieson (skip), Rosie Jamieson and Gordon Stevenson 32-6.

The Morton Lodge team of Ian Scott (skip) George Young and Andy Walterson finished with a good win over Ewen MacRitchie (skip), Bob Brandie and Rhona Goudie beating them by 23 shots to 8 but it was not enough to overturn the previous losses and LOBC ran out winners by 87 shots to 69 to win the trophy.

George Wilsons Mixed Pairs - 5th June 2021

The bowls team of Alex Elphinstone (skip) and Anne Robertson won the George Wilson trophy for mixed pairs.

Twelve pairs entered this popular one day competition and each team played 3 sets of 7 ends moving to different rinks and playing different teams for each set, scoring 2 points for a win and 1 for a draw.

On completion of all the games, Elphinstone and Robertson were the only team to finish with the maximum 6 points to uplift the cup.

Newhill's Quaich - 29th May 2021

Bowlers Blondie Campbell (skip), Alex Elphinstone and Jim Wood won the Newhills Quaich trophy, a two bowl triples competition with each team playing 3 matches over 7 ends scoring 2 points for a win and 1 point for a draw.

Thirty bowlers entered and were drawn into 10 teams. The first round of games saw Bob Brandie (skip), Eric Muir and Billy Hay beat Graham Jamieson (skip), Rosie Jamieson and John Anderson by 8 shots to 7, Caroline Smith (skip), Ian & Elma Scott beat Gibby Pottinger (skip), Gordon Stevenson and Margaret Johnson 6-5, Derek Baines (skip), Andy Walterson and Anne Robertson beat Alan Smith (skip), Sandy Stewart and Robert Scougal 10-1, Blondie Campbell (skip) Jim Wood and Alex Elphinstone beat Willie Coutts (skip), Nuy Coutts and Ronnie Gair 8-7 and Tam Terris (skip), Theresea Terris and Rhona Goudie beat Ewen MacRitchie (skip), Anne Barnes and Bob Hamilton 7-2.

The next round of matches resulted in wins for the teams skipped by Campbell, Baines, Coutts, Brandie and Smith which meant going into the final set of matches only the teams of Campbell, Brandie and Baines were on maximum points.

Brandie then went on to win his final game against Smith by 13 shots to 6 while Baines lost to Campbell 3-9 resulting in only two teams, Campbell and Brandie, finishing on 6 points which meant shot difference would determine the overall winner.

Campbell finished on + 17 to beat Brandie on + 10 to uplift the Newhills Quaich trophy with Brandie second and Baines in third place.

Robbie Watt Shield - 22nd May 2021

Willie Coutts was the outright winner of the Robbie Watt Shield, Lerwick Outdoor Bowling Club's initial competition of the summer season.

There were no club competitions at all last year due to Covid restrictions so it was encouraging to see such an excellent turnout on a showery, chilly Saturday afternoon to compete on a green that has benefitted from considerable maintenance work over the past year.

24 members in total entered and the format of this individual competition has each bowler playing 3 sets of 7 ends in teams of 3 with new teams and positions drawn after each set. The bowler with the highest overall cumulative score wins. Bowlers must play in the position drawn, either lead, second or skip for each set.

Following the first set of 7 ends, Eric Muir, Alex Elphinstone and Blondie Campbell led the scoring with 14 shots but after drawing new positions for the second set and on completion of the 7 ends, Gordon Stevenson took the sole lead with a cumulative total of 18 shots. However, seven players were very close behind on 17 shots, including Muir, Elphinstone and Campbell.

The final set of 7 ends would therefore determine the winner. Following a new draw, the team of Graham Wiseman, Ewen MacRitchie and Coutts scored an exceptional 19 shots for the 7 ends which gave Coutts an overall total of 36 shots well ahead of the cumulative totals of his nearest rivals, MacRitchie and Wiseman, to win the Shield.

Covid-19 rules for playing bowls

Only paid up members will be permitted so that information can be gathered for NHS Track & Trace.

There will be sanitiser points all over provided.

Players will adhere to guidelines laid out by Bowls Scotland.

Lockers can be used subject to maintaining social distancing. No equipment hire will be available.

Physical contact should be avoided where possible (hand shaking etc.) Social distancing should be practiced where possible (more than 2 metres).

There will be limited use of the toilet facilities.

To minimise handling of cash the correct amount should be placed in the cash container. No change can be given.