Club history

125 years of Douglas Bowling Club

A potted history by Ken Williams compiled for the club’s 125th anniversary in 2013

This compilation would have been extremely difficult without the hard work of Doug McFarlane, who squirrelled himself away in the Manx Museum for nearly four years, scratching through old newspapers, trying to piece together the history of the Isle of Man bowls.

So… A special mention has to go to Doug.

Now then... Let the story commence, 1888

One of the most prosperous families in the Douglas area was the Okell family.

Dr Okell is of course synonymous with the local brewery and it would appear that he also had a vision for the game of bowls. He decided that he would create a public house with 2 bowling greens attached. Hence the start of the Bowling Green Hotel and Public House situated in Derby Road, Douglas, came into being in 1888.

It would seem that it was primarily used by the general public and by the customers of the pub.

With the oncoming building of further greens at North Ramsey, Onchan and Finch Hill, Dr Okell and his band of merry men determined that there needed to be a committee established so that some kind of discipline could be maintained and also encourage competition between the rival greens when they became established.

This Committee was headed up by Dr Okell.

Competitions were plentiful, but we are unable to get a clearer picture of the era as no records were kept of events during those early years.

Douglas Bowling Club takes the next step, 1892

This would appear to be the year that the ‘visionaries’ stepped into the arena.

With bowls now becoming a popular sport and, of course, the greens had now been built at North Ramsey, Finch Hill and Onchan, the need arose for the formation of an association so that all four greens could abide by one set of rules.

It looks as though Douglas Bowling Club played a major role in the formation of the Isle of Man Bowling Association.

A meeting was held at the Bowling Green Hotel to determine the Executive Committee. The meeting was presided over by Mr H. Brearley (Vice President of Douglas Bowling Club), two other members of DBC were there representing the Club at this meeting: Mr P. A. Killey and Mr T. H. Handley.

At this meeting, the best information that we can gather is that Mr W.H. Okell became the very first President of the Isle of Man Bowling Association.

(This would also imply that the other clubs were now formed and that members of their various Committees were in attendance at the meeting. Early indications are that Onchan, Finch Hill and North Ramsey were in existence but trying to pin down in which years they opened their greens is proving difficult.)

At this meeting, Mr Okell unveiled the details of a forthcoming Grand Individual merit competition. The winner would receive a handsome silver Championship Cup which would be donated by Mr W. H. Okell and named The Okell Challenge Cup.

The competition for the Okell Challenge Cup would be played on three recognised bowling greens: Douglas, Finch Hill and Onchan. 

With Douglas Bowling Club being the top club during 1892 a team from Douglas went away to represent the Island. They had to agree to play three matches (home and away) against the Midlands, Stockport and Caledonian

The venues were:

• The Red Lion Pub at Withington in the Midlands hosted the Midlands and the Caledonian matches
• Gale Green in Stockport.

The results were as follows:

• Douglas 201, Midlands 222
• Douglas 156, Stockport 239
• Douglas 156, Caledonian 233

It would appear that Douglas didn’t travel too well and they must have been looking forward to getting those teams back on the Island because the return results were as follows:

• Douglas 219, Midlands 175
• Douglas 246, Caledonian 172
• Douglas 235, Stockport 173 

1892 must have been an exciting time for bowls on the island. It was during this year that another well-recognised trophy was presented to the newly formed Isle of Man Bowling Association. This was presented by Mr W A Rayner and the trophy was to be called The Rayner Shield. Originally played as a singles competition for all residents of the Isle of Man, the trophy was always displayed at the Bowling Green Hotel because it was so valuable.

Douglas Bowling Club gets a second green, 1893

1893 saw the completion of the second green at the rear of the Bowling Green Hotel. This was also the year that the Rayner Shield was played for the very first time, on Monday 7th August 1893. The competition lasted all week finishing on Saturday 12th August. The entry fee was one shilling and handicaps were scratch to + 9 this was a singles competition.

The first bowler to get his name on the trophy in 1893 was R. Heggie.

Douglas Bowling Club travels to Liverpool, 1894

On Saturday 24th May 1894, Douglas Bowling Club sent a team away to Liverpool to play in the team Championship being held at the Black Horse in Walton. They overwhelmed a team from Urmston, Manchester by 102 chalks but, unfortunately, went out of the Competition in the next round.

Douglas Bowling Club heads back for another bite of the cherry, 1896

In 1896, the Douglas team did very well in the same competition. The team set off on the morning boat to Liverpool on Saturday 6th June 1896, heading to the Newton-le-Willows Cricket & Bowling Club where they beat Timperley by 11 chalks.

The following Saturday they were back on the boat and the Douglas team beat Pendleton at Salford by 38 chalks. They had a third-round match to play against Leigh Bowling club on Monday 15th June. After beating Pendleton, the team decided to stay over and played Leigh on a Warrington green on Monday 15th June 1896. The Douglas team lost to their Leigh opponents by 75 chalks with Douglas only getting two winners, the Douglas team players were as follows:

Changes afoot at Douglas Bowling Club, 1902

In 1902, the format for the Championship was changed to just one green, the Bowling Green Hotel Douglas, and all games were 31 up.  

It was also decided to give the winner £3.10s and the runner-up £2 prize money. 

To enter the Championship, you had to reside on the Island for at least three months out of twelve and be a member of a local club. 

If a player won the trophy three years on the run or won it five times in all he would win the trophy outright – bear in mind that this is the original Okell Cup and would have cost a pretty penny (pure silver!).

League bowls come to Douglas Bowling Club, 1909

In 1909 a league was started with just the four clubs:

• Douglas
• Finch Hill
• Onchan
• North Ramsey

Each match was played on a neutral green and played for points. 

• The first game was played at the Onchan Green: Douglas 226 v North Ramsey 176. 
• The next was at North Ramsey: Finch Hill 237 v Douglas 191
• Then came the game at Douglas: Finch Hill 236 v Onchan 192

Surprisingly, there is not a lot of league bowling information after these inaugural matches.

Douglas take on the Manchester teams, 1910

Each year Douglas bowling club would play a friendly match, home one year, away the next, against a team from Salford and Manchester Parks.

They played them at the George Hotel Prestwick in 1910 and won by 13 points. 

Another of the island clubs to play the same teams was Finch Hill. They won by 15 points.

Douglas Coronation and Jubilee Carnival aid local bowls, 1911

In 1911, an open took place at the Derby Road green in connection with the Douglas Coronation and Jubilee Carnival. Visitors and locals made up a field of 122 entrants – half of them being locals.

• It was stated that the winner would get the Manchester Guardian Trophy valued at £25 together with a gold medal valued at five guineas.
• The second prize was £20 
• Semi-finalists got 10 guineas
• Quarter-finalists got £2-10s 
• Then 8 won £1.

A special prize of £10 was to be provided by the “Liverpool Courier” newspaper to the competitor from the Liverpool and District who went the furthest in the competition.

When the competition got down to the last sixteen stage, nine players were Manxmen. The final brought together two visitors Jack Charnock of St Helens, a former professional player and T. Elston of the Liverpool Stanley Club.

Charnock won the game with ease by ten chalks. He was in good form and although Elston gave a plucky display he was unable to display the skill of Charnock on the short round pegs.                       

Douglas Carnival Committee gets a lot closer to Douglas Bowling Club, 1914

In the 1914 Manx Championship, there were 44 competitors from Douglas bowling club, 14 from Finch Hill, and one from Onchan. The eventual winner was W. McEvoy (Finch Hill) who beat J. A. Timson ( Douglas ) 21-8, losing semi-finalist were: W. Newby and J. Kelly.

In the Liverpool and District Bowlers Compendium, an advert for a bowling competition to take place at the Bowling Green Hotel, Douglas Isle Of Man was as follows:

Douglas Carnival, 1914, open Amateur (Scratch) Bowling Tournament on the top green, Bowling Green Hotel, Derby Road Douglas, on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday; June 29th 30th, and 1st July. 

Prizes £100 approximately. Open to all members of clubs affiliated to the British Crown Green Association. For this, competitors may travel on the Isle of Man Steamers at a single fare for a return journey. All entries to Mr W. Newby, Hon, Secretary, Bowling Green Hotel, Derby Road, Douglas, Isle of Man.

The seeds of the Tourist Festival? 1920

In 1920, a festival was run by the Douglas Carnival Committee at the Bowling Green Hotel. This was a very successful and popular event. 

The winner was a visiting bowler, Mr J. Charnock (St Helens who beat R. Forrest (Finch Hill) 21-16.

The first prize, a gold watch and chain valued at £25, was presented by the Carnival Committee.

After this competition, at the Association meeting in 1921, the secretary received requests from bowlers in the UK asking whether the island was going to run the Carnival bowling tournament again in 1921 because it had been such a huge success during 1920.

At the Association Committee meeting, it was suggested that they approach Douglas Corporation to see if they might care to promote a competition for the opening of the new bowling green at the Villa Marina in 1921 and use the same format.

The birth of ‘The Villa’

Douglas Bowling Club makes the move, 1921

The new green was laid by a firm of experts from the UK. It was situated on land at the back of the Villa Marina which belonged to Douglas Corporation. 

The green (which measured 44 yards by 44 yards) is set in a nice area over-looking the gardens. 

Deputy Mayor, Alderman James Craine opened the Villa Marina green on the 9th July 1921. He had the honour of rolling the first woods across the new turf.

To mark this occasion, they decided to run an open competition for local and visiting bowlers. Where and how it was advertised is unknown, but it attracted a very large entry of 186 bowlers, more than expected.

Because of the size of entries, they decided to start on Thursday and finish on Saturday. The eventual winner was local bowler Fred Newby (Douglas) over J. Alexander (Royal Excelsior Liverpool) 15-9. The semi-finalists were A. Cripps (Anchor Cable), and A. Kelly (Douglas).

This Competition could be classed as the first unofficial June Festival.

At this opening competition, it was announced that Douglas Corporation was going to run a tournament on the 12th September 1921, then in May or June 1922.

The Corporation put up a trophy worth £100 called the “Challenge Cup”.

All the games to be played 21 up with a limited handicap.

• The winner to receive a silver replica of the Challenge Cup and £20 prize money. Runner up to get £10.
• Semi-finalists received £5.
• Quarter-finalists £2.
• 8 of the last 16 getting £1. 5s.

The entrance fee for the tournament was going to be 3/- for each player.

With 165 entries the winner was W. R. Baker (Wolverhampton) who beat A. Gleave (Warrington) 21-16.

That took care of the opening of the green and the Corporation’s involvement in one of the longest-running Open Competitions in Britain.

 Meanwhile… Douglas Bowling Club challenged Nobles Park to a friendly match and won by 100 points, the teams and result :

Douglas  v  Nobles Park

Total 252 Total 150

Douglas Bowling Club moves forward, 1922

The Douglas Bowling Festival got underway for the second year with 136 entries. This was a drop of 29 on the inaugural event. However, it was good news for Douglas Bowling Club as the winner was a local bowler who was a butcher by trade, George Craine (Douglas). In the final, he defeated his club mate Fred Newby. 

The Bowling Green Hotel was still staging the other big competition on the Island, the Manx Championship. This was played on the top green and the winner was Mr Clague (Douglas) over W. Boddan (Douglas) 21-14. So, Douglas Bowling Club seems to have had a good selection of skilful players during this period.

1924

Manx championship played on the top green at Derby road at the Bowling Green Hotel, had 73 entries. The winner was another Douglas bowler, J. Lightfoot over J.Garside 21-14.

On the 15th August 1924, a challenge match took place for charity at Douglas bowling green between, from Douglas club, George Craine, one of the top bowlers on the Island, against the Lancaster representative Counsellor J. D. Horam, the Chairman of the Preston and District Bowling Club. The game was 41 up, and the winner was Mr George Craine 41 -29, the money that was raised went to Nobles Hospital fund.

1925

Douglas Bowling Club had their usual trip to Liverpool to play against the Waterloo Bowling Club. Again, Douglas came away winning. In the same year, local bowler Mr W. Newby took a trip to Blackpool to compete in the Blackpool Tournament called the “Gold Cup”. It had 1,180 entries. Mr Newby played well and came home the winner with the trophy – a great achievement for a local bowler.

1927

The Manx Championship made history in a couple of ways this year. First, the winner was Mr W. M Newby of Douglas Bowling Club who was in his 70th year – one of the oldest bowlers to win the competition. He won the trophy for the fifth time, over his son Fred Newby, semi-finalists T. A. Corlett and F. Cain.

Mr Newby secured absolute ownership of the Okell Challenge Cup, one of the rules of the competition was, if you win it three times on the run, or win it five times overall, you keep the Cup, this was his fifth time. Mr Newby won it in 1900, 1905, 1913, 1915, and 1927. The Okell Cup was donated first of all by Mr W. H. Okell.

Mr Newby played professional football for Blackburn Rovers before moving to the Island, where he opened a newsagents and printers shop in Douglas with his family.

1928

A new trophy, a copy of the last Okell Cup, was presented by Messrs Okell and Son to the bowling association to replace the one that was won outright the year before by Mr Newby, to be played for as the Manx Championship. This started on Monday 14th May.

After being beaten in the final in 1927 by his Father, the Manx Championship went to Mr F. Newby over A Kinvig, semi-finalist T. Cowin and W Boddan, the winner had his name on the New Okell Challenge cup.

1929

A team from Douglas Bowling Club went over to Preston for the annual match. Played on a home and away basis, Douglas won the first leg at home then they went across for the second leg.

1930

Douglas Bowling Club travelled away to Litherland to play a friendly match, again they won, and played the return match later in the year at the Villa Marina Green.

1931

Manx Champion again it was F.Newby of (Douglas) over J.S Gawne 21-14, semi-finalist W. B Clucas, and G. Craine.

1932

Manx Champion once again was F. Newby over H. Sayle 21-15, semi-finals G.Craine, and J. Radcliffe, this is the fourth time in five years that Fred Newby has won the title.

1933

Manx Champion once again the winner was F. Newby over H. Harrison 21-20 this was the fifth time Mr Newby won the Trophy in six years, semi-finals W. Boddan, and J. Chalmers. As Fred Newby had won the Okell Challenge Cup for the third time on the run this gave him ownership of the Okell Challenge Cup, making him the second member of his family to take this trophy. The Manx Championship had been won by the Newby family in 1900, 1905, 1913, 1915, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1935.

1934

The new Okell Challenge Cup was played at Finch Hill bowling club. The run of the Newby family was been broken with a new name on the trophy. The winner was W. Boddan over J. W. Craine, semi-finals H. Harrison, and J. Watkinson.

1935

Manx Championship took place with 61 entries. Once again, the winner was Mr F. Newby over H. Harrison 21-12, semi-finals J. Corkish, and F. Cain. This was Fred Newby’s sixth win in eight years – a record hard to beat.

1937

Douglas players for this year were:   

1939

President J.R Bregazzi of the I.O.M Bowling Association voiced his annoyance with Douglas Corporation for inviting people over for the festival, but not having anywhere for the players at the Villa Marina Green to hang their hats and coats, or anywhere to wash their hands. A protest was handed to Douglas Corporation.   

The onset of World War 2

This is where the history of the club seems to fade away into a black hole. Records do not cover anything during the years from the war until 1988.

1988 was the Clubs 100th Anniversary but, unfortunately, it was not shouted from the rooftops.

1991, Douglas Bowling Club's future in doubt

In this year, Douglas Corporation determined that the bowling green was a drain on their resources, and the threat of imposing closure saw the Club rally together and take on the lease of the Villa Marina Bowling. Volunteers stepped forward to carry out the maintenance of the green. Douglas Corporation still looked after the hedges and the footpaths, but they had drastically reduced their outlay and were happy with the cooperation of Douglas Bowling Club.

2013, 125th anniversary of Douglas Bowling Club

Douglas Bowling Club had spent the past 12 months heavily investing in the future of the bowling green. This has had a knock-on effect. New members were keen to come to a club that was rising like a phoenix from the ashes. Established players from other teams also came into the Douglas fold which saw the membership increase significantly. So significantly that Douglas Bowling Club had to introduce three new teams into the League.

This year also saw the introduction of the junior bowls. This was carried out by MSR and we made our green available from February onwards so that the youngsters could all learn the game under the watchful eyes of the new bowls coaches. The introduction of the juniors has been a remarkable adventure. The number of new faces that turn up wanting to play is incredible. Despite the drizzly, cold weather the kids were always there every Saturday morning wanting to get on the green.

This year also shows how far Douglas Bowling Club has come in terms of bringing the game to the attention of the general public. 

Okells raised the bar (is there a pun in there somewhere?). Okells have got behind the 125th Anniversary of the Club and are staging the biggest single event that has been held on the island for decades. The input and enthusiasm from Okells has been inspiring. 

To think that 125 years ago Dr Okell had the foresight to introduce a crown green bowling green next to a pub. Would he have believed that 125 years later the name of Okells would be instrumental in celebrating that event?