** SEASON 2020 - 2021 **

EVERYONE IS EXPECTED TO STAY TO LUNCH AFTER THE MATCH

In case of inclement weather on the day – ring your skip.

OPAL SQUAD PHOTO 2019/20

For ALL Northern League Team Results, go to: "Northern League Results" in the side bar.

Jávea Green players will comply with the club dress code. Coloured Club shirts will be worn, bowls must have club stickers.

.

For ALL Northern League Team Results, go to: "Northern League Results" in the side bar.

**14th March 2020 JG Opals **

NORTHERN LEAGUE 4TH PLACE
CHALLENGER LEAGUE 4TH PLACE

  As you are all aware, I am sure, all the Leagues were terminated on Thursday evening by the LLB,  followed by the shutting down of all sports clubs yesterday.  The league was terminated with one game remaining.

We offer our congratulations to Bonalba who have won the league for the first time, taking the title from BBC Lions who had won it for the previous 10 years!

We have however done JG proud by coming 4th in both leagues (Northern and Challenger). Well done.  We have shown a determination to do the best we can. 

I want to thank my 3 vice captains Keith, Greg and Trefor, who all gave me a great deal of help,  throughout the season, their experience was used to put together our teams each week, and who also stood in when I could not be there.

Of our squad of 40+ , 3 of our squad showed great fortitude and played 16 out of the 17  games, either in one of the scoring  teams, or friendlies.  Keith, Dee and Brian, well done you. 
29 players played at least 3 games.  Only 2 others played one game each.

Looking at the number of wins, our player of the year must go to Dee, who won the most games 10, followed closely by Matt on 9.  Well done you two.

I also think I should mention Tony Osborn, who played in 15 games, 12 of them friendlies, and even turned up away on one, even when he wasn't needed.  What dedication, thanks Tony! 

Finally again,  a thank you to all, who played uncomplainingly where you were placed, as a result of some decisions we were forced to make. Your loyalty was superb!  Not ideal, to say the least, but we did pull together, and looking at the table I think we can say JOB DONE BY OPAL!

Please look after yourselves over these next few weeks.  We do not know how long this enforced isolation will last, but I am looking forward to meeting up as soon as possible.

**9th March 2020 BBC Tigers 4 - 6 JG Opals **

The second visit to BBC in 5 days, was a much harder affair.

Luckily our star team of Velia, Matt and Peter again produced a star result 27-9 giving the whole team a certain 4 points ( 2 for shot difference and 2 for a win.) By the 8th end they were already 18-1 up, and were never going to let this slip!
Nick, with us for the last time this year, and his team went ahead, but kept getting pegged back. Ahead , even, ahead, even, down on the 17th end! However the promise of the very alcoholic Bailey’s Cheese Cake, did the trick. That was what he was here for anyway! Nick drew in to make 3 shots, so we won by 2. I did see him leave with a box of 3 slices of the cheesecake as a reward!
Our other 2 teams, skipped by Brian and Trefor met some tough opposition. Neither team was ever in the lead, but both teams battled hard, not to let the games get away from them and to keep the scores as tight as possible, Well done both teams, as you achieved this and thus Opal got the shot difference points.

The Challengers also had a very tight game . Ahead, down, even on the 11th end. Ahead until the 18th end, but only just. We won by 1 shot. Well fought, as this could have gone the other way!

I am pleased to say we took 2 friendly teams who played each other. All even at the end on 14 all. Thank you for the positivity you displayed. I am hoping to do the same on our final game next week.

**5th March 2020 BBC Jaguars 0 - 10 JG Opals **

What a result! I wanted to kiss the whole team , but was not allowed to! Only fist pumping!
Our first 10 nil victory, away to BBC Jags who were lying in third position in the league 4 points ahead of us in fourth.

Unfortunately the Challengers and Friendly teams went down, but both teams played well against tough opposition. The Challengers team took some time to get started, and were 15 -5 down after 9 ends, to a well settled team who have played together most of the season. However with an inspired Nigel, and Jack getting used to the green, the team scored 12 -9 in the second half. Well fought.
The friendly team, again a new combination, started well and were all even at the 9th end. Unfortunately the opposition gained a few more shots than us in the second half, although each team won on 9 ends each.

In the main team, two teams skipped by Peter and Trefor went ahead after the 7th and 6th ends respectively, and never looked back. Well done teams. Our shot difference was never in doubt. (+ 12 and +19)
We thought this was to be Nick’s last game (watch this space), and he kept the same team as previously. This was a tough match, as although we went ahead, the opposition came back on equal points, on the 12th end. Our team had to dig deep and up their bowling. This they certainly did as they got 11 shots to 1 on the last 5 ends which resulted in a great win. Well done!
Finally to the team who had to fight the hardest. Starting at 3-3, they were 8-16 down on the 10th end. On rink 8 away from the other teams, we were not sure how they were faring and were worried. We saw then that the home team had stopped scoring and our team went on to 21 shots! Until the last end when we were a few down but they only let the opposition gain 2 shots, so victory was ours, in all senses! Excellent and hard fought game here.

Summarising, we now have 3 reasons to be happy. The result which should move us up the table.
The weather, as the forecast strong winds only started as we finished. And Petra. She has enticed Nick to stay on for an extra unplanned game on Monday. You will have to ask him why!

**27th February 2020 JG Opals 3 - 7 BBC Lions **

Our match at home against the Lions had some similarities and some differences from the one that took place last November over at BBC.

BBC Lions 4 teams identical, with only 1 change of player.
JG Opals 0 teams identical, and 6 changed players.

November : 3-7 to Lions. February: 3-7 to Opals. November shot difference : 62-71. February shot difference: 61-71. Challengers & Friendlies both Lions’ wins.

Weather both times: brilliant and warm.
Friendship both times: great, although not so much physical contact!

Thank you everyone who tried so hard, to those who won, to those who drew and to the whole team who kept playing with a great positive attitude ‘til the end. 3 out of 4 teams went into the lead, with 2 being pegged back later on. This was also the pattern for the Challengers. Next week, let’s all get into the lead and stay there!

**17th February 2020 JG Quartz V JG Opals 4 - 6 : 18th February JG Opal V JG Onyx 8 - 2 **

This week I shall be reporting on our two matches, against our two friendly in-house rivals, Quartz and Onyx. Again we have had enforced changes to the teams, due to a variety of reasons, illness , and personal. I wonder if we will ever have a settled team for one week throughout this season?
Firstly, on sunny Monday, Trefor took charge, and there were 2 close matches, with a shot difference of 2 each way. Similarly there were 2 other
matches where each squad was ahead and winning by 10 and 7. Luckily for us, we got the 10 and therefore secured the points for shot difference. Well done Brian and team on this result.
Unfortunately the Challengers went down, but the friendly won.
On the following day, the weather had changed to rain , first thing, and I thought our luck too. We had 2 last minute illnesses, and I thought I had to cancel the friendly, even with Jack already stepping in as one replacement.
On arriving at the club, a long lost Opal member had arrived for a practice. He was snapped up to play (very willingly, I would add!) Welcome back Nick, I wonder how many years it has been since you played in the Northern League!
The rain stopped, and the team went from strength to strength. All teams won, except for one, and we secured 8 points.
These last 3 games have given us 26 extra points and moved us up the table to 4th place!
The win by the Challengers has also put us in 3rd place! Well done!
Brilliant news, now lets try to maintain that position with wins against all 3 BBC teams and Bonalba!
Some ask, considering our track record on settled teams, but maybe as a squad, with our nucleus of loyal players, we CAN achieve this.

**13th February 2020 JG Opals 10 - 0 Finca Guila **

On Thursday 13th February, Opals hosted Finca Guila on another beautiful sunny day.. We took the opportunity to play some of the squad in different positions and in different teams.
This worked well as everyone gave of their best and tried hard,. This resulted in 2 tremendous wins by Velia and Brian’s teams, both with changed line ups. Well done. 29-2 and 33-5 respectively.
The other 2 teams had a harder struggle, but pulled together and again, in the end gained the lead, winning by 2 and 10 shots.
The Challengers, again another new combination, got into their stride by the 10th end, held the lead and continued to exert pressure winning by 2 shots in the end.
Apologies to the Friendly team, we had hoped to field. Finca Guila had to pull out on this one, but you will have the chance next week, twice!
With that in mind we shall be involving as many of the available squad as possible, and rotating again some of the combinations.
Well done everyone on a maximum win!.

**27th January 2020 Calpe 8 - 2 JG Opals **

On Monday 27th Opals traveled to Calpe, second in the table and arguably home to the most challenging green in the Northern League. Some personnel changes meant there were some new team combinations alongside the settled lineup of Trefor, Dee and Jean.
Playing on rink 1 that team started strongly and were level at end 11 but the home team won the jack and then played it long and we struggled to find the length and negotiate the tricky lines of those full length jacks, five successive ends were lost and 10 shots dropped but the team finished with a 2 and 4 to bring the score to a more reflective 21-17.
On rink 2 Brian Walker, Nigel Thomas and Keith Hamilton, who stood in for a not too well Jack Pym, fought valiantly against strong opposition and the score line of 19-9 does not reflect the closeness of many of the ends played.
Rink 3 provided our only points of the day with Vee Wood, Matt Taylor and Angela Coomer, who as a newby played very well, the team started strongly winning the first 3 ends and taking an 8 nil lead, although the home team fought back Vee's team were never behind and ran out worthy winners with a 20-15 scoreline. Well done.
On rink 4 a new combination of Penny Pym, Dave Carvath and Chris Salter struggled in the early stages of their match picking up only 3 points in the first 9 ends, but helped by a 5 on end 12 they drew closer to the Calpe team which included the arch disrupter "Glenda". The team went down 21-13 but again it was a closer game than the score suggests. Well done everyone.
Trefor Evans
Captain for the day.

**23th January 2020 JG Opals 2 - 8 El Cid **

After the postponement due to the wind and rain, our rearranged match was played. We met a strong settled side, and although we did not fair well on points in the main team, we did have quite a few successes.
Our friendlies had a great result and fought hard, drawing even on the 7th end, pulling ahead and staying there.
Our Challengers did even better, they played well as a team and started winning from the very first end, gaining an excellent shot difference of 13.
Our main team, had one consistent team together, who won well, who after settling in gradually pulled ahead on the 6th end and again stayed there Well done.
All of our other teams battled hard and some good woods were bowled, but unfortunately in 2 of the teams, the opposition pulled ahead first and stayed there, with final shot differences of 5 and 6, despite both of our teams pulling up.
Our fourth team, was another new combination. Although they started strongly and were ahead until the 9th end, they began to slip back with the opposition taking most of the final 9 ends. Hard luck team.

**13th January 2020 BONALBA 8 - 2 JG Opals **

We entered the last match at the half way stage today. It felt like the Gods were against us this week.
Two degrees and a white frost everywhere, as we departed for the highest venue in the league! Over the weekend the team had come down with every virus and knock possible! Colds, Flu, tonsillitis, knees and necks! My thanks to those who braved the elements and turned out for the team.
It meant we only had one team that was not rearranged, and we met the team who are flying high this year, top of the league, on their home ground, full of winter league players even down to the Friendly team.
So to the results:
Our settled side performed brilliantly, started out magnificently, not letting the other side score until the 5th end. Thanks Trefor, Dee and Jean for being our front runners, and only allowing the opposition score on 4 ends.
Greg’s team took a while to settle and were chasing the game to start, until getting on the score board briefly on the 4th end. They did however pull back in the second half winning 6 of the last 8 ends. Unfortunately we would have needed another few ends more to turn the result.
Dick’s team also took a few ends to get on the scoreboard, but working together they went into the lead on the 8th end. However the home team rallied taking the lead again after another couple of ends, and managed to pull ahead to win.
Nigel, who took over the skips position, and his team also struggled to score early on. Roli, Bonalba’s Captain forged ahead and stayed ahead throughout. Hard luck team.

The Challengers, skipped by Brian, also had a slow start. However they rallied well, and only finished 3 down after 18 ends. One more end might have brought the win!
Thanks to the friendly team, of Angela, John and Tony. They claim to have enjoyed the game. It was a hard contest.

So we ended with bad loss, against the League leaders
Next week , we meet El Cid at home. I am hoping that our fortunes will reverse, with a settled and strong team. We meet Bonalba again on the last match of the season, and who knows, it should be much closer and a cliff hanger for top position!

**9th December JG Opals 5 - 5 BBC Tigers **

On another absolutely glorious December day, we welcomed our neighbours from BBC.

Today we had some tough bowling, and both sides were fighting to achieve an overall win.
This was not to be, as both sides ended up even. 5 -5.

Trefor secured the shot difference for us, with his strong and steady team, and after going ahead on the 7th end, pulled away, for a great win, having got a 6 on the 16th end. Well bowled.

Dick’s team were ahead until the 16th end, but the opposition pulled back on the last 2 ends to get a draw. Shame we could not have held the lead, but again a tough game.

In Greg’s game the lead went both ways. Down at first, all even at the 5th end, then ahead until the 16th end when it was 16- 16-16. 17th we went ahead, but 18th we went down, by one shot. Another very even contest.

Velia’s team was up against a very strong opposition team, and we had a new lead bowler. Tigers went ahead by 5 before we got on the board. Then our team got the measure of the green and the opposition and fought very hard from then on. In the end a very close game which we lost by only 3 shots. Pity about the first 5.

So as I said, a very close game with the result all square.

The Challengers today tried hard but were struggling against a very determined Tiger’s team, and went down.
Thank you to our 2 friendly teams, who had an enjoyable game, it was good to see Peter back with us.

Thank you all for your support in the first half of the season. Wishing everyone a good Christmas and a rest from bowling. See you in the New Year.

**5th December JG Opals 6 - 4 BBC Jaguars **

After three days of heavy rain flooding the rinks and keeping us all inside, we were blessed with no rain overnight and to see the sun today. We did not need to rearrange the match!

All 4 scoring teams started off in excellent fashion, all in the lead for at least 7 ends.

In Greg’s team’s case it was only temporary, as the opposition skip Alex Fisher had 2 ends of wonderful draw bowling to take away the lead. However the team rallied after the 11th end, with determination, and pulled ahead, allowing the opposition only 2 more shots. Well played Greg.

Both Trefor’s and Velia’s teams held on to the lead with some very good bowling until the 16th and 15th ends. The rinks dried up and altered . Alas the teams did not manage to recoup, and the lead slipped away. So very very close. Hard luck.

Dick’s team again pulled out the stops, going into the lead and staying there. The opposition scored in only 5 ends. Without the brilliant score this team produced, the other 3 would have had a shot difference of Opals 49 – Jaguars 45. Instead we got Opals 79 – Jaguars 59. (I will let you work out their score!). Thanks guys.

The Challengers had a good result. They had to battle hard against an experienced side. Some good bowling saw the lead fluctuate, all even on 6 different ends, with the game going both ways. It was only on the last 2 ends that we came out on top. Well fought and congratulations.

Our friendly team also had to fight hard. After a slow start they got better and better, but unfortunately ran out of ends. After the 10th end the opposition only scored 3 shots. Pity we didn’t make it. Well played

We also had our excellent Christmas lunch, with Turkey and all the trimmings. Hats and crackers and cheesy jokes! The hot mulled wine was excellent and certainly went right down to the cinnamon stick! Much appreciated. I’m sure my speech was garbled and I doubted I could write this report! However I managed!

**25th November BBC Lions 3 -7 JG Opals **

On a beautiful sunny and warm day, and with quite a bit of trepidation we approached a match away at BBC Lions which on paper was going to be a hard ask. However after 3 hours plus and some extra ends thrown in, we could hold our heads up high. Our Opal team turned up at last, and we did Javea Green proud.

Velia was paired up against her old friend Jackie, and her whole team pulled together once they had the measure of the wide swing on Rink 2 and the opposition. They pulled ahead on end 8 and never looked back, bowling with precision and great team work. Well done.

Dick’s challenge was to get his team of 3 Merry Men to tame the Lioness’ team. This they did in style and were 16-6 up at the 10th end. The second half saw the Ladies pull back, but the Merry Men held on, gaining second wood on a number of occasions, and managing the game to its winning conclusion.

The highest scores were seen on Greg’s game verses Dudley. It was a tough opposition, and this team have won every game so far this season. Their shots difference on 5 games was 108-55 to date. So our 24-20 was pretty close! 7, 6 and 5 were all scored . Our final end of 4 was not enough to secure the game. It was a great attempt to beat this team, but we fell short by 4 shots.

How Trefor and his new team battled! BBC got their eye in on their home ground first. But we were not deterred, we battled! We gained the lead, lost the lead, gained the lead, lost the lead and then drew ! Phew! Exhausted but very proud to have gained the extra point with the whole squad cheering them on!

The Challengers also has a tussle. Welcome back to Nigel who skipped with great enthusiasm. They were also up against a settled Challengers team who have not yet lost. A very close result and I was told that we needed “6 inches” on the last end and would have won. Hard luck and well played.

Our friendly team of inexperienced bowlers, unfortunately got beaten by 3 very experienced BBC bowlers. They tell me they are not deterred and will still want to play for the squad.
So all in all, a great day, played in very positive and supportive spirit.

21st November Opals 3 - 7 Quartz

The blue skies were with us with the sun shining on 7 busy rinks, with 2 Friendly teams, our Challengers and the 4 scoring teams, the stage was set for some competitive bowling.

Team 1 skipped by Trefor were off to a flying start losing only one shot in the first 13 ends and winning 20 – 7…well done!
Velia’s team had a tough match on rink 5 with an up-hill battle, but a game of two halves it was, and the team fought gallantly to narrow the gap and finished 15 – 22 unfortunately in 2nd place.
It was a battle royal on rink 1 with Dick’s team keeping up the pressure until the very last bowl, going into the 18th end ahead by one shot the opposition managed kill the end and then managed to slip in the equalizer and the game finished 17-17…and for the gallery…quite a nail-biter!
On rink 7, Greg’s team faced tough opposition, initially with a positive start but the Quartz team eased ahead and ended 12 – 19.

There was much counting of shot differences during the latter stages of the games and it
could not have been closer with Opal scoring 64 shots and Quartz pipping us with 65! Oh, for one more shot!!

The Challengers had a good game, skipped by Brian Walker and won a credible 11 out of the 18 ends after a shaky start being 9 down after 2 ends, but again a game of two halves – they fought back holding the opposition at 14 shots for 8 ends and eventually winning 18-17, congratulations on a great comeback!

It was good to see two Friendlies out in force today, albeit with a couple of ‘conscripted’ bowlers to make up the numbers – thank you all for your support.
Both games rewarded Quartz with a win.

11th November Finca Guila 4 - 6 JG Opals

On a pleasant but cold morning we all eventually arrived at the away team venue, by several different routes.

We were the first Javea Green team to play away on these greens this season which have been reduced from 6 rinks to 5, making it into a brand new experience.

With a few absences we had again only 1 settled side this week. This was Velia’s team who again romped away at first and were 24 -7 up at 11 ends, and were providing us with a great shots total. In the second half this was pegged back, but they ran out secure winners.
Not to be outdone, and determined to show that a new combination could work Dick and his merry men certainly proved that they were the team of the day. Working together on the 12th end they were 23 – 2 up. What a shot difference! They only lost 5 ends and certainly secured the shots we needed.
The next game was a much closer affair. Newly skipped by Dee, the team finally equalized the score coming from behind on the 11th end, going ahead on the 12th. But the opposition were not to be thwarted unfortunately, and won 5 of the last 6 ends.
Greg’s team had a battle against a strong team, and the rink, which got the better of us! We held the shot wood or woods on numerous occasions, but our holding woods were continually moved aside or beaten. This opposition team certainly had home advantage and used it well.

It was great to see the first win by the Challengers this week. They worked very hard and had a tough match. Well done Angela, Tony and Tony Scott (Skip). 9 all on the 8th end, they only gained the lead on the 17th end, and then fought determinedly to keep it

**4th November JG Onyx 8 - 2 JG Opals **

Today we had another very tight match, this time against one of our home rivals.

We again had to rearrange teams and call in players who had not played this season. So new team line ups to manage.
The game could have gone very differently, as Velia’s team took the lead and were 19 - 5 up at the half way stage, and provided us with a great shots total. In the second half this was clawed back, but they ran out worthy winners. Great job!
Trefor’s team started well but could not hold the lead and were 9-6 down at the half way stage. Although they then won the next 3 ends it was not sustained and they eventually went down.
The next 2 games were much closer affairs, with very close scores throughout.
Chris Salter’s team finally equalised the score coming from behind throughout on the 17th end, but the opposition won on the last end unfortunately.
Greg’s team had a battle against a very strong team, and there was never more than 3 shots in it throughout. We held the lead on numerous occasions, and the lead kept alternating. On the 17th end we were ahead, but lost on the last end. Bad luck guys.

Both teams could have had a score of 8-2, but today it was not us.

Thank you also to the Challengers , lead by Tony Osborn for the first time, and welcoming back Angela, had a very close game. 9-7 to us at the 8th end, but then the opposition gained the lead, and although we played well we did not manage to win.
Thank you very much to all the Opal players today .

28th October JG Opals 5 – 5 Calpe

Our second match of the season was a tight very hard-fought game against a very good Calpe team.

Three of the scoring teams were down at the halfway stage with the fourth down by three shots with three ends to go coming back strongly to win by two shots after a thrilling dual between the rival skips on the last end. One team came back so well in the second half that they took the game easily in the end. All the Opal teams tried hard and the final score of two wins each for the scoring teams was a fair result on the day.

The importance of concentrating until the last bowl was not only reinforced by the game results themselves but also by the drawing of the shot difference that gained us an extra point. The four scoring Opal teams showed their experience as they took 22 shots for to 4 shots against over the last three ends of their respective matches to equalize the shot difference at 68 apiece. Without this impressive finish we would have lost the match.

Two Friendlies were played against strong Calpe opposition with both Opal teams losing out in the end. Calpe with only four rinks cannot support a Challenge Team but they certainly showed their strength in depth by beating two Opal line ups looking to impress.

14th October El Cid 4 – 6 JG Opals

This being my first report as Captain of Opal I am pleased to report our first
win. Yesterday I thought I had the team plus challengers and friendlies all sorted
and ready to play at a tough venue against a very good team. However, with 24
hours to go I received 4 unexpected resignations from the Opal Squad all of
whom were picked to play in the scoring or the challenge teams. Not surprisingly
this caused some problems and I thank all those players who stood in at the last
minute to make the game not only possible but one that we managed to win.
As far as the matches themselves were concerned there were some very tough
games. Our determination to do well coupled with our very experienced skips
came to the fore, and we did well to limit our losses and win two games well and
thereby the overall shot difference to take the match by 6 points to 4.
The two winning teams saw the leads and two’s following the placement
instructions of their skips to help them win their games convincingly. Both our
losing teams did well with one coming up against a very strong team who
consistently took out our holding woods. The other team fought valiantly
throughout only to lose on the last end.
Sadly, the Challenge team lost their match. The team was understandably not
quite as settled as we would have liked having been pulled together at the last
minute because of the enforced late changes. Nevertheless, they did their very
best to give their opponents a very good match. A friendly Javea team game was
also played that bodes well for the future giving less experienced players a
chance to play at a different venue. Thanks to El Cid who found an extra player
for us to make up the numbers.
The scoresheets and team are on a separate tab.
All Matches were played in an excellent spirit, although the thunder lightening
and rain at the end, made us all speed up and disappear down to the bar.
Thanks to Jill who also was Captain for the first time, like myself. We are
learning fast!!

Squad Captain: Brenda Burgess

Telephone 659193783.

Arrangement for adverse weather conditions:

In case of inclement weather:-

First – Check your email.

Second – If still in doubt – RING ME between 8.15 & 9.00 am.

CLICK HERE TO EMAIL ME.

FOR ALL RULES & APPENDICES Click Below:.