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East Fife News
East Fife News In the recently completed Indoor Finals at the East Fife Club, Lynn Stein retained her Ladies Singles title and Kevin Bunting retained the Boy’s Singles. In the best Final on the last night, Lynn defeated Julie Sword 21-16, while Kevin defeated Andrew Thomson 21-12. Andrew reached another Singles Final, the Under 25’s, but again, he had to be content with 2nd prize, losing to Ross Rodger 21-11. The Men’s Champion is Gary Mackie, who defeated James Fernie 21-12, and he made it a double when he also won the Team Championship Singles, although he had a difficult struggle before overcoming the challenge of Senior bowler, Bob Clark with a 21-19 victory. Beaten finalist in the Girl’s Singles last season, Dianne Gordon went one better in 2009, when she put in a strong finish to defeat Louise Wyper 21-18. It was a similar case in the Senior Singles. In 2008, Willie Wyles lost against Markinch bowler, Jimmy Davies, but he won the title this season with a 21-12 success against another Markinch bowler, Bill Bell.
The thoughts have now turned to the outdoor game, and it was atrocious weather, which greeted the opening day of this season’s Hamilton Trophy matches. Fife travelled to Abbeyview to oppose West Fife, and there were serious doubts as to whether the game would be played. After some deliberation, the teams did play and completed the scheduled 21 ends. West Fife were the victors by 22 shots, with the Fife team registering two wins from the six rinks. Alan Hill’s Four easily did best for Fife with a 14 shot success over Stewart Pagan, and David Comrie added a one shot victory over Paul Brown. This was the end of the Fife success story, as West Fife won on the remaining four rinks, to win comfortably. Details: (West Fife skips first) West Fife 127 Fife 105 – J. Roxburgh 28 G. Mackie 11; A. Bernard 30 A. Pearson 21; P. Brown 16 D. Comrie 17; J. Gilruth 19 S. West 16; R. McFarlane 23 C. Young 15; S. Pagan 11 A. G. Hill 25. (Bob Dick – 10/05/09)
East Fife News The Ladies Team have had an excellent season continuing the good form they showed in the previous season. They have won all their League matches and have easily won their Section. They complete their programme on Saturday when they travel to Perth in a bid to finish with a 100% record. Not so for the Men, who lost at Arbroath on Saturday and consigned themselves to next season’s 1st Division. Nevertheless, the team put in a good performance at Arbroath, and with only one end remaining, the teams were all square. At this final end, Arbroath set the pattern when the Arbroath second trailed the jack to near the ditch. This shot bowl, almost on the jack, required to be dislodged but it held firm, and with a number of East Fife bowls running into the ditch, Arbroath picked up a six, but this could be excused as East Fife required to win the match to give themselves a lifeline. The star performers for East Fife was the rink skipped by Wayne Hogg, who finished 12 shots ahead of Doug Farquharson. Details: (Arbroath skips first) Arbroath 77 East Fife 71 – P. Carnegie 23 M. Stenhouse 16; A. Furye 19 G. Mackie 17; D. Burnett 20 C. Falconer 11; D. Farquharson 15 W. Hogg 27. The Seniors have had a mixed season, and they never really looked like winning their Section. Abbeyview ended up as winners, although they were hard pressed by Falkirk and Alloa. The Juniors have not been faring so well this season, collecting 9 points out of 21 from their three East of Scotland League matches. They are in action on Saturday against Abbeyview at East Fife, and they have still to play a postponed home match against West Lothian. Kevin Bunting and Christopher Stein have been selected for the SYIBA International Team, after successful trials, and they will appear in the Internationals against Wales in early April at Bainfield. A former Junior member, Lesley Gordon has been selected to play for Scotland in the Indoor Junior Internationals. (Bob Dick – 18/01/09)
Fife (District 7 News) In the 1st stage of the National Championships, the District 7 Singles winner is Wayne Hogg, the former East Lothian bowler, who is now based at the Markinch Club. Wayne was in top form in all his matches and in the Final he defeated James Fernie (Lundin Links) 21-8. Alan Pearson (Strathmiglo), who won his way through in the main Singles last season, opted for the Junior event this season, and it paid off, although he had to recover from 10-1 down against Stuart Harrison (St Andrews) before winning 21-17. Markinch had another success in the Fours, repeating their qualification in 2006. Tom Pettigrew, Douglas Lockhart, Ryan Crawford and Calum Young were in top form defeating Methil’s Willie Wyles, Bruce McCall, Billy Laing and Alan Hill 26-4. A good 1,4,1 finish by the Leven Senior Four of Kenny Hamilton, Ted Beveridge, Bill Chapman and Dougie Hamilton was enough to ensure a 15-9 victory over Willie Strachan, Tom Muir, Dave McLaren and Donald Bain (Newburgh). The other two matches were closely contested. In the Pairs, Alex Scott and George Yule (Balgonie) made sure of a 16-14 success when they added a single at the last end. Balgonie could not make it a winning double after their Triple of Peter Penman, Laurie Swan and David McLean lost three shots over the last two ends to finish 13-11 down against the Duffus Park Triple of Dale Wilson, John McIntyre and Andy Meekison. Anne and George Bone (Methilhill) won the District 7 Mixed Pairs but they fell at the Inter District stage losing 19-9 against Darlene Hendry and James Hay (Dovecot Park).
It was another disappointing season for the Fife team in the Andrew Hamilton Trophy with the bright spots being their victory over West Fife at Markinch and a victory over runners-up, East Lothian at Auchtermuchty. Fife also performed well against Edinburgh and Leith at Colinton, and it was only in the closing stages that the Edinburgh team pulled away to win by 11 shots.
This is International week at Llandrindod Wells and Fife’s only representative, Wayne Hogg (Markinch), has had to withdraw due to work commitments. Jim Gilruth from the West Fife team has retained his place. (Bob Dick – 23/06/08)
East Fife News The curtain came down on the East Fife Indoor Bowling Club after the Singles Finals were concluded on Friday. The stars of the show were the Stein Family with four Singles wins. Christopher, aged 15, was first to add his name to a trophy, when he defeated Kevin Bunting 21-15 in the Under 25 event. Next to step up on the rostrum was father, Derek, who won the inaugural Team Championship Singles by defeating Gary Mackie 21-9. This was the same score for mother, Lynn, when she defeated one of her normal teammates, Julie Sword in the Ladies Event. Then came Christopher in the main Men’s event, when he won the Singles Championship 21-9 against Ian Moir. The family almost made it a perfect five, but in a repeat of the Under 25 match, Kevin Bunting ended up as the winner. Kevin led 20-4 at one stage, but Christopher made his way up the ladder to 16 shots before Kevin added the elusive 21st shot. Lynn featured in another four Finals winning the Two Bowl Pairs and the National Fours and losing out in the Ladies Aberhill League and the National Pairs. Christopher appeared in another three Finals, and won the Juniors Autumn League and the Junior Triples. Derek won another event when he led for Glen Livingston in the Aberhill League.
The remaining Singles Finals, Lesley Gordon defeated younger sister, Dianne, 21-9 in the Girls while in the Senior Event, Jimmy Davies was in top form to defeat Willie Wyles 21-9. Willie also appeared in the Senior Pairs and Triples, but he had to be content with one victory in the Pairs when a three at the last end gave him a 15-13 victory over Gordon Barclay. Mary Bryan was another to feature in a number of Finals. At the end of the week, she registered three victories and three losses, with the wins coming in the Ladies Aberhill League, the Ladies Club League and the National Pairs. Tom Pettigrew retained his Triples title. Last season, he required an extra end for his win, but, on this occasion, he managed within the 15 ends, defeating Billy Laing 12-9. Other Results Men’s Section: Two Bowl Pairs – C. Falconer defeated C. Smith 2-1 on sets; Club Open Pairs – G. Mackie 27 J. Gordon 9; Open – P. Rodger 13 J. Lawson 14; Aberhill – G. Livingston 19 W. Laing 18; KO Fours – J. Lawson 21 C. Stein 9; Four Bowl Pairs – T. Ford 15 C. Smith 13.Senior Section Henderson Trophy – A. McRobie 16 J. Nelson 11; Open – R. K. Penman 15 A. D. Wishart 12; Triples – J. Haldane 15 J. K. Watson 13; KO Fours – C. Bell 24 H. McLean 22.
Ladies Section Aberhill League – M. Bryan 18 L. Stein 14; Ballot Pairs – C. Smith 16 M. Feechan 7; Club League – M. Bryan 16 N. Smith 15; Two Bowl Pairs – L. Stein defeated C. Smith 2-0 in sets; Triples League – A. Fyall 13 M. Bryan 9; National Fours – L. Stein 21 M. Bryan 4; Pairs League – N. Walker 21 A. Fyall 8; National Pairs – M. Bryan 19 L. Stein 3; National Triples – C. Smith 18 M. Bryan 7.
Junior Section Autumn League – C. Stein 16 K. Bunting 11; Pairs – C. Millar 23 K. Fleming 7; KO Fours – K. Bunting 19 A. Thomson 16; Triples – C. Stein 16 K. Bunting 11. Mixed Event Pairs – J. Forbes 18 J. McArthur 16.
The Junior Section have had an outstanding season winning the East of Scotland League and the League’s Top Ten Competition. Kevin Bunting is the Scottish Young Master and Christopher Millar and Christopher Stein won the SYIBA National Pairs. In addition, Lesley Gordon and Christopher Stein represented Scotland in the Young Bowlers Internationals against Wales at Mountain Ash.
The Ladies had an excellent run in the Women’s League, going down in the Semi-Final against Coatbridge, while the Men have something to look forward to next season, when they will play in the Premier League. (Bob Dick – 27/04/08)
East Fife News Three of the East Fife Ladies, Lynn Stein, Julie Sword and Celia Smith, participated in the International Trial at Stirling last Saturday, and all were successful, and will play in the International Series at Llanelli next month. Two of East Fife’s young bowlers, Christopher Stein and Christopher Millar, won their Sections in the Richard Corsie playdowns at Headwell, and they met to determine who would play in the final play down. On this occasion, Christopher Millar emerged victorious. However, Christopher Stein, along with Lesley Gordon, will be two of the players, who will form part of the SYIBA International team to play Wales at Cynon Valley at the end of March.
The East Fife Senior team did not fare too well in the Scottish Seniors League, but they are making their mark in the Cup. They opened with a match against Bainfield, finishing 64-53 ahead, and in their second match defeated Portobello 67-51. In this latter match, George Gillies and Bob Clark won by nine and five shots respectively, and Willie Wyles produced a third win, scoring a four at the last end to defeat Tony McLaren by two shots. John Rodgers and P. Walker shared the spoils in a 12-12 draw.
The Men’s team, having won promotion to next season’s Premier Division, were the favourites to defeat Ardrossan in the Scottish Cup at Lanarkshire, and they did so by the skin of their teeth. At the very last end of the match, Team Manager and skip, Glen Livingston, removed an Ardrossan bowl from the head to lie four shots and tie the match at 76-76. The Ardrossan skip failed with his final delivery, allowing Livingstone the glory to draw the final winning shot. Details: - (East Fife skips first) East Fife 77 Ardrossan 76 – M. Stenhouse 16 A. Rodgerson 17; C. Falconer 22 J. Carswell 17; G. Livingston 22 D. O’Rourke 21; J. Forbes 17 R. McConnachie 21.After defeating Falkirk twice in the Men’s Scottish League, it proved third time lucky for Falkirk, when they scored a decisive win in the 1st Round of the Cities and Counties Championships at Perth. Falkirk collected wins on each rink to defeat East Fife 8-0.
East Fife have won three matches in the Scottish Team Championship, opening with a 6-2 win over Stirling, and following up with another 6-2 win over Midlothian. On Sunday, the 3rd Round was against Balbardie, and although the points were shared, East Fife won easily on shots. However, the outcome of the match was on a knife-edge, until Jimmy Forbes, in the Fours, scored eleven shots over the last three ends to win by that margin against Andy Forrest. With Willie Wyles always dominant in the Triples, finishing 18 shots ahead of D. Ross, there was no way back for Balbardie, as the other two matches were close. Balbardie won on both with David Drysdale defeating Gary Mackie 21-18 in the Singles, and Ewan Shearer edging out Ian Moir by one shot in the Pairs. Details: - (East Fife names first) East Fife 4 pts (96) Balbardie 4 pts (71): Singles – G. Mackie 18 D. Drysdale 21; Pairs – I. Moir 18 E. Shearer 19; Triples – W. Wyles 31 D. Ross 13; Fours – J. Forbes 29 A. Forrest 18.
The East Fife Junior team lost their first match in the East of Scotland Juniors League when they visited East Lothian. East Fife had only one winning rink skipped by Scottish Young Master, Kevin Bunting. East Fife have another visit to Meadowmill on Saturday, when they meet in the SYIBA Top Ten. In the 1st Round of the competition, East Fife played at West Lothian, and good wins by Kevin Bunting in the Singles and Kieran Bremner and Christopher Stein produced a comfortable shots victory after the teams were level on points, 4-4.
Wayne Hogg, better known as an East Lothian bowler, but now a member at Markinch, won a Triples Gold Medal, playing lead for David Peacock, at the World Bowls Championships in Christchurch, New Zealand. In the Fours, again playing for David Peacock, the team lost in the Quarter Finals after easily qualifying for the play-offs. There was no luck either for Lynn Stein (Methil) at the Championships. Playing third in the Fours and skipping the Triple, the teams qualified in both, but lost at the Quarter Final stage. In the Triples, the team went down by one shot against the hosts, New Zealand. (Bob Dick – 07/02/08)
East Fife News There have been many recent pleasing performances from East Fife bowlers, and one of the best came from Kevin Bunting, who won the Scottish Young Masters at Perth. His Final match against Scott Baxter (Cumbernauld) was a classic contest and was well worth its place besides all those competing to become the Scottish Master in the main Tournament. The closeness of the contest was shown in the final result with Kevin winning 7-6, 7-7. Another interesting fact was that the winner of the main Tournament, Andy Thomson, started off his Indoor bowling career at East Fife, and so in many ways, it was an East Fife double success.
The Men’s team virtually assured themselves of becoming Division 1 Section winners when they defeated Falkirk on their own carpet. Glen Livingston and Jimmy Forbes were the match winners for East Fife, with Livingston defeating Tommy Cochrane by 18 shots and Forbes finishing 13 shots ahead of Gary Flynn. Simon Thomson replied with a 14 shot victory over Colin Falconer and Doug Fletcher added a second win at the expense of Willie Wyles by five shots. However, these wins were not sufficient to topple the Fifers, who finished 78-66 ahead. Promotion to next season’s Premier Division was confirmed, when they defeated Headwell at East Fife Stadium last Saturday, although the Headwell bowlers put up a good show. East Fife had to thank Colin Falconer for his contribution of a 26 shot victory. Glen Livingston won his match by three shots against Jim Roxburgh, but both Gary Mackie and Jimmy Forbes lost their matches. Mackie was seven shots down against S. Cook, while Forbes fell victim to Craig Watson by eight shots. Details v Headwell: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 80 Headwell 66 – G. Mackie 11 S. Cook 18; G. Livingston 21 J. Roxburgh 18; C. Falconer 33 J. J. Watson 7; J. Forbes 15 C. Watson 23.
The Ladies have won their Scottish League Section, after another two wins to preserve their 100% record with only one match remaining. The key match was against main challengers, Abbeyview, at East Fife, and three wins out of four earned them a decisive 35 shot victory. Lynn Stein and Alice Fyall won by big margins and Julie Sword added a third victory by five shots against Moira Paxton, with only Celia Smith losing her match. Last Saturday at Headwell, it was Julie and Celia’s turn to record the big wins with Julie Sword in super form with a 29 shot success over S. Hunter. Celia won by 15 shots against Elsie Wilton and there were narrow defeats for Lynn Stein and Alice Fyall against Sarah Ewing and Lena Cook respectively. This all added up to a 39 shot East Fife victory. Details v Abbeyview: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 99 Abbeyview 64 – L. Stein 34 V. McGregor 16; A. Fyall 33 A. Bernard 14; C. Smith 11 A. Hutchison 18; J. Sword 21 M. Paxton 16. Details v Headwell: (Headwell skips first) Headwell 59 East Fife 98 – S. Ewing 18 L. Stein 15; L. Cook 19 A. Fyall 17; E. Wilton 13 C. Smith 28; S. Hunter 9 J. Sword 38.
The Juniors continued their winning ways when Midlothian visited East Fife. The chances of success for the hosts seemed dim when Midlothian led 24-8 after five ends. However, East Fife hit back to win on all rinks, to bring their points total to 25 out of 27 from their three games. The match featured an excellent comeback by Christopher Millar, who recovered from 10-2 down to finish 2,3,2,4 to win 13-10. Details: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 9 pts (47) Midlothian 0 pt (34) – K. Bunting 11 J. McNab 7; K. Fleming 12 S. Laidlaw 11; C. Stein 11 M. Yule 6; C. Millar 13 S. Clark 10.
The Under 35s completed their match against West Lothian, and after their 8-2 points defeat at East Fife, there was virtually no realistic chance of winning overall. However, this produced a pleasing performance from the young East Fife team, with wins on two of the rinks. Christopher Stein scored a two at the last end to win by one shot, and Scott Hassan finished five shots ahead. West Lothian, who are expected to do well in the Competition, won the match overall 14-6.
Scottish Team Championship, East Fife defeated Stirling 6-2 at Abbeyview. Leading the way to the success was Gary Mackie in the Singles with a 21-7 win over Danny McCormick. Martin Dickson, Karen McAndrew, Celia Smith and Jimmy Forbes virtually sealed the match in East Fife’s favour with a 27-15 win over J. Binnie, with Forbes collecting a six at the last end. Julie Sword and Christopher Stein scored a last end 21-20 victory against D. McEwan, while Lynn Stein, Raymond Whyte and Willie Wyles lost by 20-17 against Bryan Stillie. (Bob Dick – 12/12/07)
East Fife News The Ladies returned to action today (Sunday) with a visit from Perth in the Scottish Women’s League. East Fife ended up winning by 25 shots, and this win protected their 100% record, and put them firmly in the driving seat for a qualifying place for the play-offs. Celia Smith, Alice Fyall and Lynn Stein skipped their Fours to successes ranging from seven to ten shots, and Julie Sword finished only one shot behind Norma Bright. Details: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 91 Perth 66 - C. Smith 23 I. West 14; A. Fyall 22 E. McGarvie 15; J. Sword 18 N. Bright 19; L. Stein 28 M. Morrison 18.
The Men’s team are also doing well in their 1st Division Section, and moved into top position after travelling to defeat Tweedbank and then defeating Cumbernauld at East Fife. On both occasions, Glen Livingston was in fine form with two big wins. Against Tweedbank, he defeated Stuart White by 11 shots and followed up with a 21 shot victory over Cumbernauld’s Dougie Geal. Colin Falconer was another to record wins in both matches. Details v Tweedbank: (Tweedbank skips first) Tweedbank 79 East Fife 86 – K. Johnstone 18 C. Falconer 20; S. White 13 G. Livingston 24; M. Thin 21 J. Forbes 25; A. White 27 W. Wyles 17. Details v Cumbernauld: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 93 Cumbernauld 69 – J. Forbes 21 G. Wilson 21; W. Wyles 16 P. Simpson 28; C. Falconer 27 J. Byron 12; G. Livingston 29 D. Geal 8.
The Seniors challenge has fallen off the rails with defeats in the last two matches There was a narrow defeat at Stirling, losing by two shots, but it was expected that home advantage would prove vital when Alloa visited the East Fife Stadium last Wednesday. However, it was not to be, with Alloa retuning home with a six shot victory. There were fluctuating fortunes for Bob Clark’s Four. He was the only winning skip at Stirling defeating Brem Morrison by 12 shots, but he lost by the same margin against Alloa’s Alex Deas, himself a former Fifer from Buckhaven. Details v Stirling: (Stirling skips first) Stirling 54 East Fife 52 – B. Morrison 5 R. Clark 17; J. Binnie 18 J. Rodgers 11; J. Carroll 11 W. Wyles 15; H. Petrie 20 J. K. Watson 9. Details v Alloa: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 63 Alloa 69 – J. Rodgers 12 S. Harris 13; G. Gillies 21 A. Aitken 12; R. Clark 12 A. Deas 24; W. Wyles 18 D. Fletcher 20. In the Headwell Team Championship, East Fife lost on all four rinks against Portobello, while the Under 35 Team face an uphill task against West Lothian on Sunday, after losing the 1st leg 8-2. East Fife’s only winner was Raymond Whyte, who defeated Tommy Mann by a single shot. (Bob Dick – 25/11/07)
East Fife News Since the last report, there have been two outstanding performances from the Men’s side of the Club. Firstly, it was the turn of Kevin Bunting who qualified for the Scottish Young Masters Final on Friday 30th November. He won all his Section matches to qualify for the Quarter Finals, and then went on to defeat Bainfield and Blantyre to book his Final place. His Final takes place along with the televised Scottish Masters Competition, and is played at Perth. This is the second successive season that an East Fife player has qualified, and in last season’s Final, Christopher Stein lost against Gary Malcolmson (Stirling). On Sunday past it was the turn of the East Fife Senior Four of George Watson, Andy Thomson, J. K. Watson and Willie Wyles to reach the Semi-Finals of the National Championships. The matches were played over two Sundays at Falkirk and on the first day, they defeated the home Club, 13-9 and Stirling 13-10. They followed up these victories with a one shot victory over Balbardie (11-10) and completed their task with a 15-12 win over John Summer’s Bainfield Four.In the Inter-Club matches, the Ladies are showing excellent form, and must be the favourites to qualify from their Section. They boast a 100% record after wins at Perth (77-74) and Abbeyview (88-62), followed by a home victory against Headwell (108-55) and another away victory at Alloa (91-73).The Men have completed the first half of their programme with four wins out of five, and are level on points with Falkirk and Cumbernauld at the top of the table. The second half of their Section gets underway on Saturday, where a difficult encounter is envisaged when they travel to meet Tweedbank. The Club’s Senior League Section is also tight, with Falkirk holding a slender one-point advantage over Perth, Alloa and East Fife. In the sixth series played eight days ago, East Fife travelled to Falkirk and earned a 50-50 draw. Yesterday was another away day for the team and again there was nothing to separate the teams, but, on this occasion, they went down by two shots at Stirling. Details v Stirling: (Stirling skips first) Stirling 54 East Fife 52 – B. Morrison 5 R. Clark 17; J. Binnie 18 J. Rodgers 11; J. Carroll 11 W. Wyles 15; H. Petrie 20 J. K. Watson 9.
The Junior team have also got into a winning habit despite being a more inexperienced team this season. They opened with a win on all four rinks at Headwell for a 9-0 victory, and followed up with a 7-2 win at West Lothian, which is not normally a happy hunting ground for young Fife teams. The only team to lose was Christopher Stein, who finished one shot behind after a firing shot, rather than ditching the jack, put the jack out of the rink to leave the score as at the previous end. Details: (West Lothian skips first) West Lothian 2 pts (38 shots) East Fife 7 pts (55 shots) – L. Gilliland 9 C. Millar 19; R. Hutchison 11 C. Stein 10; S. McMaster 10 K. Fleming 13; G. Ramsay 8 L. Gordon 13. (Bob Dick – 15/11/07)
East Fife News The Seniors lost at Alloa last Wednesday, but returned to winning form against Abbeyview today, although there was not much to separate the teams. Against Alloa, East Fife had only one winner, John Rodgers, who defeated A. McAllister by five shots. A three shot defeat for Willie Wyles, a five shot loss for Bob Clark and a 17 shot defeat for Dave Watson gave Alloa a 20 shot victory. Against Abbeyview, two of the matches were drawn with Willie Wyles and John Rodgers sharing the spoils against John Graham and Dunc Lawson respectively. Bob Clark lost by two shots, leaving the star man to be J. K. (Soapy) Watson, who finished ten shots ahead of John Guthrie. Details v Alloa (Alloa skips first) Alloa 70 East Fife 50 – A. McAllister 12 J. Rodgers 17; A. Deas 28 D. A. Watson 11; D. Fletcher 16 W. Wyles 13; D. Cairns 14 R. Clark 9. Details v Abbeyview (East Fife skips first) East Fife 70 Abbeyview 62 – J. K. Watson 26 J. Guthrie 16; J. Rodgers 14 D. Lawson 14; W. Wyles 15 J. Graham 15; R. Clark 15 J. Clews 17.
The Men’s team opened their Scottish League fixtures with a home win against Tweedbank. Colin Falconer’s Four were instrumental in the 20 shot victory, because they won by that margin against M. Thin. Jimmy Forbes added a nine shot success against Alister White, and Willie Wyles defeated Neil McNally by four shots. Glen Livingston lost his match by 13 shots against Kenny Johnstone. Details: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 90 Tweedbank 70 – C. Falconer 30 M. Thin 10; J. Forbes 28 A. White 19; W. Wyles 22 N. McNally 18; G. Livingston 10 K. Johnstone 23. (Bob Dick – 10/10/07)
East Fife News East Fife have made a good start to the Indoor League season, with a win for the Seniors at home against Stirling and a win for the Ladies at Perth. The Seniors set the ball rolling last Wednesday, when Stirling were visitors to East Fife Stadium. East Fife won on three of the four rinks, with the other match drawn. Two of the wins by Willie Wyles and Dave Watson were by two shots, but John Rodgers put East Fife well out of reach after finishing 22 shots ahead of John Carroll. Details: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 68 Stirling 42 – R. Clark 14 B. Morrison 14; W. Wyles 15 R. Kennedy 13; J. Rodgers 25 J. Carroll 3; D. A. Watson 14 H. Petrie 12. Perth Ladies are fairly invincible on their own carpet, so you can imagine the East Fife delight when they edged out their opponents by three shots. Alice Fyall, with an eight shot victory over Norma Bright and Julie Sword with a two shot success over Ina West, did just enough to compensate for Lynn Stein’s one shot defeat against Evelyn McGarvie and Cath Bain’s six shot defeat from Maureen Morrison. Details: (Perth skips first) Perth 74 East Fife 77 – N. Bright 15 A. Fyall 23; I. West 22 J. Sword 24; E. McGarvie 15 L. Stein 14; M. Morrison 22 C. Bain 16.
Three of the East Fife Juniors took part in the Scottish Young Indoor Bowlers Association National Trial at Bainfield today (Sunday). They were Christopher Stein, Kevin Bunting and Lesley Gordon. 48 young bowlers took part and 24 of these will be selected to play against their outdoor counterparts, the SYBA, on Sunday 21st October.
Gary Mackie made a valiant effort to reach the Semi-Finals of the National Singles at Midlothian. He started off with a 21-9 win over Livie Bell (Newton Stewart), then defeated a promising young bowler from Arbroath, Phil Nicoll, 21-18. A 21-9 win over Mark Davidson (Inverness) put him in the last eight, but Gary fell at this hurdle against Scott Kennedy (East Lothian). Although Gary lost 21-13, he did play well, and was unlucky to lose by a margin of eight shots. (Bob Dick – 30/09/07)
Fife NewsThe Fife champions for both men and women have been decided. In the Men’s events, Thornton retained their Singles crown with a different entry from 2006. Stevie West was the holder and Kenny Balfour became the new Champion when he defeated Neil Reekie (St Monans) 21-11. The Junior title went to Jason Brand, (Abbeyview) playing on his own green, easily defeating Methil’s 12 year old, Christopher Millar. Methil did win the Triples when Billy Laing, Willie Wyles and Alan Hill defeated R. Morgan (Lumphinnans) 21-10 and Fair Isle Pair, Sean and Brian Selkirk, registered a decisive 24-7 victory over Richard Liddle and Peter Russell (Newport). A last bowl effort from Davie Fell (St Andrews), who teamed up with Wray McArthur, Tony McDermott and Andrew Bell, earned his side a 15-14 victory in the Senior Fours over Kirkcaldy Victoria (W. Ormiston, J. Hutchison, J. Gray and T. Herd). In the Fours, the Duffus Park team of Dale Wilson, Bill Chalmers, John McIntyre and David Smeaton were dominant against the Balgonie team of David Leitch, Sandy Grubb, Laurie Swan and David McLean with a 20-7 victory.
In the Fife Ladies played at Kinghorn, there was a winning double for the Strathmiglo club, with wins in the Pairs and the Junior Singles. Moira Horsburgh and Marion Davie defeated Mary McKay and Esther Beattie (Cowdenbeath) 22-17 in the Pairs, while Lorraine Gordon won a close contest, 21-19, against Clair Ewing (Abbeyview). The Singles went to the Anstruther Club when Alice Fyall defeated Betty Headrick (Dunfermline) 21-12. There was mixed fortunes for the Lochgelly with a win in the Fours and a defeat in the Triples. Janet Wright, Isabel Adamson, Isa Watson and Margo Mitchell were the Fours winners at the expense of the Ladybank team of Val Robertson, Betty McAulay, Myra Kerr and Margaret Swan, with a 16-13 victory, but Anne Bowie, Anne Donaldson and Moira Paxton lost out 18-14 against Ella Robinson, Julie Sword and Lynn Stein (Methil) in the Triples.
Markinch will be the team to represent Fife County Bowling Association in next year’s Inter-County Top Ten. In the Final against Newburgh, they got off to their customary good start in the Singles, when Wayne Hogg defeated Andy Weir 21-8. They added a Fours success when Kevin Bunting, Alex Jones, Bill Bell and Tom Young defeated Ewan McIntosh, Roger Johnston, Craig Barnett and Mark Johnston 23-13. Markinch ensured a points victory, when Stewart Milne and Calum Young shared the spoils against Derek Johnston and Blair Doig in a 16-16 draw. Newburgh gained a consolation victory when their Triple of Billy Johnston, Neil Barlow and Bruce Doig defeated Willie Fearns, Stewart McFarlane and Ryan Crawford 16-7.
The Fife Junior Nationwide Repair Centre Trophies, Christopher Stein (Methil) won the Under 16 event with a 21-19 win over Callum Crossan (Abbeyview). It was not Abbeyview’s day, as another of their competitors, Jason Brand, lost 21-20 against Blair Fleming (Denbeath) in the Under 19’s. Craig Watson (Cowdenbeath) won the Under 22 competition with a 21-14 victory over Michael Simpson (Strathmiglo).
There was a close finish in this season’s Cupar and District Seniors League. Auchtermuchty were in pole position playing their final match, but, surprisingly, lost one of their matches against Cupar. Duffus Park thanked their neighbours for their good deed as they travelled to Kinburn, won both matches and finished as League winners by one shot from their ‘Muchty rivals.
No joy for the District 7 entries in the National Championships. The Methil triple did best reaching Round 3 before losing against Willie McDonald’s Craigentinny team. Mc Donald opened up a 7-0 lead before Bruce McCall, 14 year old Christopher Stein and Mark Stenhouse scored 11 shots without reply. Craigentinny fought back to level matters at 11-11 before Methil once again went into the lead with a 3. However, a brace of 2’s sealed the match in Craigentinny’s favour. Earlier, Methil had a one shot victory over Andy Simpson (Abercorn) and a 20-6 win over Alan Muir (Govan). Craigentinny proved to be the thorn in the flesh for another District 7 team, when the Markinch Pair, Stewart Milne and Calum Young went down against Grant McLaren and Kevin McFarlane. Again the margin was by a single shot. In the 1st Round, the Markinch Pair had defeated the other Fife representatives, Jim Roxburgh and Alan Bernard (Headwell) 15-10. The only other District 7 team to gain entry into the 2nd Round was the Leven Senior Four of Hugh McPherson, Willie Dewar, Davie Robertson and Joe Hendrie, who defeated David Lees (Balerno) 19-7 before losing 19-8 against the eventual winners, Stranraer, skipped by James Stevenson. Both the Singles representatives failed to master the conditions, with Alan Pearson (Strathmiglo) losing 21-10 against Brian Gwynne (Mount Vernon) in the main event, and Blair Doig (Newburgh) losing 21-9 against Mark Kelsey (Rutherglen) in the Junior event. Unfortunately, in the Fours, skip Bill Beveridge took ill during the night and was unable to take his place in the 1st Round against the 2006 winners, Montrose. The Buckhaven team lined up Charlie Smith, Archie Johnstone, Colin Ballantyne and Robert Bryan, but they went down 24-14. (Bob Dick – 11/08/07)
East Fife News: Fife had another poor season in the Hamilton Trophy, with only one win in seven matches. In the first match at East Lothian, Fife lost by 34 shots, and yet there was some optimism as Fife held East Lothian on five rinks. On the 6th rink, evergreen Willie Wood, M.B.E. registered a 33 shot victory to give his side a comfortable victory. Any optimism was soon dispelled when the Borders visited Kirkcaldy and won on all 6 rinks, but it was Fife’s turn to return 6 winning cards when they travelled to Bainsford the following week to return a 39 shot victory against Stirling County East. Midlothian visited Duffus Park and the visitors won their first match of the season by 18 shots, and next it was the turn of Edinburgh & Leith who finished 30 shots ahead at Strathmiglo. In the Fife derby at Abbeyview, West Fife won by 14 shots, and this confirmed a good season for the West Fife team, who were lying in second equal position besides West Lothian with only one match remaining. West Fife did all they could in that last match by defeating Midlothian, but Fife could not help them to the runners-up spot, as Fife went down by 29 shots against West Lothian at Anstruther.
Fife had three players in the International trial, Gary Mackie (Kirkcaldy West End), Raymond Whyte (Burntisland) and new acquisition, Wayne Hogg, who moved from East Lothian to reside in Fife and now plays at Markinch. Unfortunately, Gary and Raymond did not make the team, but Wayne held his place at lead for Grant Logan. In the Internationals at Sighthill last week, Grant lost his first match against Clifford Craig (Ireland) by 16 shots, but scored a 19-19 draw against Robert Weale (Wales), although the Scottish Four held a 19-12 lead with only four ends remaining. In the final match against England, Logan skipped the only Scottish Four to victory with a 7 shot success over Fifer, Andy Thomson.
In the National Championships at Ayr, Allan Pearson (Strathmiglo) will represent the District in the Singles, after defeating last season’s qualifier, Peter Brown (Crail), 21-15. The Junior Singles was a repeat of last season’s Final, and once again Blair Doig (Newburgh) finished triumphant with a 21-14 win over Scott Thomson (Methilhill). Calum Young (Markinch), who qualified in the Fours last season, teamed up with Stewart Milne to win the Pairs (20-11) at the expense of Jim Guild and John Brennan (East Wemyss). The Methil Triple of Bruce McCall, youngster Christopher Stein and Mark Stenhouse defeated David McLean (Balgonie) 19-7, while the Buckhaven Four comprising Charlie Smith, Archie Johnstone, Colin Ballantyne and Bill Beveridge won easily against Andy Phin (Scotscraig). The Four face a difficult task at Ayr, as they oppose last season’s Champions, Montrose, led by Scott Murray. Another decisive winner at the District Finals was the Leven Senior Four of Hugh McPherson, Willie Dewar, Davie Robertson and Joe Hendrie. The Inter-District Final of the Mixed Pairs has also been played, and it is the District 8 winners, Heather and Gary Tate (Inverkeithing) who will travel to Ralston, Paisley, in late August. In the Final, they defeated Cupar’s Helen Vickery and Bryan Smith 22-10.
In the Inter-District Cupar/Leven area Semi-Finals of the Fife Championships, 12 year old, Christopher Millar (Methil) won his way through the Under 25’s Final after defeating Barry Colville (Newburgh) 21-6. No less impressive was Neil Reekie (St Monans) in the main Singles event defeating Adam Finnie (St Andrews) 21-10. St Andrews (Wray McArthur, Tony McDermott, Andrew Bell and Davie Fell) squeezed home 10-9 in the Senior event against Willie Donaldson (Methil), but Methil did win a second place in the Finals, when their Triple of Billy Laing, Willie Wyles and Alan Hill were well on top against Tom Robertson (Ladybank). The Duffus Park Four (Dale Wilson, Bill Chalmers, John McIntyre and David Smeaton) pulled away in the latter stages to defeat Dougie Hamilton (Leven) 14-6, while Richard Liddle and Peter Russell (Newport) came from 12-6 down to defeat Stewart and Willie Elder (Coaltown of Wemyss) 15-12.In the Fife qualifiers for the Scottish Young Bowler’s Association Championships, the winners were Christopher Stein (Methil) in the Singles, Chloe Fleming and Scott Castel (Thornton) in the Pairs and Dianne and Lesley Gordon and Paul Johnston (Strathmiglo) in the Triples. The Finals are being played in Paisley on the 11th August. (Bob Dick – 03/07/07)
East Fife News The Finals for the season concluded last weekend, with Gary Mackie, the Scottish Outdoor Internationalist, emerging as the Singles Champion, after defeating Glen Livingston 21-13. Another Internationalist, Lynn Stein, won the Ladies Singles, and in the Final against her mother, Ella Robinson, Lynn finished 21-10 ahead. The Under 25’s went to Ross Rodger, who defeated Kevin Bunting 21-4. Strangely enough, the pair met in the Boy’s Singles, where the result was reversed with Kevin winning 21-14. In a repeat of last years Girl’s Singles, Lesley Gordon just edged out sister Lorraine, 21-19. Willie Wyles retained his Senior Singles title by defeating Bob Clark 21-11. In addition to this win, Willie also won the Two Bowl Pairs with Gary Mackie, the Mixed Triples, the Senior Pairs, and further Senior Competitions, the Fours and the Open as part of the J. K. Watson combine. Lynn Stein was another to enjoy multiple successes, and added the Ladies Pairs League, the Ladies Fours and the Ladies Triples to her Singles victory.
John Callaghan appeared in three Finals, but his only success was in the Aberhill League, where he defeated Ian Moir 19-11. He went down in the National Fours 13-10 against David Bain Jnr, and in the Open League, 21-18 against Alan Tindal. There was a second victory for Tindal when he defeated Billy Laing in the Club League.
In Ladies Fours Competitions, Lena Stirling was dominant in the Aberhill League with a decisive victory over Helen Rodgers. Isa Findlay won the Club League, defeating Betty Mitchell 22-11, while the Junior event was won by Ross Rodger.
In other Pairs Competitions, the Ladies National 4 Bowls was won by Wilma Smith and Alice Fyall, who edged out Karen McAndrew and Julie Sword 14-13. Karen had better luck in the 2 Bowl event when she teamed up with Celia Smith, defeating Mary Bryan in straight sets. Celia also appeared in the Ballot Pairs along with Margaret Feechan, but they lost by 4 shots against Margaret Thomson and Ailie McAndrew. George Cunningham and David Bain Jnr, won the Men’s 4 Bowl Pairs with a 19-11 win over Dunc Blyth and Les Robertson, while in the Junior event, Ross Rodger was an easy winner against Alan Stein. Christopher Stein along with Julie Sword scored a last end 3 to pip Myra Reid and Gary Mackie 12-11 in the Mixed event.
Alice Fyall added to her National Pairs success with a victory in the equivalent Triples event, finishing 18-9 ahead of Jean Arnott. Bobby Hope made a good start in the Senior Triples, and it was just as well because John Rodgers was closing in as the match neared its conclusion. Hope held on to win 15-12. There was an exciting finish to the Men’s Triples, where Tom Pettigrew scored a 3 at the last end to tie the match against Ian Moir, then went on to score a single at the extra end for a 15-14 win. Christopher Stein won the Junior Triples with a 20-5 win over Christopher Millar, and in the Spring League, Kevin Bunting emerged as a 20-11 winner over Alan Stein.
Results: Singles Men’s – G. Mackie 21 G. Livingston 13; Ladies – L. Stein 21 E. Robinson 11; Seniors – W. Wyles 21 R. Clark 11; Under 25s – R. Rodger 21 K. Bunting 4; Boys – K. Bunting 21 R. Rodger 14; Girls - Lesley Gordon 21 Lorraine Gordon 19. Pairs: Men’s 2 Bowl – W. Wyles 2 J. Lawson 0; Men’s 4 Bowl – D. Bain Jnr. 19 L. Robertson 11; Ladies 2 Bowl – C. Smith 2 M. Bryan 0; Ladies National 4 Bowl – A. Fyall 14 J. Sword 13; Ladies Pairs League – L. Stein 28 I. Findlay 8; Ladies Ballot – A. McAndrew 18 C. Smith 14; Seniors – W. Wyles 25 J. Davies 5; Juniors – R. Rodger 28 A. Stein 4; Mixed – C. Stein 12 G. Mackie 11. Triples: Men’s – T. Pettigrew 15 I. Moir 14; Ladies National – A. Fyall 18 J. Arnott 9; Ladies Triples League – C. Smith 19 M. Bryan 15; Seniors – R. Hope 15 J. Rodgers 12; Mixed – W. Wyles 16 J. Jones 13; Juniors – C. Stein 20 C. Millar 5; Juniors Spring League – K. Bunting 20 A. Stein 11. Fours Men’s Fours – D. Bain Jnr. 13 J. Callaghan 10; Men’s Open – A. Tindal 21 J. Callaghan 18; Men’s Aberhill – I. Moir 11 J. Callaghan 19; Men’s Club – A. Tindal 17 W. Laing 15; Ladies Fours – L. Stein 22 N. Smith 8; Ladies Aberhill – L. Stirling 26 H. Rodgers 7; Ladies Club – I. Findlay 22 B. Mitchell 11; Seniors Henderson Trophy – J. K. Watson 17 R. G. Duncan 16; Seniors KO Fours – J. K. Watson 26 D. Peter 8; Seniors Open – J. K. Watson 20 A. McRobie 9; Junior Fours – R. Rodger 22 A. Stein 5. (Bob Dick – 03/05/07)
East Fife Willie Wyles has reached the Final of the Central Scotland Senior’s Championship, after defeating Alex Deas (Alloa) 21-17 in the Semi-Final at Portobello. Jackie Vallance, George Gillies and John Rodgers tried to join him, but they just lost out in the Triples, losing after an extra end against Balbardie. It was also an extra end disappointment for Lesley Gordon and Kevin Bunting in the Scottish Young Indoor Bowler’s Association National Pairs Final at Bainfield on Sunday. After winning their 3 Section games, defeating East Lothian 6-5, Blantyre 10-8 and Arbroath 21-3, they played Cumbernauld in the Final and seemed to be heading for success, when they were 4 shots ahead playing the last end. Cumbernauld skip, Allan Barrie attempted to trail the jack, knew that he was unsuccessful, but instead got the fortunate result of removing a fairly hidden East Fife bowl to collect a 4. Cumbernauld played their best end of the match at the extra end, to win the Trophy. In the East of Scotland Juniors League, East Fife finished third behind Midlothian and Abbeyview.The Final of the Fife Fours will be contested by Kirkcaldy West End and East Fife. The West End Club defeated Methil 6-1, with Dave Watson and Dave Gillespie winning for West End. Internationalist, Gary Mackie was held to a draw by Alan Hill. Two big wins for Ian Moir and Bob Clark ensured East Fife’s success against Scottish Fire, but T. Selway collected 2 points for the Fireman, after defeating Julie Sword by 6 shots. Details: East Fife v Scottish Fire (East Fife skips first) East Fife 5 pts (54 shots) Scottish Fife 2 pts (34 shots) – I. Moir 19 I. Skinner 5; R. Clark 19 J. McKillion 7; J. Sword 16 T. Selway 22. Methil v Kirkcaldy West End (Methil skips first) Methil 1 pt (34) West End 6 pts (47) – C. Falconer 13 D. Gillespie 16; A. G. Hill 12 G. Mackie 12; W. Wyles 9 D. A. Watson 19. The Final is being played on Sunday 22nd March. (Bob Dick – 16/03/07)
East Fife The Juniors have been active in Scottish Young Indoor Bowlers Competitions, and there was success in the National Pairs playdowns at Headwell for Lesley Gordon and Kevin Bunting. They started off their series with a 13-2 win over Headwell’s PatrickMcMahon and Ross Martin, and followed up with an 11-5 success against Callum Crossan and Cieran Gallacher (Abbeyview). In the final match, the East Fife Pair opposed Alloa, who were also unbeaten, although their successes had been by narrow margins. Liam Morton and Danielle Hill put up a good fight, and the match was only sealed at the penultimate end, when Kevin turned out an Alloa bowl for a 3 to lead 8-4. At the final end, Alloa were restricted to a single shot for an 8-5 East Fife victory. In contrast, the East Fife Triple of Jamie Cameron, Christopher Millar and Kevin Fleming could manage only one win from their three matches, when they defeated Alloa 6-2. Headwell’s David Duncan, Emma Waterston and Cameron McKenzie, with three wins, grabbed the qualifying spot.The next venture for the Juniors was a long journey to Auchinleck for the Top Ten Finals. In the Semi-Final, it became very clear that West Lothian would be the winners, and they finished up winning on all four rinks. Nearest to success for East Fife was Lesley Gordon and Kevin Bunting in the Pairs, finishing two shots behind C. Black and Grant Ramsay, after losing a 3 at the last end. In the 3rd/4th place play-off against Galleon, East Fife fared much better, and they were guaranteed to win on shots after Lesley and Kevin recorded a massive 36-4 win in the Pairs. Another two points were required, and these came from Ryan Watson, Andrew Thomson, Scott Bremner and Jamie Cameron in the Fours, who finished 17-12 ahead of James Donnelly. The Triple of Dianne Gordon, Shelbie Wilson and Christopher Millar were unfortunate to lose, going into the last end 11-10 down. They lay a match-winning lie, but the Galleon skip put a stop to the play when he burnt the end. In the Singles, Kevin Fleming lost his lead from the early stages, going down 21-15 against Sean McGhee. The ultimate winners were Ardrossan, who defeated West Lothian in the Final. Details v West Lothian (East Fife names first) East Fife 0 pt (31) West Lothian 8 pts (79) Singles – K. Fleming 10 L. Barratt 21; Pairs – K. Bunting 11 G. Ramsay 13; Triples – C. Millar 3 L. Gilliland 14; Fours – J. Cameron 7 G. Baldry 31. Details v Galleon (East Fife names first) East Fife 4 pts (78) Galleon 4 pts (48) Singles – K. Fleming 15 S. McGhee 21; Pairs – K. Bunting 36 D. Young 4; Triples – C. Millar 10 E. McClymont 11; Fours – J. Cameron 17 J. Donnelly 12.One of East Fife’s members, Lynn Stein, took part in the European Union Championships in Cyprus. Scotland finished 2nd in the even behind England.In the Fife Fours, Scottish Fire, East Fife, Kirkcaldy West End and Methil have qualified for the Semi-Finals. Details: Scottish Fire 5 pts (30) Balgonie 2 pts (27); East Fife 5 pts (43) Leven 2 pts (20); Kirkcaldy West End 5 pts (42) Methilhill 2 pts (36); Buckhaven 0 pt (28) Methil 7 pts (39). (Bob Dick – 05/03/07)
The good news from East Fife is that Lynn Stein, Celia Smith and Julie Sword have all been chosen to play in the Home Indoor International Series in Belfast from the 20th to the 22nd March. Lynn and Celia are both current Internationalists, and Julie represented Scotland in 2001 and 2002. The Juniors won their way into the Scottish Young Indoor Bowler’s Association Top Ten final stages after defeating Abbeyview at Abbeyview last Sunday. Starring for the East Fife team were the Singles and the Pairs participants. Christopher Stein has been in dominant form in this Competition, and made it a 3rd convincing win in a row defeating Cieran Gallacher 21-6. It was also a 3rd successive victory for Lesley Gordon and Kevin Bunting in the Pairs. It looked to be a close contest at 10-10 against Jonathon Duff, but East Fife added 10 shots without reply before losing a last end 2. However, the Triple of Dianne Gordon, Christopher Millar and Kevin Fleming and the Four of Ryan Watson, Andrew Thomson, Scott Bremner and Jamie Cameron both lost for the Clubs to share the points. The Triple played tightly losing by 4 shots, but the Four were well beaten, but they did score some shots over the final stages, and this helped East Fife to squeeze home on aggregate by 4 shots. Details: (Abbeyview skips first) Abbeyview 4 pts (51 shots) East Fife 4 pts (55 shots) – Singles – C. Gallacher 6 C. Stein 21; Pairs – J. Duff 12 K. Bunting 20; Triples – C. Crossan 13 K. Fleming 9; Fours – S. Tervit 20 J. Cameron 5.
East Fife Men’s team lost against Glasgow in the Scottish Cup to end their season. It was a disappointing performance at Alloa, with all Fours losing. Nearest to success was Glen Livingston, who went down by 2 shots against Martin Bain. Details: (Glasgow skips first) Glasgow 93 East Fife 61 – J. Boyd 25 C. Falconer 14; I. Rough 23 G. Mackie 14; I. Hudson 24 J. Forbes 14; M. Bain 21 G. Livingston 19.
1st day’s play of the Knockout stages of the Fife Fours, Scottish Fire, Balgonie, East Fife and Leven progressed to the Quarter Finals. Details: Scottish Fire 7 pts (44) Lundin Links 0 pt (20); Balgonie 4 pts (37) Markinch 3 pts (35); Dunfermline 0 pt (15) East Fife 7 pts (40); Headwell 2 pts (29) Leven 5 pts (36).( Bob Dick 17/02/07)
East Fife News The East Fife Junior team have played a further two games in the East of Scotland League, with a good home win against Abbeyview, before a disastrous 9-0 points defeat at Midlothian. Against Abbeyview, Christopher Stein, Alan Stein and Kevin Fleming all won their matches, but at Midlothian, only Christopher came close losing by one shot. Details v Abbeyview: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 7 pts (69) Abbeyview 2 pts (37) – C. Stein 20 J. Duff 7; A. Stein 23 J. Brand 4; K. Fleming 12 D. Yorkston 8; R. Rodger 14 D. Smith 18. Details v Midlothian: (Midlothian skips first) Midlothian 9 pts (74) East Fife 0 pt (27) – S. Clark 21 A. Stein 7; S. Laidlaw 12 C. Stein 11; S. Ruthven 14 R. Rodger 4; D. McDougall 27 K. Fleming 5. The East Fife Juniors are still involved in the SYIBA Top Ten, defeating Perth at home. Christopher Stein was again in good form in the Singles and he was backed up by Lesley Gordon and Kevin Bunting in the Pairs and the Four comprising Ryan Watson, Andrew Thomson, Scott Bremner and Jamie Cameron. The Triple of Dianne Gordon, Christopher Millar and Kevin Fleming lost eight singles on the trot to lose by 5 shots. Details: (East Fife teams first) East Fife 6 pts (64) Perth 2 pts (35) – Singles; C. Stein 21 L. Nicoll 7; Pairs: K. Bunting 22 R. Strachan 10; Triples: K. Fleming 7 K. Sutherland 12; Fours: J. Cameron 14 R. Orr 6. It was just as well that the East Fife,s Men team had escaped relegation when they defeated Tweedbank at the East Fife Stadium in the penultimate match, because they suffered a drubbing at Falkirk in the final match. Certainly, Falkirk had much to play for, as they could have been promoted to the Premier Division, had Balbardie slipped up at Fintry, but there was to be no such mistake from the Bathgate Club, and they move up next season to the elite Division. Against Tweedbank, East Fife had three winning Fours, skipped by Glen Livingston, Jimmy Forbes and Colin Falconer, but Falconer was the only skip to grab a consolation victory at Falkirk. Details v Tweedbank: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 89 Tweedbank 70 – W. Wyles 15 A. White 28; J. Forbes 27 N. Amos 16; C. Falconer 17 M. Finn 14; G. Livingston 30 N. McNally 12. Details v Falkirk: (Falkirk skips first) Falkirk 106 East Fife 61 – J. Mackie 24 J. Forbes 13; S. Thomson 17 C. Falconer 24; W. Banham 30 W. Wyles 13; D. McClue 35 G. Livingston 11.
The Ladies disappointed at Alloa, where the hosts won for a first time, but they were in excellent form against the Section winners. Perth, when they visited East Fife Stadium for the final League fixture. Significant wins for Celia Smith and Lynn Stein earned the Club a 29 shot victory. Details v Perth: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 89 Perth 60 – C. Smith 28 N. Bright 9; J. Sword 18 I. West 18; L. Stein 28 M. Morrison 14; A. Fyall 15 E. McGarvie 19.
East Fife were eliminated from the Scottish Team Championship, when they lost against Stirling at Headwell. Willie Wyles skipped the Four to East Fife’s only success. Details: (East Fife teams first) East Fife 2 pts (59) Stirling 6 pts (72) – Singles: R. Whyte 11 D. McCormick 21; Pairs: G. Mackie 17 I. Carnachan 18; Triples: A. Stein 12 B. Stillie 18; Fours: W. Wyles 19 J. Binnie 15.
The Seniors lost against Alloa in the 1st Round of the Scottish Cup at Headwell, with both teams having two winning Fours. Willie Wyles and J. K. Watson were the East Fife winners with Alex Deas and Davie Cairns countering for Alloa, winning on aggregate by 4 shots. Details: (East Fife skips first) East Fife 63 Alloa 67 – R. Clark 9 D. Cairns 23; J. Rodgers 14 A. Deas 18; W. Wyles 16 R. Erskine 14; J. K. Watson 24 D. Fletcher 12.The remaining qualifiers for the Fife Fours have been determined. Buckhaven and Balgonie qualified from Section 7 and Methil and Lundin Links from Section 8. (Bob Dick – 05/02/07)