2008 FINALS.

Our Finals Weekend was held on 6 and 7 December and despite gloomy weather forecasts, the elements were kind to us and all the games were played.

The Classic Shield was won by Linda Ryan who also won the Waldron Cup with her partner Ann Holborn, a last-minute substitute replacing Glenda Morgan. The other half of the Morgans, Peter, won the Pendreich Cup with Alistair Colliar. The Marina mixed doubles cup was won by Martin McMillan and Diane Roberts and Irene Owen won the Atlantic Shield 2 bowls competition. Geoff Gardner came out top in the Classic Plate, the President's Trophy went to Pat Ryan and Brian painter won the Cup of Good Hope so we had one new name on a trophy.

Prior to the Finals Day, our new bench seating area was formally opened by Tom Owen. The benches were the idea of Martin McMillan and there is now a nice little plaque fixed to one of the benches thanking him for all his hard work.

SOCIAL DIARY.

John Warner continues to do a sterling (or should that be a euro now) job of providing us with a wide range of activities. 2008 concluded with a a games night with teams competing against each other at Darts, Dominoes, Connect 4, Backgammon and the noisy game of Jenga.

We had 73 people at our Dinner Dance. The food was good, it was even hot, and the service was excellent so the Aliathon is now firmly back on the list of recommended locations for functions. The €35 per head included the drinks and the bar was open from before 7 pm so dancers/drinkers didn't have to pay €4.50 per drink usually paid whilst waiting to get into the function room. Martin McMillan was booked to supply the music but at the last minute had to drop out. Fortunately (Wicked) Wendy Norman was able to provide the correct music facilities to make the evening go with a swing. The New Year's Eve in the club house was cancelled due to lack of support.

Alan Piper will be running the whist nights on 8 and 22 January and in February, if sufficient support is shown Ten Pin Bowling and possibly a Horse Racing Evening in late Feb or early March will be held. Notices have been put up in the club house.

ALL-CYPRUS OPEN BOWLING COMPETITION.

The first all-Cyprus Open Bowling competition was held last Sunday organised by Alistair Colliar at the Aliathon Bowling Club in Paphos. The Aliathon Village Complex sponsored the event which offered 750 euros prize money

Teams of 3 bowlers entered from all the Clubs in Cyprus enjoying a well organised day and wonderful social event for the 70 plus players present.

The winners were; Anna Clarke, Myrah Manders and Jim Campbell (Aliathon Club) who defeated Diane Roberts,Peter Roberts & Colin Smith in the Final event and won €100 each in the process.

A runners-up section was won by Steve Horrocks,Rod & Marjorie Healy (Aliathon Club) who beat Loukas Paraskeva, Roger & Gilly Moore ( Aphrodite Club, Erimi). The Aliathon team won €40 each and Club Aphrodite didn't go away empty handed either.Good to see that it wasn't a complete Aliathon carve-up as it's intended to repeat this highly successful event next year and we want the other clubs to keep entering it.

NINETEEN BOWLERS BACK SAFE (AND WELL?) FROM ISRAEL.

Just as they were counted onto the bus at the Aliathon when their trip began on 13th October, so to were they counted back off the bus 11 days later. Some looked fresh, some were tired, some couldn’t remember whether they were tired or not but all of them said they’d had a great time.

I asked them if the Israeli bowlers were friendly and helpful. “Mostly very friendly.” said co-organiser John Warner. “Some of the older men were a little touchy. The ladies were very good and the tea and biscuits were very good.” (I haven’t yet found a woman who was complaining about the older men so maybe it was only John who had the problem!!!)

When asked what effect the tour had on the Israeli drinks industry, he did say that he thought the bar girl had bought a new car with her overtime payments. Tina Woodcock suggested that the amount of money spent at the bar was reflected by the gift of a bottle of wine to everyone on the last night. “Some bottles were consumed immediately,” she confided, but without naming names.

I asked if the Israelis were noisy bowlers or whether they were a bit quiet like we are. “At times we could only just hear Kitty so they were pretty loud,” was one reply. And what were the bowling conditions like? “For many of us this was our first experience of playing on grass and to reach the jack (or kitty as the Israeli's called it) took a lot more effort and you had to find a tighter line. Other than that the conditions were fine, said Tina.

The Aliathon bowlers played 4 games, two 'serious' games being drawn. Our tour captain acting in the best traditions agreed to mix the teams to allow as many of our hosts to play as possible so the other two games involved us joining in their club roll ups.

The team were based in Netanya and in addition to exploring that town, they also went on trips to the Dead Sea and Massada, Jerusalem, Nazareth and Haifa. They seem to have been as entertaining as the matches and tours which the group were involved in during the day. Charades was a firm favourite with Dave Girling getting a mention for being “pretty fast”.

When asked about learning points the organisers had obviously given serious though to this question. “Take plenty of booze with you. Don't sit next to Kitty or John Woodcock when playing ‘What's in the Bag’, better still leave it at home. If playing dominoes always carry a large hanky. Try to smile when contributing to John Warner’s card school.”

Where and when the next tour is to be has still to be decided, part of the problem being the lack of bowling places you can travel to direct from Cyprus. At the moment though, suggestions ranging from as far north as Scotland and as far south as South Africa have been received.

The Aliathon men got their "owen" back this year at the Chauvinist Cup. The spoils were even in the two singles games with John Woodcock, the current Gents Champion beating Ladies Champion Linda Ryan by a narrow margin. In the two bowls singles, Diane Roberts won against Peter "Pedro" Bridger. The Gents Triples team of Ben Hebdige, Geoff Gardner and Pat Ryan put up a good fight but eventually lost to Irene Owen, Tina Woodcock and Meike Meijer. The Full Rinks got revenge for the men, Martin McMillan's team with Keith Stacey, Jim Campbell and Ken Edwards finishing with a few more shots than their feminine counterparts of Marjorie Healy, Barbara Piper, Sol Robertson and Eunice Warner.

That left the contest tied with 2 wins for the men and two for the "others" but the Pairs had still to reach its thrilling climax. In the early middle and latter stages of the game Alistair Colliar and Roger Humphrey had struggled to keep up with the bowling of Anna Clarke and Myra Overy but a late surge in the last 3 ends gave them victory and left the ladies with little else to do but pick their noses as the photo of the trophy being presented to Men's captain and hero Alistair Colliar clearly shows.

After that there was another very successful BBQ with the cooking being done by hard working John Warner and his chef de cuisine Tom Owen. Thanks to all those involved including Tina Woodcock, Eunice Warner, Yvonne Horrocks and Sarah Mulvanny for doing whatever it was they did with the salad, which was deeelicious.

The last BBQ had 52 and a half people. This one was even bigger with 54 people attending. The next one probably won't be until Spring 2009 but the Club will need to invest in some more plates and cutlery if the numbers attending BBQ's get much bigger!!!

ALIATHON CRUSADERS HEAD OFF FOR THE HOLY LAND.

Nineteen people left the shores of Cyprus on Monday 13th October to take on the bowlers of Israel. Our intrepid bunch, some of whom may have been going as much for the pre- and post-bowls activities as the prospect of bowling at "international" level were sailing from Limassol to Haifa and then travelling by coach to their base at Netanya. They return on 24 October.

This is the first club tour for a good many years and hopefully it will be the first of many annual trips.

In the first photo, Diane Roberts is asking co-organiser John Warner how many more bags she can bring with her.

New Years Eve Party.

At the September Committee meeting, a discussion was held on the possibility of a New Year's Eve Party being held in the clubhouse. It was agreed that before further consideration was given to this, members would be asked whether or not they were interested in such an event - see the notice board for details

PRESIDENT'S TEAM SLUMPS TO SHOCK DEFEAT ON OPENING DAY!

The new bowling season got underway on Saturday 30 August following a long hot summer, although the reality was that the summer has decided it isn't finished yet. Forty bowlers and competed in 5 Full Rinks matches. A smaller number than in the past and just think, if we'd had another two bowlers, we could have played triples.

Despite the President having picked a very strong team, the Vice President's team took the lead after the first round - and stayed there till the end. The individual winners were Ray Wilson, Megan Fox, Maureen Harley and Peter Roberts and the runners-up team consisted of Tom "Bomber" Handley, John Woodcock, Kitty Colliar and a newcomer to the Club (although by his own admission a very experienced bowler) Ray Wright. Many thanks to Match Secretary Irene Owen for organising the event.

Vice-Presidents team receive their trophy from the president.
Just look how tight the President is gripping it!

The draw has also been made for the various knock-out competitions and the Shirley and Ivan Triples League will be starting shortly. This gives us another chance to show that the Aliathon is the top Bowling club in Cyprus.

John Warner, Social Secretary is canvassing the opinion of people as to what sort of social activities they want to see at the club. Help him out by putting your views on a notice which he has put up in the clubhouse. Amongst his suggestions are quiz nights, cards/darts/dominoes, whist night, a trip to the races, a "cultural" visit to the Keo Brewery in Limassol and of course our Christmas dance. And that's just for the first half of the year. A car treasure hunt is also a possibility for an exciting and interesting social agenda.

B.B.Q A BIG SUCCESS

A BBQ organised by new Social Secretary John Warner, to celebrate the end of the Summer Pairs League was a great success. Thursday 21 August was the last night of the League which had run for 14 weeks and the trophy was won by Tina Woodcock, Brian Vardy and Ray Wilson.

Over 50 people stayed behind to see the presentation of the trophy and to have some food. Most were well stuffed for the miserly sum of €5 and Tony Davey was happy to report that over 150 cans of Keo were drunk. Well that's how many were sold (although someone did think it was a good idea to bring their own beer!!!)

The Match Secretary, Irene Owen, was presented with a bouquet of flowers for organising the League and the Yardstick competition which had finished a few weeks earlier.

Many thanks are due to all those who were involved in preparing food and doing the cooking. In addition to John Warner, creit is due to his wife Eunice, Tina and John Woodcock, Tom Owen, Ken Edwards and I hope I haven't missed anybody.

By the time the food was served, it was slightly dark (the light - not the food) and if we are to hold another similar event in the future, we will have to look at that aspect. It did mean though that the diners couldn't be 100% sure what they were eating. Was that a good thing?

The winning team with their trophy

A DATE FOR YOUR DIARY.

Although Christmas is still many months away, arrangements are starting to be made for the Club’s Annual Christmas Dinner Dance. This year it will be held at the new entertainment centre at the Aliathon Holiday Village on Saturday, 13th December – further details will be available during November but the date can be put in your diary now!

ENROL A NEW MEMBER AND GET YOUR SUBSCRIPTION REPAID.

The number of members has been falling steadily over the past few years. The reasons for this may be various; the advent of Coral Bay, the building work, people being put off by the unhelpful attitude of experienced bowlers. Whatever the cause, we need to do something about it.

A recent committee meeting decided to introduce a scheme whereby Club members who introduce new Full or Country members to the Club will have their €12 Club Subscription refunded. Enrol 2 new members and get €24 euros back and so on.

The new member is “enrolled” when he or she pays the fees to join the Club. The Club member who will be regarded as having enrolled them can be a Full, Country or Social Member. Club rules currently prohibit anyone other than Full Members proposing new members. The application form has therefore been amended to show “Enrolling Member” as well as Proposer and Seconder. It may be that in the case of Full members, the enrolling member is also the Proposer.

BOWLS CO-ORDINATOR.

Mike Wilson, Bowls Co-ordinator of the Aliathon Holiday Village has resigned from the post which is now vacant. Further information will be provided if/when it becomes available.

2008 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.

The Club’s 2008 AGM was held on Sunday, 30th May at the Venus Beach Hotel in Paphos. 56 members attended what was a very quiet meeting until the subject of Selection came up in the Open Forum!

Before the Open Forum the retiring President, Peter Morgan, submitted his report and referred to the club’s successes in the national competitions and the funds that had been raised at the Charity Day. The Treasurer, Martin McMillan, then submitted his report on the year’s accounts and the auditor’s report. This year he was most surprised when no one raised any questions on the interesting issue of income & expenditure, balance sheets, etc.

Martin, then came to the thorny subject of membership costs for 2008/9, but again he was pleasantly surprised when members agreed unanimously to his suggestions.

Then followed the report from the Secretary, Roger Humphrey, who talked about the increasing use of e.mail for keeping club members up to date.

After the Secretary’s report Peter handed over the Presidency to Steve Horrocks and wished him every success in his year of office. The club’s officers and Committee Members were then appointed – there was no requirement for any elections.

The Auditor, Selection Committee and nominations for Bowls Cyprus Council Members were then appointed – again with very little debate. Even the six motions submitted by the retiring Committee only generated a small amount of debate on one or two of the motions.

And then came the Open Forum and when the subject of Selection was raised everyone woke up and nearly all 56 members present were wanting to speak and speak they did – the true nature of AGMs.

KINGFISHERS TRIUMPH IN BOWLS CYPRUS TENS LEAGUE.

The Aliathon Kingfishers were clear winners in the Bowls Cyprus Tens League 2008 finishing with a total of 123 points, well ahead of the next team the Louis Phaethon Larks who had 85 points. Aliathon's "other" team, the Herons (who picked these names?) didn't do too badly either finishing 5th.

Hopefully next year we will be able to put in three teams. For that, we really need a minimum of 45 players, at least 12 of whom must be ladies

DIDN'T WE DO WELL.

More success for Aliathon bowlers at the Bowls Cyprus Finals held at Louis Phaethon Bowling Club on Saturday 31 May and Sunday 1 June. The prizes were presented by Bowls Cyprus President, Roger Shire. Next year, the finals will be held at our own club and by then, our own Linda Ryan will be President of Bowls Cyprus. Well done everyone!!

A total of twenty club members depart by ferry to Heifa on the 15th October, then by bus to the Galil hotel in Netanga.

During our tour it is our intention to play two games in Netanga and one game in Heifa. The remaining days will be for sightseeing and relaxation.

We return to Cyprus on the 24th october.

PRESENTATION NIGHT - 23 MAY 2008

It was after one o'clock when the last stragglers left the Venus Beach Hotel after the presentation night. 87 people attended and had a great time, possibly assisted by the fact that the drinks were included in the overall price of €18 per person! The food was excellent, the service was quick and efficient but it has to be said that some of the dancing did leave a bit to be desired.

Our thanks to Baz Carter, outgoing Social Secretary, for all his hard work and effort in ensuring that the night was a success. Several of the club's sponsors were there, including Ian Cunningham of Tala Bowl who are going to be the new sponsors of the Emily Shield, thanks to Roger Howe's effort in wooing him (?). A cheque for well over €3,000 was handed over to the Friends of the Paphos Hospice during the evening. All the winners received their trophies and engraved glasses were presented to them and the runners up. As usual, Irene Owen (ably assisted by Tom) put in a power of work to make sure that the presentation itself went smoothly. Also present were representative of Fraser McKinlay, the main sponsors of the Charity Day, Blevins Franks and Maispa Builders.

CHARITY DAY NETS OVER €3,000

The Friends of the Paphos Hospice benefited to the tune of €3,394 as a result of the fund-raising activities before, during and after the President's Charity Day. Those of you were there may remember that the President's team played the Past President's team and that the main sponsors of the event were Fraser McKinlay who donated €3.50 for each person who played on the day. Our thanks to those players from Coral Bay and Phaethon who helped to make it a big turn out.

Other major sponsors were Papantoniou Supermarket (Central), Theo's Gift Cellar, Basillica Court, Pafos, A & G Candles, SVELTO Kiosk, Tombs of the Kings Road who all donated prizes for the tombola.

The President thanked everybody involved and handed over the cheque to the charity at the Presentation Night, held at the Venus Beach Hotel.

HONG KONG SUCCESS (March 08)

Some of you may know that one of our members, Roger Humphrey, went to Hong Kong with three other bowlers from Cyprus. They had entered as a team of four in three different competitions, an International Mixed Fours, the Tiger Bowls Tournament and the China Open. Roger went with Mike Cooper and Dave Webb from Coral Bay and George Walker, the current Cypriot Men’s Champion who plays at Club Aphrodite in Erimi.

They finished in a very respectable 58th position out of 78 countries who took part but as Roger says “The highlights were beating Australia B in the Tiger Bowls and in the China Open we pulled off a major surprise by beating Scotland A, one of the fancied teams.”

The web-site of The Hong Kong Lawn Bowls Association contains all the information. Roger also says “Fantastic experience though very, very hard on grass!”