GREAT RESULTS FROM WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP PREQUEL.
Wales will be hosting the World Championshipas in Field Archery in September
2008 and so given the enormity of the task, Pentref Bowmen decided to have
a rehearsal last week to test all the arrangements that hopefully will be
ready to go next year. Many of the best archers were there including Dave
Cousins from the USA as well as teams from Norway and Slovenia. The unmarked
round was shot on Pentref’s steep slopes and the second day was shot
at St. Fagin’s Open air folk museum where the finals will be shot next
September. All went well including the transport where archers were driven
in minibuses from the airport to Glamorgan University where all the athletes
will stay next year. The large crowd at the Open Air Museum were also treated
to an unexpected spectacle when archers appeared to shoot the final round.
Ballyvally archers did well with Philip Fitzpatrick finishing second being
beaten only by a Slovenian! In the later knock-out competition Philip won!
Amy Lavery was shooting with Amy Oliver from Yorkshire and Naomi Folkard.
Amy Oliver has just recently won the World Championships in Croatia and Naomi
shot in the Olympic games so Amy was in good company.. Amy Lavery must have
been inspired by them as she shot a Personal Best of 517 to win the junior
girls section. Mark Nesbitt was slightly down on his usual score but still
managed too finish 3rd in boys’ freestyle with 583 while his father
Robert Nesbitt finished a very credible 10th with 488. With 3 members [Peter
Mulligan, Philip Fitzpatrick and Mark Nesbitt] on the British Team for the
European Champs in Croatia this year, Northern Ireland archers will soon start
training to see if we can get 4 or 5 on the team for the World’s next
year.
175 in OUTDOOR LEAGUE.
Ballyvally Archery club have set themselves a ambitious target of 200 archers
to shoot in the outdoor league this year. 133 archers shot in the club’s
league last year and the club is making a determined effort to get archers
out of the comfort of the Leisure Centre into the woods. It has not been a
good summer for outdoors but to date 175 have come out! In the junior section
[boys] Dean Hamilton is leading with 19 points while Peter Lavery and Mark
Hamilton are sitting 2nd on 15 points. In joint 3rd place are Taylor Masterson
and Ewan Lynas both on 13 points. In the girls section, Ciara Dunleavy leads
with 15 points but she is only 1 point ahead of Amy Lavery on 14. In the gents
section, Nigel Hamilton leads on 15 points ahead of Michael Masterson on 11,
and Rune Naeri and Damien Lennon both on 8. Adele Lynas leads the ladies section
with 17 points followed by Valerie Sleith on 14, Ashley Russell-Cowan and
Marion Patterson both on 11.Ballyvally’s next outdoor shoot will be
on Sunday 16th September in Castlewellan Forest Park starting at 10.00am.