XIV NATWEST ISLAND GAMES

Isle of Wight 2011 (25 June – 1 July)

Isle of Man pull four golds clear

The Isle of Man  secured golds in clay target, cycling and golf to knock Jersey out of second spot in the table – and time is running out for them to respond.

Squash gold for Taylors

Husband and wife Nick and Sarah Taylor won mixed squash doubles gold this afternoon, beating Cayman’s Malton Blair and Marlene West 2-1 in the final.

Brilliant finish to track campaign

Jersey’s ladies won the 4 x 400 metre gold in the final event of the athletics meeting, with Gemma Dawkins crossing the line after legs from Hazel Le Cornu, Claire Wilson and Sophie Twinam.

Duquemin gets gold again – but it’s in Gateshead

Shadine Duquemin, Jersey’s 16-year-old double gold medallist in the Isle of Wight, made it three this week with gold in the discus this morning – but it won’t go on the Island Games table. Shadine set a tremendous personal best of 46.88 to win the National Schools title at the Gateshead Stadium after leaving the games last night.

Footballers come from behind to win bronze

Jersey beat Aland 5-1 to secure the footballing bronze medal at Brading FC today, despite falling a goal behind.

Battling bronze for Jersey relay squad

Jersey’s ladies lifted what has been a low key final session at the athletics track with a tremendous effort to gain third place in the 4 x 100 final at Fairways.

Jersey knocked back to third place

A brilliant Games record-breaking run from the Isle of Man’s Keith Gerrard in the 1,500 metres gave his island the gold they needed to knock Jersey out of second place in the overall table.

Jersey duo reach final

Table tennis pair Kay Febvre and Kelsey Le Maistre beat Gotland’s Carlsson and Schwartz in the semi-final of the women’s doubles in Ryde this morning and will play Guernsey’s Alice Loveridge and Dawn Morgan in the final later today

Early blow at the athletics track

Jersey’s medal hopes on the final day of the track and field event were hit when injury forced Elliott Dorey out of both the 1,500m and 4 x 400 relay. Jersey have withdrawn  from the relay final this morning.

Bronze turns to silver for Wilson

Claire Wilson finished third in the 800 metres final, but a disqualification  meant she was upgraded to the silver medal position at Fairway this evening.

Battling bronze for Twinam, gold for Duquemin

Defending champion Sophie Twinam won bronze in the 400m hurdles at Fairway tonight, while Shadine Duquemin broke the championship record with her first throw in the discus, to take her second throwing gold of the games.

Two squash golds have Jersey chasing second spot

Two squash gold medals at Westridge have pushed Team Jersey to within one gold of taking over second place in the overall table from the Isle of Man. The wins came in the doubles, with Kate Cadigan and Sarah Taylor winning the women’s event and Mark Le Roux and Michael Hopkins the men’s.

Football: Jersey to play Aland for bronze

Jersey lost their Island Games title when they went down 1-0 to hosts Isle of Wight at Cowes FC this afternoon. They will now face Aland for the bronze medal tomorrow morning as Guernsey beat the Baltic islanders 3-2 to make the final against the hosts at Newport tomorrow afternoon.

New championship best for Jersey duo

Hot shots Mary Norman and Nicki Holmes won their second gold medal as a pair this afternoon in finishing the 25m sport pistol 85 points in front of second-placed Guernsey pair Tara Laine and Rebecca Margetts. The Jersey score of 1,106 was an Island Games record, beating the mark of 1,033 set by Norman and Jennifer Ward in Aland two years ago. 

Jersey athletes qualify for finals

IT’S been a good morning session for Jersey’s athletes at Fairham, with Sam Dawkins the happiest by far in qualifying for the 400m final. He finished fourth in 49.75 sec, one of his goals for the Games being to break 50 seconds. Also qualifying, with ease, in the other semi-final was Peter Irving, in third place, in 49.84 sec. Elliott Dorey, bronze medal winner in the 800m needed a sprint finish to seal an automatic place in tomorrow’s 1,500m final, with third place in 4.11.70

Greens get better of Reds

Jersey’s volleyball ladies slumped to the bottom of Group B after losing 3-2 to Guernsey at Fairway this morning, a reversal of the inter-insular result. Guernsey had previously occupied the bottom position, though on equal points with Jersey. Jersey will now play-off for ninth spot with the bottom side in Group A, either Hitra or Gibraltar.

Bronze medal mystery for cyclists

The bronze medal the Jersey men’s cycling team were awarded after the town criterium on Sunday has now been awarded to the team from Saaremaa. Offiicals are hoping to find out exactly how that occured at a technical meeting today before the start of the time trials.

Agony for volleyballers

Jersey have been pipped for a semi-final spot by Cayman Islands, the side they beat 3-2 in their final match. Cayman’s second match of the day produced a 3-0 victory over Isle of Wight and they squeeze past Jersey by having a better sets ratio.

O’Sullivan strikes gold

Lucy O’Sullivan won the ladies’ individual head-to-head compound competition at Newclose Cricket Ground, beating Aailin George of the Isle of Man in the final.

Another gold for the squash camp

Jersey’s Nick Taylor won the individual singles title at Westridge tonight, with Michael Hopkins claiming bronze. Sarah Taylor took silver in the women’s competition.

First gold in the pool

Emily Bashforth, Beth Cumming, Ebony Jacklin and Maria Kocott won Jersey’s first gold in the pool tonight, putting in a great performance in the women’s 4 x 100 metre relay.

Ward on the gold trail again

Pistol shot Dave Ward struck gold for Jersey in the ISSF 25m standard pistol event at Downend today, beating Gibraltar’s Jon Patron on centre bulls after the pair tied on 547 ex 600.

Brilliant comeback for Jersey volleyballers

One of Jersey volleyball’s greatest victories has put them on the verge of qualifying for the semi-finals for the first time since 1995 in Gibraltar. Jersey battled back from two sets down to win 3-2 and will make the last four if Cayman fail to beat Isle of Wight 3-0 in their final match.

Medal number five for Norman

Mary Norman secured her fifth shooting medal of the Games today when she and Sarah Pallot won silver in the NRSA 100 yard prone rifle team event at Downend. Pallot has now won three silvers – with more medal chances to come.

Jersey athletes progress in front of a prince

Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, attended the athletics this morning on the first day of his visit to the NatWest Island Games, and witnessed the following Jersey athletes progress: Peter Irving won his 400m heat to progress to the semi-finals as did Sam Dawkins; Claire Wilson eased into the 800m final; and Robbie Stenhouse ran well to reach the next round of the 100m heats.

Double gold for Ashton and Co

Kim Ashton, a bronze medal winner in the town criterium, won double gold in the cycling road race today, claiming the individual title on the southern coast of the Isle of Wight and also sharing in team gold with Jo Le Cocq and Sue Townsend.

Brilliant bronze for Dorey

17-year-old Hautlieu student Elliot Dorey produced a superb finish to claim the bronze medal in a thrilling 800m final at the Fairway track tonight.

Shadine makes it a family double

Shadine Duquemin emulated her older brother Zane’s achievement in winning the shot putt gold at the Fairway track this evening with a personal best of 12.21 metres. But it was a case of near but yet so far for track athletes Peter Irving (110 metre hurdles) and Gemma Dawkins (400 metres) as they both finished fourth in their respective finals.

Rhodes’ footballers thrown out of Games

Island Games officials have acted swiftly to ban the Rhodes football team following their disgraceful behaviour on and off the field against Jersey last night. Rhodes lost 2-0, had two men sent off and eight booked, before indulging in aggressive and abusive behaviour in the tunnel with several incidents of spitting recorded and witnessed by the media. The ban will last for the next two games. Rhodes were understood to be withdrawing their team whatever the outcome of today’s meeting.

Jersey win bronze play-off in table tennis

The mixed table tennis team beat Menorca this morning in Ryde to win the bronze play-0ff match 4-1. In fact, both teams were already assured of bronze as semi-finalists, with this match of more importance in terms of seeding for the next Games in Bermuda 2013.

Ladies face huge challenge

Jersey’s women footballers are facing an exit from the competition unless they thrash hosts Isle of Wight by at least four clear goals at Cowes FC this afternoon. The lopsided nature of the groups means that only the results between the top three in each section will count towards qualification, so Jersey’s 6-1 win over bottom club Hitra is likely to count for nothing. That could leave Jersey with no points and a minus five goal difference ahead of their match with the Isle of Wight. The other two groups will not discard results, so a minimum target of three points and a minus one goal difference is required for the side hoping to qualify for the semi-finals as the best runner-up. Another factor working against Jersey is that the other groups play this evening and will know exactly what is required to qualify.

Jersey win team squash gold

Jersey beat hosts Isle of Man 3-1 in the team squash final at Westridge Centre this evening.

Duquemin breaks Games record

Jersey shot putter Zane Duquemin shattered the 1997 Games shot put record at Fairway tonight, winning gold with a putt of 17.15 metres. Claire Wilson won silver in the 1,500 metres.

Volleyballers lose out in game of the tournament

Jersey were desperate to make it two out of two in the men’s volleyball at Fairways today, but lost an epic struggle with Greenland in the fifth set. Tight all the way,  the match produced a tremendous atmosphere, with the Reds just pipped at the end.

Jersey reach squash final – at Guernsey’s expense

Jersey’s squash team swept Guernsey aside 5-0 in the team squash semi-final at Westridge this morning and will now contest the gold medal against hosts Isle of Wight this evening.

Ladies hit six against Hitra

Jersey’s lady footballers are back on track, with a 6-1 win over Hitra putting them back in the race for second spot and a chance of reaching the semi-finals. Jodie Botterill led the team superbly to level Jersey’s goal-difference after the 5-0 defeat in the opener against favourites Aland.

Guernsey on song, but Jersey reach semi-final

Guernsey’s table tennis team beat Jersey 6-1 this morning, but both sides go through to the semi-final, with Jersey having to face hot favourites Gotland for a place in the final.

Jersey fourth in the table

JERSEY won eight medals on a dramatic Day 1 of the Island Games in the Isle of Wight yesterday and  are currently in fourth position in a table led by sister Island Guernsey. Two of the medals were golds, with Simon Phelan producing a superb 2.10m effort to take his first Games title while, around about the same time, Nikki Holmes and Mary Norman teamed up for air pistol team gold at Hasley Manor.

A huge crash in the town cycling criterium in Ventnor has resulted in a broken collar bone for Chris Spence, but Greg Mansell, son of former F1 race legend Nigel, went on to take a superb individual silver when the race was restarted.

Footballers off to winning start

Jersey’s defending champions in the men’s football competition got off to an excellent start this evening with a 2-0 win over Menorca.

Phelan soars to Jersey’s first gold

High jumper Simon Phelan secured Jersey’s first athletics gold – and probably the first overall – with a convincing victory at Fairway Athletics Stadium tonight. He has overcome severe injury problems to gain his first Games gold, having previously won silver.

Bronze for air rifle team

David Turner and Jon Bouchard had to settle for bronze in their 10m air rifle team event at Hazley Manor today, with Aland taking the gold and Guernsey silver.

Jersey cyclist injured in big criterium crash

Jersey’s Chris Spence is reported as being injured after a 16-bike pile-up in the men’s criterium race in Ventnor this afternoon. It is suspected he has broken his collar bone and has been taken to hospital.

Heavy defeat, but no disgrace, for Jersey ladies

Jersey’s lady footballers went down 5-0 to reigning champions Aland in Shanklin this afternoon, despite putting on a great second-half performance.

Team silver gets Jersey up and running

Jersey won their first medal of the games, a team silver, thanks to the efforts of Jo Gorrord and Arlene Lewis in the half marathon. A tremendous bronze from badminton-player-cum-cyclist Kim Ashton further boosted the medal tally in the Ventnor Town criterium, with a team award also highly likely, most probably a silver.

All stations go

The Games are officially open after a ceremony in Ryde that surpassed most expectations. Lord Coe declared the 14th Games open and suggested that London had a hard task to follow when they host the Olympics next year. An estimated crowd of between 35,000 and 40,000 filled the streets for the long carnival parade in which some athletes declined to participate.

Early marathon in prospect

Tonight’s opening ceremony could well be a test of stamina for Team Jersey and the other 23 islands, although there’s every reason to believe it will be of the highest quality. The teams are being picked up from their home bases, which in Jersey’s case is a trailer home park in Shanklin (in which they seem to have settled in well alongside Aland and Gibraltar), as early as 3 pm for the start of the carnival parade through the Streets of Ryde at 5 pm. The official opening ceremony, with Lord Coe performing the honours, will not start before 7.30. It’s likely to be an arduous task with competition commencing early the following morning, but then short and sharp is rarely an accurate description of any Island Games opening ceremony.

Morag keeping in touch with Edinburgh

Physiotherapist Morag Obarska and her team are now on duty in Team Jersey’s campsite, but the popular official is still buzzing about the Island touch team’s progress in the World Cup in Edinburgh, where a Group A second section victory over Wales, 6-4, has guaranteed them a quarter-final tie against … Wales. A repeat victory would take them to a semi-final, almost certainly against New Zealand. Jersey Touch Association chief Obarska is beaming with pride.

Sporting wind blows strong in Isle of Wight

It’s certainly a sporting day par excellence for the Isle of Wight, with tonight’s opening ceremony being preceded by a round the island yacht race. Some 1,900 boats are expected to race – including entries from Jersey – despite conditions that are described as extremely testing.

A smooth crossing for Team Jersey

Only hours to go before the opening ceremony in Ryde - which promises to be a spectacular event if the behind-the-scenes preparations are anything to go by – with Team Jersey having enjoyed a smooth crossing to the Isle of Wight yesterday, via Guernsey, Poole then a drive to Lymington and another ferry. Now in their accomodation in Shanklin on the east coast, the team awaits a frantic start to competition tomorrow. Nerves are showing already with the men’s football team administrators clearly unhappy with their travel arrangements to their opening group fixture with Menorca tomorrow evening. Apparently the only transport available would have them arriving at the pitch in Cowes hours before the kick-off. Saturday will have most of Team Jersey exploring the island before heading up the coast to Ryde, in the north east, for the big opening by Lord Coe.

Isle of Wight return

Team Jersey will head for the Isle of Wight on Friday as one of the favourites to head the table – just as they did the last time that island hosted the Games in 1993. One of the largest teams in the 24-strong International Island Games Association, you can keep in touch with Jersey’s progress throughout the week-long event on thisisjersey.com/islandgames, follow us on Twitter @jepsport and, of course, in the Jersey Evening Post.