EAST DOWN COMBINE
with Clifford Browne
John Patterson top Prize-winner at Ballylesson
Ballylesson HPS held their annual dinner in the Temple Golf & Country Club on Friday night 28h October. After a most beautiful meal with a choice of Main Course of either roast beef and Yorkshire pudding or turkey and ham the chairman Paul Johnston welcomed everyone and thanked everyone for their input throughout the season which had made the club run so smoothly. The Club Secretary John Albert then asked the Club’s President Alan McWilliams to present the prizes.
The top prize this year was the ever consistent John Patterson .Unfortunately John was unable to attend as he had a bad cold but he is still as keen as ever in his 89th year.
In second place were C&D Smyth & sons with Mackey & Lockhart third and the rest of the club members featuring in the prizes.
After the excellent meal and the presentation of the prizes the rest of the night was taken up either chatting or Dancing to the music of Eric Clydesdale (a fantastic Country Group)
. By all accounts this was another very successful night for the Ballylesson club and the club had a special word of thanks to Gerard the manager of the Temple Golf Club and to Chef John
Again in 2016 the Ballylesson club had featured well in the East Down Combine and had topped the West Section 6 times during the season and topped the Open on four occasions, twice by C & D Smyth & sons, in the Old birds Bude and the young Birds when they won the Skibbereen. Mackey & Lockhart were 1st open in the 2nd Navan Young Bird and then from the Talbenny Derby K & B McConaghie & son again won 1st open. In addition the Combine Breeder Buyer was also won in Ballylesson by C & D Smyth & sons.
My Thanks to Dorothy Smyth for photos etc of the evening.
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The next event in the Combine Calendar is the Annual Dinner and Prize distribution in the Millbrook Lodge hotel Ballynahinch on November 18th and there is a steady demand for tickets for this event.