Lisburn & District 2020 by Milne Mairs -
Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2020 11:36 am
At the beginning of 2020 no pigeon fancier anywhere could have imagined that by the time the racing season ended the act of shaking hands with a race winner could put both participants of that hand shake at risk of ending up in hospital with a life threatening illness. Such was the danger of Coronavirus that it looked like there may be no pigeon racing at all during 2020 ,and this threw preparations for the season into disarray for many fanciers. However after a delay we eventually got underway on 6th June , almost 2 months later than normal.
TULLAMORE 8/6/20
1 R Topping & Son..1472 Great start for Lisburn Club Secretary Trevor Topping and son Robert in this one, with a good entry of 452 pigeons competing. Spence Bros finished 3rd and also put another
2 R Topping & Son..1458 four pigeons in the first twelve for an excellent team performance. It was interesting to note that the first six pigeons home in this race were all hens
3 Spence Bros........1457
4 Smyth & Adams...1453
5 D Ferguson...........1450
GOWRAN PARK 13/6/20
1 Spence Bros........1283 A Blue Cock took the honours for Brian and Roy in this one with 581 pigeons competing, which was the biggest birdage of the Old Bird Season. Jack Magee came in
2 Spence Bros........1275 just ahead of Davy Ferguson who made the top five for a second week, with Billy Joss not far adrift. Velocities around 1200 are usually an indication of a good competitive race.
3 L Magee & Sons..1264
4 D Ferguson..........1256
5 W Joss.................1249
CORRIN 20/6/20
1 A & T & J Houston...1855 An entry of 415 birds in this one saw a helping wind push the birds to over 60 miles an hour ,with the Houston partnership on Hill Street clocking a couple of good ones. 2 R Topping & Son.....1850 The Toppings took another 2nd and the Spence loft finished in the first three for a third week in a row, with Billy Joss again finishing 5th.
3 Spence Bros............1834
4 A & T & J Houston...1812
5 W Joss.....................1811
CORRIN 2/7/20
1 Spence Bros.............1431 The three form lofts once again sharing the top prizes with 556 pigeons competing. Winners Spence Bros also took 6th,7th and 9th, great racing considering the birdage.
2 R Topping & Son.......1418 A & T & J Houston also had a good race taking 3rd, 5th and 8th.
3 A & T & J Houston.....1401
4 Spence Bros..............1397
5 A & T & J Houston.....1391
SKIBBEREEN OLD BIRD INLAND NATIONAL 6/7/20
1 R Topping & Son......1451 The Topping loft well clear in this one to be 5th Section D, 34th Open NIPA 4236 pigeons, also finishing 3rd,4th and 9th Club. Spence Bros, Smyth & Adams and Jack Magee 2 Smyth & Adams.......1355 all put 2 birds in the top 12.
3 R Topping & Son......1354
4 R Topping & Son......1353
5 Spence Bros..............1343
TALBENNY 11/7/20
1 D Ferguson..............1274 David Ferguson taking the red card in the first channel race of the season from an entry of 354 pigeons, also clocking another good one in 3rd. The Houstons put 4 pigeons in
2 A & T & J Houston...1269 the first 8 for a very good team performance.
3 D Ferguson..............1266
4 A & T & J Houston...1262
5 A & T & J Houston...1260
SKIBBEREEN NATIONAL 15/7/20
1 R Topping & Son.....1380 Trevor and Robert's good Blue Hen winning for the second time having been 1st club in the season opener from Tullamore, with their next bird, a Bl. Cheq. Hen finishing 2nd
2 R Topping & Son.....1354 for a third time ,having also been runner up from Tullamore and Corrin.
3 R Topping & Son.....1350
4 W Joss....................1345
5 D Ferguson.............1320
BUDE 19/7/20
1 L Magee & Sons.....1061 254 Lisburn pigeons in this race with only the top five making a velocity over 1000 ypm tells you this was a hard fly. Jack Magee timed two of them with Samuel Briggs his
2 S G Briggs..............1032 nearest challenger some 29 ypm back. With Robert Kirkwood and Alan Houston also in the frame, as there were a few head counts going on as darkness approached.
3 R Kirkwood........... .1015
4 A & T & J Houston..1010
5 L Magee & Sons. .1002
FERMOY 25/7/20
1 J Waring & Son ..1573 Some fanciers will regard Jackie Waring as purely a long distance man, but this is a fancier who in his time has won two Inland Nationals . A Dark WF 2 year old Cock did the
2 Spence Bros........1570 business in this one ,with the ever consistent Spence Bros not too far behind.
3 Spence Bros........1555
4 D Ferguson..........1545
5 R Topping & Son..1538
St,Malo 30/7/20
1 R Topping & Son...1511 The Topping and Spence lofts were the first two in the season's opening race Tullamore ,and here they are again at the top of the sheet. This was a very successful
2 Spence Bros.........1482 French National race with good returns, and the first 5 pigeons in the Lisburn club were clocked within a 33 minute period, all flying 450 miles. Spence Bros , Jackie Waring ,
3 I Donaghy.............1452 Ian Donaghy, Jack Magee and Gary Benson all put two pigeons in the top twelve. Well done to Trevor and Robert whose 2y Blue hen finished 3rd Section D, 94th Open.
4 S & W English......1434
5 G Benson.............1427
The Young Bird Season .
Tullamore 8/8/20
1 Spence Bros.........1461 An entry of 340 birds in this one with Spence Bros once again top of the sheet closely followed by the Toppings. Gary Smyth who didn't race any old birds made a good start
2 R Topping & Son..1459 to his season finishing 3rd. The Houston loft put 5 pigeons in the prizes, with Topping and Son 3 and Smyth & Adams 2 in the top twelve.
3 G Smyth...............1456
4 Smyth & Adams...1455
5 A&T&J Houston...1447
Tullamore 15/8/20
1 G Smyth..............1361 Gary Smyth well clear in this one with runners up Smyth & Adams clocking 6 pigeons in the prizes from an entry of 327 birds. The Smyth, Topping and Houston lofts all timed a 2 Smyth & Adams..1350 second pigeon in the top twelve.
3 R Topping & Son..1315
4 A&T&J Houston...1306
5 Smyth & Adams...1300
Roscrea 23/8/20
1 D Ferguson...1818 With a helping wind the entry of 353 young birds made light work of this one, with Davy Ferguson's ETS red hot as his first 5 pigeons dropped more or less together to
2 D Ferguson...1817 achieve the most comprehensive result in the Lisburn Club this Season. Some of Davy's birds are bred by his friend John McCarrol , who has some top notch stock pigeons and
3 D Ferguson...1817 they certainly excelled in this race. Gary Smyth,Smyth & Adams and Spence Bros all put 2 birds in the prizes with Davy's 6th pigeon finishing 12th Club.
4 D Ferguson...1817
5 D Ferguson...1816
Gowran Park 29/8/20
1 G Smyth................1222 Gary Smyth's Blue Hen well clear in a good steady race, for his second win of the YB Season,also finishing 4th,8th and 10th with 331 birds competing. Spence Bros and
2 L Magee & Sons...1199 R Topping & Son both had 2 birds in the result.
3 Spence Bros.........1195
4 G Smyth................1192
5 Spence Bros.........1174
Fermoy 6/9/20
1 R Topping & Son...1371 The Toppings some 38 yards in front of the previous week's winner Gary Smyth, who was finishing in the top 3 for a third time in 4 races. Smyth & Adams clocked 4 in the prizes
2 G Smyth................1333 with R Topping & Son adding 7th to their 1st and 3rd.
3 R Topping & Son...1316
4 Smyth & Adams....1313
5 Smyth & Adams....1311
Talbenny 12/9/20
1 L Magee & Sons...1260 Jack Magee's Blue Cock a clear winner in this one, with the Topping loft having 2 with a light some 28 yards back. The consistent Smyth & Adams once again in the mix for a 2 R Topping & Son...1232 sixth race in a row., with Jack's winner finishing 11th Section.
3 R Topping & Son...1232
4 Smyth & Adams....1204
5 D Ferguson...........1140
Tullamore 12/9/20
1 G Smyth..................2080 Velocities would indicate a bit of a tail wind in this one where Gary Smyth easily took the first two prizes well clear of R Topping & Son.
2 G Smyth..................2066
3 R Topping & Son.....2041
4 Smyth & Adams...2041
5 G Smyth.................2040
Fermoy 19/9/20
1 G Smyth...............1191 Gary Smyth again top of the sheet to round off a tremendous young bird season where he took the Young Bird Average. Likewise the lofts of Spence Bros and R Topping & Son
2 Spence Bros........1188 were consistently good throughout the entire season.
3 R Topping & Son..1182
4 R Topping & Son..1176
5 Spence Bros........1176
The Seasons awards are as follows,
Top Prize Winners...Spence Brothers, R Topping & Son, G Smyth,D Ferguson, Smyth & Adams.
Old Bird Inland Average... R Topping & Son, ru Spence Bros.
Old Bird Channel Average...S G Briggs ru L Magee & Sons
Old Bird Combined Average..Spence Bros ru R Topping & Sons
Young Bird Average...G Smyth ru R Topping & Son
Combined Old Bird & Young Bird Average..Spence Bros ru R Topping & Son
Young Bird Knock-out Cup...R Topping & Son ru L Magee & Sons
Well done to all those who competed throughout the whole season in very trying circumstances, and congratulations to the winning lofts. Many thanks for the hard work by club officials, especially Secretary Trevor Topping, Race Secretary Roy Spence and not forgetting Willie English who prepared the crates each week.
Milne Mairs
Robert and June Kirkwood who supply a wide range of pigeon corn in the Lisburn area.
TULLAMORE 8/6/20
1 R Topping & Son..1472 Great start for Lisburn Club Secretary Trevor Topping and son Robert in this one, with a good entry of 452 pigeons competing. Spence Bros finished 3rd and also put another
2 R Topping & Son..1458 four pigeons in the first twelve for an excellent team performance. It was interesting to note that the first six pigeons home in this race were all hens
3 Spence Bros........1457
4 Smyth & Adams...1453
5 D Ferguson...........1450
GOWRAN PARK 13/6/20
1 Spence Bros........1283 A Blue Cock took the honours for Brian and Roy in this one with 581 pigeons competing, which was the biggest birdage of the Old Bird Season. Jack Magee came in
2 Spence Bros........1275 just ahead of Davy Ferguson who made the top five for a second week, with Billy Joss not far adrift. Velocities around 1200 are usually an indication of a good competitive race.
3 L Magee & Sons..1264
4 D Ferguson..........1256
5 W Joss.................1249
CORRIN 20/6/20
1 A & T & J Houston...1855 An entry of 415 birds in this one saw a helping wind push the birds to over 60 miles an hour ,with the Houston partnership on Hill Street clocking a couple of good ones. 2 R Topping & Son.....1850 The Toppings took another 2nd and the Spence loft finished in the first three for a third week in a row, with Billy Joss again finishing 5th.
3 Spence Bros............1834
4 A & T & J Houston...1812
5 W Joss.....................1811
CORRIN 2/7/20
1 Spence Bros.............1431 The three form lofts once again sharing the top prizes with 556 pigeons competing. Winners Spence Bros also took 6th,7th and 9th, great racing considering the birdage.
2 R Topping & Son.......1418 A & T & J Houston also had a good race taking 3rd, 5th and 8th.
3 A & T & J Houston.....1401
4 Spence Bros..............1397
5 A & T & J Houston.....1391
SKIBBEREEN OLD BIRD INLAND NATIONAL 6/7/20
1 R Topping & Son......1451 The Topping loft well clear in this one to be 5th Section D, 34th Open NIPA 4236 pigeons, also finishing 3rd,4th and 9th Club. Spence Bros, Smyth & Adams and Jack Magee 2 Smyth & Adams.......1355 all put 2 birds in the top 12.
3 R Topping & Son......1354
4 R Topping & Son......1353
5 Spence Bros..............1343
TALBENNY 11/7/20
1 D Ferguson..............1274 David Ferguson taking the red card in the first channel race of the season from an entry of 354 pigeons, also clocking another good one in 3rd. The Houstons put 4 pigeons in
2 A & T & J Houston...1269 the first 8 for a very good team performance.
3 D Ferguson..............1266
4 A & T & J Houston...1262
5 A & T & J Houston...1260
SKIBBEREEN NATIONAL 15/7/20
1 R Topping & Son.....1380 Trevor and Robert's good Blue Hen winning for the second time having been 1st club in the season opener from Tullamore, with their next bird, a Bl. Cheq. Hen finishing 2nd
2 R Topping & Son.....1354 for a third time ,having also been runner up from Tullamore and Corrin.
3 R Topping & Son.....1350
4 W Joss....................1345
5 D Ferguson.............1320
BUDE 19/7/20
1 L Magee & Sons.....1061 254 Lisburn pigeons in this race with only the top five making a velocity over 1000 ypm tells you this was a hard fly. Jack Magee timed two of them with Samuel Briggs his
2 S G Briggs..............1032 nearest challenger some 29 ypm back. With Robert Kirkwood and Alan Houston also in the frame, as there were a few head counts going on as darkness approached.
3 R Kirkwood........... .1015
4 A & T & J Houston..1010
5 L Magee & Sons. .1002
FERMOY 25/7/20
1 J Waring & Son ..1573 Some fanciers will regard Jackie Waring as purely a long distance man, but this is a fancier who in his time has won two Inland Nationals . A Dark WF 2 year old Cock did the
2 Spence Bros........1570 business in this one ,with the ever consistent Spence Bros not too far behind.
3 Spence Bros........1555
4 D Ferguson..........1545
5 R Topping & Son..1538
St,Malo 30/7/20
1 R Topping & Son...1511 The Topping and Spence lofts were the first two in the season's opening race Tullamore ,and here they are again at the top of the sheet. This was a very successful
2 Spence Bros.........1482 French National race with good returns, and the first 5 pigeons in the Lisburn club were clocked within a 33 minute period, all flying 450 miles. Spence Bros , Jackie Waring ,
3 I Donaghy.............1452 Ian Donaghy, Jack Magee and Gary Benson all put two pigeons in the top twelve. Well done to Trevor and Robert whose 2y Blue hen finished 3rd Section D, 94th Open.
4 S & W English......1434
5 G Benson.............1427
The Young Bird Season .
Tullamore 8/8/20
1 Spence Bros.........1461 An entry of 340 birds in this one with Spence Bros once again top of the sheet closely followed by the Toppings. Gary Smyth who didn't race any old birds made a good start
2 R Topping & Son..1459 to his season finishing 3rd. The Houston loft put 5 pigeons in the prizes, with Topping and Son 3 and Smyth & Adams 2 in the top twelve.
3 G Smyth...............1456
4 Smyth & Adams...1455
5 A&T&J Houston...1447
Tullamore 15/8/20
1 G Smyth..............1361 Gary Smyth well clear in this one with runners up Smyth & Adams clocking 6 pigeons in the prizes from an entry of 327 birds. The Smyth, Topping and Houston lofts all timed a 2 Smyth & Adams..1350 second pigeon in the top twelve.
3 R Topping & Son..1315
4 A&T&J Houston...1306
5 Smyth & Adams...1300
Roscrea 23/8/20
1 D Ferguson...1818 With a helping wind the entry of 353 young birds made light work of this one, with Davy Ferguson's ETS red hot as his first 5 pigeons dropped more or less together to
2 D Ferguson...1817 achieve the most comprehensive result in the Lisburn Club this Season. Some of Davy's birds are bred by his friend John McCarrol , who has some top notch stock pigeons and
3 D Ferguson...1817 they certainly excelled in this race. Gary Smyth,Smyth & Adams and Spence Bros all put 2 birds in the prizes with Davy's 6th pigeon finishing 12th Club.
4 D Ferguson...1817
5 D Ferguson...1816
Gowran Park 29/8/20
1 G Smyth................1222 Gary Smyth's Blue Hen well clear in a good steady race, for his second win of the YB Season,also finishing 4th,8th and 10th with 331 birds competing. Spence Bros and
2 L Magee & Sons...1199 R Topping & Son both had 2 birds in the result.
3 Spence Bros.........1195
4 G Smyth................1192
5 Spence Bros.........1174
Fermoy 6/9/20
1 R Topping & Son...1371 The Toppings some 38 yards in front of the previous week's winner Gary Smyth, who was finishing in the top 3 for a third time in 4 races. Smyth & Adams clocked 4 in the prizes
2 G Smyth................1333 with R Topping & Son adding 7th to their 1st and 3rd.
3 R Topping & Son...1316
4 Smyth & Adams....1313
5 Smyth & Adams....1311
Talbenny 12/9/20
1 L Magee & Sons...1260 Jack Magee's Blue Cock a clear winner in this one, with the Topping loft having 2 with a light some 28 yards back. The consistent Smyth & Adams once again in the mix for a 2 R Topping & Son...1232 sixth race in a row., with Jack's winner finishing 11th Section.
3 R Topping & Son...1232
4 Smyth & Adams....1204
5 D Ferguson...........1140
Tullamore 12/9/20
1 G Smyth..................2080 Velocities would indicate a bit of a tail wind in this one where Gary Smyth easily took the first two prizes well clear of R Topping & Son.
2 G Smyth..................2066
3 R Topping & Son.....2041
4 Smyth & Adams...2041
5 G Smyth.................2040
Fermoy 19/9/20
1 G Smyth...............1191 Gary Smyth again top of the sheet to round off a tremendous young bird season where he took the Young Bird Average. Likewise the lofts of Spence Bros and R Topping & Son
2 Spence Bros........1188 were consistently good throughout the entire season.
3 R Topping & Son..1182
4 R Topping & Son..1176
5 Spence Bros........1176
The Seasons awards are as follows,
Top Prize Winners...Spence Brothers, R Topping & Son, G Smyth,D Ferguson, Smyth & Adams.
Old Bird Inland Average... R Topping & Son, ru Spence Bros.
Old Bird Channel Average...S G Briggs ru L Magee & Sons
Old Bird Combined Average..Spence Bros ru R Topping & Sons
Young Bird Average...G Smyth ru R Topping & Son
Combined Old Bird & Young Bird Average..Spence Bros ru R Topping & Son
Young Bird Knock-out Cup...R Topping & Son ru L Magee & Sons
Well done to all those who competed throughout the whole season in very trying circumstances, and congratulations to the winning lofts. Many thanks for the hard work by club officials, especially Secretary Trevor Topping, Race Secretary Roy Spence and not forgetting Willie English who prepared the crates each week.
Milne Mairs
Robert and June Kirkwood who supply a wide range of pigeon corn in the Lisburn area.