Gary Daly wins thrilling Denis McGarry final battle
He won the first two shots, with Murphy winning the third to the top of the hill. Murphy then played two massive bowls to just short of Boula lane where he was 70m fore. Murphy’s next two were poor, the first was too far left and the second broke to the right. Daly pounced to cut the lead to just 15m.
Murphy hit back with a brilliant eighth that pushed his lead to 100m. He held the upper hand by making the Devil’s bend in two more. After Daly’s next Murphy’s lead was just 30m shy of a bowl of odds. Murphy’s next just beat the novice line. Daly eased the pressure by making sight. Murphy beat that tip by 80m. Daly squeezed the odds to just 20m after two good bowls up the rise towards the line. He missed the line with what should have been his last, but Murphy beat it by just seven metres. Daly then played a great bowl past the line, which Murphy missed it by 35m.
Michael Bohane, Edmund Sexton and recently crowned Munster Junior C champion Aidan Desmond were the top three at Castletownkenneigh in the first trials for the Irish senior men’s team for the 2016 European championships in the Netherlands. James Buckley showed remarkable resilience, following a recent illness, by taking part.
Geraldine Daly was best of the senior women with Ciara Buckley also showing up well. All-Ireland U16 champion Maria Nagle was best in the U18 category.Munster U16 champion Tom O’Donovan was best of the U18 boys. .
Sean Nyhan gave a top-class show in his last-shot win over Peter Kelly in the Munster Novice II final at Bauravilla.
He was almost a bowl in front after two to Robin’s cross. He set the pace by making sight at the netting in five to go well over a bowl clear. Kelly made a mistake there and Nyhan pushed his lead to a second bowl after two more to Dekker’s. Kelly had the lead just under two bowls at the rock.
Nyhan played his next to the right and now the lead was just 20m over a bowl. Kelly then got a brilliant bowl towards O’Sullivan’s. Nyhan missed that by 50m to lose his bowl of odds and only beat it by 50m with his next. He held that 50m lead.
Kelly then made poor sight at the bridge. Nyhan beat this by 15m, but crucially had sight of the line. Kelly defied the odds by shaving past the bridge with his last and beat the line by 10m. Nyhan answered that massive test with a great bowl that ran past Kelly’s tip to the top of the rise.
Shane Feighan beat Saran Daly by two bowls in the Ulster Novice I final at Tullysaran. He had 40m odds after four to the pub. He was a bowl in front after three more to the Orange hall. After another three to the farmyard he was almost two clear.
Daly cut the lead to a bare bowl with a great shot across the straight. Feighan was back on track immediately. He led by almost two again at the double bends and increased his lead in the run in.
Fergal McCreesh kept the Ulster Novice II title in Armagh when he beat Down challenger Conor Grimley by three bowls at the Rock Road. They shared the lead in the first four to sight, where Grimley had a 15m lead.
It all changed when McCreesh got a massive sixth to the wall to raise a bowl. Grimley knocked the bowl with his 10th and had a chance to level to the Diamond. He missed McCreesh’s tip though and when McCreesh followed with a big shot it was almost two bowls. He was three in front after two more to the white sign corner.
Dave Fitzgerald joins Michael Bohane and Wayne Callanan in the Cork final of the Jim O’Driscoll Cup following his last-shot win over Donal Riordan at Ballincurrig.
Riordan was just fore after four to the green. He lost the lead and a chance to push clear when he played his next bowl to the left after Fitzgerald’s bowl had hit a wall. They were at Heaphy’s in two more and Riordan pushed 90m clear in his next two to the halfway line. He lost the lead with his next.
Fitzgerald got the better of the shots to the big corner and had almost a bowl after a good bowl to the top of the short straight. Riordan cut the odds to the sycamores and there was just 35m between them for the last shot. Riordan’s last bowl looked perfect, but it fell left. Fitzgerald beat it by 12m.
