Bowling Report - Week ending 13th April

O'RIORDAN BOOKS HIS PLACE IN BALLINACURRA FINAL

Ballinacurra hosted a busy day of bowling on Saturday. First off was a junior A tournament semi-final between Kieran Murphy and Eoin O’Riordan, Murphy taking the favourites tag in this one. Playing for a total stake of €500. O’Riordan took the first three shots to Brinny cross and held this lead to the waterworks, after two more to Perriot’s sheds Murphy took his first lead by five meters. After two more to the GAA pitch Murphy was still in front. From a very difficult stand and no sight O’Riordan made back of the silvery gates to retake the lead by five meters. After three more up past the avenue O’Riordan had a twenty five meter advantage. Two poor bowls in succession put Murphy in trouble and with no road left to whittle down the odds, O’Riordan was a comfortable winner in two more shots over the line.

Ballinacurra continued with a junior B tournament score between two youthful exponents of the game Brian O’Driscoll playing Cillian Kelleher. After three huge bowls through Brinny Cross for O’Driscoll where he had a forty meter lead he held this advantage in two more to the gasworks. Kelleher from back of the gasworks, lined one of the longest bowls ever thrown in Ballinacurra from that point to Perrot’s pillars, that rose for him almost a bowl of odds as O’Driscoll only beat the tip by five meters in two shots. Kelleher followed on with another huge bowl to the Hurling alley that raised the bowl. From there he made back of the bridge, these were three huge bowls. O’Driscoll got an incredible bowl from Innishannon Cross out sight for the finish line, Kelleher only made the novice D line and was then only throwing his odds, Kelleher went well out the straight, O’Driscoll missed the line and Kelleher only beat the tip by four meters for the last shots, O’Driscoll played the perfect bowl past the avenue it was a very unlucky bowl not to go further, 6/4 and 2/1 that it would be missed by Kelleher but he had luck on his side and rubbed out of the dyke to beat the tip by four meters.

In two further scores Declan Murphy beat Jim Coffey for €2,750 a-side and Jim Coffey beat Eoin McCarthy for €2,000 a-side.

MARIA NAGLE BEAT DENISE MURPHY IN GROUP B SCORE AT BALLINACARRIGA.

A senior ladies group B score was played at Ballinacarriga saw Denise Murphy take on Maria Nagle. Murphy took the first two shots but from there Nagle took over, mainly due to two poor shots in succession from Murphy, her third and fourth shots put her down a bowl at McSweeney’s. Nagle got a super third, fourth and fifth shots to the white pillars and had big odds with the bowl, Murphy rallied well from there to Lynch’s Bend where she had the gap down to an even bowl. Murphy knocked the bowl with a great tenth but it was only brief as Nagle got a massive bowl out past the Creamery to raise big odds with the bowl again. Nagle covered all that Murphy threw at her from her to the finish to win out by a bowl of odds.

MCDONAGH TAKES FIRST TITLE OF THE SEASON

The first championship final of the season took place at Doneraile between Timmy McDonagh (Snr) father of Arthur and Timmy (Jnr) for a total stake of €2,900. The bowling was not of the highest order however McDonagh took a bowl of odds out the first bend and held this odds to the no-play line. At the no-play line McDonagh had two full bowls. He held this on up the hill to the finish line.

In Terelton in a junior A championship score Bryan O’Halloran played Andrew O’Callaghan, no stake in this one, after three shots O’Halloran was throwing over fifty meters. After two more his odds increased to seventy meters, but O’Callaghan let rip a very well-played bowl to the garage. O’Halloran followed this bowl and beat it again by sixty meters. He extended his lead to one hundred and fifty meters at the Ducks house but again O’Callaghan rallied to keep it under the bowl and at the Novice E line where only thirty meters separated them. A poor bowl from O’Callaghan and O’Halloran rose the bowl at the Novice line and held it to the end.

CLUB FINALS CONTINUE AMIDST THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

Three club finals were completed last weekend the first up was a Novice C at Firmount here Luke Philpot played Stephen Spillane for a total stake of €3,800 and had a convincing win of two bowls.

FIVE STAR PERFORMANCE FROM MURPHY AT JAGOES.

At Jagoes Mills Timmy Murphy was sublime in his performance over Denis Wilmot he led from start to finish in the Pat O’Sullivan memorial cup final for a total stake of €5,100, Murphy had an early bowl of odds in this score after two big opening shots, two more for Murphy to the dump was big bowling and at this juncture he had the rising of two bowls. At the railway entrance the two bowls were up, Murphy drove on with ten super bowls to Kelleher’s Cross where he won by two bowls.

MURPHY TURNS ON THE STYLE TO POWER TO BOLD THADY QUILL CUP TRIUMPH

@ Ballinagree held the final of the Bold Thady Quill Cup on Sunday between James O’Donovan, Aidan Murphy and Gary Daly going off for a total stake of €24,300. Daly took the first two shots of this final, then Murphy took the lead at Timmy Nuts and held it for the next three shots, a poor sixth from Daly and suddenly he found himself a bowl down, O’Donovan massive sixth bowl up through Capailin Ban Cross gave him his first lead by fifty meters over Murphy and a bowl on Daly. After two more from O’Donovan he rose further odds on Murphy and had big odds with the bowl on Daly. Murphy got an incredible ninth shot and O’Donovan was left of play and dropped a lot of odds as he only beat Murphy’s tip by ten meters. Both Murphy & O’Donovan were throwing their odds over forty meters on Daly. O’Donovan followed a huge eleventh from Murphy to keep his nose in front by five meters, both had a bowl on Daly here. Murphy was back in front by fifty meters on O’Donovan after a huge twelfth and rose further odds up to the Post Office and another incredible bowl out to the Quay Wall where he had almost a bowl on both. At this point O’Donovan and Daly were level. Both could not reel Murphy in as he finished with three more perfect bowls to take the Bold Thady Cup and the winning prize of €1,800, O’Donovan came second as Daly had a poor finish.

JOHN O'DONOGHUE TAKE B TITLE IN EAST CORK.

The East Cork junior B championship final took place at Conna, in opposition to each other here we had John O’Donoghue (Jnr) playing P.J. Cooney. O’Donoghue had a bowl of odds early in this score, but Cooney kept it under the bowl at Coleman’s corner. Donoghue rose the bowl again at Cullinane’s and at the bridge it was under the bowl again, but O’Donoghue rose the bowl again at the end of the railings and extended his odds at Mullin’s and rose the second bowl at the gas line.

NORTHE EAST REGION TAKE TOP TWO SPOTS IN NOVICE TEAM FINALS.

Bol Chumann held their Novice team county finals at Castletown. Seventeen teams fought it out for the Sliabh Ban Trophy and a place in the Novice All-Irelands in Drogheda in September. City were the early leaders in this competition, but were relegated down to third position by the two strong teams from North East. The following was the order of finish with the top four teams to progress to the All-Irelands. 1st Carrignavar Brian Quinlan, Jake Bowen & Patrick Connolly 1269.4mt, 2nd Bottlehill Dillon McDonnell, Aaron McDonnell and Darragh O’Donovan 1262.7mt, 3rd Curraheen Gary Maguire, Tony Delaney & Jason McCarthy 1205.6mt and 4th Kilcorney Alan Sexton, Mickey McAuliffe & James Collins 1193.3mt. Full results on Bol Chumann Na h-Eireann Facebook Page.