Bowling Report - Week ending 19th October

Daniel Joseph Bowen presents his Grandads Cup to winner Liam Murphy

Joe Bowen Cup Final at Whitechurch Michàel Desmond R-up, Shane Lotty R-up & Liam Murphy Winner

Bowen Family make presentation of the Joe Bowen mem cup to Liam Murphy

Girls U-14 SF at The Bog Road

Darren O' Donovan bt Fergal Carr at Womputuck Park, Boston

Donal Riordan bt Eamonn Bowen at Womputuck Park with ref Mike Fleming

North Cork Benefit Aidan Murphy bt Gary Daly with ref David Hubbard

Queen Qualifiers Meghan Collins & Maria Nagle

Relaxing in Womputuck Park, Boston

Queen Qualifiers Presentation Meghan Collins R-up, Gretta Cormican, Hannah Sexton Reff, Maria Nagle

Maria Nagle won the Queen Qualifiers Cup tournament final against Meghan Collins at Timoleague.

For a total stake of €1,100, Nagle opened with a big bowl past Cunningham’s, but her second shot was very right. Collins enjoyed a good third bowl that gave her the one and only lead of the score.​ Nagle had a massive bowl at the double bends that Collins beat by ten metres in two shots. Rosscarbery’s Nagle raised the bowl of odds in two more past the Guards House. Two more to the top of the hill and Nagle still held her bowl advantage. Collins got a huge ninth to Barryshall Cross.

Any slip from Nagle and the score would have been half level, but she followed and beat this tip. Collins missed full sight at the monument and Nagle came out fully. She extended her lead to almost two bowls past the double gates and took the Gretta Cormican Queen Qualifiers Cup.

North Cork held their annual fundraiser at Beal Na Marbh  where David Hegarty beat Edmund Sexton by a bowl for €4,000 a-side. Sexton took the first two shots on a wet, miserable afternoon before Hegarty’s big third to the cottage gave him his first lead. Sexton’s two poor efforts from here left him a bowl down. A fine bowl past the Rock saw Sexton close again when Hegarty caught the obstacle, but Hegarty upped his game and opened at sight at the Forest entrance in three huge shots, raising the full bowl odds. He held this advantage to the novice line and saw out the last bend to win the final.

A three-hander followed between Conor Lucey, Jimmy O' Brien and Jim Coffey for €6,000 total. At the straight in three each, nothing separated them until Lucey's superb fifth to McDonagh's gates raised a bowl on O' Brien and two on Coffey. Neither could claw back their deficit and Lucey won out.

On Sunday, Gary Daly met Aidan Murphy for €6,300 a-side. They opened with three huge bowls to the cottage, Murphy just fore bowl. Daly reached the top of the hill with his fourth to edge in front, but Murphy responded with a massive sixth to Hubbard’s House that only beat by a metre in two shots. Daly recovered with a lucky bowl to the hedging, trimming the odds to 60 metres and again to 20 at the straight. He covered the straight and out sight at the Forest entrance with his tenth, but Murphy followed and beat it by 20 metres.​ At Towmey’s, in two more each, Daly was back in front as Murphy’s 12th broke badly right and missed the tip by three metres. Daly held the advantage out sight past the novice finish, but Murphy threw a great bowl to beat the line while Daly's effort drifted right, missing the tip to hand Murphy victory. 

In supporting scores, Eoin O' Riordan and Conor Lucey beat Jim Coffey and Conor Creedon for €3,300 a-side, while David Crowley defeated Daniel Twomey for €1,750 a-side.

At Whitechurch, the Joe Bowen Memorial Cup final was held in honour of the late club founder, who passed in January 2023. Shane Lotty faced Gaeltacht pair Micheál Desmond and Liam Murphy for €2,850. Lotty started best, leading by five metres at the wall and firing a superb bowl to Boula lane where he raised two bowls on Desmond and 60 metres on Murphy. He maintained his two-bowl lead on Desmond to Ellie’s and a bowl on Murphy, but Murphy dug deep and by the Devil’s Bend had the score back to inches. Desmond fell out here, and Murphy finished stronger up the rising road to take the last shot and lift the Cup — a fitting tribute to a real gentleman.