The late absence of reigning champ Laughil Blake was the only disappointment in the first round of the Boylesports.com Irish Greyhound Derby, from which Ballymac Matt emerged with reputation most enhanced following his scintillating 29.43 success on Thursday.

Ballymac Matt can prove himself a perfect fit for the six-hundred-yard test at Shelbourne Park by making a winning start to his Gain 600 bid.

St Kieran’s 2-10 Feale Rangers 0-8: St Kieran’s blew pitiful Feale Rangers aside in this one-sided Kerry Senior Football Championship tie in Cordal on Saturday night.

Pobalscoil Chorca Dhuibhne 2-10 Tralee CBS 1-3

An Ghaeltacht 2-10 Dr Crokes 0-11

Derby final night last Saturday at Shelbourne would have to be deemed a great success. The stadium was packed, the action was brisk, the atmosphere was good, and the final itself produced a winner, Laughil Blake, who, in leading around despite a modest break, showed he possessed a touch of brilliance befitting a champion.

Kenmare District 3-11 St Kieran’s 2-12

Dr Crokes 3-18 Legion 1-05

St Kieran’s 2-11 Kerins O’Rahillys 0-14

A shock defeat for Droopys Jet and the elimination of that great old veteran Tyrur Big Mike were the major talking points last night at Shelbourne when the first eight heats in the second round of the Ladbrokes Irish Derby were run.

Ante-post favourite Ballymac Vic will be the last of the big names to launch their Ladbrokes Derby challenge when he lines out in tonight’s final heat of the opening round at Shelbourne Park.

It took all the experience of man-of-the-match, Seamus Scanlon, and former inter-county colleague Padraig Reidy to see St Kieran’s over the line against West Kerry in this Kerry SFC losers’ round cracker in Ballymacelligott yesterday.

Except for a few high profile absentees most of the big names will be chasing the €25,000 prize when the classic commences at Shelbourne on Saturday.

THE Denis O’Driscoll trained Let Me Call was impressive in both her outings in the Oaks Trial Stake at the Macroom meeting (at Blarney) yesterday, winning both times by wide margins, and looks the one to beat at today’s concluding stage.

ENOUGH Kerry SFC Round 1 grit on show here to cover the road from Scartaglin across the county bounds into Ballydesmond, but precious little guile and grace.

The appointment of Phil Meaney as Chairman of Bord na gCon, as exclusively reported in yesterday’s Irish Examiner, was confirmed yesterday morning by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney.

THERE were the usual shocks in the opening session of the second round of the Ladbrokes.com Irish Derby at Shelbourne Park last night when Owen McKenna’s Farley Blitz ran out a decisive winner of what was expected to be a real cliffhanger.

FOLLOWING the luxury of four qualifying from all first round heats, the pressure will begin in the Ladbrokes.com Irish Derby this evening at Shelbourne when it will be just three to survive to the third round.

Inch Rovers (Cork) 2-14 Ballymacarbery (Waterford) 0-8

It’s been an immense year for Kerry’s Killian Young, and the young footballer of the year has a full diary all the way to Christmas — starting with tomorrow’s county final. Michael Moynihan reports.

PAULO COELHO, having set a track record in the semi-finals, duly took the final of the Hospitality Catering Super Sprint at Curraheen Park on Saturday night.

Preparations are complete for the staging of the opening round of the Winter League at the West Waterford club.