While Thomas Mackle was lighting up the northern roads with his sensational bowling, the main attraction down south was the Carbery-South West festival at Shannonvale.

James O’Donovan beat Aidan Murphy in the feature score of the Mid-Cork festival at Ballinacurra on Sunday.

Donncha O’Brien closed with three sensational bowls to snatch the Marshall Clarke Cup from Mick Hurley in the last shot at Derrinasafa.

Cathal Toal secured his place in the Ulster final of the Joe McVeigh Cup qualifier for the Ból-Fada with a line-to-line win over Bryan O’Reilly and Eddie Carr.

Tim Young gave a sensational display at Caheragh where he progressed to the Bill Barrett Cup final at the expense of Denis Wilmot.

Trevor Deane bowled brilliantly at Caheragh to lift the O’Sullivan-Keating Cup at the expense of Denis O’Sullivan.

Martin Coppinger won the Noel Phair Cup at Shannonvale, ending James O’Donovan’s fantastic run of wins.

James O’Donovan added another significant win to his current run when he beat Killian Kingston by three bowls in the semi-final of the Paddy Barry Cup at Rosscarbery.

Donncha O’Brien made an explosive start to his Marshall Clarke Cup quarter-final clash with Denis Wilmot at Derrinasafa, which set him on the way to a comprehensive win.

Aidan Murphy beat Killian Kingston by a bowl in the feature score of the Mid-Cork fundraising weekend at Ballinacurra on Monday.

Susan Greene is set to vacate the chair of Ból-Chumann na hÉireann, having led the national governing body since 2001.

A man who contracted CJD during a brain operation performed when he was a child died 30 years later, an inquest heard.

Donncha O’Brien was brilliant at Durrus where he beat Jerry Gibbons by almost a bowl in torrential rain in the West Cork Junior A championship.

Killian Kingston finished strongly to turn what looked certain defeat into a bowl of odds win over Aidan Murphy at Ballincurrig.

Éamon Bowen secured the last semi-final place in the Hurley’s of Midleton King of the Roads with a clear win over Aidan Murphy in the Mick Barry Cup final at Ballincurrig on Sunday.

Declan O’Donovan beat John Young by almost a bowl in the Tim White Cup final at Rosscarbery.

Gary Daly and Séamus Sexton secured places in the Munster senior championship quarter-final draw at the weekend and Éamon Bowen Jnr revived his hopes with a brilliant show against James Buckley, writes Séamus Ó Tuama.

The first barometer of the 2015 bowling season will be played out at the three-day Ból-Fada festival at Keady-Tassagh in Armagh over the weekend.

Patrick O’Donoghue just edged PJ Cooney in the last shot of their Munster intermediate championship clash at Templemichael on Saturday. 

MARTIN COPPINGER and Brian Daly beat Gary Daly and Thomas Boyle by well over a bowl at Grenagh, thanks mostly to Coppinger’s brilliance.

Teenage rider Donnacha O’Brien hit the headlines at the Curragh yesterday with a landmark success on El Salvador in the Irish Cesarewitch.

The Kerry Group Rás Mumhan takes centre stage this weekend with the 500-plus kilometre stage race attracting a massive field of more than 170 riders.

THOMAS MACKLE finished with three exceptional bowls to beat Eamon Bowen Jnr by well over a bowl at Carraig na bhFear on Sunday.

WAYNE Callanan led all the way to a bowl of odds win over Trevor O’Meara in the Mother Hegarty Cup final at Lyre.

ANTHONY GOULD finished with two exceptional bowls to take the first big championship of 2011 when he beat David Hubbard in the last shot of their Munster Premier Intermediate tie at Ballinacurra, Upton on Sunday.

WORLD CHAMPIONS Aidan Murphy and Eamon Bowen Jnr shared the limelight at the weekend, winning their opening rounds of the Pat Barry Cup and the Mick Crowley Cup respectively.

GAVIN TWOHIG and James O’Donovan put in a tremendous second half at Grange where they beat Éamon Bowen and Gary Daly by almost two bowls of odds in the annual St Stephen’s Day challenge.

Knockainey 1-11 Bruree 0-11