Murphy joins men who would be King

Aidan Murphy completed the line-up for the 2012 Hurley’s of Midleton King of the Roads when he beat Christy Mullins by a bowl of odds in the Mick Barry Cup final at Ballincurrig on Sunday.

Mullins opened with a super shot, which gave him a 50m lead. Murphy played his bowl to the left and just made the mill gate. Murphy just made light with his second and Mullins kept his lead when his bowl brushed to Moore’s gate. Murphy played a great third bowl but it fell left halfway to Geary’s. Mullins had a chance to extend his lead, but only beat the tip by 10 metres.

They both got brilliant bowls to the green, with Mullins still just fore. Murphy got a great bowl past the creamery. Mullins stood too high for his reply and his bowl fell left just past the creamery, 25m short of Murphy’s tip — he never led again. Mullins narrowly missed the no-play line with his next, while Murphy was lucky to beat it after his bowl landed in a pothole, but stayed on course.