Murphy too strong for Daly at Lyre
Daly got a brilliant first shot to the soccer pitch that Murphy missed by 80m. Murphy recovered immediately with a great bowl to the forestry entrance, which Daly missed when he played his reply to the left. Daly cut the odds to just 10m with a good third shot. Murphy kept control in the next two to the hump and he reached Crowley’s bend in another two to go almost a bowl in front.
He played his next bowl to the right and was lucky to make peeping sight past the concrete. He missed McCarthy’s bend with his next, but was still very much in control. A great rub with his tenth bowl past the tunnel pushed him almost two bowls clear. He raised a second bowl with his next and Daly conceded.
Arthur McDonagh beat Killian Kingston and David Hubbard in the Ballinacurra festive final on Saturday.
Kingston edged the opening shots to the factory. He increased his lead to 80m on both McDonagh and Hubbard with his second. He went through Brinny cross with his next. He followed with a good bowl to Foley’s, where he had a full bowl on Hubbard and almost a bowl on McDonagh. His lofted bowl from there was unlucky to just make the gas line, but it still kept him close to a bowl in front of McDonagh and almost two clear of Hubbard.
McDonagh then got a good bowl towards the crush, which Kingston beat by just 15m in two throws. Kingston held the lead in the next two to the GAA. Hubbard briefly rallied too with a good bowl there, but he faded again. McDonagh tightened the odds in the next shot, but Kingston won the following shot to sight by 60m.
McDonagh then played a brilliant bowl well onto the straight to win his first lead. He then beat two good bowls from Kingston to lead by 50m past Cronin’s avenue. Kingston missed sight with his second last and McDonagh tightened his grip with a good bowl. Kingston was just short of the line with his next, McDonagh replied with a good bowl to just beat the line.
John Shorten beat Éamon Bowen Snr in the last shot of at Bottlehill. He opened with a fantastic bowl to just short of the forestry entrance, which Bowen just beat in two. He stayed a bowl clear in the shots to Dan’s corner. He increased his lead to almost two bowls with three great shots towards the halfway line. He lost momentum in the next three though.
Bowen seized this opening with a brilliant bowl from the well and he followed up with another big shot to the bend to take his first lead. They were locked together from there. Shorten got a huge last bowl past the line, which Bowen just missed.
Jerry Murphy beat Vincent Cahalane by a bowl at Curraheen. He led by 30m after three. Cahalane then got a great bowl to light at Ryan’s, which gave him a 40m lead. He built on this by making the bridge in another two where he was a bowl in front. Murphy fought back with five great bowls to Richards’ lane, where he had almost a bowl of odds. He raised the bowl with his next to effectively end the contest.
Cian Boyle beat Mick Hurley by a bowl at Templemichael. He won the opening tip well, but Hurley took the second and there was little between them to the wall where Hurley was back in front. Boyle took the next two tips, but then went up several gears with two massive bowls. The first put him a bowl in front and the second increased his odds despite a big shot from Hurley past Sarsfield’s Court cross. He held that lead to the line.
Brendan O’Neill beat Derry Cooney by almost two bowls at Gortroe. They were level after six each to the end of the wood. O’Neill’s next bowl rubbed to put him a throw in front. He increased that to almost two bowls when Cooney made a mistake at the Well Bar. Stephen Murphy beat Eoin O’Riordan by two bowls at Bweeng. A big shot from the tinny house put him almost a bowl clear. He raised it with his next and gained a second bowl at the start of the straight.
Mark Sheehan beat Martin Daly by over a bowl at Carraig na bhFear. Three good shots to the novice line put him almost a bowl in front and he had well over a bowl after another three towards the line. At Whitechurch John O’Donoghue had a surprisingly easy win over a below par Billy McAuliffe.
Susan Greene, national chairperson of Ból-Chumann na hÉireann, received the Cork City and County Youth Sports Hall of Fame on Saturday at the Gresham Metropole Hotel, Cork. The award recognises her leadership in restoring Ireland’s fortunes at international level and significantly increasing youth participation since she took office in 2001.
