Cooney clinches intermediate final spot
Hubbard got a short opening bowl, but Cooney beat it by just ten metres. They both made sight with their second shots, with Cooney just five metres fore. Hubbard played his next bowl to the right and got a very short shot. Cooney punished him with a good third bowl to peeping light at the doctor’s.
Hubbard got a good fourth, which helped him make Daunt’s in two more. Cooney took three to cover the same road and was now just ten metres fore again. They diverged dramatically in the next few shots. Cooney got two good bowls to within 50m of the creamery, while Hubbard missed it in three. This put a bowl between them after nine and ten to the creamery cross.
Hubbard was short of the gate with his next bowl, but Cooney only beat his tip. Cooney went up several gears in the next three though to put two bowls between them at the novice line. He continued to dominate to the bend before the junior line where he had well over two bowls of odds.
Hubbard rallied in the shots to Crowley’s cross, while Cooney’s form dipped. Still there was well over a bowl between them there. Hubbard continued to press with a good bowl to light at the farmyard. Cooney matched that to hold a level bowl of odds. Hubbard followed with another good bowl to sight at the bottom of the hill, just shy of the bridge. Cooney beat that to hold his odds with just 70m to the line.
Hubbard closed with another big bowl past the line. Cooney beat the line to secure his place in the final, but he missed Hubbard’s tip by 30m to leave the final margin under a bowl of odds.
He will play the winner of tonight’s semi-final between Killian Kingston and Wayne Callanan on either June 29 or 30 – the same weekend as the Munster Junior A final. If Kingston wins tonight at Gortroe it will be in Ballincurrig and if Callanan wins it will be in Whitechurch, which also hosts the Junior A final.
Peter Nagle is one of the Junior A finalists following a good win over Terry Mallon in driving rain at Kilcorney on Sunday.
He opened with a good bowl, while Mallon played his to the left. He continued to set the pace in the next three to Cooney’s where he had a 70m lead. He went down the hill to Coleman’s bridge in another three to raise a bowl of odds. He hit his only bad patch with two poor shots from there. Mallon got two big shots towards Cullinane’s to cut the lead to ten metres.
Mallon got a poor shot past Cullinane’s. Nagle quickly steadied the ship and increased his lead with every throw to extend his odds to well over a bowl at the finish. His Munster final opponent will be either Denis O’Driscoll or Billy McAuliffe, who meet in the other semi-final at Clondrohid.
McAuliffe finished a bowl of odds winner over Denis Cooney in the Munster quarter-final at Ballincurrig.
Cooney shaded two great opening shots each to Moore’s gate. He increased his lead with his third and went close to a bowl in front with a magnificent fourth to the creamery. He followed with a great bowl towards the no-play line. McAuliffe beat the line with his sixth, but Cooney was just short of Heaphy’s in six to keep his lead close to a bowl.
McAuliffe went halfway to O’Riordan’s with his next. Cooney had a chance to make light and take his lead to a full bowl. He played too close to right though and missed McAuliffe’s tip and lost the lead for the first time. McAuliffe held the lead with a great bowl past O’Riordan’s, but his next drifted left at the halfway line and missed Cooney’s tip by 30m.
Cooney increased his lead to 40m at Leahy’s. McAuliffe then got a sensational bowl to light at the big corner. Cooney replied with a smashing bowl, but it missed the tip by a metre. He got a poor shot from the bend. McAuliffe covered the short straight to take his lead to almost a bowl. He just made the start of the sycamore’s bend with his next. Cooney went well into the sycamores and McAuliffe beat that by just 40m.
Cooney needed a big one to force a last shot, but he missed the elbow. McAuliffe released another huge bowl that cut past the elbow and went onto the last straight. Cooney missed that to concede a bowl of odds.
Geraldine Daly advanced to the Munster senior women’s semi-final with a two bowls of odds win over Gretta Cormican at Ballinacarriga. Poor second and third shots put Cormican in trouble and Daly increased her odds from the fourth shot on. She plays Catriona Murphy in the semi-final at Bauravilla on Friday. Carmel Ryan and Emma Fitzpatrick meet at Béal na mBláth in the other semi-final tomorrow evening.
