Mighty Mackle romps to victory
Murphy won the first two shots and when Mackle played his third into the river he was almost a bowl behind. Murphy played a poor third shot to the rock. Mackle then got a great shot past Daly’s to take a big lead and he had almost a bowl after his next to the cross. He held that lead with his sixth to Ross’.
He raised a bowl of odds with his seventh to the haggard gate and increased his lead with his next past Cotter’s cross. Murphy missed the Darkwood turn in ten and when Mackle went out in nine he had close to two bowls. He raised the second bowl with his next and held it to Walsh’s lane.
Murphy knocked the second bowl at the novice line. Mackle quelled that revival and was closer to three ahead after his thirteenth to O’Neill’s cross. He beat the bungalow with his next and was just short of the line in 15.
Donal O’Donovan won the three-hand Munster Vintage (over-60) final at Durrus, where he beat DD Carroll and Jim Fitzpatrick.
Carroll won the opening shots, but O’Donovan took the next two. A short second shot left Fitzpatrick off the pace and he never recovered. Carroll got a brilliant fourth at Blair’s Cove, but O’Donovan beat it and an equally good one to the cattle grid. Carroll finally regained the lead with his seventh to ‘Annie Flurry’s’.
O’Donovan’s brilliant tenth to the wire put him almost a bowl ahead of Carroll and two on Fitzpatrick. He missed sight at the last bend and Carroll closed the gap to 40m and Fitzpatrick knocked the bowl. It was not enough to trouble O’Donovan though who won the last shot well with a good bowl over the bridge.
Tom Browne won the Gerald Healy Cup final at Kilcorney where he beat Kevin Ruby in the last shot. They were locked together in the early stages. Browne gained odds down the hill and went almost a bowl clear at Coleman’s bridge. Ruby cut the lead to Cullinane’s and pressed on to force a last shot.
Denis Wilmot beat Sean Murphy in the Jerry Desmond Cup semi-final at Ballygurteen. Murphy was a bowl clear after three to sight at the first bend. He held that lead till Wilmot got two great shots in succession to level it at the avenue. There was little between them till Murphy missed light at O’Donovan’s. Wilmot now had 80m odds and he held that past Burke’s and won the last shot well.
Gavin Twohig opened the renewal of the same competition with a magnificent performance against Wayne Callanan at Shannonvale. He got four blistering shots to the quarry. He made the pillars with his next and was out Desmond’s in six against Callanan’s nine. Callanan briefly closed the gap with a great shot from there, but Twohig was three bowls clear again after ten to the palms.
At the Marsh Road Denis O’Driscoll beat Dave Fitzgerald. He dominated to the quarry hill. Fitzgerald then levelled with a massive bowl to the silvery gate. They were still level after ten to the steps and 12 to Thornhill cross. O’Driscoll won the shots to Ballyhilty well, but lost the lead after two poor throws to the avenue. He bounced back with a brilliant shot to Crowley’s boreen, which gave him victory by almost a bowl.
Éamon Bowen Jnr beat Christy Mullins by a bowl at Whitechurch. Mullins won the early shots, but Bowen led at the wall. He raised a bowl after two more to Boula lane and held it to the farmhouse. Mullins cut the lead to 40m with a great shot to the Devil’s bend. Bowen increased the lead again to the last straight. He was lucky that his last shot ran around the last bend on the footpath.
Gary Daly beat James O’Donovan by almost a bowl at Shannonvale. They were out Desmond’s in seven each. Daly then got a brilliant bowl towards Sam’s lane to raise a bowl. After two more he looked to be going for a second bowl. He unluckily missed Campbell’s with his 11th. O’Donovan cut the lead to a bowl with a great shot to the novice line and saved the bowl in the last exchange.
It is a rich time for women bowlers with European champion Carmel Ryan taking the Chair of East Cork and West Waterford and Gretta Cormican launching a history of the All-Ireland championships.
Ryan, who won the four most prestigious titles in women’s bowling in a 17-month period, European, Munster, All-Ireland and Queen of the Roads, sets her sights on the development of bowling in her home region.
On Saturday, in Bandon, Cormican launches her book ‘Glory Days’, which has an account of every All-Ireland final since the meeting of Danny McParland and Derry Kenny on the August weekend of 1963. It also includes contemporaneous photos of the more significant finals.
