Gavin Twohig closes out brilliantly to edge out David Hubbard at Rosscarbery
Hubbard edged the opening shots to the Mill cross. Twohig took the second, but his third was too far right and Hubbard led again.
Hubbard had 30m odds at the bend and was 70m fore after his fifth to the priest’s house. He kept a good lead in the next two, beating Twohig’s great bowl to Barry’s hill.
Twohig produced big bowls to the guesthouse and another to the farm, but Hubbard held on.
Twohig got a great 12th towards the no-play to regain the lead and both were close enough to walk to the line in 13. Twohig beat Hubbard’s good shot to Froe cross. Hubbard followed with another big bowl towards the Bull’s gate.
Twohig replied with an exceptional bowl to increase his lead to 70m. He held a good lead in the next two to the last bend. Hubbard’s last rubbed and just beat the line and Twohig beat it comfortably.
Michael Bohane contests the Connie Killarney Cup final at Kealkill, having beaten PJ Cooney by almost a bowl in the semi-final. He led the early shots and went a bowl clear after a great third. He held that lead to Coppinger’s, but Cooney cut it to 50m in the shots to O’Sullivan’s. Cooney continue to press and won the lead in the shots from O’Mahony’s.
Bohane was back in front at Kingston’s. He was 50m clear at the graveyard. He closed with a good last shot to push his lead close to a bowl again.
Those wins came at the perfect time for Twohig and Bohane, who play their first Munster intermediate championship scores next weekend.
Twohig bowls Ian Callanan at Templemartin and Bohane plays Willie O’Donovan at Whitechurch, both on Sunday. John Shorten and Pat Butler open the season the previous day at Kilcorney.
Donal Riordan beat Kieran Murphy by just two metres in the feature score of the Derrinasafa benefit series. He had a 30m lead after three and increased that to 70m with a brilliant fourth past Healy’s. His lead dropped to 25m when he missed sight at Ross’s with his next.
They were past Cotter’s cross in three more with Riordan 15m fore. Murphy got a great ninth to sight at the Darkwood turn, which gave him his first lead by three metres.
Riordan followed with a great bowl up the rise to win back the lead by 30m. Murphy hit back with a massive bowl to clip the lead to just two metres. Riordan got the better of the shots past the novice line to push his lead to 60m.
Murphy then got another great bowl and Riordan’s reply caught the left 25m hind. Murphy won the next exchange by 30m, but Riordan cut that to just five metres with his second last. He then beat the line, but his tip looked beatable. But Murphy’s last was too far right and missed the tip by a metre.
James Oliver plays Conor McGuigan in next Sunday’s Bill Hillock Cup final at Knappagh. He opened with three super shots against Paul Rafferty, who was slow off the blocks and went two shots adrift. From there to the Condy corner they both produced five-star shows ,but Rafferty could make no dent on Oliver’s lead.
McGuigan will be perfectly primed for that encounter as he beat Thomas Mackle at Tassagh to win a place in the Joe McVeigh Cup semi-final against Cathal Toal Easter weekend.
At Berrings, James Buckley beat Seamus Sexton by more than two bowls. Sexton exploited Buckley’s three poor opening shots to go almost a bowl in front at the pub. Buckley closed the gap dramatically with a brilliant bowl up the hill. He followed with two more big shots to the graveyard where had almost a bowl.
He made sight at the double bend in two more. Sexton lofted a dead bowl there to leave him two bowls down. From there, Buckley maintained his dominance.
Anthony Gould beat John O’Donoghue in the last shot at Grenagh. He broke the early deadlock with three good shots to the farm where he had 80m odds. He increased his lead to almost a bowl after three more to the double gates. O’Donoghue reached Boula lane in two to level it. Gould got a good shot through the cross and beat O’Donoghue’s good second last by 60m. O’Donoghue closed with a big shot that beat the line by 20m. Gould beat that by 70m with his reply.
At the same venue, Brian O’Halloran beat Derry Cooney by less than a metre. They were level to Boula lane and were just short of the line in three more with O’Halloran just fore. Cooney then got what looked a winning bowl up the hill, but O’Halloran held his nerve.
Jimmy O’Driscoll beat Peter Nagle in the last shot at Shannonvale.
