All hail new king Coppinger
It was a score that had everything. Even so it was matched by an equally great Mallow Contracts Queen of the Roads in which Dutch champion Silke Tulk produced an amazing last bowl to dethrone Kelly Mallon.
It was clear from the first shot that Coppinger was primed for the score of his life with a brilliant bowl to the point of the bend. But if he was ready so was Murphy, determined to complete a unique four-in-a-row of titles. He delivered an exceptional second bowl past Moore’s gate followed by a close-to-record third shot to the green to put him in a big lead, but Coppinger was not in the mood for wilting.
He came back with a rocket past the creamery to grab the lead by a metre after Murphy’s reply took an unlucky bounce. Coppinger followed with another big one to Heaphy’s, but it was called. His next stopped between the lines to leave them tied after six each.
Murphy got a good bowl off the line and dwarfed Coppinger’s brilliant shot onto the long straight with a monster of a bowl. Coppinger hit back with another super bowl on the right that went to Leahy’s — all square again.
At the big corner, Murphy was just a metre fore. He increased that marginally up the short straight. He then got a great bowl to the sycamores and it looked as if the tide was ebbing for Coppinger. Murphy tightened his grip with a good bowl to the elbow.
Coppinger now needed a big one to stay in contention. He delivered handsomely with a brilliant shot to light at the last bend. Murphy countered with a beautifully finessed bowl that kept him comfortably ahead.
Coppinger had one final play, a searing bowl that cut the left-hand bend and went to the end of O’Connell’s green. Murphy now needed the exceptional bowl. He came close to delivering with a fine loft, but his bowl stopped seven metres short of Coppinger’s tip.
Silke Tulk and Kelly Mallon had no intention of being overshadowed in the Mallow Contracts Queen of the Roads final. Tulk started strongly and had a good lead after two. Mallon kept her focus though and she was back level after four to the muddy gap. Mallon led with the next onto the short straight. Tulk missed the big corner with her next and when Mallon’s bowl arrived safely she had close to a bowl of odds.
Tulk closed the gap when her next bowl cannoned off Leahy’s wall. Mallon was a little wide with her reply, but she still had a good lead. Tulk then played an amazing bowl that went all the ways to O’Riordan’s. Mallon misplayed her next, but she recovered quickly with a great bowl past Tulk’s tip to keep the lead under a bowl. Tulk then played an even better bowl to light at Hegarty’s, but Mallon beat the tip by 20m. Tulk beat the pony’s gate with her next to give her a bowl of odds.
Mallon responded immediately with an absolute gem to the creamery, which Tulk just beat by 30m in two. Mallon then played another bullet that went out onto the finishing straight. Tulk did well to miss that by just 10 metres. She then played the ultimate last shot — it was fast and true and went way past the line.
PJ Cooney gave a battling performance to beat Paul O’Reilly in the Jim O’Driscoll Cup final. Father and son John and Cian Shorten had a last shot win against Paul Rafferty and Mark Kieran in the Charlie McCarthy Cup. Ciara Buckley finished strongly to beat Sinéad Kiernan and Hannah Janßen in the Junior Queen of the Roads.
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