Leinster reel in plucky Munster to clinch title win
A massive upset was very much on the cards at lunchtime with Munster leading 3-1 after the foursomes. That left Leinster needing six of the afternoon nine singles and they just about achieved it. Still, even their captain Frank Gannon was a worried man for the first 90 minutes or so as Munster sought to build on their surprise advantage from the morning.
However, things gradually swung in favour of Leinster and they won a shade more easily than the scoreline suggests. In truth, any other outcome would have constituted a shattering blow to the status quo in the country. After all, Leinster fielded the Close champion Paul O’Hanlon as well as the winners of the four provincial championships, Shane Lowry (West and North), Niall Kearney (South) and Eoin Arthurs (East).
Moreover, with the exception of Niall Gorey they are all full-time players. Munster fielded no more than two from the same category with the team composed of doctors, bankers, consultants, financiers, and site engineers.
It told in the end and what must be even more demoralising for the southern province is that they appear to have precious little young blood coming through.
This is in stark contrast to Leinster and Ulster and even Connacht, who supplied the bulk of the players who so brilliantly completed a grand slam in the Boys Home International Championship at Royal Co Down.
Munster, for their part, didn’t have a single member on that side, a fact that starkly underlines just where the game is at in the province.
The Douglas partnership of Aaron O’Callaghan and Kieran Canty got Munster off to the perfect start yesterday by beating the powerful combination of Shane Lowry and Paul O’Hanlon in a fine match at the 18th. John Morris and Seamus Power had their chances against Niall Kearney and Simon Ward but went down on the 17th. But there was further good news for Munster as Karl Bornemann and Stephen Moloney galloped home against Niall Gorey and Rory McNamara before Pat Murray and Gary O’Flaherty left them with a healthy lunchtime lead by getting the better of Dara Lernihan and Cian Curley.
After a decent start to the afternoon proceedings, Munster flattered only to deceive. Murray was probably playing for his Irish team place against Lowry and it was a desperately tight match all the way. They were all square standing on the 16th tee where Murray was just about to drive when a “boy racer” sounded his car horn as he drove by on the nearby road. The startled Munsterman hooked his shot into tiger rough on the edge of Lough Ree and lost his ball and the hole.
Lowry did brilliantly well to get up and down for a half in par at the long 17th and Munster’s chance of taking anything from this crucial match disappeared when Murray drove into the trees to the left of the 18th. Seamus Power also lost his match on the final hole against Niall Kearney while Aaorn O’Callaghan was always fighting a rearguard action against Niall Kearney and went down at the 16th.
The remarkable Paul Buckley from Kanturk, of whom little or nothing was known until he reached the last eight of the North of Ireland Championship last month, once again came up trumps as he walloped 2006 South of Ireland champion Simon Ward 5 and 4. It meant he had won each of his three singles, a splendid achievement for one who only started playing the game seriously at the age of 21 during his student days at NCIT. His caddie this week and throughout the season was Ger Crotty, who taught Paul when he was a pupil at Scoil Mhuire, Kanturk.
Munster supporters searched for some solace and largely it was in short supply. Stephen Moloney duly won at the 18th against Cian Curley and Karl Bornemann prevailed at the 16th against Niall Gorey but there was no sign of anything from the remaining matches leaving Leinster victors by the narrowest of margins, 7 matches to 6.
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