Road Bowling: Wayne Parkes justifies favourtism in All-Ireland U18 final

Such was the quality and speed of Darragh Gribben’s bowling that Parkes was forced to show his best too

Wayne Parkes gave a strong indication of his future potential when he won a brilliant All-Ireland U18 final against Darragh Gribben on the Cullyhanna Road at Newtown last Sunday.

He entered the contest as the hottest of favourites. The ease with which he won the first shot seemed to confirm his status. He got plenty of tests after that, but he handled them with poise and class. Such was the quality and speed of Gribben’s bowling that Parkes was forced to show his best too.

Gribben gave him an instant reality check with a super second bowl to win the lead, which he held with his next three shots. Parkes played an exceptional bowl past Baker’s road, the perfect mix of speed and finesse, which catapulted him 80m clear. He won the next one by similar odds. Gribben then played a huge bowl to the bridge and he was suddenly back in front.

Parkes, showed championship nerve and confidence when he skimmed his next one tight on the left and regained the lead. In a flash Gribben hit back with another massive bowl to Davidson’s yard, to regain the lead by a whisker. Parkes comfortably won the next two shots past Murphy’s brae, but Gribben rallied with two brilliant bowls.

The first, past Murphy’s, clipped Parkes’ lead. The second was a monster bowl to the quarry, which looked set to give him a winning odds. Parkes replied with an absolute gem, which missed the tip by two metres, and might have beaten it had it not hit a grill. He then played an unbelievable last bowl, tight left up the hill past the line and over the brow. Gribben had no chance of beating it.

Hannah Sexton won the first leg of a Cork All-Ireland under-18 double with a bowl of odds win over Caoimhe Rafferty. Rafferty won the first shot, but Sexton took the second by 60m with a big bowl to Murphy’s brae. She raised a bowl with her third and a second one with her fifth. Rafferty continued to challenge strongly, but Sexton won by a bowl. That was a top-class display from Rafferty, who is also Ulster under-16 champion.

Sexton, like Parkes, is already contesting adult competitions and will play in the Munster Intermediate final later this month. A win there would give her a shot at a second All-Ireland, but would also be edging her towards the premier grade. Could she be challenging Kelly Mallon in a few years?

No amount of superlatives can capture Mallon’s consistent brilliance. A few weeks ago Carmel Carey was awesome in the Munster final, but on Saturday she could not match Mallon. A bit like Limerick hurlers, the question is could anyone realistically challenge Mallon. Hannah Sexton and some of the younger Cork bowlers will have to set their sights on climbing that Everest, as Mallon looks set to dominate for a long time yet.

Ulster’s Seán Donnelly won the All-Ireland Junior A title after losing the two previous finals. He held off a determined challenge by Andrew O’Callaghan. On balance it came down to getting a few critical shots right, on which, had O’Callaghan his time over, he might have taken different plays.

Cillian Twohig was ice cool in the under-14 final. He took just nine throws in his comprehensive win over Ulster’s Ciarán Corrigan. He won the lead with his second and led to the line. He put the contest to bed with two massive bowls to the bridge. John O’Rourke’s Intermediate win over Mark Toal was packed with drama and sheer class. Toal took the contest to him, but O’Rourke ultimately had all the answers and some to spare.