Road bowling: Sexton sees off battling Creedon for Munster crown

In Munster, there were wins for Edmund Sexton and Seán Murphy in Zone B and for Danny Stokes in Zone A. Pic: Chani Anderson

The Men’s Junior A championship held centre stage in both Ulster and Munster in the past week.

In Ulster, Jake Cullen’s star continued its upward trajectory through a two bowls of odds dismissal of former All-Ireland intermediate champion Paul Rafferty at Knappagh. 

In Munster, there were wins for Edmund Sexton and Seán Murphy in Zone B and for Danny Stokes in Zone A.

Sexton beat Conor Creedon at Castletownkinneigh. Despite bringing an injury into battle, Creedon had 10m odds after two and increased that to 50m after four. Sexton then played a massive bowl through the round-tower cross to clip the lead to 20m.

Creedon held his odds in the next two past the novice line and in two more to Pyne’s corner. He still had a valuable 15m advantage at the end of the straight facing the netting.

Sexton played his next bowl tight right past the bend and made the gate before the netting. Creedon followed the same strategy. 

His bowl brushed the bank and crossed left handing Sexton his first lead by 20m.

Creedon was luckier with his next rub, at the netting, which edged him back in front by two metres. Sexton won the next exchange by 10m and consolidated his lead with a great bowl to just shy of Forshin’s Cross. Creedon closed the gap to the last bend.

Sexton then played a huge bowl towards the line and it looked over. Creedon made a super bid to rescue his challenge with a brilliant bowl past the line. Sexton was not cowed though and beat it comfortably.

Danny Stokes beat Wayne Callanan on the temporarily relocated Ballincurrig road at Leamlara. 

Significant deterioration of the road surface at Ballincurrig has forced this change while remedial work is being planned.

Stokes got the better of two brilliant opening shots to the former Ringview Bar. Callanan followed with an equally good second one to the crush to lead by 40m. Stokes’ next bowl only made peeping light over the Leamlara river. 

Callanan now looked well placed to increase his lead, but missed the tip.

Callanan did well to get the end of the lawn with his next one. It was Stokes’s turn to spurn an opening when he missed that by three metres. A similar lead separated them after the following exchange onto Standish Barry’s straight. 

Neither player got a good shot from there up the rise, but Stokes was back in front.

Callanan then played his best shot of the day, a huge bowl that reached the care home. Stokes hit back with an even better one that hugged the right and beat the tip by 15m. That was a critical turning point. 

Stokes made the big tree with his next one and it took Callanan two throws to cover the same road.

He raised a bowl with his shot past the speed camera and increased his lead with another big bowl to the school. They reached the chapel next, on the same tip for a bowl of odds. Callanan then played a big bowl to the grotto, which knocked the bowl of odds.

Seán Murphy won the Murphy clan bragging rights when he beat his first cousin, Kieran, in the last shot of their Zone B tie at Ballinacurra.

He had 50m odds after three to the lollipops, but Kieran cut that to 15m in the shots to Brinny cross. Little changed to the church. 

Kieran then played a massive bowl to the waterworks, but Seán followed and beat it by less than a metre. He held a 20m lead in the next two exchanges.

Kieran won his first lead with a brilliant bowl to the end of Perrott’s sheds. Seán then opened light for the bridge with an extraordinary bowl, only for Kieran to reply in-kind and beat it by 2m. Seán regained the lead with another five-star shot past Innishannon cross. 

They were both out onto the straight in two more, with Seán holding 25m odds just short of the junior C line. Kieran regained the lead, by 7m, with another massive bowl past the avenue.

Seán edged back in front with his second last for light facing the line and beat Kieran’s good last shot past the line.

Ellen Sexton tipped her closely contested Munster intermediate championship tie with Julianne Hayes in the last shot at Caheragh. 

Alan O’Leary had to beat a big last shot from Bernie McDonagh to hold his bowl of odds in the North-East junior B semi-final at Ballyhooly.

At Ballinagree, Noel O’Regan beat Michéal Desmond by almost a bowl and Cathal Creedon beat Andrew O’Callaghan by three bowls.