Road bowling: Darragh Dempsey is Munster junior A champ after dramatic win over Johnny O’Driscoll

Darragh Dempsey competing for the Fr Michael O’Driscoll Cup at Ballinagree.

Darragh Dempsey lifted the famous Fr Michael O’Driscoll Cup as Munster junior A champion after a dramatic last shot win over Johnny O’Driscoll at Ballinagree.

The former European youth champion looked to be cruising to victory up the testing, rising road, but O’Driscoll had other ideas. The wily veteran showed all his nous and craft in the closing quarter. His second last bowl really threw the fat in the fire, forcing a last shot. He then closed with a massive bowl, which presented Dempsey with the biggest test of the day.

That last bowl wheeled past the pub and up past the kerbs to the housing estate entrance. Dempsey hade very little leeway for his reply. He almost certainly needed to cannon off the kerb like O’Driscoll had, but that left open the possibility of his bowl hopping the kerb. He played his bowl to perfection, it had the verve it needed, it clipped the kerb perfectly and raced on for a 30m win.

The score looked to be heading for a comprehensive win for Dempsey once he shook off O’Driscoll’s early challenge. O’Driscoll won the opening shot to Coakley’s lane by 20m. Dempsey won the next exchange past An Capaillín Bán cross, but 25m. He led from there, but ironically his odds were back to that mark too for his final throw.

Dempsey raised 100m with a big third drive up the hill. He followed with another massive bowl up the straight to go a bowl clear. At this point his power and youth looked an invincible combination. He wasn’t able to press the destruct button though and while he held the bowl of odds, he was not increasing his lead.

O’Driscoll played a great 10th shot past the falling pole to bring the lead under a bowl. That was the first step in a tremendous fightback. He kept the lead at a bare bowl in the next three past the quay wall. Dempsey looked to have lifted the siege with a great bowl to the white wall. O’Driscoll replied with a gem that gave him peeping light for the village. Dempsey beat that well, but the odds were closing.

O’Driscoll followed with another brilliant bowl that went well down the hill past Robin’s lock and put him within striking distance of the line. Dempsey was left with his reply. It went into the grass and was lucky to beat O’Driscoll’s tip by 25m. He had an advantage, but nothing more.

O’Driscoll put all his chips on the table with a great last bowl. It cannoned off the kerb and posed the biggest question of the day to Dempsey. He answered that test admirably, but had he been more ruthless in the middle of the score he could have been out of sight.

In bowling the player’s key adviser is the person ‘standing the tip’. For Dempsey he had Dermot Herlihy who had been ‘standing the tip’ for his great-grandfather Jerry Hurley. Octogenarian, Herlihy, has effectively guided four generations of Dempsey’s family.

In honour of his achievement Herlihy and Dan Quill, grandnephew of the famous Bould Thady Quill were called on to make the live draws for the Munster semi-finals of the senior and junior B men, which resulted as follows: