ARTHUR McDonagh’s reign as the Dan Riordan Cup holder came to an end at Bantry on Sunday. Instead, the plaudits lay with Gary Daly who took the honours by a bowl of odds for a stake of €6,100 a-side.
McDonagh, a holder of this cup for the previous two tournaments, started this final as hot favourite. He opened with two poor bowls, going almost a bowl of odds down. Fermoy man Daly raised the bowl with a huge third to McSweeney’s farm.
Daly followed with three more well-played bowls to Cronin’s bend but McDonagh was keeping the pressure on. McDonagh got a huge bowl past the cattle crush that Daly missed to knock the bowl of odds briefly but he recovered well with two excellent shots past the junior line to raise a bowl of odds again.
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Daly went up past Connolly’s wall full sight in two more, McDonagh made no line and Daly was an easy winner. Having beaten a few of the big players in recent weeks in James O’Donovan, Aidan Murphy and now Arthur McDonagh, it sets Daly up nicely for a good senior championship campaign.
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Ballinacurra held a junior A tournament score between Johnny O’Driscoll and Noel O’Regan, back from injury, for a stake of €1,850 a-side. O’Driscoll opened with a huge first shot, and increased his lead to two bowls at the waterworks. He held this lead past Perrots.
O’Regan had the gap under the two bowls at the GAA entrance, and after three he had it under the bowl. O’Regan got a huge bowl up to the avenue. O’Driscoll missed sight for the line and O’Regan with another perfect shot went full sight, O’Driscoll made a bad blunder here and gave O’Regan his first lead with a shot to go. O’Driscoll’s last pulled left and just beat the finish line, and O’Regan beat this tip independently.
Darragh Dempsey got his premier junior A championship off to a winning start when he beat Liam Murphy by two bowls of odds at Derrinasaffa, playing for a stake of €1,120 a-side. Dempsey impressed here, made the bridge in four well played bowls, and built a big lead. After going two bowls, Murphy conceded.
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Ted Hegarty’s tournaments at the Phale Road are coming to a conclusion. Three finals were down for decision last weekend. First up was the boys’ U14 between Tommy Coppinger, Jack Allen and Fionán Twohig, with honours going to Twohig. In the boys’ U16, Culann Bourke from North Cork was a trap-to-line winner over Ethan Hurley, West Cork. In the final score of the day, the boy’s U12, Jayden Crowley, also North Cork, beat Darragh Gleeson from the Carbery region.
