MICHAEL John O’Brien enjoyed a trap-to-line victory to win the Mick Young Cup final in Bantry on Sunday.

Tim Young, a runner-up in this tournament last year, was hoping to go one better and lift his father’s cup, but there was no stopping O’Brien. They played for a stake of €1,000 a-side.

At McSweeney’s farm in three each, O’Brien had odds of 70 metres. O’Brien raised the bowl of odds with a huge fifth to Harrington’s bungalow as Young was very right of play.

With two more huge bowls from O’Brien to Cronin bend, he held his odds of a bowl. At the crush O’Brien raised a second bowl, but Young had it back under the two bowls as he made sight for Connolly’s Wall with a well-played 13th. When O’Brien only beat this tip by 15 metres, we were back to a bowl of odds.

Young got another good bowl up past Connolly’s wall, and when O’Brien was too far right it was now under the bowl of odds. O’Brien made sight for the finish line but Young’s bowl never swung with the road. O’Brien’s last was well played and beat the line easily.

Mick Young was on hand to make the presentation and thanked all the players who took part in nasty conditions. He congratulated Michael John and wished him well in the junior championship.

In the semi-finals, the two underdogs came out on top, Michael John O’Brien and Tim Young.

The first was between Shane Crowley, Michael John O’Brien and Cillian Kelleher, playing for a total stake of €7,500. O’Brien took control of this score with a big third shot and followed up with an equally good fourth past McSweeney’s farm where he had a full bowl on Kelleher and was throwing his odds over 30 metres on Crowley.

When Kelleher fell almost two bowls, he bowed out, while the leader stayed in control, despite Crowley bringing the odds back to 50 metres after O’Brien’s poor ninth. But Crowley undid all his good work to fall a bowl of odds down again. He recovered again, but O’Brien, lucky with his second last shot, did enough to win.

In the second semi-final, it was Wayne Parkes v Timmy McDonagh v Tim Young, playing for a total stake of €20,400, with Parkes the favourite. He got one of the longest bowls thrown off the line when he went past the avenue. Young only beat this tip by 30 metres in two and McDonagh lined a bullet of a second shot back of McSweeney’s farm that won him the lead after Parkes’ second only just beat Young’s tip. McDonagh had 50 metres on both.

Young got a super third shot that won him the lead from McDonagh by two metres, and both were throwing their odds over Parkes. After the next exchange Parkes was a bowl down and Young held a slight advantage on McDonagh.

At Casey’s lane in six each, Young and McDonagh were on level tips with Parkes now trailing by two bowls; he was playing the left-hand tracks with left-hand play and it just didn’t suit him. Young, after a huge bowl, had a big advantage on McDonagh, and had almost a bowl on him after his next. Parkes called it a day at this juncture.

McDonagh lined an incredible bowl past the Crush that Young only beat by 40 metres. Game on. McDonagh followed up with another huge bowl past the junior line that Young beat by 30 metres. O’Brien missed Connolly’s wall and Young got the perfect touch off the wall to go up full sight – a massive advantage. McDonagh missed the line in two more and Young won with a well-played last shot.

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Rosscarbery held a Michelle Hayes Cup quarter-final score between John A Murphy and Donie Harnedy, playing for a stake of €1,200 a-side.

After two each to the lollipops, Harnedy held a ten-metre advantage. But after two more, his advantage was only five metres. From here Murphy did some serious bowling – he was up back of Barry’s Boreen in three huge bowls, where he had a bowl of odds.

Harnedy’s seventh and eighth were not great, both caught in the left dyke. Murphy got a huge eighth to the B&B that raised a second bowl for him, and after another to the farm entrance Harnedy conceded.