Results

Stevie McGurk v Barry McKenna:

McGurk started well opening a bowl of a lead by Kilpatrick’s from an erratic McKenna. McKenna slowly found his stride, but McGurk was missing nothing at this stage and held the lead until the cap. McGurk then misplayed two in a row before the bridge, leaving the score level, and when he missed two more up the straight, McKenna sailed into a bowl of a lead which he never relinquished.

With no score back down, Danny and Daniel Trainor took on Patrick Garvey and Mickey McVeigh (with a small head start). The Trainors struggled early on, and their opponents, bowling flawlessly, raced into a two bowl lead at the cap. Some good bowling from the Trainors, coupled with a few unfortunate strokes of bad luck from their opponents, left the score level by Mary Ann’s. Two more good shots each left a grandstand finish with the Trainor partnership winning by the narrowest of margins on the last shot.

Cormac Conlon v Gerard Conlon:

Cormac was very erratic early on, and Gerard, also making a mistake or two, raised a bowl of odds out of Mary Ann’s. Cormac settled into a rhythm after this and produced some hard, straight bowls, leaving Gerard a bowl out with a big shot past Allen’s, and then two out with another at the cap. Cormac continued to forge ahead and with the deficit three bowls at O’Neill’s, Gerard decided to shake hands.

Shane Donnelly v Joseph O’Neill:

Shane Donnelly started with two milers to the slow sign against newcomer Joseph O’Neill. O’Neill had no answer to this type of bowling and he went a bowl out at Allen’s and two out at Mary Ann’s. Here it was O’Neill’s turn to throw a miler to almost the Point Road. Donnelly held on to his first out of the corner and when his next hit the dead kerb, suddenly all was to play for. Donnelly, however, got past the Point Road as a useful lead, and when O’Neill failed to score, Donnelly was relieved to see his last hop another kerb for a last shot victory.