WITH a comeback for the ages Geraldine Daly-Curtin claimed the county senior championship for the fourth time at Castletownkenneigh.
There was heartbreak for Denise Murphy who contributed so much to an enthralling contest only to suffer the agony of seeing a first-time victory snatched from her grasp in those dramatic closing exchanges.
Their eagerly-awaited clash attracted a large crowd to the Mid Cork venue, and they were immediately engaged as both finalists gave hints of what was to come with outstanding opening shots.
Denise beat a piledriver from the former champion and it spurred her to a period of dominance that seemed sure to win the day. Bowling down the Enniskeane line from ‘the triangle’, last year’s intermediate champion from Ballinagree fired shots with exceptional precision with the result that a bowl of odds lead was attained after a majestic fourth.
That centre road track continued to yield rich dividends for Denise as a brilliant sixth to ‘the hollies’ pushed almost two bowls clear as Geraldine’s eighth to the same point went right off the play.
Denise’s eighth was another superb effort down to ‘Willie John’s cross’, but Geraldine’s reply when beating a big tip to keep the margin under two bowls, suggested she was not throwing in the towel.
A gradual whittling of the lead began in the next exchanges. Denise was not getting the traction on the centre line of her earlier deliveries and Geraldine upped her game, reducing the lead to a bare bowl with four to go. The long-time leader got little from her 13th and suddenly what looked like an unassailable advantage was gone when her rejuvenated rival hit a thundering 14th shot to take a first-time lead.
All the momentum now was with Geraldine and she duly won that last vital exchange with a sweeping 15th cast over the finish line. The joyous scenes that followed indicate a large exodus northward on August bank holiday weekend when the popular Timoleague resident will renew hostilities with her former adversary, the seemingly invincible Kelly Mallon.
Geraldine received the Brendan Roche Cup from Robert Roche, son of the fondly remembered former chairman of Ból Chumann. The contest did not carry a stake. Kelly Mallon retained her Ulster crown with victory over Dervla Toal-Mallon on Monday evening.
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The men’s intermediate final at Ballygurteen attracted another bumper crowd but, in contrast to the women’s senior final, this was one that will not live long in the memory.
That form is fickle was apparent early as shots of the short variety littered the score throughout. Brian Wilmot and Donal O’Riordan found it difficult to get to grips with the testing South West route. Both men had come through a testing campaign in good fettle and there was confidence in both camps as the substantial €15,700 total stake was balanced out.
Both got very short openers and little from their second attempts before Wilmot lined a decent third shot to sight. O’Riordan missed sight with his third but, incredibly, was in front after four when Wilmot caught the right dyke with a total misplay. There were high hopes among the large Bantry contingent when O’Riordan fired an excellent fifth to extend his lead to 40 metres but unfortunately it was as good as it got for him as Wilmot regained the fore bowl with a good sixth on a difficult stretch of road.
Intermediate championship winner Brian Wilmot, left, with Michael Brennan, Ból Chumann Chairman, and Donal O'Riordan, runner-up.
Bandon man Wilmot put his earlier travails behind him, and rose a bowl of odds with a good seventh from the ‘women’s lane’. O’Riordan enjoyed no luck with a well-played eighth and it was typical of a day, experienced by all bowlplayers at one point or another, when virtually nothing went right.
The odds mounted as Wilmot did the needful. He doubled his lead with a good tenth and was three up when matters were terminated by ‘O’Donovan’s corner’. At the after-score presentation, he was wished well in his All-Ireland bid by association chairman Michael Brennan and also by Donal O’Riordan who was ever gracious in a disappointing defeat. Brian Wilmot will play Ethan Rafferty in the All-Ireland intermediate final at Eglish on Sunday, August 6th.
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The performance of the week came from Denis O’Sullivan who claimed the Fr. Michael O’Driscoll Cup and the junior A county championship for 2023 with an awesome display at Templemartin. Against the North East division’s youthful champion Paddy O’Donnell, who had campaigned in both U18 and junior A. South-West representative O’Sullivan’s clash with Ulster champion Eugene McVeigh will be one of the highlights of All-Ireland weekend at Eglish. In the junior A semi-final at Ballincurrig, Paddy O’Donnell’s sublime last shot got him through to the decider at the expense of City champion Paidin Stokes. Neither semi-final or final carried a stake.
