EOIN Hurley swelled his trophy collection with victory in the novice 1 final played in wet conditions at Ballinacurra.

Flying the West Cork flag, novice B champion Hurley – from Kilronan, Dunmanway – took on novice A winner Tommy O’Donoghue from East Cork. They played for a stake of €7,200 a-side.

It’s a victory that sends Hurley into the All-Ireland series in Mayo this weekend.

This was a hard-fought win for Hurley, as he was on the back foot in the early exchanges of this score.

After two shots each past the bollards, O’Donoghue had 20 metres of odds. O’Donoghue had big odds after two more to Brinny Cross. Hurley’s fifth shot was very right at the cross and O’Donoghue had big odds as he made the Church Wall.

Hurley got an unbelievable rub off the church pillar with his sixth throw that took him down to Foley’s and kept him in the score. O’Donoghue beat this by 40 metres.

Past the Waterworks, O’Donoghue looked in control when he had 100 metres of odds after six shots. Hurley got a poor bowl from here that O’Donoghue did not capitalise on and dropped big odds.

Hurley upped his game for the second half of the score with a massive bowl past Perriot’s farm that gave him his first lead by 40 metres. Two more shots to the silvery gates from Hurley where he extended his lead but O’Donoghue went out full sight in two more where he was keeping it under the bowl of odds by 60 metres. Hurley beat this by 50 valuable metres.

O’Donoghue lined an incredible last shot that beat the line by ten metres, and while Hurley’s last was a touch right, it held on long enough to beat the tip.

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The novice 2 final between the novice C winner Don O’Driscoll from Drimoleague and Robert Coleman, the novice D winner from North East, was played at Newcestown. There was no stake in this one.

Both went out full sight at the first bend, Coleman was very left with his next and O’Driscoll made sight at the lollipops. Both made O’Brien’s Cross in three and four shots where it was just under the bowl of odds.

Two more bowls from O’Driscoll up past Pedroe’s Garage but Coleman followed both. O’Driscoll’s fifth was a good bowl to Kingston’s farm that raised the bowl of odds for him as Coleman was very left of play – his next was right and now he was almost two bowls of odds down.

O’Driscoll made Hurley’s bungalow in two more where it was still under the two bowls of odds. On for Canty’s lane, Coleman was knocking no odds. But after two poor bowls in succession from O’Driscoll, the odds were suddenly back to an even bowl. Coleman got a big bowl to O’Callaghan’s new house but O’Driscoll steadied himself again and got an incredible bowl that beat the line, and booked his place in the All-Ireland semi-final next weekend.

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Ballincurrig’s preparations for their King & Queen of the Roads weekend on September 26th and 27th got underway. They held three Mick Barry Cup semi-finals.

We’re told the surface of the road has changed immensely since last year when it was newly re-surfaced. With the wonderful summer we have had, with lots of traffic on that road it has created new plays.

Aidan Murphy led from the start to beat Gary Daly, for a stake of €5,365 a-side, and book his place in the final.

In the second semi-final on Sunday morning, Eugene McVeigh made it worth his while when he travelled the long journey from Armagh to play Páidín Stokes for a stake of €2,550 a-side. McVeigh, in recent years, has mastered the Cork style and it seems to be working well for him. He won here to advance.

In the last semi-final at Ballincurrig, last year’s Mick Barry Cup winner James O’Donovan played five-times King winner Thomas Mackle, for a stake of €3,650 a-side. In a heavyweight battle, it was Mackle who emerged victorious to book his place in the Mick Barry Cup final.

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In a Pool C vintage A final at Drimoleague, Kieran O’Driscoll from Clonakilty had a convincing win over Jimmy Collins from Union Hall. They played for a stake of €1,500 a-side.

Collins led after two shots but O’Driscoll took over from there. After four shots he had 30 metres of odds. O’Driscoll raised a bowl of odds at the first line and had almost two bowls at the second line. The winner powered up the hill to the bridge where he had almost three bowls and now awaits the vintage A winners from Pool A and B. In a Queen of the Roads qualifier semi-final, Denise Murphy beat Ailbhie O’Shea by the last shot at Grenagh.

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The annual CUH Cancer Research FundRaising weekend was held for the tenth year in Shannonvale under the guidance of Margaret Daly.

Proceeding got under way on Friday evening where Thomas Maloney beat Ritchie Lawton by one bowl for €2,100 a-side, Eoin Connolly beat Aaron Ryan by one bowl for €750 a-side.

On Saturday, Gearoid Lucey beat Alan Brickley by the last shot for €3,350 a-side, Liam Murphy beat David Hegarty by one bowl for €4,000 a-side, PJ O’Driscoll and David Hegarty beat Liam Murphy and Stephen Spillane by the last shot for €7,200 a-side. The final score on Saturday saw Eoin McCarthy beat Jim Coffey by three bowls for €3,100 as.

On Sunday, Denis Wilmot beat Johnny O’Driscoll by two bowls of odds for €3,550 a-side, Martin O’Donovan beat PJ O’Driscoll for €8,000 a-side. In the afternoon Paul Buckley beat Wayne Parkes for €8,300 a-side. In the return route, Johnny O’Driscoll made up for his disappointing display in the morning score to beat Micháel Desmond by the last shot for a stake of €9,000 a-side.