Coach and Castle progress to Knockout Cup final

Top of the First Division side Banbridge Golf Club made a short drive to the Coach Inn to face Coach B. As these two teams are currently in contention for league honours a tough encounter was expected.

Sure enough after four games the sides could not be separated. Games five and six were also shared as the two teams were again locked together.

A break through for Coach was made possible when Bert Doherty won the seventh. Golf Club faced a must win situation in the eighth to force a decider.

It was disappointment for the club and success for Coach when R. Hunter got the better of Trevor Woods - or should that read ‘Woods felled by Hunter’.

Castle Tavern have certainly made an impression in their first season in the Pool League. At the start of the season the anticipation of bringing home silverware of some description was quite high. Those expectations could become a reality when they turned over Halfway B in the semi-final of the First Division Knockout Cup sponsored by The Halfway House.

As Halfway had home advantage they were desperate for a win which would see them play in a final in a few weeks time in front of a home crowd. Castle on the other hand were completely undaunted by the challenge before them, silverware is their only objective.

A good start by the home team failed to materialise as after only four games Halfway found themselves struggling with not even a game on the board. Tom Bell, Gordon Church, Ryan Taylor and Brian McClelland were the successful Castle players.

A clean sweep by the visitors was avoided when D. McAlinden scored a lonely win for Halfway. Too little too late as Castle completed the rout with a win for John Turley, his match winning game and the overall team performance ensure Castle Tavern return to the same venue in four weeks time for the final.

Also completed were the semi-finals of the Brendan McAdam Memorial Knockout Cup sponsored by The Coach Inn. In the first semi-final it was as predicted standing room only in the tight confines of the Higgins pool room.

Castle Bar began well with a win for Greg Harper. They were quickly pegged back when Paddy Donaghy levelled. Had Higgins taken their chances in games three and four the eventual outcome could have been much different, instead they found themselves three one down.

In the fifth Higgins captain Brendan Davis excelled to reduce the deficit to one, problem was though Castle counterpart Gordy Magennis followed suit to win the sixth to stay two ahead. With the visitors needing one more they were pegged back when D Wilton prolonged the life of the match.

Just when extra time looked to be on the cards Stephen Fitzpatrick wiped out those very thoughts to see Castle through to the final. “Too many missed chances,” was Brendan’s comment after the match. “We must now regroup for the league title race.”

With the local golf course closed due to the bad weather recently it seems some of the club members are finding other ways of spending their time, that includes taking the local pool league by storm.

It’s another week, another semi-final for the club and this time the big one had them determined to put last week’s disappointing First Division Cup semi final behind them. They had a tough task as Coach were currently tracking a double in both league and cup.

Home advantage failed to kick in for the home team as like the golf course lately they were completely snowed under as player by player, Coach dominated to lead by four without reply.

The main objective in both pool and golf is all about putting the ball in the hole, something Rory Leonard can find quite easy to do at times both on the golf course and on a pool table. He was the only club player to register a win in the fifth. T

he inevitable happened in the very next game when Barry McGeown brought the match to an end. Stand in Coach captain Raymond Lyons generously commented the result should have been a lot closer than the score line suggested. Coach now face a repeat of last season’s final against Castle Bar, a chance for revenge.

Last week’s premier division match reports will be published here next week. The Pool League Individuals sponsored by The Leader have commenced in The Coach Inn. Those involved are reminded to consult the main draw as to which round and which night they play.