1st Series All Ireland Finals - Report

All-Ireland Championship Drama, Triumphs and Heartbreak as Champions Are Crowned Across the Grades

ALL-IRELAND FINAL HEARTBREAK FOR DARRAGH DEMPSEY & HANNAH SEXTON

Disappointment for Darragh Dempsey in the Junior A All-Ireland when an old knee injury hampered his finish. Playing for a phenomenal stake of €30,000 a-side. Dempsey was in command from the off but failed on a few occasions to put the score beyond Gribben’s reach. After two each through An Capaillín Ban Cross Dempsey had ten meters of odds. A poor third and fourth from Gribben but Dempsey was not pulling away as he only held odds of forty meters. Gribben’s fifth was one of his better ones and Dempsey beat this again by the same margin. At the Pink Cottage, Dempsey put big odds on Gribben’s tip and looked to be after settling into this score. Past the Post Office in nine Dempsey held a hundred meter advantage and looked like no bowl to make sight for the Quay Wall. Gribben tenth bowl veered off right and missed out and Dempsey was also very right and now nothing separated them. Gribben went out sight of the Quay Wall and Dempsey cut the bend and got a valuable touch into the Quay Wall. Gribben could do very little from where he was, but he got a nice run off the right dyke, from here Dempsey’s trouble started as he pulled his hamstring with his next delivery and only beat the tip by six meters. What a misfortunate thing to happen in the last quarter of this epic junior A final. After some medical attention play continued, Gribben got a big bowl to the White Wall and Dempsey just could not run into his bowls and missed the tip to give Gribben his first lead, after two more there was almost a bowl of odds in it and Gribben raised the bowl at Robins Lock and beat the finish line with his next.

​

MCDONAGH WINS U18 TITLE

Munster took the opening two scores of the weekend when Méabh Cuinnea beat Megan O’Reilly and Gerald McDonagh beat Johnny Campbell both U-18. They both played very impressive scores. McDonagh got off to a scorching start raising a bowl of odds after three shots, he pushed this out to almost two bowls at the Post Office but from here Campbell played some perfect shots and McDonagh got a bit wayward and at the Quay Wall McDonagh had twenty five meters with the bowl. They matched each other’s shots up past the white wall but McDonagh got a huge rub with his seventeenth towards the village. He had big odds with the bowl at Robin’s Lock and beat the line comfortable with his last to win by a bowl.

MAGICAL MÉABH CROWNED CHAMPION AS SHE LANDS ALL-IRELAND U18 TITLE

Just like McDonagh, Méabh Cuinnea got off to a blistering start on the outward route from the village, three incredible bowls to the end of the new houses where she had a hundred meters of odds, Cuinnea followed up with another sensational bowl just short of sight at the Quay Wall, O’Reilly done well to keep it under the bowl here but Cuinnea replied with another smashing bowl that cut the left bend and got a big touch off the right dyke. O’Reilly missed this to fall a bowl down. From the Pink Cottage onwards O’Reilly found her grove and lined some perfect shots, but Cuinnea followed and beat them to hold an even bowl at the falling pole. Two uncharacteristic errors from Cuinnea both extremely right of the sop and suddenly this score was going to a last shot. O’Reilly lined her bowl well but just fell short of the finish line and Cuinnea steadied herself and played a perfect shot down the centre to take the title. A reverse of their 2024 meeting when O’Reilly beat Cuinnea in the U-16 All-Ireland at Eglish, Co. Tyrone.

​

STOKES WEARES CARR DOWN TO TAKE INTERMEDIATE TITLE

Paddy Stokes was back in another All-Ireland final, having lost the Junior A to Conor McGuigan in 2025, his opponent on this occasion in the Intermediate final was Pete Carr, playing for an astronomical stake of €41,000 a-side, with Stokes a major favourite. This was of very poor standard for the grade. Stokes got a huge first and should have opened the first bend with his second where he would have had an early bowl of odds, but both players were right and had no sight. Carr took his first lead by three meters with a big third. Both players with a right hand pull hit the pillars of Timmy Nuts house with Stokes back in front. Carr got an excellent fifth to Coakleys Lane to win back the lead by a huge eighty meters as Stokes was crazy left and got no rub but recovered well with his sixth to the bridge that reduced Carr’s odds to twenty meters. Nothing between them after their next through An Capaillín Ban cross Carr holding a three meter lead. Stokes got a poor eight that was very left but he got a second attempt at it as his bowl was “called” and his second effort was a much better one. Carr was too tight right and missed tip by eighty meters. After two more to the double gates Carr had the odds back to six meters, Stokes just not pulling away and making bad blunders. Carr’s eleventh wasn’t great but it was enough to win him back the lead by one meter. Carr’s opportunity to rise odds came when Stokes got a poor twelfth to the Pink cottage but he pulled his bowl crazy right and missed the tip by thirty meters. After two more average shots from Stokes he had almost a bowl of odds. Stokes was finishing the better of the two as he went out to the Quay Wall with a bowl and thirty meters. Two more up to the White wall and another out sight for the village where he held a bowl and thirty meters. Carr only made Robins Lock and Stokes took the title. 

​

SEXTON'S WAIT GOES ON FOR FIRST SENIOR TITLE

Hannah Sexton’s wait goes on for a senior ladies All-Ireland title. On Sunday she played Dervla Mallon Toal who was competing in her tenth Senior All-Ireland and going for a sixth title. They played for a stake of €7,000 as. Sexton took the first shot and Mallon the next two past the white wall where she had fifty meters of odds. Sexton got a massive fourth shot to the end of the new houses that won her back the lead by six meters. After two more out around the quay wall full sight Mallon won back the lead again by three meters. When Sexton lined a perfect seventh well past the post office, fans though it was sure to win back the lead again but Mallon hit a perfect shot down the middle and beat the tip by fifteen meters. Sexton followed up with another excellent shot and Mallon missed this one by ten meters. After eight shots we had five leads. Mallon got a super bowl past the Pink Cottage, Sexton lined hers well but it fell left and Mallon was back in front again. It was hard to believe that Sexton would lead no more in this final. At the junior line in two more Mallon was throwing her odds over thirty meters. After twelve shots each facing down for An Capaillín Ban Cross only twenty meters separated them Mallon fore bowl. The next shots were the deciding factor of the score. Sextons bowl turned in left and got no run off the dyke, in fact it caught a stone and stopped dead. Mallon took a different line and made down through An Capaillín Ban cross an excellent shot. Sexton played her next very well but only beat the tip by twenty five meters, Mallon went over the finish line in two more to take the title.

​

MALACHY LENNON CUP GOES NORTH

Introduced in 2025 we had the junior ladies final, played between Rachel Desmond and Alice Mackle, they played for a stake of €10,000 as, with Mackle taking the favourites tag. It was a trap to line victory for Mackle. Four each to the white wall Mackle held a thirty five meter advantage. Mackle extended this to the Quay Wall, from here Desmond let rip her best of the day when she went sight for the straight and brought the odds back to fifteen meters. Mackle upped the ante from here and with every shot raised odds, at the falling pole she threw her odds over twenty five meters and raised the bowl of odds at the Pink Cottage. Try as she might Desmond could not reel Mackle in and her winning margin was one bowl of odds.​