Tyrone pair reach All-Ireland final…

Monday 12.03.2012

Club

Tyrone’s minor doubles pairing of Pol Clarke and Gabhainn McCrystall have qualified for the 2012 All-Ireland 40×20 championship final following an outstanding victory over Leitrim’s Donal Wrynn and Shane Doonan in a cracking semi-final tie in Beragh on Sunday.
The Brackey pair faced a difficult task in this match, with the powerful Wrynn having already stormed through to the All-Ireland minor singles final a week earlier, but the Tyrone lads rose to the challenge in front of their home crowd.
Their task became even tougher after a thrilling opening set which they lost narrowly on a scoreline of 21-18, but Gabhainn and Pol quickly put the result of that opener behind them as they swept to victory in the second game, 21-13, setting up an eagerly anticipated decider.
The Tyrone duo continued in the third game where they had left off in the second, and there was great jubilation when they clinched the match winning point in the tie breaker to secure a 21-14 triumph.
Pol and Gabhainn will now face the formdiable challenge of Clare’s Colin Crehan and Niall Bolton in the All-Ireland minor doubles final following the Munster champions’ emphatic semi-final victory over Wexford. They are also Tyrone’s last surviving representatives in the 2012 adult 40×20 championships.
Tyrone’s other title hopefuls, Seamus McCrory and Eamon McCrory, suffered defeat in the other All-Ireland semi-final tie staged in Beragh at the weekend, the Brackey brothers not performing at their best on the day and eventually losing in two straight games to Sligo pair, Shane Bruen and Mark Murphy.
This over 35 doubles semi-final was keenly contested for much of the opening game, before the Connacht champions went on to record a 21-14 win, and the visiting pair’s confidence soared in the second set as they sealed a comfortable victory to reach the All-Ireland final.

Meanwhile, there were mixed fortunes for the large contingent of young Tyrone players who were in action in Saturday’s packed programme of Ulster juvenile finals in Kingscourt.
Tyrone recorded some impressive victories on the day and among the first time provincial winners were the under-12 trio of Cormac Munroe, Antoin Fox and Ronan Curran (all pictured).
Carrickmore player Munroe collected his first Ulster title when he defeated Monaghan’s Caolan Myles in an entertaining under-12 singles final, Cormac having to come from behind to secure the opening game 15-13, before taking control early in the second and winning in two straight games.
There was also great joy for Loughmacrory pair Ronan Curran and Antoin Fox who had a difficult first game against Monaghan’s Justas Dambinskas and Eoghan McGinnity, winning 15-8, before pulling away impressively in the second game to secure the title.

MORE TO FOLLOW LATER ON ALL THE ULSTER JUVENILE FINALS…