final result

CHELSEA 4 THE COACH HOUSE A 0

The dreams of three young members of the snooker club came true on December 20th when together with captain Tom Plunkett, they defeated the Coach House A team to capture the third Inter Firms Pool Shield for Chelsea. The final scoreline of four nil was tough on a valiant Coach House side but on the night, the youngsters (all thirteen) were not going to be denied. All three won their individual battles, something that hadn't happened over four previous rounds.

Indeed, they had had to survive two sudden death play-offs, most notably in the semi-final when the class act that is Baby Joes stood between the lads and the final. On that occasion ace cueist Niall Keenan went toe-to-toe with Tom Plunkett in a thrilling play-off, which witnessed three clearances of the highest order. One shot in particular from Niall had everyone speechless, not least his opponent who was on the verge of victory. Left with a dead straight pot along the bottom cushion and hemmed in it seemed, he needed to get up the table to pot the black. Unbelievably, he potted the ball and screwed back with tremendous side, which shot the cueball off the side cushion. He finished on the black, which was duly potted. Tom responded in the final rack, clearing the colours to end an amazing match.

The Coach House had also had two play-offs on their way to the final and they were demonstrating to all and sundry that they were dovetailing brilliantly as a team. Captain Alan Ramsay is in a rich vein of form and he and his teammates were quietly confident of capturing the Shield. In the final itself Tom Plunkett got the younger element off to a good start by defeating Gerry McGloin. Ciarán O'Reilly followed suit soon after, getting the better of Francis Cassidy Snr. Two nil down, the Coach House had to do something and Liam Cassidy was up for the task, potting well and putting Kieran Cleary under all sorts of pressure. However, one thing the youngsters have developed during this tournament is grit and he knuckled down to earn a vital victory for his team. Nicholas Culloo now had the winning of the final in his hands and despite a great effort by a flu-affected Alan Ramsay, the club's junior champion at pool and snooker stretched away to win the Shield for Chelsea.

Chairman Kieran Temple thanked all those who contributed to the success of the competition and he was delighted to see the young lads making such progress. John McGlanaghey had ensured that the tables were fast and his coffee had settled the nerves. Twenty-two teams and 88 players took part in the tournament (not counting subs) and the upcoming Pool Pairs Tournament will hopefully be as popular. Meanwhile (despite three of the team being Man. Utd. fans) the name of Chelsea will adorn the hallowed walls of the Snooker Club along with the other notable winners...who said Chelsea would win nothing this season!

Final result

SEAN BOYLE 3 MICHAEL NEARY 1

Sean Boyle won the Senior Christmas Hamper by virtue of a three one win over old league teammate Michael Neary. It was Sean's first victory in the club since 1991 and on the night he was in no mood to surrender. Michael, sporting a new hairdo hadn't won since 1992 but he is currently playing his best snooker in a long time. Indeed, he had dealt comfortably with Tom Plunkett in the semi-final, so comfortably that he didn't even need to remove his slippers! Sean had defeated a flu-ridden Alan Ramsay in the semi, also by a two nil scoreline.

Sean started the final in impressive fashion, winning the opening frame at a canter. Michael hit back in frame two only to stumble near the finishing line. Sean cleared to the pink but couldn't pot the required black and Michael held his nerve to level the match. Frame three saw Sean stride into a lead that he would not relinquish. Needing one more for victory, Sean continued to pot fluently with Michael trying as hard as ever to get his game going. However, it wasn't to be for the Mountcharles man and Sean wrapped up the frame to win his first Danny Martin Shield. Vice-Chairman Alan Ramsay reminded all present of the late Danny's qualities as a patron, caretaker and committee member over many years. He made special mention of Steward John McGlanaghey for all his hard work over the year and he thanked Vincent Granaghan for refereeing the final with his usual attention to detail and decorum. In accepting his hamper, Sean thanked those who attended and wished the club well in the year ahead.

Final result

CIARÁN O'REILLY 4 KEITH MULHERN 3

Ciarán O'Reilly completed a personal double when he added the Junior Hamper to his success in the Inter-Firms earlier in the week. He met a formidable young man in Keith Mulhern who displayed courage beyond his years in fighting back from three one down to take the final into a last rack. Ciarán had started nervously and it was Keith who should have won the first rack but, when potting the black, he went in off. He fought back to take the second and could have won the next two racks but for the fact that Ciarán was finding his form at the right time. The interval was a welcome relief for the two boys as the final was already an hour old. Keith began the final session in spectacular fashion, potting fluently and putting it up to Ciarán. Fifteen minutes later the scores were level and the thirty or so spectators were enthralled. Experience was to prove the vital difference between the two boys. Ciarán had a chance to pot a difficult black but he refused the opportunity, preferring to lay a snooker and hope for a foul. It duly happened and Ciarán used his shots to claim his first individual title in the club. His strategy and coolness under pressure have improved tremendously with his Inter-Firms success and long may pool of this standard be played in the club. Competition Secretary Tom Plunkett congratulated both boys on their efforts and praised the standard of all 46 participants in this year's hamper. Ciarán spoke eloquently in thanking everyone from John McGlanaghey to Conor Sinclair. The future of the club is healthy with young men of the calibre of the two finalists.

 Donegal won their final Derry League match before Christmas by 4-2 against Roesiders of Limavady (18-12-2000). Star of the show was Michael Neary who defeated Adrian Pearson 2-0. Tom Plunkett drew with former Irish Under-19 runner-up John Graham while brother Oliver drew with Noel McDermott.

Donegal Town's hopes of winning the Lyric Donegal League were surely dashed when they lost three one to leaders NorthWest A in Letterkenny (13.12.2000). They now lie seven points adrift of the champions and although the match was tight, the better team won on the night. Tom Plunkett lost his first frame in the league to date but despite playing like a novice, he fought back to defeat an out-of-sorts Joe Devine. North West would not lose another frame. Their three remaining players have been around as long as anyone can remember and they can still pack a punch. Bernard McGuinness was clinical in defeating Michael Neary, Gerry McCluskey came back from the dead to snatch victory from Terry Mullin and Gerry McKeever had a break of 39 en route to a topsy-turvy win over Oliver Plunkett. The tea was sweet afterwards as North West reflected on a record of nine straight wins with only one match to go until the half-way point is reached.

The junior team drew its second county match with Twin Towns (9.12.2000). The winners were Luke McGee and Conor Browne, who has a 100% record to date.