Nicholas Culloo won the Jim Conaghan Cup in terrific style defeating newcomer Kieran Cleary five nil. The score-line was sore on Kieran but on the night Nicholas was unstoppable and the referee maintained that no member of the club, young or old could have stopped the ace cueist!

He won the first two racks in quick succession, the second courtesy of a fabulous snooker escape. Kieran fought back and only needed the black in the next but Nicholas sank the final two yellows and the black to snatch it. A succession of fouls did Kieran no favours in rack four and Nicholas capped a fine performance by clearing all his colours in the final rack without reply.

Secretary Martin Mulhern was on hand to present the victor with his prize and commiserate with the gallant loser. The beaten semi-finalists were Mark B. Gallagher and Edward Canney. The final had been a sporting affair with Nicholas calling a foul on himself at one stage. Such is the calibre of young player in Donegal Town Snooker Club at present and long may it continue.

Michael Breslin and Charlie Murphy will contest the final of the club's unofficial championship. Michael defeated his old rival Paddy Kelly over three frames in a tight semi-final. Paddy had been bidding to win his third title having been successful in 1956 and 1981 but the 1982 champion had other ideas.

In the other match, Tom Plunkett suffered post-County Championship blues when succumbing two one to Charlie. Thus his run of five finals in a row in Donegal Town has come to an end which will be welcomed by those who wish to see different faces in the closing stages of competitions.

Two Donegal Town players were selected for the county team that reached the semi-finals in Tralee recently. Tom Plunkett and Charlie Murphy each played three matches and picked up valuable experience by taking on top players. For example, Tom lost three one to Irish Under 14, Under 16 and Under 19 champion Damien Shore from Tipperary in the semi-final, a match which Donegal lost three two. In the group stage Tom won three one in helping Donegal defeat Meath three two and didn't have to finish his second match as Donegal had already defeated Kerry three nil. Charlie was out of luck in his three matches but will surely be back next year when Donegal will try to capture this prestigious title. Stars for Donegal were Pat Bonnar who won all four matches and Gerry McKeever who won three. Tipp went on to win in the final, beating Limerick three two.

Tom Plunkett received the league's player of the year trophy at a function hosted by sponsors Sister Sara's of Letterkenny. Tom lost only one game in the league (to Shane Grant of Killea) and won twenty. He won all six cup games and represented Donegal in the All-Ireland Championships. He also reached the final of the County Championships, the semi-final of the CYMS Open and the quarterfinals of the Raymond Burke trophy in Derry. The club hopes he will be the first of many home-grown players to win this award in the years ahead.