Leinster halved with Munster on the final day at Slieve Russell to complete back-to-back wins in the Under 18 Interprovincial Championship.
Unbeaten over three days, the reigning champions defeated Ulster 7-3 and halved with Connacht and Munster on their way to the title. It was a nervous finish for Leinster, who needed Charlie Denvir to win the anchor leg against Munster to be certain of the half point they needed to top the standings.
Denvir from Elm Park made an invaluable contribution over the three days with a perfect record in his three singles matches and two more points gained alongside Alex Maguire in foursomes. Max Kennedy from Royal Dublin was unbeaten with four wins and two halved matches.
Connacht finished second after they beat Ulster 6.5-3.5 on the final day while Munster had to settle for third.
Ulster retained the Under-16 Interprovincial Championship despite losing their final game.
The reigning champions had two big wins against Munster (4-1) and Connacht (4.5-0.5) on the opening day. It meant that Ulster needed to garner two match points from their final encounter with Leinster to keep the trophy.
It was a close-run affair in the end as Leinster claimed a 3-2 win but Conor Byrne’s 2&1 victory in the final game ensured Ulster finished first. Byrne took a maximum three points from this three matches to end the week as Ulster’s leading scorer. Leinster finished second overall with Connacht third following a 5-0 win in their closing match against Munster.
In the Under-14 Championship, Munster clinched victory after a dramatic finish saw them overtake Leinster.
A 4-1 win over Connacht in the final round of matches ensured that Munster finished with a superior total of match points as Leinster were surprisingly beaten 3.5-1.5 by Ulster. Just half a point separated the teams at the top.
Leinster were in pole position after day one. The reigning champions recorded a 4-1 victory against Munster in their opening match before dispatching Connacht 3-2. Ulster could only salvage half a point on the first day. They halved with Connacht in their first match and were then beaten 4-1 by Munster.
Going into the final, Munster needed to win well against Connacht but they also needed a favour from Ulster. And with another 4-1 win in the bag, Munster hopes were still alive.
It was looking good for Leinster, who took the first point against Ulster courtesy of a one-hole win for Gavin O’Neill and Matthew Giles in the foursomes. In fact O’Neill would finish the week as the most valuable player with three points to his name.
Ulster turned things around in the singles, beginning with Lewis Fox, a 3&2 winner, and the comeback continued with wins for Corey Scullion and Fionn Dobbin. The final match between Adam Buchanan and Daniel Mulligan was halved, leaving Leinster agonisingly short.
GUI Underage Interprovincial Championships at Slieve Russell Golf Club
Thursday 26 July – Results
Under 16 Interprovincial Championship
Munster 0 Connacht 5 (Munster names first)
M Deasy & F Hickey lost to S Murphy & G Keogh 5&3; P Naughton lost to T Higgins 1 hole; R Milne lost to D Ford 6&5; J O’Callaghan lost to P Costello 2 holes; R Fives lost to N McDermott 4&2
Ulster 2 Leinster 3 (Ulster names first)
E Rowe & A Blair lost to R Galligan & E Shipp 4&3; E McArthur lost to J Butler 2&1; J Black halved with D Marshall; J Hill halved with J McCabe; C Byrne beat D Keating 2&1
Final Standings – U16 Interprovincial Championship
1 Ulster (2)*
2 Leinster (2)
3 Connacht (1)
4 Munster (1)
*Ulster win by virtue of match points won (10.5)
Under 18 Interprovincial Championship
Ulster 3.5 Connacht 6.5 (Ulster names first)
A Marshall & T McKibbin beat S Carroll & S Walker 6&5; O Maguire & J Robinson lost to L O’Neill & L Nolan 2&1; K Patton & T Punkett lost to A Hill & D Kitt 6&5; A Marshall lost to D Leufer 2 holes; T McKibbin beat S Carroll 2&1; O Maguire beat L Nolan 5&3; J Robinson halved with A Hill; S Jones lost to D Kitt 6&4; K Patton lost to S Walker 4&3; T Plunkett lost to L O’Neill 7&6
Leinster 5 Munster 5 (Leinster names first)
E Murphy & M Kennedy beat E Walsh & S O’Brien 2&1; S Doyle & P Conroy lost to A Cashin & D Raher 2 holes; C Denvir & A Maguire beat J Keane & I Halpin 3&2; E Murphy beat D Raher 4&3; A Smith lost to E Walsh 3&2; M Kennedy beat J Keane 2&1; P Conroy lost to A Cashin 1 hole; A Maguire lost to S O’Brien 4&3; S Doyle lost to J O’Riordan 2 holes; C Denvir beat I Halpin 2&1
Final Standings – U18 Interprovincial Championship
1 Leinster (2)
2 Connacht (1.5)
3 Munster (1.5)
4 Ulster (1)
