After a fantastic weekend of pool in The Abbey Hotel, Donegal Town, Shaun Sharkey from Dungloe is the undoubted player of the moment with a superb team and individual double.
Shaun picked up his second singles’ title in three years and finally landed the team event for Owenie’s Bar after defeats in each of the last two finals.
Photo caption: The Donegal County Pool Championship finalists Matthew Mahon and Shaun Sharkey
Players from throughout the county came to the venue, which was played on eight championship tables in the impressive venue. In Saturday’s team event, thirteen teams battled it out for the prestigious title with a series of round-robin matches followed by knockout stages.
Owenie’s Bar: Patrick Duffy, Dermot Hegarty, Lee Murrin, Shaun Sharkey, Marty Boyle
While there was plenty of consensus on the teams that were fancied to do well on the day, very few reckoned on the lads from The Galleonbar CopeHouse, Killybegs, at the start of the day. The Killybegs team actually won the inaugural competition in 2012 and reformed to have another go after a few years absence. Spurred on by the exemplary performances of Pete Donegan and Dan McMullin, the lads upset the odds at every juncture and reached the final once again.
However, in the final they were to be undone by a very determined Owenie’s team who had powered their way through the knockout stages. Led by the imperious Sharkey – who actually broke his cue earlier in the day – and with strong performances from the likes of wily Naomh Conaill footballer, Marty Boyle, the Dungloe/Glenties lads ran out convincing winners.
In Sunday’s singles event, Shaun managed to recover from the celebrations of the night before to prove once again that he is the man to beat in Donegal. Shaun reached the final after winning five matches, including last frame deciders against two former champions, David Moore and Niall McDaid.
In the final, he faced off against the ever-improving Mattie Mahon from Donegal town. Mattie had very impressive throughout the day, but Shaun kicked into top gear in the decider and took out some top-quality finishes on route to a 7-1 victory.
The Galleon bar CopeHouse: Stevie Anderson, John Gallagher, Pete Donegal, Dan McMullan
The singles had a massive turnout of 48 players, and the weekend was a huge success. The committee would like to thank The Abbey Hotel for providing a great arena, and the multitude of sponsors from the town who supported the occasion. A last word of gratitude to Joe Gallagher and Declan Ryle who put in a massive effort in their hometown to raise funds and help make the Donegal Town staging the most successful yet.
