All set for South Mayo Darts League finals
The South Mayo Darts League finals – sponsored by The Western Hotel, Councillor Richard Finn, St. Colman's Credit Union and Connolly's Pub, Hollymount – take place this Saturday night (April 18) in The Western Hotel, Claremorris.
The Shield final between Connolly’s Pub, Hollymount, and Mac's Bar, Ballyhaunis, promises to be a lively affair.
Another very competitive B League this year saw Connolly's top the group with an impressive 181 points, which confirmed their semi-final spot with games to spare. A strong outfit, they overcame Roundfort's Lyons' Bar B in their semi-final to seal their spot in Saturday's final
Despite finishing third in the league, Mac's Bar will be delighted with their campaign to date. Having trailed by three (12-9) after their first leg of the semi-final, they managed to overcome another strong team from The Three Counties of Cloonfad to book their spot in Saturday's decider.
Two close league games between the two sides sets up a fascinating Shield final come 8 p.m. on Saturday.
The Connolly's team consists of: Pake O'Brien (captain), Helen Malone, Dec Stagg, Mike Hynes, Peadar Feerick, Conor Geraghty, Joe Walsh, Alan Canny, Jamie Flannery and Mike Nolan. The Mac's Bar team features: Conor Nolan (captain), Sean Kehoe, Jason Plunkett, Ryan Kilbane, Evan McNamara, Alan Egan, Tommy O’Dowd, Mike Kilcourse and Rian Murphy.
In the Cup final, Lyons' Bar of Roundfort take on Gilligan's Bar, Claremorris.
Lyons' Bar record speaks for itself and the defending champions come into another Cup final having finished their league campaign with 156 points to finish top yet again. The Western Hotel had a good league campaign but finishing fourth meant a tough assignment awaited in the semi-finals, and that proved to be true over the two legs as they failed to cause an upset.
Gilligan's Bar, too, had a good campaign and sat second in the standings come the end of the league phase. A tricky semi-final with The Lough Mask Inn, Tourmakeady, awaited, and with Gilligan's taking a 13-8 first-leg victory, they were only nine points away from another Cup final. Credit to The Lough Mask Inn, who levelled the tie at 15-15 midway through the singles, but Gilligan's kicked on again to secure a 22-17 win to confirm a repeat of the 2025 final.
Another fascinating Cup final awaits on Saturday, which is due to get underway at approximetely 10 p.m.
The Lyons' Bar team members are: James Gaynor (joint captain), Evan O'Brien (joint captain), Michéal Connolly, Conor Heneghan, Martin Heneghan, Damien Connolly, David Crishel, Pat McCormack.
On Gilligan's team are: Jason McGann (captain), Pat Griffin, Aiden McDonagh, Paddy Burke, Darren Ruddy, Declan McDonagh, Steve Doherty, Danny McNamara, John Kavanagh.
The committee look forward to welcoming all players and supporters to The Western Hotel on Saturday for what is sure to be another great finals night, and wishes the best of luck to all teams.