Connolly’s Cup Final Review 9 weeks… just 9 short weeks, the final 8 went through hell and back to be here. 1 of the 8 are just 3 short games away from been crowned champion. No-one could have picked a winner. They all had the talent to win but there can only be 1. Put on the kettle and grab yourselves a cuppa as this is what happened in the final 7 games of Connolly’s Cup Tournament… Quarter Finals We kicked off the night between the heavy favourite John Walsh vs the newcomer Mick O’Hara. Nerves might have been to blame as the 2 couldn’t seem to get their darts going. With not much happening the crowd had nothing to cheer about and were so quite you could have heard a mouse fart. John was the more consistent scorer and should have taken the 1st leg but Mick stuck in there and won the leg, leaving John scratching his head wondering what happened. John came back with a vengeance winning the 2nd making the score tied. With it still all to play for, the pair finally woke up and started putting in decent scores. John unlucky not to takeout 110 hitting 4 but made no mistake next time around winning and only needing 1 more leg to go into the next round. 4th leg nothing between them and both missed out on a high check out with both been bold and landing in the wrong bed. It was a nail biter but Mick finally won, taking the game all the way to 5 legs. It was neck and neck, both wanted to qualify and they definitely played their best darts. John slow to start but came back with a 125. Mick was left with 116 but missed double 18. John had a lot of work to do but the game went on too long for Mick as he finished John off with double 16 in a thrilling 3-2 win. After a thrilling 1st game there was no time for people to reflect on that, as up steps The Godfather Benny Carey vs The Shaky Chef, Brian Gallagher. Neighbours at war for the time been. Benny who topped Group A at a ripe age of 70 years young, the veteran of the game still gave the younger players an ass kicking when it came to it. Brian finished 4th in Group B with some very convincing performances and showed he had the right to be there. Both started well and it was Brian who had the 1st opportunity but was wide of the mark. Benny seen all that he needed and didn’t give Brian a second chance and won the leg. 1st blood to Benny. The 2nd leg was even better with both hitting large scores and keeping it even. Their finishing though let them down. Eventually Benny got score number 2 on the board leaving an uphill struggle for our chef. It seemed as though all hope was lost for Brian as Benny kept punishing him by putting in scores of 125 and 121 on the trot. It was Benny’s night as he won the game 3-0 and saying to Brian and to the other contestants, you can never be too old for an old fashioned ass kicking. 2 debutants to Connolly’s tournaments but 2 players who have come face to face and have beaten the best in the world of darts. Nicky ‘’the Nut Job’’ Delaney vs Jim ‘’The Toothfairy‘’ Langan. 1 shall rise and 1 shall fall. Nicky stormed out of the gates hitting a 134 but Jim replied with scores of his own to even up the scoring. Both missing the doubles to take an important 1st leg win but it was Nicky who won the leg on his less favourite double 2. Jim did what Jim does best as it was his turn to storm out of the gates leaving Nicky struggling to find a treble. The Toothfairy sprinkle some of his magic dust in a great leg and won, tying the game up at 1-1. 3rd leg we didn’t expect any different, as both put in great scores. with a few dodgy scores from Nicky it’s was Jim who had it right on point winning the 3rd leg and 1 step away from the semi-finals. 4th leg was slow to start but the tempo started to pick up. Jim hit a 95 putting him in the driving seat but Nicky wasn’t done yet hitting a 125 of his own leaving this game still anyone’s. Jim was the better player on the night as he took out double 10 putting him into the semis and leaving the county player Nicky crashing out of the tournament. The fairytale continues for Jim ‘’The Toothfairy’’ Langan. The last quarter final of the night and what a game it is! Martin Brannigan vs Noel Feeney. It is The Champ vs The Premier League Champ, The Trilla in Manila, El Clasico, The Final Showdown! Martin has hit form in the past few weeks and could count himself lucky to be in the mix. He was on the brink of elimination and need a minimum of 2 points of the Silver Fox John Walsh to be in with a chance. He got the 2 but the fun didn’t stop there. He went into a play-off against Centra’s Golden Child Stuart Fallon in a game Martin won 2-1 and claimed 4th spot knocking Stuart out. Noel the 2 time Premier League Champion topped Group B with a massive 27 points out of 32 up for grabs. The pair have had great games in the past but no-one was prepared for what was to come. It was a completely different Martin that we have seen in the past as he knocked in 2 135s in concession leaving Noel trying to find something very special if he had to win the opening leg. Martin looked and was unstoppable as he finished the leg as soon as it started. 1-0 to The Champ. Martin outstanding again in the second leg making Noel look like he never threw a dart in his life. 2-0 and Martin wasn’t stopping there. Noel was just a passenger no matter what he did as Martin punished the treble 20s again hitting 2 140s aswel. Martin had double 10 left and had completely covered the area with his 2 darts. With a bit of shuffling Martin picked his spot and miraculously found double 10 with his 3rd dart been possibly the shot of the tournament. 3-0 Martin wins and I don’t think anyone would have beaten him with that kind of form. Semi Finals With both having easier games in the quarters than what was expected, Jim and Benny had to win 5 legs to make it into the final. The last time they met was at the start of the campaign which Benny The Godfather hammered The Toothfairy 4-0. Could it be a repeat of last time? Not if Jim had anything to say about it. Maybe it was the fact he got bet so bad last time out had Jim fired up and scored with 2 consecutive 100s in the 1st leg. Jim quickly took the 1st leg in a great leg for The Toothfairy. Benny fought back well in the 2nd giving the fans a great game to watch. Benny soon levelled the scoreboard hitting double 10 and The Clash of the Titans game is surely on. No-one was giving anyone an inch as the came down the board. Benny missed double 18 to edge his way in front and looked like he had time with Jim on 156. Jims class came out as he hit treble 20, treble 20 and without taught buried his 3rd dart in double 18 for the highest checkout of the night of 156. Jim even got the nod of approval from The Godfather on a great checkout. Benny stormed back at Jim in the 4th to which he had no reply to Bennys scoring as he brought the game back to even pegging once again. Benny was the better scorer in the 5th as the tides began to turn. Benny left on 48 loves hitting his doubles but kept landing in the wrong bed. If the misses found out there could be trouble. 48 left he hit double 7 then double 3 and took the lead by hitting double 14. Some might call it cheeky, I would call it class. Benny in the lead for the 1st time and he started the better of the 2. He was well ahead but Jim gathered himself and started putting in some great scores. With Benny missing the double, it was Jim’s chance to even the score and bring the game the whole 9 legs. Left with 19 he hit 2 with a sloppy dart then 15 and brilliantly hit double 1. We were heading into a decisive leg! The final leg the players felt the pressure but their darts didn’t. Blow for blow, the 2 went at it. None was giving breathing space. Benny was the 1st to the double but Jim wasn’t far behind. Both couldn’t find that all important double as Benny wired double 5. This was enough to scare Jim and did not hesitate as he hit double to keeping the fairytale alive getting into the final. For our 70 year old Godfather, he was gracious in defeat but you can be sure this will not be the last time we see him in the final of Connolly’s tournaments. 4-3 was the outcome in this thrilling game! Our 2nd semi-final was between The Express Train Mick O’Hara against The Champ Martin Brannigan. Mick is the last remaining player from Group B and the dark horse of the tournament beat a firm favourite, John Walsh in a game that went all the way down to the last wire while Martin the underdog of the tournament had to be at his very best to beat 2 time reigning Premier League champion Noel Feeney. Martin continuing from where he left of against Noel, storms into the lead, not giving Mick the chance to settle! Mick hit a 140 to close the gap but it was too little too late as Martin took the 1st leg. It was a closer game this time around with none of them messing around but it was Martins accuracy that was on point this time as he opened up a 2-0 lead in this semi-final. Mick needed to find something quick and he did as Martin was failing to find a treble. Martin did put some pressure on Micks finish with a 140 for himself but Mick cheekily finished 32 with 2 double 8’s. Martin’s scoring was back as he hit 3 100’s while Mick could only manage 1 big score of 140 which wasn’t enough. Martin won the leg meaning 1 more win would see the Champ into the final of Connolly’s Cup. Mick wasn’t finished yet and came back fighting. Close game and Martin had the chance to cement his spot in the final but missed double 20. Mick on the 2nd time of asking won the leg keeping this tie still very interesting. Who had the will to go on and get into the final? Both were under pressure but they threw brilliant darts. It could have gone either way as it has gone down to the wire. Mick under pressure of hitting double 10 was agonisingly close and he knew it. Martin on double 1, was cutting it very thin as he threw a scout for double 1. Martin playing the darts of his life fired in double and booked his place in the final. Next year people will definitely be more aware of Mick’s ability but for now the Champ goes marching into the finals. Could this be the year the Champ will finally be the Champion? Connolly’s Cup Final So this is what it comes down to. 2 men on top form fighting for the 1st ever Connolly’s Cup! Could this be the time where the debutant Jim The Toothfairy turns this magical story into a happily ever after? Or after all his talk over the years could Martin The Champ finally walk the walk and become Champion? Jim kicked off the final as all eyes were on this fixture. The 2 players were neck and neck all the way down to the finish. Jim with 93 remaining started with a single 19, treble 18 and hit double 10 in another fine finish from the Toothfairy. Jim started off good hitting a 140 putting more pressure on Martin. Jim had a large lead as Martin started to close the gap but Jim had other intentions on his mind as he extended his lead to 2-0. It wasn’t looking good for Martin as he was looking for a way to get his darts back on track. Martin took off his shoes in a bid to feel more loose while throwing his darts and it seemed to have worked. A different player to what we seen in the 1st 2 legs as he came alive! Jim didn’t have a look in in leg 3 as he was a bystander. Martin left a 164 finish and came close to taking it out if only he had hit bull. Martin didn’t wait around and got his 1st leg on the board. Its game on and the 2 were playing brilliantly. Martin evens up the game by finishing double 10. The crowd were on their feet, the players were full of adrenaline, it is make or break for these 2 competitors. Jim started finding trebles while Martin was left searching. Jim couldn’t find the double as Martin started to close in. Martin took the 5th leg when he shouldn’t have as Jim was left wondering where it went wrong. Advantage Martin and he took it. He started with a 80 followed by a 140. Jim was unlucky not to takeout 99 hit 19 going for 2 tops hitting 1 but missing the next. Martin was closing in on his 1st title as he finished with double 16. Martin has now won 4 legs in a row and needs 1 more. Both kept battling away in another exciting leg as Jim cut the deficit by 1 leg taking out double 5. Game on as they couldn’t have been separated. Jim missed the chance to take the game the full 9 legs but well done to Martin he kept his nerve as he played out off his socks (literally) as he hit double 8 claiming his 1st title and growing from The Champ into The Champion. From been on the brink of elimination to been champion it’s not the fairytale ending Jim was hoping for but for Martin it will be the prize he will cherish to the end of time. It has been an amazing 10 weeks of gameplay and a pleasure to do the write-ups for Connolly’s Cup. A big congratulations to Martin on becoming champion and commiserations to Jim Langan who played his best all through the weeks. To the other 16 contestants, there will be more opportunities in the coming months to get their name into Connolly’s history books. A special thanks to Maxine O Boyle and Michael Connolly for their commitment in all the competitions. A big thank you to everyone involve in my prize of winning the Sport’s Writer of the Year. For now this is goodbye from me. Until the next competition folks, Goodbye for now Connolly’s Cup Finals Results Quarter Finals John Walsh 2-3 Mick O’Hara Brian Gallagher 0-3 Benny Carey Nicky Delaney 1-3 Jim Langan Martin Brannigan 3-0 Noel Feeney Semi Finals Jim Langan 4-3 Benny Carey Martin Brannigan 4-2 Mick O’Hara Final Martin Brannigan 5-3 Jim Langan Winner – Martin Brannigan
Posted on: Tue, 15 Oct 2013 17:30:16 +0000
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