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Autumn Open 2006/07
In her 1st ever senior Grand Prix competition
15 year old Laura Butler was within a whisker of causing a major upset by
dumping the highly ranked senior player Emma Duggan out of the ladies
singles event. The young Davidstown star who is a member of the county
Regional Development Squad had begun the competition by eliminating another
young under-age star Caroline Oliver (Dublin) 21/15, 16/21, 21/15, but she
was still given no chance against the more experienced Duggan in the
quarter-finals. Emma Duggan had easily eliminated the number two seed
Rachel Hutchinson (Ulster) in her opening game, but soon realised that it
was not going to be as easy against her Wexford opponent when Laura
dominated the opening set to take the it easily 21/10. Emma responded to
take the 2nd set 21/15 after some loose play by Laura. It was
expected that the Wexford star would now wilt under the pressure, but once
again Laura had not read the script and a visibility worried Duggan had to
pull out all the stops to stay in touch with her young opponent. Both
players led at various stages, but the score was 17/16 to Laura, before
experience eventually took over and Emma secured the last five points to win
a most entertaining encounter 21/17. It was an impressive performance none
the less from the Wexford player and a real confidence booster ahead of the
Ulster under-17 championships this weekend in Lisburn. Another Wexford
player who put in a good performance in the event was Laura Lynch who lost
out to Ulster star Catherine Coyle 21/11, 21/11 in her quarter finals. The
New Ross player hit a bad patch at the end of the 1st set and the
start of the second, but outside of this she gave the talented Ulster player
plenty to think about. Laura Lynch and Norma McIntyre narrowly lost out in
the quarter-finals of the ladies doubles when they went down in three sets
to the Dublin pairing of Georgina Ward and Siobhan Grennan. Not such a good
performance from the Wexford player in the mixed doubles where she and
partner David Tutty surprisingly lost in straight sets to Mark Cobb and
Lorainne Hill (Portarlington) 21/16, 21/9.
Leinster Junior Open (2006/07)
The Leinster Junior Open Badminton Championships
were held in the Badminton Centre in Baldoyle. Wexford players figured
prominently in the event and none more so that Ross McNiven and
Olga McDaid who over shadowed some of the county better know players
to make the finals of the mixed doubles competition. Also making
the finals was new Wexford inter-county player Georgina Ward in the
ladies doubles and rounding off a fine weekend of results for model
county players was semi-final appearances from Edward Cousins in the
men’s singles, Siobhan Parle (Keogh) and Laura Lynch in the ladies
singles and in the ladies doubles Siobhan Parle and Deidre Keogh
plus Ellen O’Neill and her Laois partner Loraine Hill. There was
also a semi-final appearance by Gavin Smith (St. Martin) and his
Dublin partner Grace Webster in the mixed doubles and for Ross
McNiven and his partner Lincoln Nelson in the men’s doubles. The
weekend activities began on Saturday morning with the men’s singles
and Wexford having no less that six players involved in the
competition. Indeed there was a clash of Wexford players in the
round of 32 where Liam Sinnott narrowly overcame fellow Wexford
player Gavin Smith 24/22, 21/15. In the same round Donal O’Keefe
(St. Martin’s) had a very impressive 21/8, 21/8 victory over Shane
O’Toole (Dublin). Another all Wexford clash featured in the last
sixteen where Edward Cousins (Taghmon) got the better of Alan Mackey
(Eagles) 21/12, 21/10. In the same round both Liam Sinnott and
Donal O’Keefe progressed to the last eight, but Ross McNiven bowed
out to Chris Chambers 22/20, 21/15. Three Wexford players in the
quarter-finals, but there was only one to make it to the
semi-finals. Liam Sinnott was defeated by Dublin’s David Tutty
21/11, 21/15 while in yet another all Wexford clash Edward Cousins
overcame county colleague Donal O’Keeffe 21/7, 21/15. In the
semi-final the Wexford number one had a marathon three set encounter
against the number one seed Ronan Magee, but lost 21/16, 13/21,
21/16 to the KADCA player.
Wexford were
also well represented in the ladies singles with five competitors
and thankfully all were kept apart in the opening games. In the
last sixteen Siobhan Parle was impressive in her defeat of Claire
Davidson who she overcame 21/10, 21/13. Laura Lynch took a while to
get going in her game but eventually got the better of Caroline
Oliver 21/17, 21/12. Edel Doyle got a walk-over in her game to ease
into the quarter finals, but bowing out was Laura Butler who lost to
rival Kirsty Kelly 18/21, 21/7, 21/16, while Deirdre Keogh lost to
Ciara Brady 21/15, 21/14. Top seed Lucie Corcoran was too strong
for Edel Doyle (Gorey) in the quarter finals, winning 21/4, 21/8.
Siobhan Parle continued to impress and was an easy 21/6, 21/9
conqueror of Kirsty Kelly. Laura Lynch lost her opening game to
Caira Brady 21/15, but once she got going she overcame her Dublin
opponent to make the semi-finals on a 15/21, 21/5, 21/10 score
line. Both Wexford players were in different half’s of the draw,
but hopes of an all Wexford final were not to be as both Parle and
Lynch bowed out in the penultimate round. Corcoran had a 21/11,
21/18 victory over Parle, while Ciara Pender (Ennis) once again got
the better of Lynch on a 21/9, 21/19 score line.
In the men’s
doubles there were victories for Lincoln Nelson (Dublin) and Ross
McGiven (Eagles) who had a fine 21/15, 21/12 success over Gordon and
Chris Chambers. Edward Cousins (Taghmon) and David Ward (Dublin)
also started impressively with a 21/14, 21/9 victory over Alan
Cummins and Niall Hyman (Dublin). Losing out narrowly in their
opening games were Gavin Smith and Donal O’Keefe who lost to
eventual finalist’s Richard Gormley and Ryan Bell 21/17, 21/18.
Liam Sinnott teamed up with under-17 player Owen Marron and they
pushed the fancied pairing of David Tutty and Mark Ward all the way
before losing 23/21, 14/21, 21/17. In the quarter finals Cousins
and Ward lost 21/17, 21/15 to Gormley and Ryan. McNiven and Nelson
continued on their way with an exciting 21/19, 19/21, 21/17 victory
over William Gourley and David Magee. In the semi-final they gave
the eventual winners Joe Ledwidge and David Gannon plenty of trouble
despite losing 16/21, 21/19, 21/9.
Plenty of
representatives from the county in the ladies doubles where Ciara
Pender (Ennis) and Laura Butler (Davidstown) lost in their opening
game 21/14, 30/28 to Janine Harvey and Grace Webster. Also bowing
out were Edel Doyle (Gorey) and cousin Mary Britton who lost in a
three set thriller to Claire Davidson and Vicky Cullen 21/16, 17/21,
21/17. Better news for Elaine Dunne and Laura Lynch who had a three
set victory over Crona Rooney and Caroline Oliver 15/21, 21/15,
21/18. In the quarter finals Siobhan Parle and Deirdre Keogh had a
fine 21/16, 21/10 victory over Norma Storey and Helen Eager, but
Lynch and Dunne lost to Ellen O’Neill (New Ross) and Loraine Hill (Portarlington)
21/17, 21/19. Georgina Ward and Siobhan Grehan meanwhile were
impressive when overcoming Claire Davidson and Vicky Cullen 21/6,
21/9. In the semi-finals Parle and Keogh took the opening set 23/21
against the number one seeds Sandra Lynch and Lucie Corcoran, but
the Dublin pair fought back to win 21/23, 21/12, 21/9. In the 2nd
semi-final Georgina Ward and Siobhan Grehan overcame O’Neill and
Hill 21/19, 21/12. A very exciting final resulted in a win for the
recent Irish champions Lynch and Corcoran 22/20, 17/21, 21/18 over
Ward and Grehan.
The mixed doubles competition had many surprises and none more so
that Wexford’s Ross McNiven and Olga McDaid making it to the final.
The new Wexford pairing had a narrow opening round 21/17, 19/21,
21/15 victory over Owen Marron and Crona Rooney. This was followed
up with a 21/16, 21/10 defeat of Richard Gormley and Jannine
Harvey. 2nd seeds Nelson McDowell and Siobhan Grehan
were the next victims as the Wexford pairing made it to their first
provincial final on a 17/21, 21/18, 21/19 score line. In the final
they faced the Irish Junior champions Ronan Magee and Sandra Lynch
and gave a good account of themselves despite losing 21/16, 21/13.
Edward Cousins and Georgina Ward lost in the quarter finals 21/18,
21/17 to Magee and Lynch. Gavin Smith and Grace Webster went out in
the semi-finals to Magee and Lynch. Donal O’Keefe and Elaine Dunne
lost to Smith and Webster in the quarter finals, having earlier
defeated Laura Lynch and David Tutty in three sets.
Leinster Senior Close (2005/06)
Fresh from her call up to the Irish under-17 team, Laura Lynch played in her
first ever senior final when she contested the Leinster Senior Close Ladies
Singles decider. Ironically in the final she faced another under-age star
Joanne Flanagan. Despite being more renowned as a doubles and mixed doubles
player the young New Ross star has been showing good singles form this year,
but the occasion seem to get the better of her in the early stages and she
lost the opening set comprehensively 11/2. The 2nd set was much
closer and despite a slow start Laura was right back in the game when
trailing 9/8, before two unforced errors allowed the Irish number one to
regain her composure and take the set and match 11/8. The experience of
playing in the event should stand to Laura in the future and despite the
loss her final appearance will improve her current Leinster senior ranking
of seven. Laura also played in the doubles and mixed doubles but exited
both events at the quarter-final stage. Another Wexford player who did well
at the finals was Alan Mackay from the Eagles club. Alan made it to the
Championship quarter finals of the men’s singles with two impressive
victories before losing to under-17 star David Tutty 15/7, 15/8.
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