Sport

Back in the day: in The Irish News on Feb 7 1997: Pat McKeown lines up Ulster boxing final battle with Damaen Kelly

WRAPPED UP... for the night at the Ulster Senior Boxing Championships
WRAPPED UP... for the night at the Ulster Senior Boxing Championships WRAPPED UP... for the night at the Ulster Senior Boxing Championships

QUEEN’S University came into this Sigerson Cup first round clash as underdogs and were forced to conform to their rating by a better balanced Tralee RTC team at University College Dublin yesterday.

Queen’s were the stronger side physically, but simply had fewer quality players than Tralee who had an All-Ireland medal winner in Meath’s Mark O’Reilly – and the game’s best player in wing forward Pauraic Joyce.

The Galway man’s left boot punished Queen’s repeatedly, Joyce finishing with a personal tally of eight points.

The Malone students were competitive and resilient, nonetheless, and led by one point at the break, 0-5 to 0-4.

But they had enjoyed the benefit of a gale force wind and a lead of this margin looked distinctly vulnerable against an RTC side powered by Kerry senior Seamus Moynihan from centre-halfback.

Mayo star John Casey started to make his presence felt and a four-point flurry in the space of three minutes put Tralee six points in front with nine minutes left.

Queen’s, who had strong performances from Fermanagh’s Paul Brewster and Armagh’s Aiden O’Rourke, could only muster one further point in reply.

QUB: C Rice, A Lloyd, E McGilloway, B Sheehy, D McKenna, A O’Rourke, A McGrath (0-1), J McNulty, P Brewster (0-1), T McGivern (0-2 both frees), C P McCartan (0-1), D Marsden, P McNulty, E Haran, A Quinn (0-3 all from frees). Subs: E McNulty for Sheehy (35 mins), T McKenna for Quinn (44 mins), P O’Kane for D McKenna (53 mins)

Tralee RTC: D Maloney, K Leen, B O’Shea, S O’Mahoney, E Ferris, S Moynihan, M O’Donoghue, W Kirby, M Cloherty, P Joyce (0-8 six from frees), F O’Connor, M O’Reilly, G Farrell (0- 1), D Keaney (0-1 a free), J McGlynn (0-2). Subs: J Casey (0-1) for O’Connor (16 mins), S Dennehy for Farrell (injured 23 mins), M Magowan for Leen (60 mins).

Ref: P McEnaney (Monaghan)

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ATLANTA Olympic star and Commonwealth champion Damaen Kelly’s Ulster Senior Boxing final opponent on February 13 will be Pat McKeown who blasted Derry lad Sean McAnee out of contention on a 23-10 score from the judges.

McKeown (30) trained by Jimmy Clinton in the famous St Georges/St Malachy’s gym in the Markets area, treated McAnee with caution in the first.

But he still edged 2-1 ahead and when he went into all out attack in the second he picked up a further four points without reply.

If McAnee, coached by former professional champion Charlie Nash in the Ring club, was pacing himself over the new 5 x 2 minute round format he had miscalculated badly.

At the start of the fourth the Markets man score was in double figures and he never looked in any danger of surrendering the lead.

McAnee battled hard in the last but still found himself 15 points adrift as the final bell sounded.

Holy Trinity’s Paul Conlon (23) was safely through to the Ulster Hall lightweight final decider after a hard fought victory on Wednesday night.

And older brother Jim made it a family double with an 18-6 points victory last night.

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DONEGAL GAA star Declan Bonner is believed to be one of the main contenders being considered by the Fianna Fail party to fill the position left vacant by Pat the Cope Gallagher’s retirement from Dail Eireann.

Mr Gallagher announced earlier this week he intended stepping down from the national parliament to concentrate on his work as a Member of the European Parliament for the Connacht/Ulster constituency.