Broughshane big favourites for Division Two title

AFTER a Division Two title race which has been virtually neck-and-neck between BPFA 'B' and Portglenone Community Centre, a decisive move has been made in the penultimate round of games for both sides.

Broughshane look as though they are going to claim the silverware after beating Harryville Community Centre, while Portglenone Community Centre were held to a tie by Golf Seniors.

Both sides only have one game each left to play and BPFA ‘B’ will have wrapped up the title last night (Monday) if they claimed a minimum of three points from their trip to Clough Rangers, while Portglenone sit out their bye week.

Broughshane claimed four points from their home game against Harryville, with Terry McClintock’s rink giving them a solid start with a 12-4 win over Wilson Burgess, but Harold Smyth shaded a 9-8 win over Noel Graham to earn a point for Harryville.

But there was to be no slip-ups from the title contenders in the second half, with Joe Campbell and James Wasson helping the Knockan Road side to wins over Stewart Wilson and Jimmy Patterson.

While winning your own matches is as much as any championship-chasing side can do, Broughshane received a major helping hand from their neighbours Golf Seniors, who took two-and-a-half points from Portglenone in a 32-32 tie.

The first half points were shared, but Portglenone were four shots to the good thanks to Kevin O’Kane’s 11-6 win over Sammy Small, after Seniors’ Ivan McMaster had shaded the verdict in his tie with Jim Gaul.

Donald Smyth moved the game in the golfers’ favour with a 12-2 win over Joe McErlean, but Declan McCann squared the match with a 12-6 win over John Nichols.

With the Services ‘A’ v Maine match postponed, the remaining match saw West Church ‘A’ collect four points from their trip to relegation-threatened Enkalon.

The first half was notable for the fact that both matches finished in draws, with Chris Murray and Maurice Livingstone finishing level on 10 shots each, while John Greenaway and Matt McPeake shared 16 shots.

But West Church cranked into gear in the second half, with Graham Wilson and Jim Rainey posting comfortable wins over Basil Johnston and Brian Mackle.

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