It not too often that Leitrim can lay claim to a World Champion but that not the case for 2017. The World Pool Championship took place recently in Blackpool and it brought double success for team Ireland. Along with winning the U-23 Championship, the U-18 team also returned home with silverware. Part of that Ireland team was Leitrim man Lee McSharry and John Lynch spoke to him on a visit to Drumshambo this week.
Article by Gerard Browne
The U-18 team followed a similar trend to the U-23 team as the individual competition didn’t go according to plan. However Lee still remain upbeat for the team event after a positive display at the European Championships.
“In the Europeans we lost on a decider to England, so we were gunning for this one. The group stages went really well for, which was unusual for us. We topped our group. We lost to Australia but we were already through by that stage.”
Ireland opposition for the Semi-Finals was Malta. Ireland were expected to win this game comfortably. Lee explains this game was harder than the experts expected.
“We were going into the game against Malta as strong favourites but they made the game hard for us. It finished on a score line of 13-8 which was closer than we would have liked. It put more pressure on us going into the Final.”
The Final was a repeat of the European Final. England over turned a 9-2 deficit vs Australia to win 13-12 in their Semi-Final. However it was to be Ireland’s day and gaining revenge for the European Final made it all the sweeter.
“It’s unexplainable. We were gunning for England all the time. They also beat us in the Worlds last year. We were always struggling against them. To finally beat in the Final, there is nothing better”.
Lee played a huge part in Ireland success. After struggling early on, Lee admits he saved his best form for the end.
“I struggled the whole week. I didn’t play well in the group stages. Once we hit the Semi-Final and Final I seemed to play better. In the Final, I played four frames and won two.”
Like Jamie Gaffney, Lee also hails from the Drumshambo Club. Lee is very thankful to main people involved in the club and is delighted his hours of practise are paying off.
“The men involved in Leitrim Pool have been so helpful. Especially John (Casey), Gavin Donnelly and Maurice Cullen. They really helped us down us down through the years. They helped us preform to our best and helped us success.”
“A lot goes on behind the scenes and on the practice table. They say Champions are made on the practise table and not on the day.”
You can hear their conversation here
