Karen picks up silver in Lisburn
Wednesday February 24 2010
KAREN BUTLER and Nicholas Murphy carried Wexford hopes at the recent Irish Under-15 championships held in the Alpha badminton complex in Lisburn, Co. Antrim.
Both were very much involved in the final shake-up, with Nicholas Murphy making all three semi-finals in the singles, doubles and mixed doubles.
Davidstown's Karen Butler and partner Fionnuala McCourt (Louth) picked up a silver medal in the girls' doubles, losing the final to the extremely strong Ulster pairing of Alannah Stephenson and Keady Smith (21-7, 21-14).
Karen also made the quarter-finals of the girls' singles before losing out to the fourth seed, Victoria Ringland, in three sets (21-10, 14-21, 21-11).
Nicholas Murphy had the misfortune to lose out in all three semi-finals, with the Taghmon player involved in some close and exciting encounters.
Nicholas lost the first of his three semi-finals in the boys' singles when he was eliminated 21-14, 2118 by Jonathan Harron which was a major disappointment to the Taghmon youngster as he had recently overcome the same player in the Leinster Open. To rub salt into the wounds, Harron went on to take the national title.
Nicholas and partner Matthew Steele were defeated 21-16, 21-17 in the semi-final of the boys' doubles by the top seeds, Danny Keown and Conor Scanlon.
Murphy and partner Fionnuala McCourt also faced the top seeds in the mixed doubles semi-final and, in an enthralling game, lost narrowly (2114, 23-21) to Alannah Stephenson and Ryan Stewart.
