David Morris Wins 2019 Irish National Championship

David Morris overcame Josh Boileau to claim the 2019 Irish National Championship after a 7-3 victory at the Ivy Rooms in Carlow on Sunday.

The triumph represents the fourth time that Morris has captured the most prestigious annual tournament on the domestic circuit.

The former world number 51 secured a hat-trick of titles prior to turning professional more than a decade ago and his tally of four ties the modern day record held by Martin McCrudden.

In the final, the Kilkenny cueist pulled away from Boileau after the mid-session interval was delicately poised at 3-3.

Boileau, featuring in a maiden National Championship title decider at senior level a year after dropping off the Main Tour, had no answer as Morris took all four frames in the second session for a deserved success.

Earlier in the event, Morris had ousted John Farrell, Paul Dunne, and 2000 champion Rodney Goggins to reach the final.

Boileau’s impressive run began with a 4-1 victory over Greg Casey before an eye-catching whitewash of the European under-18 champion Aaron Hill in the last eight.

The former European under-21 amateur champion then denied Robert Murphy in the semi-finals, but ultimately came up short in the final.

The 23 year-old is among a number of Irish competitors, not including Morris, who have entered this year’s Q School, which is due to get under way on Saturday in Wigan.

Elsewhere at the 2019 Irish National Championship weekend, Michael Judge held off Goggins in a dramatic Masters clash that went the distance.

Teenager Hill put the disappointment of his senior defeat behind him by featuring prominently in the underage competitions.

The Cork youngster triumphed in both the under-21 and under-18 disciplines, although did miss out in the under-19s after a 4-2 reverse against Ross Bulman.

Aaron Smith, coached by Fin Ruane, came from 2-0 down to pip Leone Crowley on the final black in a 3-2 thriller to capture the under-14 tournament.

Crowley bounced back strongly to win the under-16 championship, while Jack O’Brien enjoyed glory in the under-12s.

Meanwhile, the intermediate national final was won by Ryan McGuirk and Michelle Sherwin continued her dominance of the women’s scene with a 4-0 victory over Ronda Sheldrick.

Click here to view the results from the 2019 Irish National Championship.