After the tension of individual combat in the British Seniors Open, Royal Portrush will play host to more modest practitioners later this week. But success in the Bulmers All-Ireland Cups and Shields will be as treasured to the club members involved as victory last July was to Christy O'Connor Jnr.

Predictably, the largest entry in the Bulmers event was for the Pierce Purcell Shield, where the participation of 343 clubs represented an increase of 10 on the previous year. And as it happens, one of the country's youngest clubs has won through to the national semi-finals of this event.

Castle Barna, a proprietary club in Daingean, Co Offaly, was affiliated to the GUI only five years ago and will now be carrying Leinster hopes against Ulster representatives Warrenpoint in the first semi-final on Thursday morning. The other semi-finalists are Kanturk and Galway Bay.

The host club will be representing Ulster in the Barton Shield. The blue riband of inter-club competition, the Senior Cup, has a traditional look to it, given the presence of such outstanding combatants as Cork and Shandon Park.