RYAN MAHER has won the Irish Under-21 Matchplay Championship, defeating Martin Heneghan 4-1 in the final at the Green Isle Hotel in Dublin.
Maher's reward for winning the tournament, held alongside the Tom Kirby Memorial Irish Matchplay, will include a place in the PDC Unicorn World Youth Championship in Crawley in November.
Maher, who has already competed six times on the PDC Unicorn Youth Tour this year, defeated Paddy Meaney 4-2 in the semi-finals of the event, having overcome Sean McArdle 4-3 in the last eight.
Reigning champion Heneghan, who also competes on the Youth Tour and was a semi-finalist in the Irish Matchplay, fell just short of retaining his title, but had enjoyed wins over David Coyne and Stephen Lennon in the latter stages.
Further International Qualifiers for the World Youth Championship will be held during the Autumn, with information on these events plus the Rileys Qualifiers to be held in the UK to be announced in due course.
Irish Under-21 Matchplay Championship
Quarter-Finals
Stephen Lennon 4-2 Dylan Rutledge
Martin Heneghan 4-1 David Coyne
Sean McArdle 4-3 Ryan Maher
Paddy Meaney 4-2 John Seagrave
Semi-Finals
Martin Heneghan 4-1 Stephen Lennon
Ryan Maher 4-2 Paddy Meaney
Final
Ryan Maher 4-1 Martin Heneghan