Upperchurch just about justify favourites's tag in mid and south Tipperary senior football clash

Upperchurch/Drombane 1-11 Cahir 2-5

Upperchurch/Drombane, last year’s defeated finalists, were pushed all the way by Cahir in this FBD Insurance County Senior Football championship tie at Golden on Saturday evening.

Going into this game Upperchurch would have been firm favourites, based on last year’s placings, with Cahir having survived the relegation drop at the final hurdle. A goal at the end of the first quarter gave the south men a slender advantage but this was short-lived, as Luke Shanahan raised a green flag at the other end within minutes.

Upperchurch lost TJ Butler through injury after sixteen minutes but his replacement, Padraig Greene, immediately made his presence felt with two wonderful points before the break, giving his side a three- point half-time advantage. The Church pushed on during the third quarter but again Ger Quinn was on hand to bring Cahir right back into the fray with his second goal, cutting the deficit to the minimum.

The final quarter was a tense affair, with Cahir refusing to yield. Two converted frees by the Church around the 20th minute gave them breathing space as they held off the Cahir attack and a late injury time point from Luke Shanahan got them over the line by three points.

Cahir dominated the exchanges during the opening five minutes, with Ger Quinn getting the scoreboard ticking over with a converted placed ball after two minutes. Keith Ryan opened the Church’s account three minutes later from open play to tie the game for the only time.

As the Church settled, they took the game to the south men and Paul Shanahan kicked two frees in the sixth and eighth minutes to give them a two-point cushion. The opening goal came in the 15th minute, when Stephen Grogan gathered a ball around midfield and opened up the Church defence. He then found Ger Quinn with a precision pass and the full forward made no mistake from close range.

This Cahir lead was short- lived, as Upperchurch responded in similar fashion. A good build-up from the back found Aaron Ryan and his searing run resulted in a good lay-off to Luke Shanahan, who scored with a low shot to the corner.

Upperchurch were dealt a blow with an injury to TJ Butler but his replacement, Padraig Greene, announced his arrival with a well-struck point from his first possession. Liam Casey hit his second of the game but again Greene came up trumps with another white flag. Keith Ryan kicked his second of the game as half- time approached with the Church three to the good, 1-6 to 1-3.

For the second half, Upperchurch went on the attack from the throw-in and Niall Grant put over inside the first minute. Then Jack Buckley slotted over a free on six minutes before Luke Shanahan scored.

Cahir’s second goal came after fifteen minutes when Ger Quinn outjumped the Church defenders, getting on the end of a Liam Casey free, to punch to the net. Cahir were back in the game, trailing by just the minimum.

Cahir could now smell victory but the Church had other ideas. They defended well, with Dean Carew and Gavin Ryan to the fore, while AJ Shanahan came off the bench. Upperchurch kicked over two valuable frees around the 20th minute, the first from Luke Shanahan and the second from Paul as they put three between the sides.

Cahir continued to attack but their only reward was a converted free from Jack Buckley with two minutes of normal time remaining. This was to be their last score and Luke Shanahan had the final say with his third point in injury time.

Upperchurch will play Killenaule in round 2, hoping to get one foot into the knockout stages. Cahir will be hoping for better things in round 2 when they meet Arravale Rovers, in what is likely to be the game to decide what team will avoid relegation.

Upperchurch/Drombane: James Griffin, Mikey Lavery, Dean Carew (captain), Colm Ryan, Aaron Ryan, Gavin Ryan, Diarmaid Grant, Keith Ryan (0-2), Jack Butler, Pat Ryan, Loughlin Ryan, TJ Butler, Luke Shanahan (1-3, 0-1 free), Niall Grant (0-1), Paul Shanahan (0-3 frees).

Subs: Padraig Greene (0-2) for TJ Butler (16 mins), Sean Ryan for Loughlin Ryan (45 mins), AJ Shanahan for Diarmaid Grant (50 mins).

Cahir: Aaron Wall (captain), James Walsh, Ger Hally, Sean Leahy, Jesse Kiely, Eoin Donaghy, Ciaran Condon, Kevin Grogan, Stephen Grogan, Oisin Maher, Liam Casey (0-2 1 free), Jake Kiely, Dylan Butler, Ger Quinn (2-1, 0-1 free), Jack Buckley (0-2).

Subs: Sean O’Connor for Jake Kiely (HT), Michael O’Connor for James Walsh (HT), Conor O’Brien for Stephen Grogan (50 mins), Eanna Heffernan for Dylan Butler (54 mins).

Referee: Seanie Peters (Aherlow).