Tipp Gaelic football keeper Evan Comerford scores four for Kilsheelan United

In a first round Tipperary Cup tie played at Kilsheelan on Sunday last, Kilsheelan United defeated St. Nicholas of Sologhead by 5-0, helped in no small way by four goals from Tipperary Gaelic football goalkeeper (but soccer hot shot) Evan Comerford.

In this tie between two Second Division sides it was the visitors St Nicholas who started the better, and were unlucky not to take an early lead when the home side’s keeper Stephen McGrath made an excellent save after only two minutes.

Three minutes later St. Nicholas's had a second chance but again fluffed their lines when it came to the crunch. And how they were left to rue those misses when the home side stunned them by taking the lead in injury-time in the first half, when Kevin Kirwan slipped a through ball to Evan Comerford who whipped it past the helpless keeper.

The second half continued in much the same vein as the first with a lot of the play centred around tough midfield battles, but five minutes after the hour mark the home side put a bit of light between the teams when Comerford again found himself one on one with the visiting keeper and he added a second to his day’s tally.

It didn’t take long for the Tipperary Gaelic football keeper to complete his hat trick, as he scored only minutes later to leave the Saints visibly deflated in the closing stages. Two more goals in the final 15 minutes from Simon O’Donnell and Comerford's fourth put a gloss on the result that the visitors probably didn’t deserve.

See reports from all the other Tipperary Cup first round games in this week's edition of 'The Nationalist'.