Tipperary county hurling championships reach the business end on busy weekend

I watched two significant hurling fixtures at the weekend and, in truth, neither set the pulse racing. Killenaule bowed out meekly to Loughmore in the county senior preliminary quarter-final while St Mary’s put up sterner resistance to Sarsfields in the county U19 decider before eventually falling six points short.
The greater fun was had, it seems, in the relegation stakes, where Annacarty produced more trademark defiance to outstay Holycross after extra time. In the intermediate Ballybacon and Arravale went to penalties, where Brendan Cummins saved three to steer his side to safety. Elsewhere Lorrha and Burgess face last chance saloon in the Seamus O’Riain following heavy weekend defeats to Newport and Sean Treacys respectively.
It wasn’t a great weekend for proponents of the divisional link, as both Killenaule in senior and Cappawhite in intermediate buckled badly in lopsided games. Margins of fifteen and seventeen points tell a tale of inequality. You’ll have the odd one-sided affair in any system but why increase its likelihood with this backdoor manoeuvre based on geography rather than merit?
In fairness to Killenaule they got the worst possible draw in Loughmore, though at this knockout stage of the championship you have to be able to mix with the big boys and unfortunately The Robins looked out of their depth here.
Events were clearly signposted at half-time, when the board read 1-9 to 0-3. John McGrath bustled his way in for the goal and might have had a second when set up by his brother Brian, only for Jonathan Gleeson to make a superb reflex save to turn the shot over.
Even against the wind Loughmore were smarter and slicker all over the pitch. Some bad wides by Killenaule didn’t help their cause but three points from a half hour of hurling was a paltry return. Two of those points came from Ciaran O’Dwyer frees, with Mark Stakelum their only scorer from play.
The best spell from the south side came early in the second half when they reeled off three unanswered points, two from Ciaran O’Dwyer (one a free) and the third from Bubbles. However, any momentum gained was quickly quashed when Noel McGrath took a pass from Ed Connolly and booted to the net just nine minutes after the restart.
That was it as far as the contest was concerned. Ed Connolly had come on for Loughmore late in the first half and he brought renewed energy to their attack, which kept the scoreboard ticking over for the remainder of the game. Killenaule subs Eoin Shaw and Darragh Fitzgerald looked lively when introduced but ultimately this was a trimming.
The final quarter fizzled out to a non-event, with both sides seemingly accepting the fate of the day and perhaps looking ahead to this weekend, when Killenaule will be more at home in the O’Riain quarter-finals against Kiladangan B and Loughmore will face an entirely different proposition in Kilruane MacDonaghs.
Nobody held out much hope for St Mary’s in the U19 final against Sarsfields on Saturday at Cashel but to their credit the south side were in combative mood and the favourites had to graft more than they’d have liked for a modest six-point win.
As a hurling contest it was disappointing. It was tight and goal-less, with more stifling of opponents than open free-flowing action. Then again that’s probably what Mary’s hoped for, given Sarsfields’ high-scoring reputation on their way to the final.
The south champions positioned Eoin McCarthy on the edge of the square to police dangerman, Paddy Creedon, and he did a commendable job, with the winning captain managing just a single point over the hour.
Sarsfields did threaten goals in the opening half but none came. In one instance full forward Creedon made a great catch but the Mary’s defence did very well to smother the chance. Later Jock Fogarty put Creedon through but they were blown back for a thrown handpass. Ah yes, the handpass throw! Amazing how the odd one gets blown when maybe another ninety percent are no different.
Sarsfields relied heavily on the free-taking of Tommy Maher who finished on twelve points, equalling the entire Mary’s total. In Liam McCormack they had the liveliest forward on show, whose pace and control was a constant threat; he hit four from play for what was surely a man of the match impact.
Through it all St Mary’s stayed well in the hunt. Their defence actually became more dominant as the game progressed, with the likes of McCarthy and Tadhg Sheehan particularly prominent. Their problem was in attack where firepower was limited. It prompted the positioning of their finest player, Peter McGarry, at full forward in the second half in the hope, one assumes, of adding some cutting edge.
A Marys’ goal at any stage would have really enlivened this contest but in truth it never looked likely. The south champions battled grimly to the end but on a day when they were really tested, Sarsfields had just about enough to see them through.
And so, the Sarsfields bandwagon continues on a weekend when their U13 side took county honours also. How many more will they add before the season is out? The potential for total domination is scary but that’s no criticism of the Blues, who are clearly running their affairs very efficiently.
Their seniors have drawn Clonoulty Rossmore in the first part of the double header at the Stadium on Saturday, which is being televised. Kilruane and Loughmore fill the second part in what potentially is the game of the weekend.
The MacDonaghs have been one of the form teams of the season thus far, unbeaten in a group that included Borris-Ileigh and Nenagh. It’s a form line that has seen their star rise, though they’re still listed as 7/1 shots for the title.
Loughmore are ahead of them in the betting but only marginally, which makes this a 50/50 contest in reality. The mid side was just narrowly pipped by Kiladangan in their group game in what was a repeat of last year’s final but otherwise their form has been rock solid, despite the ever-presence of the dual mandate in the club.
It promises to be a cracker, with Loughmore deserving of slight favouritism.
Sarsfields will be short odds favourites when they line up against Clonoulty Rossmore. The Blues have been in cracking form in the group, racking up huge score totals with nobody getting close to them.
However, at the business end of the season these things tend to tighten up as competition gets more intense.
Clonoulty have had a moderate year thus far and one senses that they’ll need something much stronger if they’re to compete on Saturday. But they’re known battlers with a familiarity with this stage of the championship, so we can expect them to give it a lash.
Friday evening’s quarter-final brings Borris-Ileigh and Mullinahone to the Stadium. The south side have been one of the surprise packages of the season, finishing top of their group with a notable win over Toomevara in the final game.
Like others, I thought they’d struggle at the higher level but Kelly, Curran and company just continue to defy the calendar and the odds. Theirs is a remarkable story of service and endurance. One assumes this will be a step too far despite my wariness of assumptions.
Borris-Ileigh are third favourites to win the championship behind Sars and Kiladangan. As recent winners they know what it takes, so it will be a major shock if they’re not still in the race by Friday night.
The last quarter-final brings Kiladangan and Upperchurch to town on Sunday afternoon. The reigning champions held a steady pace in their group games, the win over Loughmore an endorsement of last year’s late dramatics in the final. Upperchurch snuck in ahead of Drom/Inch on score difference and like Mullinahone are listed at outside odds of 40/1 for outright honours.
It will be a massive shock if the defending champions are caught here.
The Seamus O’Riain quarter-finals also contain exciting prospects in what are four stand-alone games. Could a few double headers not have been organised?
After their dismal showing last weekend, this will be a chance of atonement for Killenaule, who face Kiladangan B in Borrisoleigh on Saturday.
On the same day Cashel KC have Clonakenny in Templemore. On Sunday then Sarsfields B face St Mary’s at Cashel and Templederry go hip to hip with Gortnahoe over at Templetuohy. I wouldn’t dare a guess at the outcomes.
Finally, the intermediate too should reduce to semi-finals over the weekend. The line up sees Moyne Templetuohy take on Golden Kilfeacle, Kilsheelan Kilcash v Ballinahinch, Ballingarry v Moneygall and Kickhams v Drom/Inch.
There’s no shortage of attractions then over the weekend, it’s just a pity so many games are clashing.

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