Dúrlas Óg crown superb year with county u15 A hurling final victory

Durlas Óg 2-22
Toomevara 0-6
An extremely impressive Durlas Óg team once again delivered a powerful and awesome performance to clinch the U15 A hurling crown in Templemore last Saturday afternoon against a gallant and hard hitting Toomevara team.

Coming into the game as hot favourites, the Thurles boys were too strong for their north rivals from very early on, with Euan Murray in particular proving to be impeccable from midfield throughout, while his teammates all over the field more than delivered on their promise on the day.

Early points from young Murray and a well taken goal by full forward and captain Cillian Minogue in the seventh minute had Durlas Óg in a big early lead at 1-5 to 0-1 with the Toome players shellshocked at the quick start from their opponents, who had initially taken the early lead through a Jack Hogan free inside the first minute.

The victorious Dúrlas Óg panel

It took until the 13th minute for Toome to register their second of the day through a well struck free from Jack Hogan from range, but the game was going in a predictable direction, with Euan Murray, Evan Nolan, and Cillian Minogue pulling the strings for the reds; Murray in particular scoring some fine efforts from play and frees, while they had scores all over the field from the likes of Eoin Webb, Alex Coppinger, Kieran Rossiter, and Leelan Donoghue.

Toome were struggling to find any sort of rhythm, such was the dominance of the Durlas Óg players in the first half, but they managed to find two more scores in the half from further Hogan efforts, but it was all going pear shaped for the young Greyhounds, as their opponents stepped on the gas to kill the game as a contest in the final ten minutes of the half, with Euan Murray and Leelan Donoghue the main scorers as they took a 1-17 to 0-3 lead at half time after playing with the breeze.

In fairness to Toomevara, they showed great guts and determination in the second half, particularly in the third quarter, as they roared into the game trying to bring back some pride to their parish with Jack Hogan pointing the first two scores of the half from frees after ten minutes, as the Toome defence looked more solid with Billy O’Brien, Tony Dunne, and Jack Ryan becoming more prominent.

Such was Toome’s increased effort levels, they went into the final quarter of the game having outscored Durlas Óg 0-3 to 0-2 at the start of the second half, but the legs and effort soon took their toll as the boys in red kept pouring forward, and with further classy scores from a gifted Euan Murray, along with their second goal of the day from Eoin Webb it was all she wrote as a nasty shemozzle late in the game led to a Toomevara player seeing red as the Thurles boys finished well to claim a deserved and impressive U15 crown.

Euan Murray was incredible at midfield, pulling all the strings for his side throughout the game for Durlas Óg, and it is hard to believe he has another year to play in this grade; while he was ably assisted by Leelan Donoghue, Evan Nolan, and Cillian Minogue, but in truth, there wasn’t a player in red on the day who failed to impress.

Toomevara will be disappointed to have lost by the margin they did, as they never really hit the form they have shown throughout the championship, but they have rising stars of their own in this team, with Billy O’Brien, Austin Duff, Alex Ryan, and Jack Hogan their best on the day, and they will have better days ahead of them if they stick together.

Teams and Scorers
Durlas Óg: Jamie Stapleton; Bill Fogarty, Keelan Dunne, Ronan O’Dwyer; Kyle O’Dowd, Evan Nolan 0-1, James Lloyd; Euan Murray 0-10, Alex Coppinger 0-1; Andy Rossiter, Leelan Donoghue 0-4, Liam Gleeson; Eoin Webb 1-4, Cillian Minogue 1-1, Kieran Rossiter 0-1. Subs: Darragh O’Dwyer for Gleeson; Cillian Ryan for A Rossiter.
Toomevara: Darragh Hayes; Adam Whyte, Jack Ryan, Cormac Frend; Tony Dunne, Billy O’Brien, Cody Quirke; Patrick Hackett, Alex Ryan; Dylan Delaney, Seamus Farrell, MIchael Ryan; Jack Hogan 0-6, Austin Duff, Liam Hackett. Subs: Evan Doyle for L Hackett.
Referee: Seamus Delaney (JK Brackens)