Arravale Rovers win six-goal West derby thriller to book Intermediate final spot

FBD Insurance Intermediate Hurling Championship Semi-Final

Arravale Rovers 3-24

Cappawhite 3-20

Arravale Rovers are back in the FBD Insurance Intermediate Hurling Final for the first time since going down to Carrick Davins in the 2009 decider, following their four-point winning margin over Cappawhite in the all-West semi-final at Páirc Ciocaim, Dundrum, on Sunday afternoon.

This was a game that caught the imagination of a good crowd from the throw-in, a game that produced six goals and 44 points, with 6-31 coming from open play. It’s safe to say that this was one of the best games seen at this grade in Tipperary during the current campaign.

Cappawhite, who also exited the championship at the semi-final stage in the last two seasons, set the tone of the game from the outset and had raced into a five-point advantage by the end of the first quarter. Arravale were slow to settle and trailed by six as the game went into added time at the end of the opening half.

However, with the last play of the half, Johnny Ryan found his midfield partner Sean O’Mahoney with a deft hand pass over the top, and his low shot beat Anthony Barry to close the gap to three at the short whistle.

This late goal before the break gave the Tipp town side a massive driving force for the second half as they hit 1-3 to 0-1 in a five-minute spell after the restart, turning a six-point deficit into a two-point advantage in the six minutes either side of the half-time break.

This gave them a sound basis for the remainder of the contest and, with the midfield pairing of man of the match Johnny Ryan and Sean O’Mahoney controlling the middle third, the scores came more easily for the West champions.

They had gone into a five-point advantage by the 48th minute, but two goals from Darragh O’Hora inside a two-minute spell eased Cappa back in front.

However, over the final ten minutes of normal time plus three minutes of added time, they failed to add to their tally as Arravale moved up a gear and were the superior team, with a late surge seeing them run out four-point winners to advance to the final.

The earlier rain had cleared by throw-in time, leaving the underfoot conditions somewhat slippery as Cappawhite attacked the railway end from the start, with Conor Martin opening the scoring inside sixty seconds.

Willie Barry doubled their advantage after winning possession from the puck-out, before Orrin Jones was wide of the mark from a placed ball. Conor Martin doubled his own tally in the fifth minute before Orrin Jones found the range from a placed ball.

Cappawhite replied with the next two minors, the first from David Buckley from open play and Dara McCarthy from a placed ball out at the Station Road side. Eoghan Lonergan got in for the first of his four points from play, but again it was Cappa who responded through Daire Duggan and Conor Martin, who put over his third from play in the tenth minute.

Eoghan Lonergan, who was beginning to come more into the game, found Johnny Ryan, who made no mistake. A run at the Cappa defence by Adam Ryan, who was bearing down on goal, was turned over and Willie Barry punished the town side at the other end, with the first of two minors inside sixty seconds. This was Cappawhite’s best period as they pushed on to lead 0-9 to 0-4 at the end of the opening quarter.

Dara McCarthy added two further minors, either side of a second from Eoghan Lonergan, after being put through by Orrin Jones. McCarthy, from a placed ball, and Lonergan traded minors as Cappa kept a five-point advantage with ten minutes remaining in the half.

Conor Martin eased Cappa out to a six-point advantage, but Arravale hit three of the next four points, one from Sean O’Mahoney and two from Orrin Jones, one from a huge free from beyond midfield. Darragh O’Hora found space on the stand side to keep four between the sides.

Cappawhite had stretched their lead out to six as the game entered added time but, in the last play before the short whistle, Sean O’Mahoney fired a shot across Anthony Barry for the opening goal of the game, having received an over-the-top hand pass from Johnny Ryan.

Half-time score: Cappawhite 0-16, Arravale Rovers 1-10.

This goal before the break seemed to have energised the Arravale side as they hit the ground running on resumption. Orrin Jones cut the deficit to two from a placed ball following a foul on Sean O’Mahoney, after Johnny Ryan had won possession at the throw-in.

Cappa then were off target on two occasions before Eoghan Lonergan hit his fourth minor of the afternoon. Johnny Ryan then tied the game for the first time on 34 minutes before Daire Duggan eased Cappawhite back in front.

Arravale hit the front for the first time after 35 minutes when Jaye Cilvinas was first to react to a breaking ball in the Cappa defence, finding the net after a favourable bounce of the ball.

Cappawhite were back in front three minutes later when, after a huge catch by Dara McCarthy above the defenders, Conor Martin goaled from close in. McCarthy eased Cappa out to a two-point advantage from a placed ball, but again Arravale drew level by the 41st minute after points from Jaye Cilvinas followed by an Orrin Jones converted free.

Cilvinas added a second major at the end of the third quarter as the game swung from end to end. Points from John Paul Lohan, Sean O’Mahoney and Orrin Jones had stretched the Arravale lead out to five, with twelve minutes of normal time remaining, but Cappawhite were back with two goals inside two minutes from Darragh O’Hora to regain the lead by the minimum after 50 minutes.

With five minutes of normal time remaining, Johnny Ryan landed the equaliser from his own 45-metre line at the Station Road side, before Paddy O’Donnell pulled off a point-blank save at the other end to keep Cappa at bay.

Johnny Ryan and Jaye Cilvinas, with minors, eased Arravale back in front before Orrin Jones finished out the game with two converted frees in added time.

Scorers: Arravale Rovers: Jaye Cilvinas 2-2, Orrin Jones (0-8, 0-7f), Sean O’Mahoney 1-3, Johnny Ryan (0-4, 0-1f), Eoghan Lonergan 0-4, Donnacha Quigley 0-2, John Paul Lohan 0-1.

Cappawhite: Dara McCarthy (0-7, 0-5f), Darragh O’Hora 2-1, Conor Martin 1-4, Willie Barry 0-3, Daire Duggan 0-2, Sam Carmody, Colm O’Dwyer, David Buckley all 0-1 each.

Arravale Rovers: Paddy O’Donnell; David Ryan, Niall Fitzgerald, Peter Ryan; Eoin Doocey, Matthew Moroney, John Paul Lohan; Johnny Ryan, Sean O’Mahoney; Donough Leahy, Eoghan Lonergan, Orrin Jones; Donnacha Quigley, Adam Ryan, Jaye Cilvinas.

Subs used: Niall Sharpe for Donnacha Quigley (42); Conal Donovan for Donough Leahy (45); Ciaran Kelly for Eoin Doocey (59).

Cappawhite: Anthony Barry; Jack Ryan, Mikey O’Brien, Philip Gantley; Kevin Stapleton, Sam Carmody, Gearoid Ryan (B); Brendan Murphy, David Buckley; Conor Martin, Willie Barry, Colm O’Dwyer; Dara McCarthy, Darragh O’Hora, Daire Duggan.

Subs used: Cathal Martin for Colm O’Dwyer (45); Ryan Renehan for Daire Duggan (59).

Referee: Ciarán O’Donovan (Burgess)