Thurles Sarsfields always on top in disappointing hurling final

On a day when Moycarkey/Borris brought great colour and numbers to the county final, it was Thurles Sarsfields who brought the hurling. In a disappointing contest, the outcome was never in much doubt from the moment - seconds in - when Eoin Purcell shivered Rhys Shelly’s net. Moycarkey stayed honest to the end but Sarsfields always had their number.

Elsewhere, St. Mary’s edged a tight Premier Intermediate final while the Intermediate decider produced the game of the weekend, with Johnny Ryan hitting a stunning late winner for Arravale Rovers.

That senior final was a letdown. In the build-up there was much focus on Moycarkey’s battling qualities, which saw them strike late and emphatically in both quarter and semi-finals. Now, in hindsight perhaps, we should have put more store on the limitations of both Kiladangan and JK Brackens, who allowed Moycarkey back into games that should have been closed out.

The opening quarter was exactly what we didn’t want. As underdogs Moycarkey needed encouragement but instead got an instant knock back. From the throw-in Euan Murray delivered goalwards, where the defence was caught cold, and the break fell to Eoin Purcell, who had space to advance and dispatch low against a static goalie. All done in a matter of seconds.

Worse followed for Moycarkey. Two sublime points from Kieran Rossiter, two frees from Aidan McCormack and another flag from Aidan Stakelum against a solitary Jack Hayes reply left the board reading 1-5 to 0-1 after 15 minutes. In retrospect that was it; Moycarkey never retrieved the lost ground.

They did have one moment of cheer in the 22nd minute. Joe Maher, one of the hardest triers on the team, soloed in from outfield, did a one-two exchange with Joe Egan and lashed home a rousing goal. It brought the lead back to five points but normal service resumed thereafter and Sarsfields led by seven at the interval.

The second half was particularly underwhelming. On the scoreboard Sarsfield won it by 0-7 to 0-6, which in the modern game is poor fare. As a spectacle it was flat. You always had a sense of Sarsfields in control. Moycarkey needed a goal to spark some late push but it never came.

We often praise Sarsfields’ attacking flair but this was as much a defensive win as an attacking one. Central to it all was the closing down of the Moycarkey threat around Kieran Morris. ‘Kiwi’ tried his damndest, including one audacious fetch in the second half, but time and again the Sarsfields defence formed a collective blanket to smother every opening. Denis Maher and company stood defiant and apart from one great reflex save by Paddy McCormack very late in the match, there was no goal threat.

In fairness to Moycarkey they had to make three pre-match adjustments to the selected team with Pat Molloy, Tom Ryan and Jack Hayes replacing Peter Melbourne, Rory Darmody and Kieran Cummins. All three who were replaced eventually came on but the rejigging had to have an unsettling effect.

Jack Hayes was their main forward threat, in the first half especially, and Peter Melbourne added stability at the back when he came on. But they’ll have been disappointed that others, such as David Costigan, struggled for impact in the game.

The day belonged to Sarsfields, adding another notch to the club’s rich record. In truth they’ve looked the most likely winners ever since they rebounded from that Mid defeat to Holycross. The mix of youth and experience has been central to it.

Repositioning Denis Maher to full back was a masterstroke. The absence of Ronan Maher had a silver lining in the form of Conor Stakelum’s development as a number six. Keith Loughnane’s progress, often unrecognised, has been another bonus. In front of the experienced Paddy McCormack in goal, they constructed a mean defence.

Then you have Euan Murray bringing class to midfield beside Daniel Rossiter. Eoin Purcell and Kieran Rossiter have been busy scorers all year and Paddy Creedon has the potential to unhinge any defence.

Sometimes young players struggle for impact at senior level (reference Holycross here) but in Sarsfields’ case the step-up by so many has looked seamless. After a nine-year absence this was a sweet win.

The Premier Intermediate final didn’t reach heights of excellence either but it did have the saving grace of being tight throughout. It was dour, with the teams level on nine occasions before Mary’s finished strongly.

In truth there was little between the sides throughout a dogged exchange. Peter McGarry’s free-taking got Mary’s away early on but some exquisite replies from Killenaule’s Joe O’Dwyer were a feature of the first half. The lead swapped hands a few times before they retired locked at 0-8 apiece at half-time.

In the third quarter The Robins seemed to be edging it when they went three-up but again Mary’s hit back to level before Killenaule had the game’s only goal. It was a fine finish from Eoin Shaw off a Darragh Doyle feed and one thought at the time it might be the game’s critical score.

It wasn’t. Within five minutes Aaron Cagney (two) and Peter McGarry had the game tied once more and it was down now to a cliff-edge final phase. As the clock ticked into added time, Tadhg Condon landed his second sideline ‘cut’ of the day to wrestle back the lead once more. However, there was an immediate response from Tony Ryan and one felt a replay was the likely outcome.

Not so. The encore was Mary’s, McGarry, Cagney and substitute Thomas Charles with the decisive flags in additional time, earning a memorable win for the Clonmel lads.

The loss of Joe O’Dwyer for that final run-in was a bad blow for Killenaule and on balance one felt Mary’s had just that little extra, which nudged them through. Aaron Cagney deservedly got the main-man award after hitting five from play. Peter McGarry must have been close too with 0-8, 0-4 from open play. Tony Ryan top-scored for Killenaule with 0-5, 0-3 from play.

It’s a win and an exciting promotion for Mary’s, who have shown strong form this year on their way to the decider. Encouragingly, they appear to be a club on the move with their minors facing Newport midweek in another county final.

The Intermediate final on Saturday was, undeniably, the highlight event for me. It was a tremendous tussle between Arravale Rovers and Ballingarry at Holycross. End-to-end stuff with leads built and leads lost, dramatic scores, headlong endeavour by both sides and a nail-biting climax, all combined to keep the packed attendance enthralled.

Ballingarry got the ideal start into the wind, going 1-4 to nil ahead in the first five minutes. Jack Cahill was put through by Michael Ivors for an excellent goal finish. Slowly, piecemeal, however, Arravale worked their way back into the game despite hitting nine first half wides. The free-taking of Orrin Jones was a key element. By half time the West side were just a goal adrift, 1-10 to 0-10.

Ballingarry, for whom Jack Cahill was the star turn hitting 1-8, will surely wonder how they lost this game. Apart from that lightning opening they led all the way until injury time at the end of the hour. In fact, the game was two minutes into added time when Orrin Jones pulled the lead back to the minimum with a pointed ‘65’ and there was still time for Johnny Ryan to fire the equaliser from midfield three minutes into added time. Ten Ballingarry wides in that half alone were damning.

The swaying fortunes continued in the extra time periods. Arravale went three-up before what appeared to be the decisive action which saw Simon Blackmore, sweeper turned attacker, goal twice within a minute on feeds from Dylan Walsh. The South side were four-up at half-time in extra time.

But Arravale were not for buckling. A cracking goal from Jaye Cilvinas was central to this latest comeback. A red card for Ballingarry’s James Burns midway through the second half was a blow for his team. Arravale kept coming and went a point up before Dylan Walsh levelled as the game ticked into additional time. The match was over two minutes into ‘lost’ time when Johnny Ryan delivered an incredible winner from midfield.

It was both dramatic and controversial. The injury time allowed was one point of contention; frees, given and not given, were another. It was a tough one for Ballingarry to stomach.

For Arravale Rovers the sheer resilience and refusal to bend made it an unforgettable win. It’s one that will live in the memory when others are long forgotten.

A final thought: why force extra time in a game like this? It’s season-ending so why the rush? Could you imagine the anticipation of a rematch?