Tipperary Hurling Tipperary GAA Premierview

Galway 2-20 Tipperary 2-18 Match Report , Knocknagow

Tipperary exited the All-Ireland at the Quarter Final stage after a last quarter collapse against Galway yesterday in Croke Park. The Tipp team was only announced just before throw in and showed a number of changes from Cork game. Hugh Moloney was corner back, Corcoran centre back, Eddie and Paul Kelly midfield, John Devane centre forward, Benny wing forward and Tommy corner forward. Galway made a number of positional switches; Richie Murray went right half forward and Niall Healy full forward. The attendance was 44,500 and the ref was Aodhan McSuibhne of Dublin.
Galway had the first 2 wides of the game the second could have been a goal after a David Forde run through the Tipp defence. Galway went ahead after 3 minutes with an Alan Kerins point. Tipp’s first point came when John Devane was fouled and Eoin Kelly pointed. Diarmaid Fitzgerald then played a dangerous ball into the full forward line which was cleared for a 65 which Paul Kelly pointed. Galway had 2 bad wides. Tipp then went 3-1 up when a short sideline from Eddie Enright found Paul Kelly who pointed. Brendan Cummins then had a poor clearance and with him off the line Alan Kerins shot wide. Philip Maher then got treatment for his hurt shoulder. A long clearance from Paul Kelly found Webster who was fouled. Eoin Kelly went for goal from the 21 yard free but it was cleared. D Fitzgerald had a poor clearance and Fergal Healy pointed. A late Tommy Dunne tackle on Liam Donoghue saw Ger Farragher point a free to level the game. Benny Dunne got his first point after a good catch but Galway equalised to leave it 4 each after 15 minutes.
Paul Kelly gave away a silly free which Farragher pointed. On 17 minutes Fanning gave a good high ball into Webster who broke it to Tommy Dunne who blasted to the net. Straight away Webster again won the ball and set up Eoin Kelly for a point. Niall Healy and a Ger Farragher free put only a point between the sides. Tipp then got a penalty when a Diarmaid Fitzgerald pass found Webster he was fouled by Ollie Canning but Kavanagh was yellow carded! Eoin Kelly duly blasted to the net, so after 23 minutes Tipp lead 2-5 to 0-7. Galway moved Tony Og Regan to full back and Kavanagh to centre back. Some nice passing between the Kelly’s saw the ball find its way to Paul who pointed. Paul Curran then intercepted a Galway goal attack after a sloppy Hugh Moloney pass. Then in the 30th minute Tipp had their first wide of the game from Benny Dunne. Damien Hayes was fouled and Farragher pointed.
Eoin Kelly pointed from play before Paul Curran swept the ball off the line after a Brendan Cummins slip up. Tipp then switched things around with Eoin Kelly centre forward with Tommy and Devane in the corners. Paul Kelly collected a loose ball to point and Webster passed out the field to Benny who did likewise. Tipp now lead 2-9 to 0-8. Webster had a great catch but flashed his goal chance wide. Benny Dunne gave away a silly free which Farragher punished and in injury time Galway got another point to only be 5 down at the break 2-9 to 0-10.
Tipp had to make a change at the break with the injured Philip Maher being replaced by Conor O’Mahony. Eoin Kelly got another point to stretch Tipp’s lead. Slackness in the Tipp full back line allowed Damien Hayes to stroll through and bury to the net. Eoin Kelly pointed a free after Colin Morrissey was fouled. Fergal Healy got a point before a great Declan Fanning block kept Galway at bay. Tipp then made their second change with Redser on for John Devane. Galway brought on Colin Ceon for David Collins. Redser’s first touch saw him point. Webster then won a ball out near the Cusack Stand side and pointed. Eoin Kelly had a wide but a Diarmaid Fitzgerald interception on the puck out saw him point. Tipp now lead 2-14 to 1-11 with 48 minutes gone. David Tierney had a wide before Redser shot his first wide. Brendan Cummins then pulled off an unbelievable save from Richie Murray from which Farragher pointed the 65. Eoin Kelly got a point from play before Damien Hayes just shot barley wide. Redser got a yellow for a high tackle on Donoghue. Ollie Canning was now picking up Eoin Kelly at centre back.
Eoin Kelly pointed after Eddie Enright was fouled. David Tierney pointed for Galway before Eoin Kelly scored a monster free from inside his own 65. Tipp were still in control at this stage, 2-17 to 1-15, 56 minutes gone. Richie Murray got another point before Damien Hayes easy brushed Hugh Moloney to the ground and buried to the net. Galway were now on a roll and Conor O’Mahony blocked a shot before Alan Kerins put the ball over. Galway then brought on Kevin Hayes for Niall Healy and Tipp brought on John Carroll for Eddie Enright. With 8 minutes to go Richie Murray equalised and a stupid foul by Benny Dunne saw him yellow carded and Ger Farragher stepped up and put the ball over from a long way out. Tipp were panicking at this stage and replaced Colin Morrissey with his brother Pa. Diarmaid Fitzgerald, who was fighting a losing battle trying to shore up the porous Tipp half back line, then ran up the field and levelled, 2-18 apiece. Richie Murray put Galway ahead on the puck out before Redser had a shot which looked about a foot inside the post but the umpire adjudged it wide. Another Ger Farragher free saw Galway 2 ahead. A long Paul Kelly clearance went wide and then bizarrely Tipp took off Redser and sent on Daragh Egan in injury time. Tipp had 1 last chance when they won a free out the field the ball was played into a crowded Galway square, when it should only have been Webster in there, and Galway cleared the ball through David Forde, RTE Man of the Match, and after 1 minute injury time the ref blew and Galway had won on a scoreline of 2-20 to 2-18.
Conor Hayes while pleased with the win will not be pleased with the Galway performance. For 55 minutes they were out played by Tipp. It was only when Tipp collapsed in midfield and Tierney, Forde and Murray took control around the half forward line, running at the Tipp defence that they came on top. Some of their wides especially in the first half were shocking, they had 18 in total most of them scorable. However when they did get the ball to Damien Hayes he was able to use it effectively. Conor Hayes still has trouble in the backs. Kavanagh was destroyed by Webster, Tony Og Regan only fared marginally better as he fouled him the whole time and Tipp stopped played quality ball into him, they also conceded 20 scores. Ollie Canning was again impressive. If Galway are to beat Kilkenny they need to produce a solid 75 minute game, they have the forwards but one wonders if their backs will hold up under sustained pressure.
This was probably Ken Hogan’s last game as Tipp manager. Again the problems which plagued him during the last 2 years came back to haunt him; Tipp’s inability to close out a game when they are in control and shocking team selection and substitutions. Again it boils down to players playing out of position: In the full back line we had 2 full backs and a wing back starting off, half back line we had a wing back playing centre back and a centre back playing wing back, midfield ok, half forward line not even funny as we had a full back, a wing back and a midfielder! Then the subs: Conor O’Mahony does all his hurling at centre back or midfield played at full back, while John Devane who had a good game v Clare ended up at corner forward. John Carroll should have gone centre forward or full forward. As for Hogan’s decisions during the game they defy logic. Hugh Moloney was being easily beaten by Damien Hayes yet he was left on him. Fanning should have been moved centre back as Corcoran could not cope with David Forde. The two Dunes should not have lasted after the break. Tommy while scoring a great ball was totally out of it in the second half. Benny Dunne scored 2 good points, but again gave away 2 stupid frees which Galway scored, including the 1 which put them ahead for the first time. The introduction of Pa Morrissey and Daragh Egan, players with about 15 minutes Championship hurling between them, defied logic, when Evan Sweeny impressed after coming off the bench v Limerick in the replay.
Again we did not play to our strengths. Webster destroyed the Galway defence in the first half yet in the second hardly any ball went into him, and when it did he was crowded out of it. Eoin Kelly was a gain superb but outside him nobody stepped up to the plate to help in the scoring stakes. Tipp’s second half subs defied logic. Redser was the only player winning ball yet he was taken off when he is a proven goal scorer and then to cap it all he was replaced by a 19 year old with the sum total of 1 minute Championship experience! Why was Pa Morrissey put on he contributed nothing in the League or when introduced against Limerick. Tipp’s tactics at the end were baffling. We needed a goal. We had Webster who had caught 90% of the ball going into him and yet the last free we pushed every one into the Galway square to make sure that Webster would not win the ball cleanly.
The Tipp half forward line was shocking from the word go. I have great sympathy for John Devane. He is a good full back yet he was clueless at centre forward. He would have benefited from a move to the edge of the square at the second half. Our midfield did a lot of foraging and cleared a lot of loose ball. Once they faded after about 40 minutes the Galway midfield took over. Corcoran and Fanning were also struggling after the break and although Diarmuid Fitzgerald tried his heart out he could not cope with the pressure as Galway picked off point after point. Yet this was a game we should have had well out of sight. We lead comfortably at the break 2-9 to 0-10 and with 14 minutes to go lead 2-17 to 1-15. In the last 14 minutes only scoring 1 point is a pathetic indictment of Tipp’s second half performance. The fact that the point was scored by Fitzgerald highlights the collapse. Tipp never looked like a team that were capable of closing the game out and once Galway got the head of steam going there was ever only 1 team in it.

Tipp team:
Brendan Cummins: pulled off 1 spectacular save in the second half, fumbled 2 more but could not be faulted for either goal.

Full back line: Hugh Moloney is a good wing back but a corner back he aint. Was very shaky throughout, Damien Hayes rounded him a few times and was way too easily brushed off for the second goal. Philip Maher got injured after 10 minutes and was eventually replaced at half time. Should have come off way sooner. Paul Curran had a good solid game covering when Cummins slipped up and cleared an amount of ball.

Half back line: Eamon Corcoran started off well but faded as the game progressed and David Forde came into it. He is not a centre back and that was proven yesterday. Went wing back late on but the damage had been done by then. Fanning played ok. Cleared a lot of ball throughout and set up one of the goals, however could not cope when things got tough at the end. Diarmaid Fitzgerald; was one of the only Tipp players still fighting at the end. Could not keep the half backline going on his own. Scored a great point, (Tipp’s last), to equalise but straight away his man Damien Murray scored to put Galway ahead.

Midfield: Considering this was Eddie Enright’s first intercounty game in over a year he played very well. He got through an amount of work, harrying blocking clearing in the first half but faded before being replaced. If he had been fit earlier on in the year we would not have found ourselves in the mess we are in now. Paul Kelly scored 4 points and like Eddie worked well throughout. Like Eddie had less of an influence as the game progressed.

Half forward line: Complete and utter shambles. Colin Morrissey is not a wing forward and never will be. Tried and tried but got no head way. Benny Dunne did NOT lead by example. Score 2 very good points. But gave away 2 petulant frees, the second which got him yellow carded and gave Galway the lead. Should have been replaced way sooner. John Devane was poor only got the ball a few times. He is not a centre forward and it showed. Was clueless under the puckouts and bizarrely spent time at corner forward.

Full forward line: Well what more can be said about Eoin Kelly? Another superb display scored 1-9 and showed for every ball, was well marshalled by Ollie Canning but suffered from lack of ball into the Tipp forwards in the second half. Took his goal very well and scored a monster free. Again our only scoring threat. Webster did the job he is expected to do in the first half. Set up 2 goals and a point for Eoin Kelly won a 21 yard free. In the second got no ball but scored a point. If we had kept putting the ball into him in the second half we would have won easy. I am sorry to say but Tommy Dunne is only a pale shadow of the All-Ireland winning captain of 2001. Took his goal superbly but only touched the ball about 2 times in the second half. Should have been taken off 5 minutes into the second half.

Subs: Conor O’Mahony for Philip Maher (injured.) Looked for a while that he might have been replacing Hugh Moloney but came on at the break at the edge of the square. Settled well after being hesitant for the first Galway goal. Made a vital block midway through the second half. More suited to out the field.

Redser for John Devane: Scored a point with his first touch. Had another one, which would have levelled the game with 3 minutes to go, which was over but the umpire wrongly adjudged wide. Was the only Tipp player willing to take on the Galway defence but amazingly was taken off when Tipp needed a goal.

Pa Morrissey for Colin Morrissey: Not up to this level at all.

Darragh Egan for Redser: Pointless in injury time to send on a 19 year old to get a winning goal. It summed up Tipp’s day.

So Tipp end another year with failure and without a manger. There needs to be a major cleanout of the panel, and it expect that some of the players will call it a day. Of the 29 players listed in the programme I don’t think that 10 of them should be on the panel next year due to lack of fitness, too old or in the vast majority of cases just not good enough for the Tipp panel. The most disappointing aspect of yesterday’s game was that we should have won. With a bit of spine and steel and a show of character from the management we should be in an All-Ireland semi final, (a game which is wide open). The League was wasted, the lessons of the early Championship games were v Limerick and Clare were not heeded by the management and we basically got what we deserved. We need a manager who can sort out the rancour in the dressing room and put some pride and backbone back in the Tipp jersey.

Best players for Tipp this year were No. 1 Eoin Kelly, No. 2 Diarmaid Fitzgerald and No. 3 Michael Webster.






Tipperary v Galway (All-Ireland Quarter Final) 31-07-05 Knocknagow

Tipperary and Galway play the third of this year’s All-Ireland Qualifiers on Sunday in Croke Park at 2.00. The game will be followed by the clash of Kilkenny v Limerick at 4.00. The winner of these 2 games will face each other in the All Ireland Semi Final on 21st of August.
These sides are fairly regular rivals, having met in a League game in the spring in Salthill. Tipp won on that occasion 3-17 to 0-18, with goals from Michael Webster and Mark O’Leary. The last Championship meeting was in 2003 in Salthill in the qualifiers and represented the only significant Championship scalp during Michael Doyle’s short tenure. On that occasion, it was a Benny Dunne goal that was the crucial score. Galway fought back, but a point from sub Redser gave Tipp the required breathing distance as Galway staged a late fight back to get it down to the minimum at the end. The previous meeting was in the All-Ireland Final of 2001. From that day Tipp still have a sizeable number of players, 11, still involved in the current panel.
Unlike most other years Galway do actually have some games played at this stage of the Championship. They fairly handily own their first 2 games against Laois, 2-22 to 2-11, (top scorer Ger Farragher with 1-11), and Antrim, 3-29 to 0-10, (top scorer Ger Farragher with 12 points), before they faced Limerick in the Gaelic Grounds. They got a great start and lead 1-7 to 0-2 after 20 minutes but they let Limerick back into it with 2 goals after the break. However they held on and won by a point, 1-18 to 2-14 with Farragher top scorer with 8 points, while Damien Hayes impressed with 1-3.
This is Tipp’s fifth Championship game of the year. A review of the previous games can be seen elsewhere. Since the Munster Final most players have been involved in club action. News from those games was mixed, with both John Devane and Redser only playing limited time for their clubs due to injury. Martin Maher broke his arm and is gone for the rest of the season. Neither Evan Sweeney nor Lar Corbett played for their clubs so their fitness/hurling sharpness must be seriously suspect. The 2 Kelly’s have again impressed for Mullinahone, Philip Maher, Benny and Tommy Dunne were quiet enough v Borrisleigh while Francis Devanney and John O’Brien did not impress in the same game. Many of the panel have also been involved with the Tipp U21’s as they progressed to another Munster Final. Francis Devanney scored 3 points but was poor in general play. Of the Senior subs; Conor O’ Mahoney was solid at full back and Darragh Egan had a good second half. On the positive side the return of Eddie Enright to the panel is a major boost. Out for nearly 11 months with a shoulder injury he has been flying in training and with Sars in the Mid Championship. Tipp also played a behind close doors game v Wexford which ended in a high scoring draw in Semple Stadium 2 weeks ago, in which Eddie Enright and Redser and John Carroll, at wing forward, impressed. However John Carroll broke a finger in this game and is more than likely out. Also considering the way that Wexford were humbled by Clare last Sunday any positive aspect of the game has to be taken with a pinch of salt.
Probably the most worryingly aspect is that despite playing so many games we are still no way closer to having the best 15 players picked to start. It took a major overhaul and numerous positional switches in the Cork game to get Tipp going, despite all the plaudits about over second half we were still two scores away from Cork at the end of the game. Again we are not playing to our strengths. We have a big, good ball winner in at full forward and yet they players out the field refuse to pass the ball into him preferring to shoot in hope from the midfield. In the Cork game Webster won a penalty, set up a goal, a point and caused endless trouble to Sullivan, with very limited ball going in to him. We have one of the best point scorers ever in the corner but yet for large spells of any game the ball is never played near him. Eoin Kelly started off on fire v Cork but then with no ball going in could do nothing. He needs to be giving a roving position. After the Cork game the following positions were still up for grabs: corner and centre back, midfield, all the half forward line and corner forward. That’s over half the team! Not a good way to be approaching Croke Park.
Again there are still major questions over the half forward line; they failed to function on most of the four Championship days to date: Tommy Dunne does not appear to have the pace, John Carroll nor Redser the fitness, while Benny Dunne is a back man and Colin Morrissey is a midfielder. John Devane is not the answer, despite his great second half v Cork, he was abysmal in the 2 games v Limerick. I don’t envisage that the 3 candidates who are picked to start here Sunday will line out in those positions or will finish the 70 minutes.
In my opinion Tipp’s best half backline is Declan Fanning flanked by Corcoran and Fitzgerald. And there is no room for debate here! Corcoran showed that he is not a corner back after he conceded 1-2 off Joe Deane in 20 minutes in Cork. However we have a problem with corner back as since the start of the year we have lost Paul Ormonde and recently Martin Maher to long term injury. Hugh Moloney, a fine wing back, is not a corner back and if he starts here could get a right roasting. Galway have some vastly experienced players; in the backs Ollie Canning and Derek Hardiman, while given enough ball Richie Murray, Ger Farragher and Damien Hayes could crucify our sometimes flaky inside back line.
Tipp’s last visit to Croke Park was a hammering by Kilkenny in the 2003 All-Ireland Semi Final. On that day 12 of the current panel were involved in the action, while Colin Morrissey, Redser and Diarmaid Fitzgerald sat on the bench. So Croke Park should not be a daunting experience to the Tipp players.
Due to the amount of injuries that Tipp have the team will not be announced until the weekend. The injured players are John Carroll, Lar Corbett, Evan Sweeney, (all unlikely to play), and Colin Morrissey, John Devane and Hugh Moloney. It is a major concern for Tipp to have so many players injured prior to such an important game. I don’t expect that Benny Dunne, David Kennedy or Francis Devanney will start due to their very poor performances in the Munster Final. Certainly Benny Dunne should not, after being taken off for the third time this year in the Championship, however due to the amount of injuries and Hogan’s blinding loyalism to certain players he probably will be lining out as captain on Sunday.
My major concern would be that Tipp would have a repeat of the first half of the Munster Final. Also if Galway get enough ball in the midfield and run at us we will not be able to cope. Galway normally produce 1 good display every few years and shock a team, if they click on Sunday we could have another bad day at the office. In the forwards the half forward line will have to at least break even under puckouts and in general play and give the correct supply of ball into the full forward line which is realistically our only reliable scoring threat.
How do I see this game going? Well normally by the time Tipp get to Croker they have a settled side and a game plan. This year unfortunately they have neither! Galway on the other hand are an unknown quantity. While they struggled against Limerick, remember that it took us 2 and a half games to get past that same Limerick side. When they are good they can be devastating, (the first 20 minutes v Limerick), but when they are bad they collapse, (v Kilkenny in the qualifiers in Thurles last year). They don’t have the experience or the skill of the two Cloonan’s or Kevin Broderick yet they have players who on their day can beat any team, Derek Hardiman and Damien Hayes. Tipp have to go out with a game plan, (high ball to Webster, low ball to Eoin Kelly, and not the other way around!!!), play for 75 minutes and fight for every ball. If we have any realistic designs on the Liam McCarthy they we have to win this game comfortably. So a hesitant nod to Tipp by 3 points.


Knocknagow

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Cork 1-21 Tipperary 1-16. 2005 Munster Senior Hurling Final, 26-06-05



Cork easily saw off Tipperary in a high scoring Munster Senior Hurling Final in front of a capacity crowd in Pairc Ui Chaiomh yesterday. Cork made no changes to the their starting line up although Ben O’Connor and Kieran Murphy swapped places. For Tipp, Evan Sweeny lined out at corner forward, with Tommy Dunne and Francis Devanney swapping places.
In the first attack of the game Kieran Murphy had a Cork wide. From the puck out Eoin Kelly got the ball and put Tipp ahead, he followed it up with another sweet point. David Kennedy fouled and Joe Deane obliged. Then from the sideline Paul Kelly swung over a beauty of a point to put Tipp 3-1 ahead. Philip Maher fouled Corcoarn and Joe Deane put the free short. Kieran Murphy put the minimum between the sides before another Eoin Kelly beauty left Tipp 4-2 ahead after 8 minutes. Joe Deane easily turned Corcoran and pointed. A Tipp fumble in midfield allowed Jerry O’ Conner to point. Brian Cocoran’s last contribution was appoint after a Ben O’Connor free, he went off with a shoulder injury and replaced by Neill Ronan. Score 5-4 to Cork. Diarmaid Fitz bloscked but Tommy Dunne put it wide. 2 Cork wides followed before Cork stretched ahead when a high Kieran Murphy ball was not dealt with by Corcoran and went to the net. Ben O’Connor put Cork 6 up, (1-7 to 0-4), with a free after a stupid Paul Kelly foul.
From a Tipp point of view the turning point came in the 24th minutes when Sullivan pulled across Websters head then dragged him to the ground for a definite penalty. Eoin Kelly’s shot was poor and cleared by Cusack Cork went straight down the field and scored. Neil Ronan pointed as Joe Deane turned Corcoran and pointed with ease, 1-11 to 0-6. Thankfully Tipp made their first change taking off Kennedy, putting Corcoran centre back and Hugh Moloney in the corner. Brendan Cummins pulled off a save before Redser replaced the ineffective Devanney. Eoin Kelly put an easy free wide. Ben O’Connor added another point 1-12 to 0-4. An Eoin Kelly free was Tipp’s first score since the 8th minute. Hugh Moloney was yellow carded and Ben O’Connor got the last score of the first half. Half time score 1-13 to 0-5.
At the start of the second half, John Devane came on for Evan Sweeney. Benny Dunne went midfield in a switch with Colin Morrissey. Neil Ronan got the first of the half before Paul Kelly with a free, after John Devane was fouled, made it 1-14 to 0-6. Cork pointed a free before Redser had a wide. Both Sullivan and Webster were booked for an off the ball incident. Redser passed to John Devane who pointed. Eoin Kelly under severe pressure pointed. Another John Devane point put only 9 between the sides. Benny was replaced by John Carroll. A Joe Deane free stretched Cork’s lead. A high ball into Webster was passed to John Carroll. His shot went over the bar. 3 long range Paul Kelly points narrowed the gap however a Neil Ronan point and a pair of Ben O Connor frees kept Cork ahead, 1-19 to 0-13. Cork replaced Brian Murphy with Wayne Sherlock.
Tipp won a 21 yard free which Eoin Kelly pointed, the angle was too narrow to go for goal. With 7 minutes a Brendan Cummins free was fielded by Webster who passed to John Carroll, his goal shot was blocked, but Tommy Dunne flicked to the net. Tipp were only 5 points behind but time was running out. Eoin Kelly left 4 in it. Cork brought off Jerry O’Connor with Jonathon O’Callaghan coming on. Ben O’Connor scored another free to increase the lead to 5. Tommy Dunne, now at full forward, had 2 goal chances the first of which went well wide and the second when Sullivans attentions put him off as was about to score. In the last change Kieran Murphy replaced Timmy McCarthy. A foul on Eoin Kelly was pointed by himself. The last action of the game was when John Devane fumbled the ball and cork ran the field and pointed. The ref blew the whistle after 3 minutes of injury time with Cork ahead 1-21 to 1-16.
John Allen will be reasonably happy with this game. He won without his team playing well, he lost one of his most influential players, Brian Corcoran, early on and yet they still dominated. They never looked like losing the game; the closest Tipp came to was 4 points. They were a lot cuter; slowing the play down with Cusack taking an age over the puck outs and players going down “injured” whenever Tipp had seemed to build up a bit of momentum. The half backline was superb in the first half and struggled through the second half on the more physical Tipp players, 1-21 is a good score from the forwards. He knows that bigger challenges lie ahead, although I expect them to be there come September.
While Ken Hogan got credit for the Tipp wins over Limerick and Clare it is only right that he take the blame here. The world and its mother knew that David Kennedy was not up to centre back and to compound the issue he was left on the field for the vast majority of the first half. We had 3 better centre backs on the field; Corcoran, Fitzgerald and Fanning but it was not until late in the first half that Corcoran was moved. To make matters worse Tipp looked well off the pace of the game, poor first touch, no leadership, completely headless play and worst of all no game plan. Against Clare Eoin Kelly and Webster won the game for us. So why were these 2 players not supplied with the ball yesterday?
Poor Webster spent the whole of the second half shouting for the ball but never received it and watched as time after time the ball drifted wide, (we had 13 in total), while he had the beating of Sullivan inside him. Beside him the ball was belted way too high into him. It was in the half forward line that we were beaten in the first half they won nothing, not even our own puck outs. They stood too far off under the puck outs and let the Cork players go up unimpeded to contest most balls. There was too much individual play and only for Diarmaid Fitzgerald and Paul Kelly we would have been whitewashed totally. Serious changes need to be made facing the next game. The missed penalty, with Cork scoring a point directly off it and not scoring for 26 minutes in the first half summed up the day from a Tipp point of view. Tipp had a good solid start with Eoin Kelly on fire with 3 good points after 8 minutes yet Tipp collapsed until 5 minutes into the second half. Why? Lack of confidence, inferiority complex losing mentality?
While the management questioned some of the frees that the ref gave Cork, (and some of them were very soft), he did not loose the game for Tipp, it was the poor play by Tipp who despite the bad start gave up trying for most of the first half, when they did start playing it was too late and while Tipp did score, 1-11 in the second half it was not going to be enough without goals. Tipp needed to get within a goal of Cork to have any chance this did never materialised. The Tipp forwards did not produce the goods; of the starting forwards only 2 scored, Eoin Kelly 4 points from play and a Tommy Dunne goal! That is not good enough at this level. Tipp again conceded way too many frees in scorable positions. While most of the Tipp changes worked it was a damage limitation exercise at that stage.

Brendan Cummins: Slightly hesitant for the goal. Should have changes his pucks outs they killed us in the first half. When he insisted in putting every single ball high into the Cork midfield/half forward line with out trying a few short I never know.

Full back line: Paul Curran kept Ben O’Connor quiet did not have much to do but never under pressure. Eamon Corcoran is not a corner back and yesterday proved it. Was badly at fault for the goal, and turned very easily twice by Deane out on the sideline. Played a lot better at centre back in the second half and snuffed out Niall McCarthy completely. Philip Maher seemed a bit hesitant, and although Neil Ronan nipped in with a few points late on never really troubled.

Half back line: Declan Fanning played solid enough throughout. Diarmaid Fitzgerald was superb. Out in front of his man, throwing himself into tackles, first to the ball and drove Tipp forward time after time. David Kennedy was very poor did not have the pace or hurling for Niall McCarthy and gave up running. Should have been hauled off way sooner.

Midfield: Benny Dunne captain did NOT lead by example. The fact that he was taken off for the third time in four games sums up his “contribution.” Paul Kelly was back to his best scored 7 points 3 from frees. Still was a bit wasteful in the second half shooting every time for a point instead of letting the ball into Webster.

Half forward line: Totally washed out in the first half. Tommy Dunne started at centre forward but was never at the races had 2 chances late on, the first when he put the ball wide and near the end when Sullivan fell on top of him as he was about to score. Did get a goal but did not look up to the pace of Championship hurling. Francis Devanney very poor, amazed he lasted so long. Colin Morrissey tried hard but never produce the same display as against Clare. Went midfield for the start of the second half.

Full forward line: Eoin Kelly started off on fire with 3 superb points in the first 8 minutes. The supply totally dried up to him. Should have been moved out the field sooner. Penalty was poorly struck straight at Cusack. Scored 6 points in total, 2 frees. Webster got no ball. He won a penalty in the first half with his only touch in the half. In the second half set up Tommy Dunnes goal and John Carroll’s point. Why oh why was more ball not played into him. Evan Sweeney got no proper supply of ball. Every ball into him was about 3 yards over his head. Replaced at the break.

Hugh Moloney on for David Kennedy: Switch should have been made way sooner. Started nervously with a bad foul which he got booked for but settled in.

Redser replaced Devanney: went wing forward. Did not have the same effect as in his previous games.

John Devane replaced Evan Sweeny: Placed the second half scored 2 good points and settled Tipp down. Still tends to over carry the ball instead of getting rid of it. Conceded the last score to Cork when handpass went astray.

John Carroll for Benny Dunne: Touch was way off scored a point and involved o the goal.
So Tipp head into the All-Ireland quarter finals in a sorry shape. The second half performance should not disguise what was witnessed in the first half, when we were given the run around by an average Cork side who never had to leave 2nd gear to deal with us. The lessons of previous games were not heeded. A quick exit awaits us in the Quarter Finals.

Knocknagow


Tipperary 2-14 Clare 0-14 (05-06-05) Knocknagow

Tipperary advanced to the Munster final v Cork in 3 weeks time with a 2 goal victory over Clare in a dour game played in Limerick today in front of 23,500. Similar to Tipp’s last visit to Limerick it rained all morning and during the game, this had the effect that there was no wind. Both teams had no late changes although for Tipp Martin Maher was not togged out. Tipp switched Francis Devanney and Tommy Dunne. Clare made wholesale switches; with Tony Griffin going full forward, Barry Nugent centre forward and Alan Markham to midfield being just some of them.

Tipp were first into action when John Devane was fouled and the free was played to Eoin Kelly who turned and pointed. Tony Carmody got Clare back level. Benny Dunne and Gilligan both had wides before a Diarmaid McMahon scored a great point from midfield. Francis Devanney passed to Eoin Kelly who pointed. Barry Nugent then broke straight through on goals but put the ball wide. Then came the minute that changed the game. Firstly a high Benny Dunne ball was flicked on by Eoin Kelly to Webster who passed to Lar Corbett and he flicked the ball to the net. Straight way Colin Morrissey found Lar who passed to Webster who sauntered through the Clare defence and put the ball over the line. So after 12 minutes Tipp lead 2-2 to 0-2. Then Tipp had another chance when Lar broke through but was denied. He got injured in the process and had to replaced soon afterwards by Evan Sweeney. Clare were rattled at this stage and it showed with a Seanie McMahon wide. Benny Dunne then caught a Brendan Cummins puck out and fro the sideline pointed. Andrew Quinn had a wide before a great cross field ball from Evan Sweeney just failed to reach Devanney.
Eoin Kelly got the first yellow card of the game when he kicked out while on the ground. Diarmaid McMahon got through the Tipp backs but shot over the bar. Colin Lynch despite being on his own put the ball wide as did Tony Griffin. Barry Nugent got in behind Devane and his shot was saved and went over the bar by Cummins; 2-3 to 0-4 in favour of Tipp. Eoin Kelly shot wide under pressure. Poor play by David Kennedy saw Tony Griffin point. Francis Devanney under severe pressure and passed to Tommy Dunne who from a tight angle got his first point, before a push by John Devane saw Gilligan point a free. A high ball into the Tipp full forward line was caught by Webster. Brian Lohan was lucky to only get yellow after swinging twice at him with his hurley. Eoin Kelly duly pointed the free. Andrew Quinn then had his shot stopped on the line by Paul Curran. Clare got another point when a foul by Benny Dunne saw him get a yellow card and Seanie McMahon point. Francis Devanney won a free which Eoin Kelly pointed. Webster caught another high ball and Devanney sauntered through and pointed to put Tipp 2-7 to 0-7 after 2 minutes of injury time.
On the resumption Tipp had Eoin Kelly at centre forward with Tommy Dunne in the corner. Clare had returned to their original positions, with Tony Griffin at centre forward; he score the first point after 7 seconds of the half. Eoin Kelly passed to his brother Paul who pointed from under the Mackey Stand. Declan fanning foul saw Gilligan point. Sloppy play in the Tipp defence saw Nugent put the ball wide. Eoin Kelly had 2 wides for Tipp. Poor play by Devane saw Kennedy’s shot blocked and Barry Nugent took advantage and he pointed. After 7 minutes 2-9 to 0-10. Tipp made their second change with Hugh Moloney going wing back, Declan Fanning centre back and David Kennedy coming off. Fitzgerald had a great block and clearance. Webster was fouled again by Brian Lohan and Eoin Kelly pointed but not before Davy Fitzgerald was yellow carded. Tommy Dunne had a wide before Barry Nugent was replaced by David Forde. Evan Sweeney shot just drifted wide. Gilligan got a Clare point before Andrew Quinn was replaced by Daithi O’Connell. Benny Dunne was fouled and Eoin Kelly pointed. Seanie McMahon pointed before Eoin Kelly scored a peach of a point from a misplaced Gerry Quinn clearance to put Tipp 2-11 to 0-12 ahead.
Francis Devanney then scored his second point of the day. Clare put on Conor Plunkett for Diarmaid McMahon. Declan Fanning picked up Tipp’s third yellow card in the 57th minute which lead to a 21 yard free. Gilligan’s shot was saved by Cummins and cleared by Corcoran. Webster gathered and then passed to Evan Sweeney who got his first Championship point. Alan Markham was then replaced by Colm Forde. Tony Griffin then got a yellow card for a confrontation with John Devane. Webster then collected the ball and passed to Sweeny who blazed over the bar. Tipp then threw on two subs with Conor O’Mahoney replacing Sweeney and Paddy O’Brien for Tommy Dunne. As the game approached injury time Gilligan pointed and poor play by Eamon Corcoran allowed Daithi O’Connell in behind him but his shot went across the goal and wide. So After 2 minutes injury time the ref blew up and Tipp won by 2-14 to 0-14.
Anthony Daly will be very disappointed with this game total of 15 wides, (10 of them in the first half), tells its own story. What makes it more galling for him that at least half of those chances were good scorable chances. They also missed a number of goal chances. Still none of his big stage players performed; Brian Lohan was destroyed by Webster, Seanie McMahon by Eoin Kelly and Colin Lynch was anonymous throughout. They were second to every ball and could not cope with the conditions; Frank Lohan requiring 4 attempts to lift the ball early on in the game. Evan the usual Clare fire and brimstone tactics of yesteryear was missing. I fully expected a different Clare team after the break but despite getting to within 4 points they never looked confident to overhaul Tipp. The qualifiers will not be a pleasant experience for them.
Ken Hogan will again be delighted. He has guided Tipp to their first Munster Final since 2002 and the first Tipp V Cork Munster Final since 2000. Tipp had the advantage of having the Championship game played and it showed. They stuck to their game plan; high ball into Webster he was directly involved in at least 2-5 of the scores. Hogan was also again not afraid to make the switches when he took off Kennedy who was being roasted by Griffin and moving Eoin Kelly to centre forward. Tipp also have kept their second clean sheet in a row and thankfully were able to close out the game midway through the second half. The backs gave away way less scoreable frees although 2 of the Clare scores came when the Tipp defence passed rather than cleared the ball. This will not do against Cork. Still with the return of Redser and Philly Maher and a fitter John Carroll it’s a confident Tipp that will face Cork.

Brendan Cummins: Second clean sheet in a row. Saved well from Barry Nugent in the first half and the Clare 21 yard free late on.

Full backline: Corcoran while not a natural corner back had a solid game. Hogan was justified in moving Devane back, was caught once or twice but all in all had a good game. Curran had another solid game in the corner.

Half backline: Fanning had another good game, dependable as always. Tipp defence looked a lot more settled when he went centre back. Fitzgerald was outstanding; from blocking Clare attacks, clearances, and general reading of the game; a class player. Kennedy coped well on Barry Nugent but could not compete with Tony Griffin’s pace or aerial threat.

Midfield: Paul Kelly scored 1 great point quiet overall. Benny Dunne scored a great point as well and set up the first Tipp goal. A major step up in performance from the captain who cut out the sill fouls. However both yere helped by a below par performance by Colin Lynch.

Half forward line: Colin Morrissey had a quieter game than the last day. Set up the second goal. Tommy Dunne started off centre forward but went into the corner. Scored 1 sweet point from a tight angle. Quieter than the last day. While the legs may not have it still has a great hurling brain. Francis Devanney took a while to settle in but got redemption after being taken off against Limerick the first day. Scored a point in both halves and worked very hard around the midfield in winning loose ball. This game will do his confidence the world of good.

Full forward line: Lar was only on for 15 minutes until he went off with a hamstring injury. Scored the first goal after being set up by Webster. Looking dangerous until he got injured. Webster was the RTE Sunday Game Man of the Match. Scored the second Tipp goal, set up the first, won 2 frees which Kelly point and set up 3 other points. A great day for the self confessed footballer. Was not intimidated by Brian Lohan. Visible grew in confidence as the game progressed. Will be fondly remember on the Tipp Terraces for his pat on Davy’s Fitzgerald’s head just before the break! Eoin Kelly was my Man of the Match. His second half point was worth the entry fee alone. Scored 3 frees and 4 points from play. Cleaned up when moved to centre forward. Has a great ability to be able a break a high ball to himself.

Evan Sweeny for Lar Corbett: Took a while settle into the pace of the game. Works best when sprinting out from the corner to win ball and then turn and face the goals. Scored 2 points, both set up by Webster. A viable staring option the nest day if Lar does not make it.
Hugh Moloney for David Kennedy: Slotted in a wing back and settled the ship down. Was played put of position in the corner during the League but his is his best position.

Conor O’Mahoney and Paddy O’Brien for Evan Sweeney and Tommy Dunne: On for the last 5 minutes.

So despite how unlikely it seemed at half time in Thules v Limerick; Tipp are now in the Munster Final in Cork. Still there is s lot of work to be done. Tipp went 13 minutes of the first half with out scoring. Only for Clare being so of target the game would have been a lot closer. Still Tipp are beginning to find their best 15 players. With 3 weeks to go to the Cork game Tipp know that they will be the underdogs but after 2 and a half tough hard Championship games they will relish a crack at the All-Ireland Champions in their own ground.

Bring on the Rebels!!!
Knocknagow




Tipperary v Clare (5-06-05) Preview Knocknagow

Tipperary and Clare play the second of the Munster Semi Finals on Sunday at 2.15 in the Gaelic Grounds Limerick with the winners meeting Cork in the Munster Final. Pat O’Connor (Limerick) referees the game. The game is live on RTE and is preceded by the Intermediate game between the same sides. The sides have met regularly since 1997 with the score standing at 4 wins for Clare; (2 in 1997, 1 in 1999 and 2003), 3 for Tipp; (2000-2002) and a draw 1999. The last meeting between the sides was in Cork in 2003, 2-17 to 0-14. This was Michael Doyle’s first game in charge. Tipp were without the services of Philip Maher who had damaged his cruciate ligament in the League Final 2 weeks previous and were never in contention as Clare dominated from the first whistle and ran out easy winners.
Clare looked very strong so far this year steamrolling their way through Phase 2 of the League, (comfortable beating Tipp in Thurles by 4 points.) However they came a cropper in the League Final against Kilkenny on the May Bank Holiday Monday in Thurles. They held their own in the first half, through 2 great saves from Davy Fitz. Kilkenny did score a goal from a free to go in level at the break 1-7 to 0-10. Kilkenny came out with a different game plan in the second half and sprayed the ball around and an Eoin Larkin goal signalled the beginning of the end for Clare. With a goal from Shefflin late on and points from Tommy Walsh, Kilkenny ran out comfortable 3-20 to 0-15 winners.
The Clare defence still has the main players from Loughnane’s era; 2 Lohan’s, Davy Fitz, and Seannie McMahon all still dominating. However once Kilkenny started running at them they struggled for pace. Upfront its where Clare have the problems with no player consistently helping out Niall Gilligan at full forward, Tony Griffin and Tony Carmody are match winners on their day but need to produce the goods on a more consistent basis. Midfield has Colin Lynch who beat Tipp on his own during the League meeting in Thurles.


Since Tipp’s last gasp win over Limerick 2 weeks ago things have taken a turn for the worst for Tipp. Firstly Redser was very harshly, (in my opinion), dropped for Sundays game by the management. Without him the first day in Thurles we would be a very sorry team heading into the qualifiers, (with the possibility of a new manager such was the ineptitude produced for the first 50 minutes). He has scored 2 goals in 2 games which puts him at the top of the scoring charts from play! Not too bad for a player on for about 40 minutes in total as a sub in both games. Such has been the complete lack of reliability, (and a quality target man), in the forwards, it’s a decision that could back to haunt the management Sunday evening. On Saturday night Toomevara played Templederry in the North Tipp Senior Hurling Championship. Now why this game was played only 7 days before a Munster Semi Final is beyond me as 5 of the Tipp panel were involved, (2 O’Briens, 2 Dunne’s and Francis Devanney) sure enough it had consequences with Paddy O’Brien sent off with a straight red card. It’s unclear if this rules him out of action for Sunday, (although he would have been very unlikely to start).


Lastly Philip Maher will miss the game Sunday as he injured his knee in training on Monday night and is out for a number of weeks. This is a bitter blow to Philly who was back to his best in the Limerick game. Luckily Tipp have 2 other full backs on the team, John Devane and Paul Curran. Seen as Hogan was trying, (very unsuccessfully it must be stated!) to make a wing forward out of Devane its surprising that it is he that is moved to the edge of the square. Paul Curran would have appeared to have been the ideal replacement but that would have meant 2 changes in the full back line. In a way it may be an advantage for Tipp as I am sure that one of Clare’s tactics may be to have a two man full forward line, this will suit John Devane as he would appear to be a bit more mobile out the field than Phillip Maher would. Hopefully his confidence will not be affected after being so ineffective for the 2 Limerick games.


Tipp need a game plan on Sunday. In the draw game Tipp were headless for long spells. Also in the replayed game Tipp went 20 minutes of the second half without scoring despite dominating. Tipp also have to cut out the fouls. On both days TJ Ryan scored nearly half of Limerick points from frees. Tipp also have to be more disciplined; Benny Dunne gave away 4 frees in his own half, (all of which were scored), the last day. The Tipp backs need to wither put the ball high into full forward or low into the corners for Eoin Kelly. The only Tipp players who play the ball low into the corners are Diarmaid Fitzgerald who look before he hits the ball and Paul Kelly who tries to find his brother. I fear for midfield where we have no one to compete with Colin Lynch who WILL beat us on his own if no body closes him down. It is the half forward line that caused Tipp most headaches in the Limerick games. 2 of them were taken off the first day and John Devane taken off after only 23 minutes in the replay. Colin Morrissey’s abrasive hurling will be missed from marking Colin Lynch at midfield. Again we need someone else to step up and help Eoin Kelly out. He has scored very little from play due to being so tightly marked and that will not change on Sunday. Lar Corbett needs to step up and produce 3-4 points a game.
The Tipp team was picked last night:
Brendan Cummins.
Diarmaid Fitzgerald, John Devane and Paul Curran.
Declan Fanning, David Kennedy and Eamon Corcoran.
Paul Kelly and Benny Dunne.
Colin Morrissey, Francis Devanney and Tommy Dunne.
Eoin Kelly, Michael Webster and Lar Corbett.
Clare named their team on Tuesday night. It shows 1 change to the League Final team with Barry Nugent, (making his Championship debut), coming in at wing forward for Conor Plunkett. In a throw back to the Ger Loughnane days there will be a lot of switches to that Tipp team come 2.15 on Sunday! Diarmaid Fitzgerald and Eamon Corcoran will switch as Fitzgerald had a superb game at wing back the last day. It is unlikely that Francis Devanney will start at centre forward seen as how good Tommy Dunne played there and how poor Devanney was against Limerick the first day. Tommy Dunne will probably have a roving role which worked very well in the replayed game and saw him put over 4 points. Still it is hard to see the Tipp half forward line competing for puck outs and again if Tipp can break even here then we have the advantage. The full forward line is the same that started the last day. Intelligent ball is needed here with high ball into Webster who will break it for Eoin Kelly. With the loss of Redser Tipp’s bench does not look the healthiest with John Carroll likely to feature at the edge of the square for the last 15 minutes.


So how do I see this game going? It seems that the interest is poor in this game. The terraces are pay at the gates so only around 20,000 are expected at the game. The forecast for the rest of the week is wet which may suit Tipp as they overcame Limerick in a downpour. Tipp have the advantage of having played 2 and a half tough Championship games since Clare last played, played a Championship games in the Gaelic Grounds and come in to this game on a high having ground out a win over Limerick whereas Clare have only a second half collapse in the League Final as their most recent display. Still Tipp need to up their performance 50% from the last day if they are to match a Clare team which will be very fired up on the day, (remember Clare v Kilkenny in Croke Park last year!). However the loss of Redser, Philly Maher and John Carroll’s lack of match fitness severely limit Tipp’s prospects as they will be out battled by a more physical Clare side. So Clare to win by 3 points in a low scoring game.


Knocknagow


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Tipperary 2-13 Limerick 0-18 (after extra time) Knocknagow


Tipperary eventually overcame Limerick after extra time in an exciting game in the Gaelic Grounds last night. The game was exciting and skilful considering the torrential rain that fell for the hours preceding the game and for the first half of the game. As a result of the rain there was no wind. Limerick lined out as selected but Tipp made a number of positional switches. Eamon Corcoran went corner back, Diarmaid Fitzgerald wing back, Benny Dunne midfield, Tommy Dunne centre forward, Colin Morrissey wing forward and Webster full forward.
Tipp got on the score board straight away when Eoin Kelly was fouled and pointed the free. Limerick responded soon after with a pointed free from Peter Lawlor from under the Mackey Stand. Andrew O’Shaughnessy nipped in for a soft point. Tipp had 2 wides from Lar Corbett and Eoin Kelly. David Kennedy then allowed Niall Moran to get past him and he duly pointed. Tommy Dunne passed to Webster who gave it to Lar who made it 3-2. Conor Fitzgerald pointed for Limerick with Niall Moran getting a wide. Last week’s midfield partnership set up Tipp’s next score when Colin Morrisey passed to Paul Kelly who pointed. Lar had a wide before Eoin Kelly levelled with a free, 4-4. Colin Morrissey then used his pace as he soloed through the Limerick cover but his shot was saved at his near post by Timmy Houlihan, and he eventually got a free out.
Straight from a Tipp puck out Tommy Dunne fielded the ball and pointed to Tipp ahead. Limerick equalised when Benny Dunne fouled and TJ pointed the free. Tipp resorted their lead when Tommy Dunne was fouled and Eoin Kelly pointed the free. The first change of their game when in the 25th minutes, last week’s hero, Redser came on for the ineffective John Devane at full forward. Good defence saw Tip clear the ball and Tommy Dunne pointed. 4 minutes after his introduction Redser goaled. Colin Morriseey had another incisive run through the Limerick defence but was too slow in shooting and Stephen Lucey managed to dive full length and smother his shot. Redser was on hand to beat Timmy Houlihan to the ball and bundle it over the line. Tipp now lead 1-7 to 0-5 but stupidly in the last 5 minutes of the half they let Limerick back into the game with some very stupid frees. The first free TJ pointed. Paul Kelly fouled and TJ again pointed. The last free was when Lar over carried when in loads of space and TJ again pointed. Just before the break both Redser and Stephen Lucey were yellow carded for an off the ball incident. After 2 minutes of injury time the score was Tipp 1-7 to 0-8 for Limerick.
Neither side made any changes after the break. Tipp got the first score when Paul Kelly was fouled and his brother pointed. Limerick responded with 2 points. The first a free from TJ and then Donnacha Sheenhan. Eoin Kelly then got his first point from play 9 minutes into the second half. Tipp made their second change with Mark O’Leary coming on at wing forward for the injured Lar Corbett. Eoin Kelly passed to Tommy Dunne who put Tipp a goal up 1-10 to 0-10. Eoin Kelly had another wide. Limerick then a double change with Conor Fitzgerald and Andrew O’Shaughnessy coming off and replaced by last weeks hero, Pat Tobin, and Seannie O’Connor in the half forward line. Limerick then got 2 points the first a TJ free and then a Paul O’Grady point left the minimum in it with 17 minutes gone in the second half.
Brendan Cummins then scrambled the ball clear. Tipp made another change with John Carroll replacing Webster. A not too fit looking John Carroll came in to full forward, Redser went centre forward. Kevin Tobin came on Niall Moran and Conor O’Mahony replaced Benny Dunne at midfield with 7 minutes left. John Carroll then set up Tommy Dunne who restored Tipp’s 2 point lead with 5 minutes left. John Carroll then had a great chance to goal but kicked wide from 3 yards out. Kevin Tobin put only the minimum between the sides. Eoin Kelly had a chance to seal it but it just drifted wide. With time just up Donie Ryan collected the ball out the field and eventually flicked it over the bar to equalise. So after 70 minutes play in a torrential rain 2 periods 10 minutes a side were required to separate the sides. Score Tipp 1-11 to 0-14 for Limerick.
Tipp made 1 change at the start of extra time when Evan Sweeney replaced Redser. Limerick regained the lead when Paul Curran fouled and TJ pointed. Straight from the puck out the ball fell to Evan Sweeney who ran straight through the Limerick defence and buried past Timmy Houlihan; 2-11 to 0-15. Eamon Corcoran fouled Donnacha Sheenhan and TJ pointed the free. John Carroll passed to Tommy Dunne who pointed. Niall Moran then came back on for Kevin Tobin and Andrew O’Shaughnessy for Seannie O’Connor. Eoin Kelly was fouled and took the free himself for Tipp’s last score of the game just before the break to put Tipp 3 points up; 2-13 to 0-16.
Both sides were flat out on the turn around and the play became very scrappy and broken with Tipp defending the lead and players playing all over the place. Mark O’Leary won a ball but passed straight to a Limerick man. He was substituted straight away with Francis Devanney coming on at wing forward. Paul Kelly had a wide before Donal O’Grady got 2 great points from out the field to leave only a minimum between the sides. Tipp made their second last change with Paddy O’Brien replacing John Carroll who was shattered coming off the field. With 5 minutes to go a controversial incident occurred; Pa Morrissey came on but in the confusion the fourth official never checked to make sure that Conor O’Mahony came off. So Tipp had 16 players on the field for about 2 minutes. With 3 minutes injury time signalled Limerick were now throwing everything at a packed Tipp defence. They had 2 great chances to equalise but the last effort from Donal O’Grady drifted wide. Evan Sweeney and Paddy O’Brien had chances to seal it, indeed Sweeney was straight through on goals, but their efforts went wide. So after 3 agonising minutes of injury time Tip had snuck over the line by a point, 2-13 to 0-18, in a tension filled 90 minutes.
Joe McKenna will be very disappointed with both the result and the performance. While the conditions were not conducive to the type of hurling they played last Sunday the Limerick players seemed to lack a game plan. Half their scores came from frees, (8 from TJ Ryan and 1 from Peter Lawlor). And all of their half forward line was replaced by the 60th minute, which was in complete contrast to the last day. The dominance of the Tipp half back line prevented TJ Ryan getting any ball and he did very little from general play. This also meant that they had very few goal efforts. Also the management should take some of the blame with some of substitutions. Pat Tobin who impressed greatly in the drawn game should have been introduced sooner. Niall Moran was taken off after a poor game with 10 minutes to go and yet was introduced late on in the first half of extra time! The aerial threat of both Redser and John Carroll was not adequately dealt with by the Limerick full back line. While neither dominated Redser scored a goal and a clearly unfit John Carroll set up Tommy Dunne for 2 vital scores. Yet for all that Limerick could have nicked the game. They had 2 great chances at the end of extra time to equalise, which indecently fell to the midfielder Donal O’Grady, and both went wide.
Credit where credit is due Ken Hogan got it right. He learned from his mistakes the last day. When players did not perform he hauled them off; Devane and O’Leary, and even when the substitutions did not work they were hauled off; O’Leary. Tipp had to up the ante from the drawn game and they did. Ever single Tipp player upped his performance and players were fighting for the ball and for each other. When the pressure came on in the second half of extra time the Tipp backs defended like lions and did not give the inside Limerick forwards an inch. The introduction of both Redser and John Carroll was crucial and both made vital contributions. While both were not fully fit once they had their bit done they were replaced. One other interesting aspect is that of the panel of 27 listed on the programmes 25 have now experience Championship hurling; (the 2 exceptions are the sub goalie Damien Young and corner back Eamon Buckley). The most pleasing aspect of the game is that Tipp won a tough tight game in the latter stages after losing so tight games over the last few years.

Brendan Cummins: Never really tested by the Limerick forwards. Did make a few blocks and interceptions in extra time. His puck outs were superb and most of found a Tipp player.

Full back line: Eamon Corcoran is not a corner back but still gave a solid display. Is more suited further out the field. Philip Maher did not give TJ Ryan a sniff of the ball and patrolled the goal with ease. Paul Curran was a great game. Cleared all the ball that came into him be it high or low. Hardly gave Done Ryan a sniff of the ball.

Centre back line: Diarmaid Fitzgerald was Man of the Match. Outstanding display, took a while to get into it but then was a colossus especially in extra time when he cleared ball after ball. Also has a great clearance to set up scores, puts thought into his clearances as opposed ballooning the ball up the field. David Kennedy has shipped a lot of criticism over the past few months, but he rolled back the years yesterday and gave a commanding performance. Caught a lot of ball and instead of trying to clear it passed to a better placed colleague, (normally Diarmaid Fitzgerald). His man was replaced with 10 minutes to go. Declan Fanning a no nonsense display nothing fancy just put his head down and did his job.

Midfield: Benny Dunne was switched here. Spent a lot of the game in the half back line. Conceded way too many frees which were punished. Was replaced with 7 minutes to go of normal time. Paul Kelly scored a point from play. Not as dominant as the last day. Faded badly in injury time which showed with the dominance of Donal O’Grady in the latter stages of extra time.

Half forward line: Colin Morrissey started at wing forward. Had 2 great runs at goal the first which was blocked and the second which led to Redser’s goal. Probably better suited to midfield but with the lack of decent wing forward’s could spend a lot of the summer here. Tommy Dunne rolled back the years and while younger fitter players were going off he played the full 90 minutes. Played superbly in the first half playing all the ball he got quickly and delivering it to a better placed team mate and giving Brian Geary a torrid time. Scored 4 points; 2 of which were set up by John Carroll while Tommy was at corner forward. John Devane started at wing forward and was taken off after 25 minutes after being ineffective.

Full forward line: Eoin Kelly again was very well marked and while he did not score from play until the 44th minutes shipped a lot of punishment and was immaculate from frees scoring 6 points. Was involved in most of the Tipp scores. Michael Webster started at full forward and was moved to corner forward when Redser came on. Was taken off with 7 minutes left and did not have much of an impact, but kept Stephen Lucey quiet. Lar Corbett scored 1 good points early on when he nearly could have got in for a goal. Seemed to be holding his hamstring when he was subbed.

Ger “Redser O’Grady” for John Devane: Came on after 25 minutes and scored a goal after 4 minutes. Won a lot of ball coming out from full forward and set up some scores with some nice passes. Still does not look fully match fit and will probably be kept as an impact sub.

Mark O’Leary for Lar Corbett: Went on wing forward mid way through the second half. Showed nothing way too loose and was hauled off early in extra time.

John Carroll for Michael Webster: Not even vaguely fit but possessed an aerial threat which set up Tommy Dunne for 2 points. Missed a great chance to seal it when he caught a ball late on but put it wide. Needs serious amount of training if he is to last longer than he did last night. Still welcome addition back to the Tipp panel.

Conor O’Mahony for Benny Dunne: On for his Championship debut at midfield. Did not see much off the ball.

Evan Sweeney for Redser: Championship debut as well. Came at half time in extra time and 1 minute in rattled the net with a great goal which gave Tip the cushion they needed. Had a great point chance at the end of extra time which could have eased Tipp nerves.

Francis Devanney for Mark O’Leary: Came on at wing forward during the second half of extra time. Don’t think he touched the ball.

Paddy O’Brien for John Carroll: 5 minutes to go had 1 effort which went wide.

Pa Morrissey for Conor O’Mahony: Came on late on in extra time. Noteworthy for the fact that Conor O’Mahony stayed on the field for 2 minutes while Morrissey was on as well.

So Tipp advance to the Munster semi final on Sunday week in Limerick. The game yesterday is worth about 6 months training from a Tipp point of view. Limerick now go into the qualifiers, (indeed if Tipp lose to Clare they could be joining them again!) The spirit and heart shown by all the players as they fought for every single ball and the massed defence during extra time will make Ken Hogan’s step a lot lighter this week. However there is still a lot of work to be done: only 6 of the Tipp points came from the starting forwards, Tipp conceded 9 points from frees. There is still problems in the Tipp wing forwards scoring from play. Midfield faded late on. However all those Tipp players with lack of games in the League now have played 2 and a half high intensity games in the heat of Munster Championship facing into the Clare game which will be a step up in intensity and extra pressure. So while there are still questions about this Tipp team they are in a lot better shape than last Sunday evening!
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Limerick v Tipperary (21-05-05) Preview , Knocknagow

Tipperary and Limerick replay their Munster Championship Quarter Final on Saturday in the Gaelic Grounds, Limerick at 6.30. Referee for the game is Aodhan McSuibhne of Dublin and the game is live on RTE 2. The sides finished level in Thurles last Sunday 2-14 a piece. The winners go on to face Clare in the Munster Semi Final on the June bank holiday weekend, while the losers enter the qualifiers.

As far as replay’s go history is on Limerick’s side. In 1981 Limerick performed a Lazarus like performance coming back from 2-10 to 0-3 points down at the break in Thurles to draw the game, 4-10 to 3-13. A week later in Limerick they steamrolled Tipp in the replay and won comfortably 3-17 to 2-12. In the 1996 Munster Final in the Gaelic Grounds Limerick were behind at the break by 10 points but equalised in the closing stages of the game with a Frankie Carroll point, 0-19 to 1-16. In the replay in Cork Owen O’Neill kicked goals galore, (off Michael Ryan unusually placed at full back), as Limerick dominated on the pitch but only won by 3 points 4-7 to 0-16. From that 1996 game only 2 of the starting line up are still playing with Limerick; TJ Ryan and Mark Foley, while Brendan Cummins is still playing with Tipp. Colm Bonnar was centre back that day for Tipp and is now a selector and Tommy Dunne was a sub. Interestingly enough the last 2 times that Limerick beat Tipp in the Munster Championship in a replay they went on to win the Munster Championship. Limerick fans will be hoping that this is a good omen.

A major change from the last day is that Limerick with home advantage will go into the game as favourites and this in itself will bring its own problems. Also the unknown element is gone from Limerick. All through the League people did not know what way they would play in the Championship now Tipp will know exactly what Limerick are about. And there is no reason in the world for them to change their game plan. It worked superbly well for 50 minutes last Sunday and if the selectors had been a bit quicker in moving Lucey onto Redser at full forward then Limerick would be preparing for a crack at Limerick this week. The half back line of Ollie Moran, Geary and Lawlor was outstanding although they were helped by the ineptitude of the Tipp half forwards. Benny Dunne was apparently sick before the game so he should start again on Saturday night, John Devane’s goal will probably means he is spared the chop although he has to close Peter Lawlor down more and stop him dominating in general play.
Tipp are again trouble by injuries. Hugh Moloney and Tom King are still ruled out by hamstring injuries. John O’Brien’s suspension and injury troubles are over and he is in line for selection again; his height and ball winning ability would be a big help in the full forward line. Eoin Kelly injured his hip last Sunday and is on anti-inflammatory tablets. Tipp need a full fit Eoin Kelly in the half forward line next Saturday night. According to the latest reports he should be fit to start. Lar Corbett is also struggling with injury. Injuries to the both main mean a starting berth for Tommy Dunne. He scored 1 great point after coming on last Sunday and the conditions next Saturday evening would suit him better. Also the best game he played in the Tipp jersey in the last few years was against Limerick in the Gaelic Grounds last year. With both Diramaid Fitzgerald and Michael Webster coming on as subs they should be in line to start the game.
Most importantly Tipp need a game plan. Firstly on how to win their own puck outs. Whether this means going short, (ala Donal Og Cusack), or changing the half forward line remains to be seen. A switch between Benny Dunne and Colin Morrissey may be an improvement as Benny Dunne is clearly not a wing forward and did his best hurling for Tipp in 2002 when at midfield. A half forward line of Colin Morrissey, Redser and John Devane while not exactly the most skilful or stylish of lines should, (touch wood), be able to compete for puck outs, close down Limerick clearances, contest more in general play and actually score from play. John Devane’s goal in injury time was the only score this line got from play in the whole game! An improvement in this line would also cut out this line as the major source of attacks. More movement is required off the ball. The Limerick forwards were continusously moving all over the field and this paid off with some fine scores, especially Pat Tobin’s two near the end. In the second half most of the Tipp forwards just stood in their positions waiting for the ball instead of running out to meet it with the effect that the backs had no choice but to balloon the ball into the forwards which the Limerick backs cleared down the field. Until Redser was introduced there was no urgency or confidence about the Tipp forwards.

The Tipp backs also need to foul less; Limerick scored 16 times and nearly half of those were from the stick of TJ Ryan from frees. The fact that two of the 6 backs were playing their first game in ages, (David Kennedy and Martin Maher), two more were out of position, (Declan Fanning and Paul Curran) and the most reliable Tipp player of the past 5 years, Eamon Corcoran, had an off day, means it’s lucky that we have a second chance at all! The Tipp backs will have to be tighter, Martin Maher gave way too much room to his man. The half back line was badly exposed Fanning was the best of the 3 but still was at fault for the first Limerick goal. Corcoran had a nightmare and cannot be as bad the next day.
Limerick named their team last night and it is the same the one that started last week. A bit surprising really considering the effect that Pat Tobin scored 2 great points when introduced. Seannie O’Connor was also fit enough to be considered but he is held in reserve. Tipp will not name their side until Friday evening due to injuries. While there should be wholesale changes, (centre back, 2 of the half forward line and at full forward), Ken Hogan will not make those changes. At most Redser will start instead of Francis Devanney.

How do I see this game going? Well the advantage is back in Limerick’s court with home advantage and a vastly superior home support. They have the knowledge that they have produced a good display whereas last Sunday’s performance will have done nothing for Tipp’s confidence. Too many of Tipp’s big guns failed to produce it and for 50 minutes they could not deal with what Limerick had to throw at them. While I would like to see Tipp win not enough changes will be made and Ken Hogan has shown that he is not quick to make the correct changes in time during a game. So unfortunately Limerick to prevail by 4 points. Knocknagow
Knocknagow



Tipperary 2-14 Limerick 2-14 Knocknagow

Tipp and Limerick shared the spoils in this Munster Championship quarter final game played in front of 28,532 in Thurles yesterday. Both teams lined out as selected and the wind was swirling so it did not effect either side. Limerick were first to score when TJ Ryan scored a free. Tipp then got the next 4 scores to lead 4-1 after only 5 minutes. Paul Kelly got the first with a free. A pass from Paul to his brother set up the second, Colin Morrissey had the third from midfield, collecting a sideline ball and pointing. A foul on David Kennedy saw Eoin Kelly point a free. Paddy O’Brien had a wide. David Kennedy got a yellow card after he pulled late during a throw in ball. TJ Ryan pointed and followed up with a free after Donnacha Sheenhan was fouled. Lar Corbett scored a great point from a very tight angle. The poor quality of the game was then highlighted when Limerick had 3 wides and Lar and a Paul Kelly free were wides from Tipp. Another throw-in in front of the Tipp goal saw TJ Ryan point when if he had turned the other way he could have goaled.
Declan Fanning blocked a ball into the path of Andrew O’Shaughnessy whose shot was fumbled by Brendan Cummins and Donnacha Sheehan pounced to put Limerick ahead 0-5 to 1-4 after 20 minutes. Eoin Kelly pointed a free and Benny Dunne had a wide. Niall Moran followed up with 2 points to extend Limerick lead. John Devane, now at centre forward, won a free which Eoin Kelly pointed. TJ Ryan and Paul Kelly traded frees in the last 5 minutes of the half to leave the score at the break 17 to 0-8 in Limerick’s favour.
On the restart Tipp made 1 change Redser replacing the ineffective Francis Devanney at centre forward. In the third minute Limerick won a very dubious penalty when Donie Ryan “fell” in the square after about 14 steps with the ball in his hand. His brother TJ duly obliged with the penalty to put Limerick 5 points up. Paul Kelly pointed a free for Tipp and Niall Moran pointed for Limerick. Benny Dunne had another bad wide before Paul Kelly narrowed the gap further with another free. Tipp made their second change with Tommy Dunne replacing his brother Benny. Conor Fitzgerald extended Limerick’s lead back to 5 points before Redser began to exert his influence on the play. He had 3 very bad wides but his presence alone caused panic in the Limerick backline. Then in the 18th minute a high ball in from Colin Morrissey was caught by Redser over the head of Damien Reale he turned and planted it low past Timmy Houlihan.

Tommy Dunne followed up with a sweet point. Suddenly the momentum was with Tipp and when Lar Corbett was fouled on the sideline Eoin Kelly pointed to level the game 1-12 to 2-9 after 23 minutes. Paul Kelly put Tipp ahead with a point, before a TJ Ryan free levelled matters. Pat Tobin came on for Donnacha Sheehan and Diarmaid Fitzgerald replaced Eamon Corcoran. Eoin Kelly again put Tipp ahead before TJ Ryan, now operating at centre forward, levelled after poor play from David Kennedy with the game approaching its last 5 minutes. Limerick seemed to be home and dry when Pat Tobin popped over 2 nice points in quick succession. Michael Webster replaced Colin Morrissey and went corner forward. Paul Kelly had a wide and Tipp made their final change when Darragh Egan replaced Paddy O’Brien. As injury time approached a poor Damien Reale clearance saw Tipp gain a sideline ball. A high ball from Paul Kelly fell into the Limerick square and John Devane was on hand to blast to the net to dramatically ahead. In the subsequent scuffle Redser was booked. The ball broke from the puck out and Paul O’Grady pounced on it to put it over the bar to earn a draw and send both sides hope relieved. The ref blew up with 15 seconds of the 3 minutes of injury time left.
Limerick will be disappointed with this game they had their game plan from the start and stuck with it for three quarters of the game. They ran at the Tipp backs and it paid dividends. However when Tipp had their good spell in the second half they backs seemed to panic the aerial threat of Redser and Lar caused untold problems and the lack of height of Raele was badly at fault for Redser’s goal. Still Joe McKenna will be delighted that Pat Tobin when sprung off the bench scored 2 points to nearly nick the win. The Limerick half back and half forward line dominated through out but the decision to move Ollie Moran out to midfield seemed to unsettle the half backline. TJ Ryan again lead by example scoring 1-7 and was calmness personified. Niall Moran was my Man of the Match dominating under puck outs and setting up most of the Limerick attacks.
To be honest this was a match that Tipp should have lost. We were second to most balls, no coordination, no leadership on the field or on the line, no obvious game plan and no outstanding performances. We were wiped out in the half forward line, (which was expected) and in the half back line, (totally unexpected). Remedial work should have been carried out on both well before the break. Why in the name of God was Diarmaid Fitzgerald was put warming up for all the break and 20 minutes of the second half before being introduced I don’t know. Our backs were second to the ball and only for some poor Limerick shooting (they had 11 wides), they should have been home and hosed sooner. The lack of clear decision making on the line cost Tipp dearly. Up front we had nothing Eoin Kelly showed again why he should be played at wing or even centre forward. We had 2 small players in the full forward line and yet the ball was ballooned high into them, it was only when Redser was put in did it pay off.

Brendan Cummins: will be disappointed with his display could have blocked both Limerick goals. Could not do much about his puck outs as the Tipp half forwards were never at the races.

Full back line: Martin Maher was poor, still does not seem fully fit, just as well he was on the weakest Limerick forward in Donnacha Sheehan, struggled with the pace of Pat Tobin. Philip Maher had his hands full with TJ Ryan. While he only scored 2 points from play no relieving clearances from the Borris man. Paul Curran did ok. Unlucky to concede a penalty but luck with a late shoulder challenge which saw him booked.

Half Back line: Fanning had a poor game. Was badly at fault for the first goal. Made a couple of good catches in the second, still is uncomfortable on the wing, should be centre back. Kennedy was very, very poor. Won nothing in the air and cleared nothing. Got stupidly booked in the first half. Fanning, Corcoran and Diarmaid Fitz all better centre backs than he is. Eamon Corcoran had his worst display in a Tipp jersey. His day was summed up when he had a great point chance which tailed wide just before he was taken off.

Midfield: Paul Kelly played well in the loose and scored 4 frees, it was also his ball which set up Devanes goal. Colin Morrissey scored 1 point early on and set up Redsers goal, made a good few runs which ended up in him losing possession. Faded before he was subbed.

Half forward line: Shocking bad! They won nothing from puck outs and totally allowed Limerick to dominate. Worst display from Benny Dunne in a long time. Not at the races at all. Francis Devanney was completely outplayed and outfought by Geary could have been replaced 15 minutes in. John Devane was poor missed a good point chance early on and did nothing until he popped up to put us ahead late on.

Full forward line: Paddy O’Brien was very poor again. How he lasted until injury time defies logic. Eoin Kelly was completely starved of possession in the first half looked a lot more livelier when he came into the half forward line late on in the game. His free to put Tipp level was calmness personified. Lar Corbett scored a great point early in the game. Went for a lot of ball in the second half and just missed them. Tried his heart out, which is more than can be said for a lot of other Tipp players.

Subs:
Ger “Redser” O’Grady for Devanney: played at centre and later at full forward. When he arrived at last Tipp had some one to compete in eth air. While he had 3 bad wides, he took his goal well and his arrival caused panic in the Limerick backs and roused the Tipp fans to life. Should start the next day.

Tommy Dunne for Benny Dunne: Got very little ball but scored a peach of a point right after Redsers goal. Still got a lot to contribute to Tipp.

Diarmaid Fitzgerald for Eamon Corcoran: On for the last 10 minutes, should have been on after 10 minutes. Cleared a few balls. Has to start the next day in place of Kennedy.

Michael Webster for Colin Morrissey: Why he went corner forward defies logic. With Redser at full forward surely centre forward would have been more productive.

Darragh Egan for Paddy O Brien: Did not touch the ball.

Tipp’s performance can be summed up in the fact that from play Eoin Kelly with 2 points, a Lar Corbett point and John Devane’s late, late gaol was all the starting Tipp forwards scored. That added to the fact that 2 of the half forwards and the full forward were replaced after ineffective displays means that there is serious questions about the Tipp forwards. Shooting 13 wides also is a bad sign. The backs were poor as well only Paul Curran and Philip Maher could be proud of their performances. With all due respects to Limerick if we were that badly exposed yesterday what would a sextet of Kilkenny forwards, (Comerford, Shefflin, Fitzpatrick, Power, DJ and Brennan) at full Championship tilt do to us. It does not even bare thinking about.
Next Saturday evening in Limerick we need a game plan. We need players fighting for the ball. We need big men in the 2 central forward positions, to win high ball. We need our wing and corner forwards to run to the ball and not stand up and wait for the ball to get to them. We need our backs to be a lot tighter and sharper and not foul as much. We need the boys on the line to make changes when they are called for and not when its too late and most of all we need Tipp to come out fighting with a winning attitude. Knocknagow








Tipperary v Limerick (15-05-05) Knocknagow



Tipperary and Limerick get the 2005 Munster Hurling Championship underway with this quarter final clash in Thurles at 4.00 on Sunday referee is Diarmaid Kirwan of Cork. The game is preceded by the Intermediate clash between the same side throw in 2.00. The game will be televised live on RTE 2. 1997 was the last time the sides met in Thurles with Tipperary winning 1-20 to 0-13. In 2002 the sides met in Pairc Ui Chaiomh in the Munster Semi-Final. Tipperary were the defending Munster and All-Ireland Champions and duly triumphed 1-20 to 1-13. Limerick started well and led 1-2, Ollie Moran, to 0-3 after 15 minutes, however Tipp dominated the second quarter until the break and lead 1-12 to 1-06. Tipp comfortable won the second half and with Eoin Kelly scoring 0-12 ran out easy winners. Last year the sides met in the first round of the qualifiers in Limerick. Tipp played poorly in the first half but goals from Tommy Dunne and John Carroll left Tipp only a point behind at the break 1-7 to 2-3. Seamus Butler goaled after 23 seconds of the second half. Tipp then started putting over the points and seemed to be in command as they lead 3-6 to 1-11 with only 10 minutes to go. Tipp lead by 4 minutes into injury time when Andrew O’Shaughnessy scored a goal to put the minimum between the sides. Tipp held on to win 3-10 to 2-12.

The League was not kind to both sides. They did meet in Phase 1 but it was a shocking game which Tipp won 4-14 to 3-11. Limerick scored 2 late injury time goals to bring the scoreline close. While Limerick struggled in the League, (they played in the relegation section), Tipp fared little better only barely qualifying for the playoff stages of the League where they were well beaten Clare and by Kilkenny. Limerick on the other hand lost to Waterford but did beat both Laois and Dublin to secure their Division 1 status for next year. The most significant aspect of the League was that Limerick are now on their 4th manager since 2002! Eamon Cregan, Dave Keane and Pad Joe Whelehan all were deposed and now Joe McKenna has the reins which he took up during the early part of the League, with Ger Cunningham taking over the physical coaching of the side. One positive is that once Joe McKenna took over all the stories about Limerick hurling has been thankfully confined to performances as opposed to rumours/stories of player’s discontent.

Both sides have injury worries going into the game. Limerick are awaiting news on Seannie O’Connor and Paudie O’Dwyer, while Tipp have Paul Ormonde ruled out, (long term injury), John O’Brien is still suspended, (arising from Toome’s game v Athenry) and Hugh Moloney, (hamstring injury playing with his club). Other worries include Martin Maher who has seen very little League action due to a leg injury, David Kennedy with hamstring trouble which caused him to miss the last 2 League games and Diarmaid Fitzgerald injured and also in the middle of exams at UCD. Up front Michael Webster is also struggling having missed the last 2 League games.

Returning to the league Ken Hogan failed to use it to get a steady team. Fair enough he was hampered a lot of the time by injury to some of the more established players, Colin Morrissey, Martin Maher, Diarmaid Fitzgerald and Paul Kelly all had shortened League campaign dues to injuries, but still no new talent was established during the 8 games. Serious questions remain about the half backline. The quality players are there, Eamon Corcoran, Declan Fanning, Hugh Moloney and Diarmaid Fitzgerald are all quality half backs and it now seems that David Kenndy (who is not a quality centre back) will be selected here to mark Niall Moran who on his day could beat Tipp on his own.

I have more sympathy for Hogan in the half forward line where he lost a good prospect in Tony Scroope to injury and pretty much all combinations of players that were tried in this line being roasted at some stage; Benny Dunne and Mark O’Leary come to mind. Although John Devane, despite being a full back, and Francis Devanney both impressed in patches during the League. All in all if this line breaks even on Sunday I will be happy.

The most recent barometer of the teams is that they both played Waterford in challenges in the past 2 weeks. Limerick, (with a full strength side), won 2-18 to 1-18. They lined out with Lucey and Ollie Moran manning the central defensive positions and Niall Moran and T.J. Ryan manning the central forward positions. This marks a return to the forwards for T.J. who made his name as a wing forward in the mid 90’s. Limerick lead 1-9 to 0-8 at the break with the goal coming from Niall Moran. Conor Fitzgerald goaled in the second half and late points from Pat Tobin and Conor Fitzgerald sealed the win. Tipp lined out without Eoin Kelly, Diarmaid Fitzgerald and Eamon Corcoran and won 2-20 to 2-14. Lar Corbett got the Tipp goal in the first half and a lively Paddy O’Brien gaoled early in the second. Plusses for Tipp was the midfield partnership of Paul Kelly and Colin Morrissey. On the negative Martin Maher and Fanning both went off with knocks.

The Tipp team was picked last night and is as follows:

Brendan Cummins.

Martin Maher, Philip Maher and Paul Curran.

Declan Fanning, David Kennedy and Eamonn Corcoran.

Colin Morrissey and Paul Kelly.

John Devane, Francis Devanney and Benny Dunne.

Eoin Kelly, Paddy O'Brien and Lar Corbett.

The team is captained by Denny Dunne who is playing his first Senior Championship game for Tipp in Thurles. It contains only 1 debutant, Francis Devanney which is a surprise considering all the injuries that Tipp have. This team should be taken with a pinch of salt considering that against Waterford in the first round last year John Devane started at full forward. Diarmaid Fitzgerald and Michael Webster both did not recover from injuries and were not considered. The full back line has a solid look about it, while Philip Maher struggled at times during the League the return of his cousin beside him solidifies the line. As I have said before David Kennedy is not good enough for centre back and is a major weakness that could be exploited by the Limerick attack. Midfield sees two men who have played very little during the League due to injuries. Colin Morrissey will provide the steel and Paul Kelly the skill. Half forward line is unproven, with both wing forwards having spent more time in the full backline! Paddy O’Brien is an unusual choice at full forward, I fully expect him to switch with Lar Corbett and also Eoin Kelly will probably spend some time there as well, to keep the Limerick full backline on their toes. The Limerick team was picked on Tuesday night and is along expected lines.

Tipp will have to be very wary on Sunday although they go into the game as slight favourites both teams are largely unknown quantities. The strongest line of the Limerick side appears to be the half back line of Ollie Moran, Brian Geary and Peter Lawlor. All fine big stickmen well able to win puckouts and dominate if allowed to. The Tipp half backline needs to contest every ball and get it through to Eoin Kelly who is our only real consistent source of scores. The Tipp full backline will have to be on its toes as Andrew O’Shaughnessy has shown over the years that if he gets enough ball he can win matches on his own. A major worry for Tipp must be the amount of players starting who have played very little this year due to injuries, Martin Maher, Colin Morrissey, Paul Kelly and Paul Kelly who have all played only 1 full League game.

So how do I see this game going? Well in Tipp’s first home game since the loss to Cork in the Munster Final of 2000 Tipp have to hit the ground running for the first quarter and tear into Limerick. Hopefully some tactics will have been worked out for winning of own puck outs unlike last year were we wasted most of them in the 2 games that we lost. We also need another forward to take the heat off Eoin Kelly who will be shackled on Sunday, he has always found Damien Reale a tricky customer to deal with especially at U21 level. Lar Corbett will hopefully bring pace and speed into the forward line and a eye for goals. It will probably be a dour game with both sides fearful of losing. Still in Thurles in front of a large Tipp following, (hopefully), Tipp should have enough in the tank and on the bench to just about sneak over the line by 2 points.



Knocknagow