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Tipperary v Waterford (08-04-07)
Tipp and Waterford meet in the second of the 2007 National Hurling League quarter finals this Sunday in Nowlan Park at 3.40. The referee is Michael Haverty, (Galway), and extra time will be played if required. The game will be live on TG4. The game will be preceded by the first quarter final between Galway and Wexford. The sides met twice in the Championship last year. In the Munster Semi Final Tipp won 3-14 to 1-12 with Eoin Kelly getting 2-9. It was a different story later on in the summer in the All-Ireland Quarter Final when a full strength Waterford beat Tipp 1-22 to 3-13. Tipp got a goal through John Carroll with 5 minutes to go to only leave 4 in it but Waterford had late points to seal a well deserved goal win. The last League meeting was in 2004 when in the last round of phase 2 games. John Carroll goal midway through the first half saw Tipp lead at the break 1-12 to 0-10. An Eoin Kelly goal soon after the break seemed to set Tipp up for the required win, however Paul Flynn replied with a goal from a free and even though Seamus Butler scored another goal Waterford got 8 frees in the last quarter to level the game, 3-16 to 1-22 and qualify for the league Final.
Waterford finished second in Division 1A of the League with 6 points. They won 3 of their games and lost 2. Their second last game was against Down who they comprehensively beat 4-27 to 1-7. Down were just about I contention losing by 2-10 to 1-7 at the break but Waterford powered away in the second half and held them scoreless. Top scorers were Stephen Molumphy with 2-2, Ken McGrath 1-4 and Eoin Kelly with 7 points. Last week they were surprisingly beat by Offaly at home by 3-15 to 1-19. Despite a goal from John Mullane Waterford could not get ahead and an Offaly goal from Joe Bergin 5 minutes from time sealed the Offaly win and meant that Waterford had to go into the quarter finals and missed out on the automatic semi final spot.
Tipp also finished with 6 points in the League with the 2 defeats coming at the hands of Limerick and Galway, however a large win over Dublin sealed their quarter final spot. Tipp do really need this extra game as they are not out in the Munster Championship until the 10th June. The League has not been that impressive for Tipp, however the bright points would have to be the success of the full forward line. While Paul Kelly is one of Tipp’s most stylish hurlers in the last few years he was becoming way too lose to play in midfield. While I was initially sceptical about the move into corner forward it has worked in spades with a high return in all games he has played often with such poor supply of ball going into him. Danny O’Hanlon has settled into the team, after a poor first outing against Limerick. While he does waste a lot of ball he is shaping up to be the first viable full forward that Tipp have had since Declan Ryan in 2001.
Again the problem with the Tipp team is the half forward line. Nothing conclusive could be drawn from the game against Dublin last week, but Babs seems to be stumbling closer to effectively filing this line with Pa Bourke and Ryan O’Dwyer. Centre forward is a problem which will not seem to go away, John Carroll does not have the pace, Darragh Egan not impressed despite numerous chance here, (although in fairness to the guy all his best hurling underage has come when he was at full forward), Ryan O’Dwyer is more suited to the wing.
The Tipp team was picked last night and for the first time this year it is unchanged.
Brendan Cummins.
Eamonn Buckley, Paul Curran and Conor O'Brien.
Benny Dunne, Conor O'Mahony and Hugh Maloney.
Shane McGrath and Thomas Stapleton.
Ryan O'Dwyer, Darragh Egan and Pa Bourke.
Eoin Kelly, Danny O'Hanlon and Paul Kelly.
The Tipp team is a vote of confidence in the team that beat Dublin and gives the younger players, U21 and Minors a chance to prove themselves with a serious step in class. Both corner backs will be seriously up against it especially with the likes of Dan Shanahan, Eoin Kelly and Ken McGrath. Equally Thomas Stapleton at midfield will have a lot better test against the likes of Dave Bennett. It will also be interesting to see how Benny Dunne copes with the physical threat that Waterford have in the half forward line. This was one of the main ways that they beat us in the quarter final last year.
While I have not seen Waterford this year from the match reports they seem to be going well, although the loss to Offaly was a bit of an upset. The scoring seems to be coming from the usual sources, Eoin Kelly, Dan and John Mullane, they have Paul Flynn and Tony Brown just back from injury and both will be wanting to put in a good impression before the Championship. I assume that Waterford will do their usual of constantly moving their forwards around so the newer Tipp backs will have their work cut out.
How do I see this game going? Well Tipp need/have to win this game more and a semi-final in the revamped Semple Stadium would be a nice prize for a win on Sunday. Giving the step up in opposition 10 minutes of this game will tell far more than the full 70 v Dublin last Sunday. Still Waterford may have 1 eye on the Championship and the last thing they want is possible meeting with Cork as they could meet them in Munster Semi Final in June. With so many positions up for grabs and the likes of Declan Fanning, Paul Ormonde, Eamon Corcoran, Diarmaid Fitzgerald, John Carroll, Seamus Butler and Michael Webster all sitting on the line waiting to come in I hope Tipp put a good solid performance together, under what according to the weather forecast will be almost Championship like conditions. So Tipp to advance to the semis with a 3 point win.
Tipperary 4-15 Dublin 1-10
Tipp comfortably overcame the weak challenge of a tired looking Dublin team in Nenagh today. Despite a large and vocal Dublin crowd present they gave their fans very little to cheer about. Tipp made no changes to the starting 15 where as Dublin made 2 with midfielder Ger O’Meara and wing forward Tommy Moore not starting. Tipp played with the aid of a massive wind blowing straight down the pitch in the first half and took full advantage.
Tipp were first to attack but Danny O’Hanlon fumbled and the ball was cleared. He made no mistake the second time around when a long Conor O’Brien clearance found him and he easily turned and pointed. Conor O’Mahony put a free wide. Paul Kelly found debutant Thomas Stapleton and the Templederry man made no mistake with a long range point. Both he and Darragh Egan had wides, before a wild pull saw Eoin Kelly get Tipp’s first point from a free. Some fumbling in the Tipp defence saw Conor O’Brien clear, Eoin Kelly flick on and great control and touch by O’Hanlon to score a good goal. A long free fell to Ryan O’Dwyer who found O’Hanlon but the goal was ruled out for a square ball. Eoin Kelly put a free wide before Dublin made their first change when Kevin O’Reilly went off injured and was replaced by Stuart Mullen. Sweet play by Eoin nearly resulted in his brother getting in for a goal. Dublin eventually got off the mark in the 21st minute when the scored with a free from Ronan Fallon.
Last years minor colleagues Thomas Stapleton found Pa Bourke and Bourke pointed. Tipp now lead 1-4 to 0-1. McGuire then pulled off a great reaction save when he got his foot to a Paul Kelly shot and the 65 was put wide. A long, long Cummins puck out found O’Hanlon and he ran along the endline and goaled. Benny Dunne then launched an effort from inside his own 65 and it went over to give Tipp an 10 point lead. Dublin made their second change with Peadar Carton on for John Kelly. A foul on the Dublin full forward led to Dublin’s second pointed free. Pa Bourke passed to Ryan O’Dwyer and the Cashel man found Paul Kelly who goaled. The game then approached a long spell of injury time, (mainly due to Dublin injuries). Thomas Stapleton was temporarily replaced by James Woodlock. Another Dublin free saw Stuart Mullen point. Tipp upped the ante again and Ryan O’Dwyer passed to Shane McGrath who got his first point of the League. Eoin Kelly then got in on the goal scoring exploits with a run I along the end line and buried it past the hapless Dublin goalie. Shane McGrath then passed to Eoin Kelly who pointed his first from play. After 7 minutes injury time the ref blew up with the score Tipp 4-7 Dublin 0-4.
Tipp resumed the second half with Thomas Stapleton returned to midfield, but the ineffective Darragh Egan replaced by John Carroll. Carroll went on the wing and Ryan O’Dwyer to centre forward. A ball to John Carroll eventually came to Pa Bourke who pointed. Dublin made another change with the full forward being replaced by Alan McDuff. Ryan O’Dwyer was fouled and Eoin Kelly pointed the free. Pa Bourke ran and pointed. Eoin Kelly then limped off and was replaced by Lar Corbett. Dublin had another free to make it 4-10 to 0-5. They then had to wides and Paul Curran was booked in conceding a free. Ryan O’Dwyer won another free and Pa Bourke took the free taking duties and scored. In the 17th minute Dublin had their first point from play when Kevin Flynn pointed. They then had a wide as did Ryan O’Dwyer. Dublin then had a free which they went for goals and was saved by Cummins. Paul Kelly then had a point waved wide which was clearly over. Tipp then found themselves in trouble when another Dublin goal attempt was halted by a Paul Curran foul he was booked a second time and sent off. Eamon Buckley went full, Benny to the corner, and Shane McGrath to wing back. The goal shot was saved from the free. Pa Bourke put a free wide before a Ryan O’Dwyer pass found John Carroll who pointed to make it 4-12 to 0-8.
Dublin gave up in their attempt to go for points and went for goals; they won another penalty and Buckley was yellow carded. Stuart Mullen’s shot was saved by Cummins and cleared by Benny Dunne for a sideline. Dublin had another wide. Benny then found Paul Kelly who pointed. Another Dublin penalty was scored by Emmet Carroll to make it 4-13 to 1-8. Both sides now made changes with Joey Boland coming off for Dublin and Paul Ormonde being replacing Eamon Buckley. Ryan O’Dwyer won another free which Bourke pointed. James Woodlock replaced Ryan O’Dwyer. Shane McGrath found Paul Kelly who got Tipp’s final score of the day with a point. Emmet Carroll added another Dublin point before Dublin made their final change with Kevin replacing Declan Qualter. Dublin had the last score when Stuart Mullen pointed. After 2 minutes of injury time Kilkenny man Dominic Connolly blew up with the final score Tipp 4-15 Dublin 1-10.
Tommy Naughton will not be happy with this game. However truth be know this game was lost when Dublin travelled to Belfast as warm favourites and lost a game that would have meant they entered this game guaranteed a play off place. Now they finished in fourth place with the only bright light being that they retained their Division 1 status, something that he would have accepted gladly prior to the League starting but not what he hoped after beating Limerick last weekend. In front of a decent crowd with a sizeable Dublin contention, they never were in this game once Tipp played with the wind in the first half. They fumbled the ball, could not pass and their clearances were hurried and weak. It was well into the second half before they got their first point from play. Such was Tipp dominance in the first half that the shaky looking Dublin full backline could not cope with the 2 Kelly’s and O’Hanlon who between them in the first half scored 4-2 between them in the first half. Their 2 best players were the goalkeeper Gary MaGuire who pulled off 1 great save in the first half and centre back Ronan Fallon who toiled all day. They now enter the Championship against Wexford with serious question marks against them.
Babs will be happy to have got into the League quarter finals. Kilkenny finished top with 7 points; ironically losing to Tipp and drawing with Dublin! Galway and Tipp both have 6 points but Galway have just got a slightly superior scoring average. The game as a contest was over after the first goal. Babs will have learned little from this game as Dublin provided little to no opposition. After the Galway game Tipp needed to win this and they went out and accomplished this, scoring 19 times and 15 of those from play. The one worry was the amount of penalties and 21 yard frees that Tipp gave away late on. Still this was compensated by Dublin only scoring once. On the injury front while both Eamon Corcoran and Diarmaid Fitzgerald were with the Tipp team today neither were togged. Of the 27 players listed today only 2, Seamus Butler and Jim Bob McCarthy have not seen any action and that’s as Butler has only recovered from injury and Jim Bob has only just been added to the panel. Still 30 players have seen action in the 5 games to date.
Tipp team:
Brendan Cummins: the wind suited his booming puck outs and frees and he was landing them at last on a line that was able to use it, the full forward line. Saved a few penalties but was beaten once.
Full back line: Of the backs Conor O’Brien saw the most action as all the Dublin attacks headed down to his corner. Set up Tipp’s first point and coped well in his debut. Buckley had a good solid game, went to full back late on. Paul Curran was yellow carded after giving away 2 penalties. Was very rash in coming out and cleaning lads out of it considering that even if Dublin did get in for a goal they were not going to win. Hopefully this will not come back to haunt him later on in the year. Was solid under the dropping ball.
Half back line: Were never tested. Benny scored a good point in the first half. Conor O’Mahony was not under the pressure the Kerins’s put him under last week. Hugh Moloney had a solid game. Tougher tests lie ahead.
Midfield: Shane McGrath returned to his natural position, (except for the last 15 minutes in the reshuffle to cope with Curran’s sending off). Got his first point of the League and broke up Dublin attacks well. Thomas Stapleton while only a year out of minor coped well with Shane McGrath, scoring a point early on, however the lack of a coherent Dublin midfield has to be taken onto account.
Half forward line: Pa Bourke scored 1 point in the first half, 2 from play and 2 from frees in the second half which was a good return given the lack of ball that came his wing. Darragh Egan was poor and taken off at the break without ever threatening. Ryan O’ Dwyer was talked up big time by Nicky English on “Off the Ball” last Friday evening and had a good debut. Never a guy to score 4 points, ala John O’Brien, got through some amount of work and won the vast majority of Tipp’s frees in the second half. Was less effective at centre forward, his aggressive style of ball carrying play is well suited to the wing.
Full forward line: Danny O’Hanlon learned from his early miss v Galway last week and had 2-1 on the clock after about 15 minutes, his first goal expertly controlled and put to the net his second coolly finished with the goalie charging him down and only for the ref’s whistle would have had a third. Was superb in the first half when at the edge of the square and struggled in the second half when further out from goal and isolated. Paul Kelly again got very little ball in the corner but still managed to get a goal in the first half and 2 points when out on the wing in the last quarter. Eoin Kelly got a1-1 in the first half from play and a free in both halves before going off injured. Missed a few frees but the wind was very strong.
Subs:
John Carroll for Darragh Egan: Went wing forward. Still not close to the required fitness, flapped at most of the ball that came his way although still scored a point.
Lar Corbett for Eoin Kelly: Still way too sloppy. Got away clean from his man twice but fumbled the ball when he should just have shot his point.
Paul Ormonde for Eamon Buckley: On for the last 5 minutes don’t think he touched the ball.
James Woodlock for Ryan O’Dwyer: Was on as a temporary blood sub just before the break and on for the last few minutes.
So Tipp get into the quarter finals without relying on the other games today. There was good aspects to the 5 games so far. The full forward line seems set and once they get the ball they are on fire have by far scored the most amount of goals in the Division; 11 to Kilkenny’s 7. However serious questions remain over half forward line, although Ryan O’Dwyer threw down a marker today, and a midfield partner for Shane McGrath. Hopefully the injury that Eoin Kelly picked up will be run off by next week. Tipp need at least 1 of not 3 games to get more competitive games later into April and May as they are not out in the Championship till June. Tipp move on face Waterford in the quarter final next Sunday with the winners meeting Cork in the semi final.
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Tipperary v Dublin (01-04-07)
Tipp play Dublin on Sunday in McDonagh Park Nenagh at 3.30 with Domoinic Connolly the referee. This is the last round of games in the group stages of the National League. The last time that Dublin played Tipp in the National League was in 1997 in the League Quarter Final. This was the time that the League was revamped so the game took place the Saturday evening of the 12th July the week after Tipp lost the Munster Final to Clare. Tipp won the game 14 points to 8 with Brendan Cummins in goals and current selector John Leahy at midfield. Tipp subsequently lost the League Semi-Final to Galway.
Surprisingly Dublin are the only unbeaten team in the League to date. In the first round of games they came back at the death with a goal and a pointed free from Kevin O’Reilly leave it 2-13 to 0-19 points. Dublin’s second game was against Antrim but this was postponed until tonight die to the bad weather. Dublin’s third game was against Galway in Parnell Park. Dublin beat them 2-7 to 1-8. Galway lead at the break but Dublin fought back through a goal from Padraig O'Driscoll. A Niall Healy goal seemed to have swung the tie back in Galway’s favour but when Dublin goaled through Liam Ryan they hung on for a fully deserved 2 point win. Last week Dublin travelled to Limerick and came way with a 22 to 1-5 win. Dublin got their noses in front just before the break and with Kevin Flynn and Kevin O'Reilly, both scoring seven points each, Dublin were able to withstand a Sean O’Connor gaol to win by 4 points in the end.
Tipp on the other hand have only won 2 games. Their most recent loss to Galway, (in which Tipp were outplayed by a lot more than the scoreline suggests), was followed with a whinge in the papers from Babs about the antics of the Galway players and griping that the ref did not protect Tipp. Well from viewing on TG4 Wadding gave a couple of very strange decisions to Tipp in the first half, 1 Tipp player in particular could continuously be seen winding up the Galway players and some of the Tipp backs were luck not to be more heavily punished for persistent fouling. It would be a lot more in Babs line to give coaching to some of the players on how to catch puck outs rather that whinge to the national media.
The Tipp team was announced last night:
Brendan Cummins.
Eamonn Buckley, Paul Curran and Conor O'Brien.
Benny Dunne, Conor O'Mahony and Hugh Maloney.
Shane McGrath and Thomas Stapleton.
Ryan O'Dwyer, Darragh Egan and Pa Bourke.
Eoin Kelly, Danny O'Hanlon and Paul Kelly.
This team shows 7 changes from the Galway side game. Brendan Cummins resumes in goals, after missing the last 2 games. In the defence U21 player Conor O’Brien gets his chance in replacing his fellow U21 colleague Alan Byrne at corner back. The half back line is reshuffled with Eamon Corcoran out injured Benny Dunne switches over and Hugh Moloney resumes at wing back. Again there is a new midfield partnership with Shane McGrath thankfully returned and he is joined by last years minor Thomas Stapleton of Templederry. The whole half forward line is replaced with Ryan O’Dwyer getting his first start after playing the second half v Galway. Pa Bourke gets his first run at wing forward after previously impressing at full forward against Antrim. Darragh Egan returns to centre forward after missing the Galway game through illness. Thankfully Danny O’Hanlon’s injury doesn’t seem as serious as seemed last week and he can resume at the edge of the square.
Again it’s the half forward line where most of Tipp play breaks down. With the players picked there not able to compete or win breaking ball, no ball is going into our most potent attackers and all ball is being put down into an already stressed full back line. Conor O’Brien comes with a good reputation as a solid U21 and colleges corner back, hopefully he will not experience as many problems as Alan Byrne. Ryan O’Dwyer while not the greatest scorer is very good at winning possession from puck outs and in general play, something which Tipp have lacked all this League. With 3 members of last years U21 side and 2 of last years minors starting on Sunday Babs is definitely giving youth is chance. While Darragh Egan has not set the world on fire with his centre forward play Sunday is another chance to redeem himself although suspicion remains that he does his best work at full forward. Pa Bourke gets his second start of the League at wing forward and hopefully will continue for his good showing when he scored after coming on against Galway.
Again Tipp need to win ball and send it into the full forward line with both of the Kelly’s goaling last week and O’Hanlon’s contribution against Kilkenny this is Tipp’s best line of the field. I am worried for that half back line as I feel that the best line is Corcoran, O’Mahony and Diarmaid Fitz, but injury has ruled Corcoran and Fitz. Benny Dunne is too loose for wing back as was shown in the second half of last Sundays game when Iarla Tannion scored 3 points off him. Thomas Stapleton has a great chance on Sunday to get the other midfield jersey as the other candidates to date have failed to show any sort of form.
So Babs is sticking to his word of trying out ever player on the panel as by my reckoning every player has now started at least 1 game. This is a must win game for Tipp. It is more than likely that Dublin will have beaten Antrim on Wednesday night and so be on 7 points. This will mean that even losing to Tipp on Sunday means that Tipp will have to hope that Galway beat Kilkenny so that Dublin Galway and Tipp get through to the knock out stages. It is a bit unfair to ask Dublin to play 3 games in a week but with the Antrim game deferred they don’t have much choice. Still they will be in flying form in Nenagh if they are already qualified for the playoffs. As I expect them to beat Antrim, I can see Dublin have their eye taken off this game and Tipp with a lot to prove should have enough, especially with that full forward line to win and hopefully progress.
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Galway 0-26 Tipperary 3-13 (25-03-07)
Galway got their League campaign firmly back on track with this 4 point win over Tipp in Pearse Stadium today. Both teams made wholesale changes prior to t eh start. Tipp were missing Eoin Kelly with the flu and he was replaced at corner forward by Willie Ryan, Darragh Egan and Lar Corbett were out and were replaced by Francis Devanney and Hugh Moloney. Tipp lined out with Shane Maher and Hugh Moloney at midfield and a half forward line of Tony Scroope, Francis Devanney and Shane McGrath. Galway lined out with their third different goalkeeper Skehill, a full backline of Fergal Moore, Derek Hardiman and David Collins and a bizarre midfield partnership of Alan Kerins and Damien Hayes.
Tipp had the first serious attack of the game when Danny O’Hanlon easily brushed past Derek Hardiman but stupidly opted to kick the ball when there was no one near him the ball flew wide. He redeemed himself a few moments later when he won a free which Willie Ryan converted. A silly foul by Hugh Moloney let Eugene Cloonan open Galway’s account with a free. Good pressure by Hugh Moloney won a sideline for Tipp which Eamon Corcoran expertly put over. A push in the back by Paul Curran on Eugene Cloonan saw him level the game with a free. Eamon Corcoran expertly put over another sideline cut after 10 minutes to give Tipp a 3-2 lead. Francis Devanney passed to Paul Kelly and he got Tipp’s first point from play. A poor clearance by Conor O’Mahony was pounced on by Niall Healy who pointed. Hugh Moloney burst out of midfield saw him get his first point. Conor O’Mahnony then put 2 frees wide before a long free by Benny Dunne fell short in the square and Paul Kelly was first to react when he blasted to the net to make it 1-5 to 0-4 after 15 minutes. A foul on Shane Maher and Willie Ryan pointed the free.
A poor clearance by Corcoran went for a sideline which eventually went Mark Kerins and he pointed. Benny Dunne was put over his own end line and Cloonan pointed the 65 to only leave Galway a goal behind, 1-6 to 0-6. Gerry Kennedy made a good catch after a poor Alan Byrne clearance. Mark Kerins then fired over 2 quick points totally unmarked around midfield. Niall Hayes had a good run and point that levelled matters after 25 minutes. Corcoran put a sideline wide before going off with a dead leg he was replaced by James Woodlock who went midfield with Hugh Moloney going corner back. Paul Kelly then edged Tipp in front with a good point. A needless free by Buckley allowed Cloonan to point. A poor Alan Byrne clearance allowed Richie Murray into point. A great block by Paul Curran stopped a Kevin Broderick goal. A Galway 65 dropped short but Mark Kerins’s pull went wide. Paul Curran under pressure handpassed to Alan Kerins who passed to his brother who pointed. A Willie Ryan point in the second minute of injury time left Tipp only a point down at the break 0-12 to 1-8.
Tipp made 2 badly needed changes at the start of the second half with Eoin Kelly and Ryan O’Dwyer replacing Francis Devanney and Tony Scroope. Damien Hayes got Galway’s first of the second half. Gerry Kennedy was out fast to smother a Eugene Cloonan effort. Iarlath Tannion scored his first of the day off Benny Dunne. Paul Kelly and David Forde were both booked with Kelly now at wing forward. A Eugene Cloonan pass found Broderick who pointed. Willie Ryan scored his first from play to leave it 14 to 1-9. Another Cloonan free saw Galway further ahead. Galway were now in the middle of a scoring burst and were helped when Paul Kelly tried to flick the ball over a Galway players head it was stopped and Richie Murray raced up the field to score. Shane McGrath was done for overcarrying and Cloonan pointed, 0-17 to 1-9. Willie Ryan pointed another free. Alan Kerins added 2 points to stretch Galway’s lead. Another silly free by Alan Byrne saw Cloonan point so Galway lead 20 to 1-10 after 50 minutes. Ryan O’Dwyer was fouled and Willie Ryan pointed. Tipp made a change with Lar Corbett on and Shane Maher off. Eugene Cloonan got his only point from play from out on the wing. Tipp then had to make a change when Danny O’Hanlon went off injured to be replaced by Pa Bourke in the 52nd minute he scored a point soon afterwards with his first touch.
Benny Dunne’s long clearance found Eoin Kelly and he ran along the end line to goal. Iarla Tannion then responded straight away with a Galway point to make it 22 to 2-12. Paul Kelly was fouled and Willie Ryan got Tipp’s last point of the day with a free. Galway replaced Kevin Broderick with Fergal Healy. Both sides had wides before Cloonan added another Galway free. Damien Joyce came on for David Collins. Tipp werer in serious trouble at this stage and got a reprive with 5 minutes to go when Lar found Paul Kelly who goaled for his second of the day. Tipp were now only 23 to 3-13 behind but Galway were not to be denied and another Cloonan free eased their nerves. Ger Mahon came on for Shane Kavanagh. Lar and Cloonan both had wides before Iarla Tannion had his third of the second half. In injury time a poor Gerry Kennedy puck out found Fergal Healy who pointed and after 2 minutes of injury time Wadding blew up on a 4 point win for Galway 0-26 to 3-13. Damien Hayes was announced as Man of the Match by TG4.
Ger Loughnane will be well pleased with this win he was under severe pressure after the weak spirited loss to Dublin. He did a complete revamp with the team and every line was changed. Once they went ahead midway through the first half they were dominant throughout, they scored 26 points and only conceded 16 scores. The midfield partnership worked well although in Championship or against a better midfield they might get as much joy. They now go to Kilkenny next Sunday and a win will guarantee them further League hurling in 2007. The 2 Kerin’s were very impressive, Iarlath Tannion had a powerful second half and Damien Hayes ruled the midfield.
Babs will not be pleased with this performance. He had to majorily rejig the team both before and during the game due to injuries and flu but still wasted giving the likes of Ryan O’Dwyer and Thomas Stapleton starts. In truth the goals kept Tipp in it and although Tipp got the margin down to the minimum with time nearly up there was always only 1 winner in it. Tipp were well beaten in all sectors in the first half with the pace of the Galway’s forwards regularly destroying the Tipp backs. Evidence of Galway’s pressure was that Cloonan scored 9 points from frees most given way by both corner backs. Of the starting Tipp forwards Paul Kelly got 2-2 and Willie Ryan 1 point from play. This is a pathetic return in 70 minutes hurling. Again our half forward line was abysmal and won absolutely nothing. Only the frees of Willie Ryan and the 3 lucky goals kept us in the game.
Gerry Kennedy: didn’t have a proper save to make came out and smothered a Cloonan effort in the second half. 2 of his puck outs which were short were intercepted and one resulted in a Galway score.
Full back line: Buckley was caught a few times by the pace of the Galway forwards and gave away too many frees. Alan Byrne was way over his level, was caught time after time fouling his man and was lucky to stay on the field such was his persistent fouling. Not up to this level. Paul Curran held Cloonan admirably to a single point from play and blocked a goal from Broderick in the first half. Not helped by poor corner men.
Half back line: Eamon Corcoran scored 2 excellent sideline cuts before going off injured with what seemed a dead leg. His general play up to that was poor driving a clearance over the sideline and flapping at a lot of high ball. Conor O’Mahony was roasted by Mark Kerins’s in the first half when he didn’t stick to him. Kept closer to Kerins’s in the second half and improved. Benny Dunne was quiet in the first half but Iarlath Tannion scored 3 points off him in the second half. Not a wing back.
Midfield: Shane Maher didn’t touch the ball and was replaced. Hugh Moloney started off well scoring a point and wining the sideline from which Corcoran scored, moved to wing back when Corcoran went off and was not visible in the second half.
Half forward line: Tony Scroope very poor until he was replaced. Likewise Francis Devanney. Shane McGrath is not and never was a wing forward, completely wasted there was a bit more prominent when he went to midfield.
Full forward line: Danny O’Hanlon started off well nearly gaoling with his first effort and winning a free but got no ball from then till he was replaced with a hand injury. Paul Kelly got very little ball but still managed to score 2-2. He went wing forward for the second half. Willie Ryan scored 6 points 5 from frees. He had a tough task with the frees as both Eoin Kelly and Darragh Egan out but coped well only missing 1. Got no ball but scored a good point in second half.
Subs:
James Woodlock for injured Eamon Corcoran: came on before the break to midfield but could not break the Galway hold on midfield.
Eoin Kelly for Francis Devanney: Got 1 ball and scored a great individual goal.
Ryan O’Dwyer for Tony Scroope: Caught a few balls and won a free, showed some of life in an otherwise insipid half forward line.
Lar Corbett for Shane Maher: Set up Paul Kelly’s third goal.
Pa Bourke for Danny O’Hanlon: Scored a good point with his only touch.
So Tipp’s League record is played 4 won 2 lost 2. We now are hoping that we beat Dublin and Galway beat Kilkenny to hop to make the latter stages of the League. Despite the illness and injuries this was not a good Tipp performance; we were roasted at corner backs, midfield and half forward lines all the game while the half back line had a very poor first half. When Galway ran at our players there first instinct was to foul, (look at all the scores Cloonan got from frees), we had nothing up front only frees and Paul Kelly. We need major surgery to that starting Tipp 15 if we are to beat Limerick in June. Only 2 of the starting 6 forwards scoring is not good enough and even when Eoin Kelly came on he only got 1 ball. We now seriously have to consider Cork’s style of play with the puck outs; short and to a wing back. In the hopes that they will bypass the half forward line and get the ball direct to the full forward line. But this needs to be practised in training as Kenndey tried it twice and both occasions failed. So its onto Nenagh on Sunday in hope more than expectation.
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Galway v Tipperary (25-03-07)
Galway play Tipp on Sunday in Pearse Stadium at 3.30 with Waterford’s Michael Wadding the referee in the fourth round of Division 1B. The game will be on TG4. The last meeting of the sides was in last year’s League when Galway easily overcame Tipp 3-11 to 0-12 in Thurles. Goals from Ger Farragher and David Tierney put Galway into a commanding 2-6 to 0-7 lead at the break. With 10 minutes to go Tipp got back to within 3 points, 2-8 to 0-11 but a late Galway goal from Richie Murray saw Galway cruise to a big win.
Galway have played 3 games so far. In their first game they easily over came Antrim 3-25 to 0-12 with the goals from Kevin Broderick, David Tierney and Eugene Cloonan. In their second game in the Gaelic Grounds against Limerick they also won by 0-17 to 1-9 with Eugene Cloonan top scorer with 9 points. This win moved them to top of group 1B but they came back to earth with a bang last Sunday when in the bitter sleet and snow in Parnell Park Dublin beat them 2-7 to 1-8. Galway dominated the first half but only lead 4-1 at the break, Dublin can thank the heroics of their goalie who despite the artic conditions Gary McGuire played a stormer. Dublin equalised when a ball into the Galway full back line was not cleared and was put to the net by Padraig O'Driscoll. A Niall Healy goal seemed to have swung the tie back in Galway’s favour but when Dublin goaled through Liam Ryan they hung on for a fully deserved 2 point win despite Eugene Cloonan missing a gilt edged chance for a goal at the death.
Tipp equally have 4 points with their last win a less than convincing 1-11 to 0-8 point win over Antrim in Templemore last Sunday. Tipp made 1 change with Lar Corbett being replaced by last years’ minor Pa Bourke who went corner forward with Eoin Kelly at centre forward. Antrim played with the advantage of the conditions in the first half and lead 7 points to 2 at the break with both of Tipp’s points coming from frees. Tipp sprung into life in the second half when debutant Pa Bourke shot an Eoin Kelly pass to the net. Tipp struggled to cop with Antrim’s 7 man defence and mainly through frees pointed there way to a 6 point win with Tipp’s first point from play not coming until sub Willie Ryan in the 54th minute. Antrim’s sole second half point came in the last minute of the game. Again worryingly for Tipp of the 11 points only 2 came from the starting forwards, Eoin Kelly and Pa Bourke while the midfield was very poor.
Given the weather conditions that prevailed I would not read too much into the games last weekend. There is no way that Ger Loughnane will send a half hearted team out to face Tipp and they will be vastly different to the side that Dublin bossed around in the final 10 minutes last Sunday. Indeed if Galway had even scored a fraction of their goal chances they would have won comfortably. Ger Loughnane will definitely want his full back line to play a little bit better than the wishy-washy play that occurred before the 2 Dublin goals last weekend. As both teams are tied on 4 points, (Dublin and Kilkenny have 3 each), a win on Sunday will be vital for both to get through to the next phase. Tipp have lost the services of Philip Maher who has left the panel which does leave us short of cover in that position.
The Tipp team was announced last night:
Gerry Kennedy.
Eamon Buckley, Paul Curran and Alan Byrne.
Eamon Corcoran, Conor O’Mahony and Benny Dunne.
Shane Maher and Shane McGrath.
Tony Scroope, Darragh Egan and Lar Corbett.
Eoin Kelly, Danny O’Hanlon and Paul Kelly.
This team shows 5 changes from the Antrim game. After their ineffective performance last week there is a new midfield with Francis Devanney and Woodlock dropping to the bench with Shane Maher getting his first start since the Limerick game this time at midfield. He is joined by Shane McGrath. There are major changes in the forwards with Tony Scroope, Lar Corbett and Danny O’Hanlon coming in for John Carroll, Pa Bourke and Michael Webster. It is a major vote of confidence in the defence that they are rechoosen enmass and most now seem in pole position to retain these jerseys for the latter stages of the League, although I am sure that Hugh Moloney, Declan Fanning and Paul Ormonde will have something to say about that. The search continues at midfield with an attempt to find a partner for Shane McGrath, considering that Francis Devanney has got 2 full matches and James Woodlock a full game without impressing has Babs been too hasty in disregarding both Colin Morrissey and Kenny Dunne? Time will tell.
The half forwards again have been majorly restructured with Tony Scroope returning for his first start since the Limerick game. John Carroll is dropped and Lar Corbett is recalled. It is probably the most worrying aspect of the League to date that Tipp have been so ineffective in the half forward line. Last week Eoin Kelly was tried at centre forward in an attempt to win some ball. Pa Bourke will be disappointed to be dropped after scoring 1-1 from play in his first game. I am surprised that Tony Scroope gets another chance considering that he got a start v Limerick and did not impress while Willie Ryan has come off the bench twice to score both times while Ryan O’Dwyer has only got about 5 minutes game time. Looking at that line for Sunday other than the pace of Lar I cannot see many positives.
Of course this has a negative knock on our full forward line with a distinct lack of quality ball going into them. Of the scores that Danny O’Hanlon got v Kilkenny, his point came off a Brendan Cummins clearance, one of his goal’s from a free out of defence the other from poor Kilkenny play. While Paul Kelly’s goal did come from a great run by Lar Corbett when the half forward line are not winning the ball and getting their own scorers it is hard to see how where the full forward line is going to get primary possession from.
This is a vital game for both sides. Tipp need a win to get into the latter stages of the League and Galway need to get the horror showing of the Dublin game out of their system. An incentive for Tipp is the news that the League Hurling Final will not be played in Croke Park and also that Semple Stadium officials have announce that the refurbishment works will be ready be finished to have the ground open for the League Final if required. Galway have a lot more to prove on Sunday and with the likes of the Hayes and Eugene Cloonan they will severely test a very raw Tipp full back line. While Ger Loughnane’s main priority is the Championship he will want to get to the latter stages of the League in order to get games in April and prepare for the Championship. Bab’s also needs this win to progress from the good result over Kilkenny and get more games to keep trying different players. So I expect a Galway backlash from last Sunday and them to sneak a win by a few points.
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Tipperary v Antrim (18/03/07)
Tipp and Antrim contest the third round of games in the National Hurling League on Sunday in Templemore at 1.00. The sides last met in the League last year in atrocious conditions in Cushendal last year. After a draw to Limerick and a loss to Kilkenny it was Babs first win in his second coming. Tipp won 1-11 to 1-7. Tipp lead 7-4 at the break with all Tipp’s scores coming from frees. Egan got Tipp’s first score from play as Tipp lead by 6. Antrim brought it back to 2 points but good work from John O’Brien and John Carroll saw the ball bounce to John Devane who goaled to give Tipp a 1-10 to 0-7 lead. Antrim hit back with a goal from Paddy Richmond but sub Eoin Brislane pointed late on so Tipp ran out 4 point winners.
Tipp have played 2 games to date and have won one and lost one. Antrim have only played one game where they were comprehensively beaten 3-25 to 0-12 by Galway in Galway in the first round of games. Although Antrim started well they were 2-9 to 0-5 down at the break and Galway comfortable won the second half to run out easy winners. They were due to play Dublin in Belfast 2 weeks ago but the bad weather conditions meant that the game was called off at the last minute and it has been re-fixed for 28th March under lights.
Since the Kilkenny game a number of the Tipperary have been busy. Eoin Brislane, (who scored a point in the League game v Antrim last year), is now hurling with Meath and scored 3 points for them last Saturday. There was speculation that Paddy O’Brien, who is working in Kildare, would join fellow Tipp natives Matty O’Dowd and David Kennedy in hurling with the Lillywhites but he is now not joining them. Tipp captain John O’Brien is off crutches but it will still be the middle of the summer before he will be back hurling with Tipp. Diarmaid Fitzgerald will miss the rest of the League and will be struggling to be back for the Limerick game. 3 of the Tipp players, Alan Byrne, Conor O’Mahony and Shane McGrath starred in defence for LIT as Joe Canning inspired the Davy Fitzgerald trained team to their second Fitzgibbon Cup win. Darragh Egan was NUIG main scoring threat at full forward but they lost out in the final.
On second viewing of the Kilkenny game a number of things came to light. Firstly the positives; Tipp lead from start to finish, when the pressure came on in the last 5 minutes we were able to manufacture 2 points to seal the game and we took our goal chances, unlike the previous week v Limerick. Now the negatives: the Tipp half forward line was completely wiped out and only lived on scraps and breaking ball, Declan Fanning seriously struggled with the pace of the Kilkenny full forward line especially in the second half and we were very lucky to hold on seeing our 10 point lead reduced to just 2.
The Tipp team was picked last night:
Gerry Kennedy.
Eamonn Buckley, Paul Curran and Alan Byrne.
Eamonn Corcoran, Conor O’Mahony and Benny Dunne.
James Woodlock and Francis Devanney.
John Carroll, Darragh Egan and Lar Corbett.
Eoin Kelly, Michael Webster and Paul Kelly.
Surprisingly the side only shows 4 changes. Last year’s impressive U21 goalie Gerry Kennedy of Killenaule comes in for his first Tipp senior game. Kennedy is a player for the future and while he is unlikely to dislodge Cummins anytime soon the more League games he gets the better. His U21 colleague Alan Byrne of Shannon Rovers comes in at corner back in place of Declan Fanning who is getting married on Friday. Byrne comes in after a number of impressive displays for the U21’s and LIT over the past few years. In midfield Shane McGrath is replaced by James Woodlock who was played out of position at wing forward when he came on as a sub v Kilkenny. Francis Devanney is lucky to get another run and in truth I think it will come down to a straight duel between these 2 players to form a midfield partnership with Shane McGrath. The final change sees Michael Webster get his first start of the year at the edge of the square in place of the impressive Danny O’Hanlon. I hope that this is only to give O’Hanlon a rest as he is a far better hurler and has way more potential than Webster ever will have. Benny Dunne keeps the Tipp captaincy. I am surprised that the 2 Kelly’s are playing as it would be an ideal game to give the likes of Pa Bourke and Ryan O’Dwyer a run out especially with an away game against Galway on Sunday week. Seen as Conor O’Mahony and Darragh Egan both played 2 games last weekend its peculiar that they are not rested.
To be honest this is a game that Tipp should win well. While Antrim will have their Cushendal players back in the fold it will have been a month since their previous game and in that they were hammered. I must admit I know very little about them but away from home against such a strong Tipp team there can only be one outcome. While the tight pitch at Templemore may suit Antrim I cannot see anything other than a very comfortable Tipp win.
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Tipperary 3-13 Kilkenny 2-13
Tipperary picked up their first points of the 2007 League campaign and with it a first League win over the cats since 2003 with a 3 point win today in Nowlan Park. Both teams lined out as selected and Tipp played with the advantage of a very strong win in the first half.
Tipp were first into action when Lar Corbett broke through but was fouled and Eoin Kelly pointed the free. Eddie Brennan got past Curran illegally so said the ref and Tipp got a free out. Eoin Kelly passed to Lar who set up John Carroll for Tipp first point from play. Martin Comerford was fouled and Richie Power pointed for Kilkenny’s first score. Darragh Egan had a wide before Paul Kelly was fouled and Eoin pointed. Michael Rice pointed after pass form Gorta. A great flick on from Darragh Egan saw Paul Kelly point from an acute angle. A late John Carroll foul saw Richie Power point a free. A great run out of defence saw Benny Dunne’s first effort blocked but he expertly put the second over the bar to put Tipp 5-3 ahead. Tipp then got the first goal of the day when a weak Tommy Walsh clearance fell to John Carroll, he passed to Paul Kelly, his pass found Danny O’Hanlon who unmarked from the edge of the square buried to the net. So after 15 minutes Tipp lead 1-5 to 0-3.
Richie Power got a 65 after Eddie Brennan effort was saved. Tipp got their second goal when Lar made a great run and passed to Paul Kelly who from 7 yards out didn’t miss so after 18 minutes Tipp lead 2-5 to 0-4. Kilkenny came back with 2 points, the first a Richie Power free after a Declan Fanning foul and the second a Michael Rice effort. Eoin Kelly and Eddie Brennan had wides. Danny O’Hanlon caught a monster Cummins clearance before shooting a great point. Shane McGrath got a very soft yellow card. Danny O’Hanlon passed to Eoin Kelly his run to goals was halted illegally by Noel Hickey, Kelly pointed the free to leave it 2-7 to 0-6. Sloppy play by Corcoran lead to Paul Curran being yellow carded and a Kilkenny penalty which a combination of Cummins and Benny cleared. Richie Power scored from the clearance. Paul Kelly then had a great run and point. After 1 minute injury time the ref blew up and Tipp lead 2-8 to 0-7.
Tipp made 1 change at the start of the second half with James Woodlock replacing Lar in the half forward line. The 2 Kelly’s fumble a goal chance and the ball was cleared. Danny O’Hanlon had a wide before a Buckley foul let Richie Power score a free. Sloppy play from JJ Delaney let John Carroll n for his second point. A high ball into the square was pounced on by Eoin Kelly, whose shot was saved but Danny O’Hanlon pounced on the rebound to goal. So after 43 minutes Tipp lead 3-9 to 0-8. Kilkenny made a double substitution with Eoin Larkin and James Ryall coming on for Willie O’Dwyer and John Dalton. Eamon Corcoran gave away a silly free which Richie Power pointed. Paul Kelly was fouled and Eoin pointed. Tipp now had a 10 point lead with 20 minutes to go.
Aidabn Fogarty came off to be replaced by Eoin McCormack. Brendan Cummins pulled off a great saved and the ball was wrongly waved as a 65, and Cummins got booked. Another Riche Power free was followed by an Eddie Brennan pass to Martin Comerford who goaled. Poor play by John Carroll saw Paul Kelly booked with Eddie eventually scoring. Sloppy Tipp back play let Eoin McCormack in for a point. Tipp made another change with Willie Ryan on for John Carroll. With 10 minutes left Eoin Kelly won a free and did the needful. Danny O’Hanlon passed to Paul Kelly who pointed to put Tipp back into a 6 point lead. Martin Comerford had a wide before Eamon Corcoran was booked for a late pull the Kilkenny free went wide.
Kilkenny put on a late burst with a long Cleere ball finding Eddie Brenna unmarked and he flicked past Cummins and a Brian Hogan point soon after left Kilkenny only 2 points down with only a minute to go. Tipp made their second last change with Devanney being replaced by Shane Maher. Kilkenny win a 21 yard free late on but Richie Power saw his effort saved by Cummins and the follow up shot trickled wide. Tipp then took off Darragh Egan. Kilkenny had another chance late on but Eamon Buckley held onto the ball and the ref blew up after 3 minutes of injury time was played despite only 2 being shown by the 4th official. Final score Tipp 3-13 Kilkenny 2-13. Benny Dunne got the TG4 Man of the Match award.
While Brian Cody will not despair after this result it definitely gave him food for thought. It was clear that Kilkenny had not that much training done and until the second half lacked a lot of sharpness. The full back line conceded 2-7 from play and Noel Hickey was conceded 2 goals to a 19 year old. PJ Ryan is a poor enough goalie as was demonstrated by the last Tipp goal. Up front Kilkenny were way too dependent on Richie Power’s frees and Eddie Brennan only got going in fits and starts. It is clear that without Cha and Shefflin that Kilkenny will struggle. Still they did cut a 10 point deficit down to 2 with a minute to go and with a bit of luck they may have had a goal in the first half. They will struggle to get out of the group but I am sure that this will not worry Cody too much.
Babs will be well pleased with this performance and result. He stupidly spent all last week talking up this game and putting himself, the management and team under undue pressure about how Tipp had to get a result. In the greater scheme of things a League game in March doesn’t change much. But for some of the Tipp players it was a chance to put a few demons to rest. A lot of these Tipp players were involved 3 years ago when Tipp were humiliated by Kilkenny in the U21 final in Nowlan Park. Also losing to Kilkenny twice in the League last year and Danny O’Hanlon and Woodlock involved with the U21 Tipp team that lost to Kilkenny last year. It also puts Tipp back into contention in the league having gone from second last to second in the space of 1 game!
Tipp players:
Brendan Cummins: Couldn’t be faulted for either goal and had a hand in a penalty and a 21 yard being saved.
Full back line: Declan Fanning was well off the pace, let Eddie Brennan get well ahead of him for both goals and gave away a few frees. Buckley is a good hard corner back got well stuck in, away a few frees when under pressure but did well. Curran had a good game. Was yellow carded early on when Corcoran left him in trouble and had to watch himself.
Half backline: Corcoran’s first touch let him down a few times most noticeably in the first half with the penalty and a few silly frees conceded in the second. Conor O’Mahony had a solid game never giving Comerford much room. Benny Dunne started off superbly clearing ball after ball and scoring an excellent point. Not as spectacular in the second half but still won Man of the Match award.
Midfield: Francis Devanney was anonymous only touched the ball about 3 times. Shane McGrath was booked early on for very little, settled down for a fine game and worked doggedly throughout.
Half forward line: Tommy Walsh started off as if he would clean out Carroll. But Carroll scored a point and set up the first Tipp goal in the first half. Scored a point in the second and faded out of the game until replaced late on. Darragh Egan set up a few points. For a big man does not get involved enough in the game and needs to score and exert himself more. Lar Corbett got an amount of ball in the first half and set up Paul Kelly’s goal but wasted twice as much as he used. First touch and passing need to be sharper if he is to be a wing forward.
Full forward line: Eoin Kelly did not score from play but still got 6 frees many from his own play. Did not see much of the ball. Paul Kelly had a great game scoring 1-3 from play. Got a bit lucky with his goal but was in the right place. Looked way more effective than v Limerick. Danny O’Hanlon had the bit of luck that deserted him in the Limerick game. His first touch was a goal. His excellent positioning led to Tipp’s third goal and his point was the best point of the day. Worked tirelessly and set up 2 more points. Great game for the youngster and at 19 has great potential.
James Woodlock on for Lar Corbett: at wing forward more suited to midfield but battled gamely.
Wille Ryan on for John Carroll: came on as injury time approached and won the free that sealed the game for Tipp.
Shane Maher for Francis Devanney: on for injury time.
Darragh Egan was replaced well into injury time.
So Tipp finally get some League points on the board. However some things still needed to be worked on with 20 minutes to go Tipp were 10 points ahead and cruising with a minute to go Tipp were only 2 points ahead and seriously panicked. The likes of Eamon Corcoran, Paul Curran and the 2 Kelly’s should be standing up and taking responsibility and securing the win. Also our half forward line again failed to perform. John Carroll and Darrgh Egan both flitted in and out of the game without either exerting pressure on their opponents, this will kill us against opponents with a strong half back line, Cork. Luckily the rest of the forwards Paul Kelly and O’Hanlon stood up and were counted when Eoin was kept quiet. Hopefully the scoring burden will now be shared equally among the forwards. The backs looked a lot solider than against Limerick and with Diarmaid Fitzgerald out for 2 months Benny Dunne looks in prime position to hold onto the wing back jersey from Hugh Moloney. With both Ken Dunne and Morrissey gone from the panel we are seriously short of midfield partners for Shane McGrath as it seems that Devanney will struggle here. Still with a number of League games yet it seems a fight out between him and Woodlock for the jersey.
Tipp go into the home game v Antrim in good enough shape although with a number of question marks over certain players. Things have improved since 2 weeks ago but there still is a lot of work to do.
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Kilkenny v Tipperary (04-03-07)
Tipperary and Kilkenny meet in Round 2 of the National Hurling League Division 1B in Nowlan Park on Sunday at 2.30. The game is televised live on TG4. The sides met twice in last years league and Tipp were well beaten on both occasions. The first was in the Group stages when only for Brendan Cummins giving a masterclass Tipp would have been completely over run. Kilkenny led 10 to 3 at the break, Tipp brought in back to 3 points midway through the second half but Kilkenny pulled away with Richie Power and Cha Fitzpatrick the 2 main players. In the Semi Final Kilkenny made no mistake after early goals by Martin Comerford and Cha Fitzpatrick set Kilkenny up as they lead 2-3 to 0 after 14 minutes. Eoin Kelly goaled before the break but Kilkenny still walked away with the game and won 3-20 to 2-11 with Eoin Kelly top scorer for Tipp with 2-6.
Unusually both teams are entering this game having not won their opening round game. Kilkenny travelled to Dublin in Round 1 and despite fielding a very strong side they drew 0-19 to 2-13. Kilkenny lead by 6 points at the break and seemed to be pointing their way to a victory with Eddie Brennan and Eoin Larkin doing the most damage. However as injury time approached Kilkenny were 4 points ahead, Dublin got a penalty which sub Kevin O’Reilly buried to the net. With the game well into injury time he pointed a long range to draw the game. Last Sunday Kilkenny retained the Walsh Cup with a 1-13 to 0-10 win over Wexford in Wexford Park. The game was level at the break 7 points each but just into the second half Kilkenny got a lucky goal when a long range free from PJ Delaney was deflected to the net by Doc O’Connor. Lyng and Aidan Fogarty pointed and Kilkenny were in control until the end and ran out 6 point winners.
Tipp’s outing was a 2-13 to 0-16 home loss to Limerick. There have been 2 major developments since then in the Tipp camp the first is that following the Limerick game Colin Morrissey is no longer part of the panel and the second is that John O’Brien has been nominated by his club to be the Tipp captain for 2007. Given that it will be the middle of the simmer until he will be back the most senior Toome player will take the captaincy. If no Toome player is picked then Paul Curran was nominated by the County Board as captain. Again the lunacy of the captaincy issue has been highlighted with the above summary of the statement issued by the Tipp County Board last week. Already this year Brendan Cummins received the Waterford Crystal trophy as Tipp captain and Eamon Corcoran was captain v Limerick. Given that it is quiet conceivable that John O’Brien may not play this year it will put extra pressure on whoever is picked. The sooner the Tipp captaincy is changed to the players choosing the captain at the start of the year the better.
Tipp will have their work cut out with this game. It will be a step up in class and intensity from the Limerick game, but ideal preparation for the Championship. Hopefully the newer players especially those still involved with their Colleges Fitzgibbon campaigns will line out and impress. Tipp need better supply of ball into the forwards and need to give players like Danny O’Hanlon a chance to get the ball turn and bear down on goals. Given the poor showing of the Tipp half forward line until John Carroll showed up at half time Tipp need to find some ball winning wing forwards and soon. Also given the quality of the Kilkenny forwards the Tip backs will have to mark up and not let them waltz through like O’Shaughnessy did on numerous occasions the last day.
The Tipp team was picked last night and is as follows:
Brendan Cummins.
Eamonn Buckley, Paul Curran and Declan Fanning.
Eamonn Corcoran, Conor O’Mahony and Benny Dunne.
Shane McGrath and Francis Devanney.
John Carroll, Darragh Egan, and Lar Corbett.
Eoin Kelly, Danny O'Hanlon, and Paul Kelly.
The team shows 6 changes from the side that lost to Limerick. In come Paul Curran, Declan Fanning, Conor O'Mahony and Benny Dunne with only Eamon Buckley and Corcoran retaining their places. In midfield Francis Devaney replaces Colin Morrissey. In attack the ineffective Tony Scroope is replaced by John Carroll. Benny Dunne captains the team. Diarmaid Fitzgerald injured his knee while playing Fitzgibbon with UCD and is not considered, while Webster, Seamus Butler and Hugh Moloney were also not considered due to injury. Ken Dunne is also reported to be no longer part of the squad.
So a lot of changes in the Tipp team, but of the 6 players brought in none are new to the panel this year and it seems a waste not to give at least 1 of Alan Byrne, Stephen Lillis or Pa Bourke a start on Sunday. More than likely they will be played in the Antrim v Dublin games where very little will be learned. Surely the pressured atmosphere of Nowlan Park would be the ideal place to blood some of these players. It will be interesting to see how the 2 Toome boys fair on Sunday. In his last outing Benny Dunne was outstanding on Henry Shefflin in the club semi but he has never really seemed able to cope with the pace of wing back. Devanney was at centre forward in a few games for Tipp last year but has impressed for Toome in midfield. His partnership with McGrath might be a good one with McGrath doing the hard work, harassing, blocking and breaking up play with Devanney nipping in with a few points.
The forwards only see 1 change, and Egan can count himself lucky to be starting. Hopefully John Carroll will pose some aerial threat from puck outs. Please God he will catch the ball and not swing 1 handed aimlessly at it like he normally does. The inside line will need to be far more efficient this week as they will only get a fraction of the ball that they received against Limerick. It’s good to see Danny O’Hanlon getting another chance and a good game on Sunday would boost his confidence greatly.
As Kilkenny will be without their 2 starting Ballyhale players, Cha and Shefflin and Cody is likely to use this game to throw a lot of his younger players into the fray. Still he will be taking the League seriously, (Kilkenny are the defending Champions), so this will be a full blooded encounter. With both sides near the bottom of the table neither will want to lose this game however given home advantage and the fact that Kilkenny are by far the stronger of the two teams I can only see 1 outcome and that is a Kilkenny win by 5 + points.
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Limerick 2-13 Tipperary 0-16 (18-02-07)
For the first time since 2002, (and 10 League and Championship games), Limerick have defeated Tipp. They did so with a 3 point win at McDonagh Park Nenagh today in front of a decent crowd. The game started 5 minutes late and Tipp played with the advantage of the wind in the first half. Both sides lined out as selected with no late changes.
Tipp had the first scoring chance when Eamon Corcoran was fouled and the free by Eoin Kelly fell short and was cleared. Lar opened the scored for Tipp after being given the ball by Danny O’Hanlon. Shane McGrath then set up Eoin Kelly for the first point from play. Limerick had a wide before Darragh Egan set up Eoin Kelly for Tipp’s third of the day. Limerick got their first score when an off the ball incident saw Diarmaid Fitzgerald yellow carded for and incident with one of the Limerick midfielders and O’Shaughnessy did the needful from the free. Paul Kelly nearly got through on goals but nothing came of the chance. Shane McGrath won a free which Eoin Kelly pointed from midfield. Colm Morrissey gave a free away which Shaughnessy pointed. Poor play by Lar saw the ball go into the corner, Paul Ormonde made a very poor attempt to stop Shaughnessy who easily rounded him and at full tilt gave Cummins no chance. Limerick now were ahead 1-2 to 0-4.
Tipp responded with an Eoin Kelly 65 after Danny O’Hanlon rounded Lucey but saw his shot expertly tipped around the post by Murray. Shaughnessy put an easy free wide before he raced through on goals with Cummins smothering the ball and Shaughnessy pointing the 65. Limerick added 2 more points from Niall Moran and an O’Shaughnessy free to lead 1-5 to 0-5. In between an Eamon Corcoran sideline cut appeared to go over the bar but was waved wide. Lar was fouled and Kelly pointed. Shaughnessy got 2 frees the first for Philly Maher dragging down Seannie O’Connor, the second when Shane McGrath fouled. Danny O’Hanlon won a free which Eoin Kelly pointed. Eoin Kelly was now at centre forward, with Egan in the corner. Tipp then brought the score level when the 2 Kelly’s scored from play and Eoin added a late free after a foul on Shane McGrath. Half time score Tipp 0-10 Limerick 1-7.
Tipp made one change at the start of the second half, with the ineffective Tony Scroope replaced by John Carroll at wing forward. Limerick got the first point with Ollie Moran scoring. Lar Corbett got his second. Eoin Kelly then had his goal effort from a 21 yard free saved but pointed soon after when Darragh Egan was fouled. Shaughnessy got 2 more frees the first after Donal O’Grady was fouled. Barry Foley got out ahead of Eamon Buckley and scored a good point. A John Carroll shot found its way to Colin Morrissey but the shot was smothered by Murray and cleared. Paul Kelly had a good catch, turn and run before setting up the inrushing John Carroll whose shot was expertly saved, Eoin Kelly pointed the 65 to leave Tipp a point behind 0-13 to 1-11. Both sides made a change with Conor O’Mahony replacing Morrissey at midfield and Limerick took off Willie Walsh and put on Maurice O’Brien.
Eoin Kelly pointed a free before a silly foul by Lar saw Shaughnessy point. Lar redeemed himself when a he soloed through the middle and his rasping shot went over the bar to level the game. Limerick effectively sealed the game with just 10 minutes to go when a high dropping ball from Brain Geary was first timed to the net by Ollie Moran. Limerick brought on Donie Ryan for Mike Fitzgerald. Darragh was fouled and Eoin Kelly’s free was tipped over the bar. Andrew O’Shaughnessy expertly found Niall Moran who pointed. Limerick made their final change when Conor Fitzgerald replaced Niall Moran. Tipp then had another goal chance and but Lar Corbett eventually fresh aired the ball. Eoin Kelly was fouled and his free was cleared for a 65 which was cleared and after 2 minutes of injury time Dickie Murphy blew up for a Limerick win 2-13 to 0-16.
Richie Bennis will be well pleased with this win. In an unfamiliar pitch against a side which benefited from some home town decisions late on they were under severe pressure when Tipp went looking for goals but yet were able to nick 2 goals of their own and stay ahead to win by a goal. Best for Limerick were Brian Murray, (my Man of the Match), Paudie O’Dwyer at wind back cleared ball after ball, Andrew O’Shaughnessy who despite only scoring 1 goal from play had the beating of Paul Ormonde time and time, and the 2 Moran’s in patches. With home games coming up Limerick are now well in line to advance to the knock out stages of the league.
Babs will not be too unhappy by this game. In truth Limerick were the better team, they took their chances when they had them, and Tipp spent way too much time going for goals instead of picking off their points. It was the same old problems for Tipp, half forward line way too weak and ineffective this had the effect of letting no ball into the Tipp full forward line and being the launch pad for both Geary and Paudie O’Dwyer to create Limerick scores, and only Eoin Kelly the real scoring threat. A lot of Tipp players looked as if it was 6 months since they had played before, Ormonde, Fitzgerald and Morrissey in spite of the fact that most of them played in the Waterford Crystal League.
Tipp ratings:
Cummins could not be faulted for either goal. Should have varied his puck outs and not put them all down on Tony Scroope who won nothing in the air.
Full back line: Buckley had a competent game Barry Foley got out ahead of him once and scored. Philip Maher did seem up to the pace of the game gave away a few silly needless frees on Seannie O’Connor. Improved in eth second half. Paul Ormonde was twice easily rounded by Shaughnessy who goaled the first effort and the second 1 was saved.
Half back line: Eamon Corcoran took a belt at the off but settled well into the game. Shane Maher had a quiet game. Did not command the centre back spot but was not roasted either. Diarmaid Fitzgerald made a welcome return to the half back line. Took a while to settle in, and was booked early on for an off the ball incident.
Midfield: Colin Morrissey was very poor. Shane McGrath had a good game, worked tirelessly through out broke up a lot of play and set up a few scores for Lar Corbett. Was quiet for a spell in the second half when he twisted his ankle.
Half forward line: Lar Corbett scored 3 points from play but wasted a lot of ball. Good to see him in the half forward line where he is more of a threat but needs to cut out the silly hand passes and the petulant fouls. Tony Scroope was poor, in a ground that he should be very familiar with. Added no threat to the score board and won nothing in the air. Darragh Egan struggled with Brian Geary before being switched into the corner won a few frees but never looked like scoring himself.
Full forward line: Again it was Eoin Kelly who saved Tipp. Scored 3 points from play, 2 65’s and 7 from frees. Any other day would have at least a goal but Murray was in inspired form in the Limerick goals. Spent some time at centre forward. Paul Kelly scored 1 good point, got very little ball. Danny O’Hanlon had a tough baptism on Stephen Lucey, was game throughout and never dropped his head won 2 frees and also had a great goal effort saved. The tight pitch and lack of room to run did not help his game. Still not a bad introduction for this young player.
Subs:
John Carroll for Tony Scroope: had an immediate effect bustling up the play and running through on the goals had 1 great effort saved. His physical presence is required by this Tipp team.
Conor O’Mahony for Colin Morrissey: came on midway through the second half but did not have enough time to change the game.
So Tipp lose the first game of the 07 league. Still this game will have told the Tipp management a lot more than the 4 games in the Waterford Crystal League. Taken on its own this game was not that critical but given that the sides meet on the 10th June in the Munster Semi Final this game will have boosted Limericks confidence. The main flaws are still there, but thankfully Babs has another 4 games away in the League to try players. I am sure that the likes of Alan Byrnes, Ryan O Dwyer and Pa Bourke plus a few of the Toome lads will get some game time in the next few weeks. A win in the Kilkenny game is crucial to Tipp’s league ambitions. Still with the Championship 4 months away there is no need to hit the panic button just yet!
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Tipperary v Limerick 19/02/07
The 2007 National Hurling League kicks off on Sunday with Tipperary playing Limerick in McDonagh Park Nenagh at 2.30. The referee will be Wexford’s Dickie Murphy and there will be deferred coverage on TG4 later on in the day. Last year they met in the first game of the League and the game ended in a draw, 2-15. Tipperary captain Redser set up Benny Dunne for a late point and then in injury time he finished a John Carroll pass to the net for a scarcely deserved draw for Tipp in Babs first competitive game in charge. Interestingly enough only 5 of that Tipp side start again on Sunday.
Tipp have been busy since New Year. First off a training week in Wexford, (which included a game v Wexford, with Eoin Kelly in goals! Saw Tipp lose by a goal). This was followed with the Waterford Crystal Competition. Tipp played 4 games in four weeks, beating UL, WIT, Clare and then 2 weeks ago Cork fell in the final in Pairc Ui Chaiomh with Tipp winning on the scoreline of 1-17 to 2-11. Tipp with the Kelly brothers scoring 13 points and Danny O’Hanlon scoring 1-1 dominated the second half and won the first “silverware” of the hurling year.
Given the underage success enjoyed by the Minors and U21’s of last year and the very high profile hassle that effected Tipp after last years Munster Final it is no surprise that Babs let youth take its chance in the Waterford Crystal League. Given that a lot of players were tied to there Colleges and with the Toome lads out of contention a good mix of old pros and new blood got their chance. The 2 who got the most press were the full forwards of the U 21 and Minor teams, Danny O’Hanlon of Carrick Swans and Pa Bourke of Sars. Bracken’s man Ian Delaney also came in for praise for his corner back displays. Both of whom ran up good scores and blended well into the team. Other fringe players to impress were Eamon Buckley, Tony Scroope and Shane Maher at centre back.
In picking the team for Sunday Babs has a number of considerations. After Toome’s loss to Ballyhale Shamrocks last weekend their players were not considered. Also with the Fitzgibbon season hotting up a lot of Tipp players are playing prominent roles with their Colleges, defending champions WIT, (under Colm Bonnars tutelage), have Hugh Moloney. Shane McGrath and Conor O’Mahony with LIT and James Woodlock and Ian Delaney with the Guards are just some of the Tipp players in action this week. Babs will also be over UCD again this year.
The Tipp team was picked last night and is as follows:
Brendan Cummins.
Eamonn Buckley, Philip Maher, and Paul Ormonde.
Eamonn Corcoran, Shane Maher, and Diarmaid Fitzgerald.
Shane McGrath and Colin Morrissey.
Tony Scroope, Darragh Egan, and Lar Corbett.
Eoin Kelly, Danny O'Hanlon, and Paul Kelly.
The Tipp team shows 3 changes from the side that beat Cork 2 weeks ago (and 7 from the side that bowed out to Waterford in the All-Ireland Quarter Final last year). Paul Ormonde and Eamon Corcoran return in the backs for Declan Fanning and Vincent Doheny while Shane McGarth replaces Stephen Lillis in midfield. The forwards remain the same which means that it’s a first competitive game for Danny O’Hanlon. This is a remarkable rise for Carrick Swan’s Danny who has played County Minor for 4 years and despite being injured for a lot of last year was crucial to Tipp nearly winning an U21 All-Ireland and was one of the better Tipp players in the replayed game in Thurles. Sunday also marks another chance for the Burgess duo of Shane Maher and Tony Scroope to nail down a place. Both have played bit parts over the past number of years and given Tipp’s yearly problems in the half forward line a good showing by Scroope could lead to a Championship start.
The positioning of the forwards is interesting with Paul Kelly receiving good reports with his placing at corner forward. It’s a pity that such a gifted hurler has been let down in recent years by his inability to mark players but seen as he first burst into the Tipp set up as a very young wing forward under Nicky in 2000 his positioning closer to goals gives Tipp a serious goal poaching threat. The positioning of Eoin Kelly at corner forward is another surprise as Babs had said in the media that he was excelling at centre forward. I expect a few switches come Sunday in the forwards with possibly Eoin and Lar switching. It will be interesting to see how Darragh Egan gets on at centre forward as most of his displays to date have been closer to goals. Another good aspect is that most of the players picked are natural in their positions, as opposed to last year where there were way too many backs in the forwards and our performances suffered as a result.
The backs look very solid with Eamon Buckley hoping to carry forward his outstanding displays for Drom onto another level. Philip Maher gets a chance to reclaim the full back spot although considering Paul Curran’s imperious displays there at the latter stages of last year campaign it will take a number of outstanding displays to reclaim the No. 3 jersey. It is good to see Diarmaid Fitzgerald return to his natural position of wing back. His talent was wasted in the forwards last year. The Tipp midfield looks very workmanlike and both will work their socks off all afternoon.
Limerick have been very quiet this year under Richie Bennis, going out of the Waterford Crystal early on in the year. They will have all the dual players this year but will still be without a number of players for Sunday through injury. Brian Begley, Conor Fitzgerald, Pat Tobin, Seamus Hickey and Mark Keane are all ruled out for Sunday. Limerick will name their team later on in the week.
According to an interview Babs gave in the media during the week Tipp will be going for the League this year. As Tipp are not in Championship action until 10th June and given that the novelty gloss has worn off Babs second coming as Tipp manager a League crown would put Tipp in good stead approaching the Championship. The tighter confines of Nenagh should stand to Tipp as most of the North and Mid players would be very familiar with it. The main thing on Sunday is a competent performance from Tipp with the newer players showing up well. So Tipp to prevail by 3 points.