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Ennistymon 1-4 – St Senan’s Kilkee 0-6 at Páirc Naomh Mhuire, Quilty

DESPITE being a relatively inexperienced side, Ennistymon once again proved that they have the character to dig out a result when it matters most. The north Clare side were represented by eight of last year’s Under 21 winning side but against seasoned campaigners such as Kilkee and Liscannor, whom they met in the opening round of the champonship, they have proved that they have the belly for battle along with that undoubted potential.

Granted, Kilkee were forced into playing a good sprinkling of young players themselves but with the county senior experience of David Russell, Darragh Kelly, Gearoid Lynch, Kevin Larkin and Michael O’Shea, the Blues’ had enough guile on the field to gain promotion.

It didn’t happen though as they depended far too much on the quartet of Larkin, Russell, Barry Harte and Michael O’Shea while Ennistymon simply had the batter balance and were greatly aided by Sean McConigley’s goal at the turn of the final quarter that essentially handed them victory.

Undoubtedly, conditions weren’t conducive to football with both teams finding it near impossible to even handpass accurately not to mind kick the ball. It made for a substandard, low scoring spectacle but regardless of the weather, both sides had a game to win and in truth, it could have gone either way in what was a tense finish.

Shooting was hardly a priority early on as the sides became accustomed to the conditions with the sides locked at two points apiece for the majority of the half with Sean Mc- Conigley and a David Murphy free helping Ennistymon pull clear twice only to be pegged back on each occasion first by David Russell and then Christopher Williamson.

Wind assisted Kilkee might have also grabbed a goal when a rare flowing passing move ended up with Darragh Kelly but his rushed shot was blocked by the returning Michael Hohey. However, with the hard work seemingly done, Ennistymon eased off the pedal somewhat in injury time and it allowed Darren Clarke and a long range effort from Kevin Larkin to hand Kilkee a 0-4 to 0-2 interval advantage.

With the tables turned for the second period, it also took a while for Ennistymon to utilise their tenuous wind advantage but eventually two points in the 41st minute through Joey Rouine and Kevin Scales gained parity for the third time.

However, it was only when Sean McConligley grabbed a 47th minute breakaway goal that Ennistymon truly began to believe. In what was the best move of the game, Ennistymon moved the ball from back to front starting with a Joe Dowling interception at the corner-back position and working the ball upfield to McConigley who only had goal on his mind.

True to form however, Kilkee never gave up the ghost and after Barry Harte and Michael O’Shea had pulled back points by the 54th minute, there was only the minimum between the sides once more. They failed to get that vital score however, with their best chance coming from a quick Williamson free that picked out Gearoid Lynch, but his attempt to pick out the onrushing Senan Larkin for a potential goal instead of taking his own score failed, much to the relief of Ennistymon who literally weathered the storm to hang on for promotion.

DEFENDING champions Newmarket-on-Fergus were held to a stalemate by neighbours Clarecastle in the first defence of their title on home soil. Indeed, the holders had to come from behind to salvage a point after finding themselves 3-08 to 1-10 in arrears by the 50th minute after Magpie goals from Stephen Ward (2) and Pajoe Dolan before the home side dug deep mainly through James Warren and Frank Melody to eventually equalise by the hour mark at 3-08 to 1-14.

There were no doubt about the result for last year’s beaten finalists Sixmilebridge however who had a comprehensive 6-17 to 1-13 victory over B champions Clonlara on Friday evening. Goals from Conor Deasy (2), Jamie Shanahan, Sean Lynch, David Murphy and Alex Morey secured the victory for the away side who led by 4-9 to 1-5 at the break. There was also a sizeable win for Ballyea who had ten points to spare over Éire Óg. A Martin O’Leary goal saw them lead by 1-13 to 0-06 at the break with Tony Kelly, Martin O’Leary, Niall Deasy and Tadgh Lynch among the points scorers while a Michael Nagle goal on the turnover put the result beyond any doubt. Minor A Championship Round 1 Ballyea 2-19 Éire Óg 2-09 Newmarket-on-Fergus 1-14 Clarecastle 3-08 Sixmilebridge 6-17 Clonlara 1-13 Minor B Championship Round 1 Group 1 Inagh/Kilnamona 2-14 Broadford 1-08 Inis Cealtra 4-11 Kilmaley 2-11 Meelick 1-16 Parteen 0-13 Group 2 Smith O’Brien’s 2-13 Corofin 0-07

Doonbeg 0-13 – St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield 1-05 at St Michael ’s Park, Kilmihil

ST JOSEPH’S Doora-Barefield made a fight of it in the second half, but it was always nothing more than a scrap to make it look more respectable as Doonbeg easily franked their favourites tag to reach a first Cusack Cup decider in three years and their 17th in all.

And, their work was as good as done in the first half, just like it was when they sides met in the round robin stages. That day it was goals that eased them to success – this time their flurry of 13 points over the hour did the business.

They led by 0-6 to no score at half-time as St Joseph’s were pinned back when playing against the wind. Shane Killeen, making a rare start this season, got them going with a point inside the third minutes while Eamon Tubridy and Kileen again had them three points clear by the tenth minute.

It wasn’t quite one-way traffic in terms of possession over the course of the half hour, but certainly was when it came to converting scoring chances. St Joseph’s couldn’t breach Nigel Dillon’s goal, while further points from David Tubridy, Colm Dillon and Paul Dillon rounded off the Magpies’ half dozen by the break.

When Paul Dillon and David Tubridy added points early in the second half to stretch their lead to eight, St Joseph’s must have feared the ignominy of a whitewash but at least the mustered a fight back in the closing 20 minutes that left only five points in it at the end.

Cathal O’Sullivan got them going with a point, while Mark Rafferty (3) and a Johnny O’Brien free earned them some respectability, but the Magpies were still never ruffled as two David Tubridy frees, two from play by Paul Dillon and Eamon Tubridy’s second of the hour meant that a late goal from Damian Kennedy was nothing more than a consolation strike.

Meelick 2-12 – Cooraclare 1-06 at Gurteen

MEELICK’S rise through the ranks continued on Saturday evening when securing their second successive promotion at the expense of Cooraclare.

A goal either side of half-time swung the tie in the south east Clare side’s favour, having trailed by six points approaching the break.

And they never looked back from that, finishing the game in emphatic fashion by kicking ten unanswered points to confirm their place in the decider.

That freeflowing style was in total contrast to a 20 minute period midway through the opening half when allowing Cooraclare to hit them for 1-5 without reply. Meelick started the brighter though, with county senior Kevin Harnett and Brian O’Neill pushing them two clear by the fifth minute.

However, through the accuracy of Declan Keane, Cooraclare’s second string finally settled and their confidence was greatly aided by Don Garry’s 17th minute goal when finding himself unmarked after a poor Meelick free kick that was arrowed directly to Garry by wing-back Kevin Clohessy.

Further points from Colin Kelly, Kieran Tubridy and Keane had Cooraclare cruising as the interval approached but they were to be suckerpunched against the run of play when in injury-time, a fortunate rebound fell to Brian O’Neill who offloaded for Patrick Finucane to finish to the net and cut the deficit to just three.

Worse luck was to follow for Cooraclare when after only two minutes of the restart, Brian O’Neill flicked a Jamie O’Sullivan mishit free to the net and gain parity.

Cooraclare did reply immediately through Keane but those goals had given Meelick the boost they craved and once again Meelick equalised through a Harnett free before substitute Gary Moloney handed them the lead in the 40th minute.

The turning point of the game arguably came in the 41st minute when Keane played in Anthony Lillis only to see his sidefooted effort excellently kept out by goalkeeper Shane Daly.

Cooraclare alarmingly fell away after that however while Meelick only grew in confidence as the half progressed when pulling away from their opponents in the final quarter.

Impressive attacking pair Finucane and Brian O’Neill grabbed a brace of points each, Jamie O’Sullivan kicked three points (two from placed balls) while Stephen Hayes completed the rout in the 61st minute with a free to give Meelick the double scores victory.

Promotion guaranteed, next up is an intriguing clash against fellow Junior A championship favourites Coolmeen in a fortnight’s time as last year’s Division 5 champions hope to add another title to their growing roll of honour.

Meelick
Shane Daly, Peter Reidy, Mickey Kelly, Gary Kennedy, Brian Barrett, Niall Mullen,Willie O’Shaughnessy, Stephen Hayes (0-1f), Kevin Harnett (0-2 1f), Gary Callinan, Brian O’Neill (1-3), AndyWhyte, Darragh Quinn, Patrick Finucane (12), Jamie O’Sullivan (0-3 1f, 1’45)

Subs
Damien Moloney for Kennedy (27 mins), Gary Moloney (0-1) for Callinan (HT)

Cooraclare
Joe Killeen, Michael Chambers, Sean Garry, Michael Horan, Robert Ryan, Gearoid Looney, Kevin Clohessy, Michael Considine, KieranTubridy (0-1), James Burke, Colin Kelly (0-1),Thomas O’Connor, Anthony Lillis, Declan Keane (0-4 2f), Don Garry (1-0)

Subs
John Francis Killeen for Ryan (44 mins), Darragh O’Dea for Lillis (53 mins), David O’Looney for Burke (58 mins)

Man of the Match
Patrick Finucane (Meelick) Referee Damien Fox (WolfeTones)

NEWMARKET-ON-FERGUS and Crusheen will face off for top spot in Division 1 following the play-off draw on Monday evening. Inagh/Kilnamona’s late surge meant that there is a three way play-off for two semifinal places in the Clare Cup along with Newmarket-on-Fergus and Crusheen. Those sides were drawn first, allowing them to play off for top spot while Inagh/Kilnamona will play the losers of that tie to decide the second semi-final place.

What is certain is that last year’s promoted sides Broadford and Wolfe Tones will be back in the second tier for the 2012 campaign and will be replaced by the two sides that were relegated from the top tier last year, Clonlara and Cratloe. However, while promotion is ensured for the 2008 and 2009 county champions respectively, Clonlara still have one game outstanding against Corofin that could have a huge bearing on both ends of the Division 2A table. With Cratloe beating Clonlara in the league, Clonlara will need to get something out of the Corofin game in order to claim a last four spot in the competition that they won backto-back in 2008 and ‘09. Equally Corofin require the points to avoid the drop to Division 2B and if they can avoid defeat, Scariff and Ballyea will be relegated. If they are unable to get anything out of the game, then it will come down to scoring difference.

Killanena earned a late reprieve to consolidate their Clare Cup status on Saturday by beating Parteen and leapfrogging Bodyke in the process, thus relegating the east Clare side along with neighbours Ogonnelloe while Kilmaley and Éire Óg will move up to Division 2A for 2012, with Kilmaley awaiting the winners of the first play-off in Division 1 to confirm their opponents in the Clare Cup semi-final.

Meanwhile, the Intermediate League semi-finals go ahead this weekend with the winners securing promotion to the Clare Cup. Inagh/ Kilnamona and Meelick will face off in Shannon on Saturday while the mouthwatering repeat of last year’s Junior A championship final between Crusheen and Newmarket will decide the other finalist.

In Division 4, last year’s finalists Clonlara will take on Whitegate for advancement to the final while Doora/Barefield and the Mills second strings pair off for the other place.

Clare 2-15 – Limerick 2-13 at Cusack Park, Ennis

WINNING Munster finals is a habit that Clare are quickly getting used to after their second historic achievement in only three days. Following the minors retention of their provincial crown, Clare’s second side maintained that form by capturing a first ever Munster intermediate crown in front of a sizeable home support.

It may not have been the swashbuckling display of their underage counterparts in Pairc Uí Chaoimh the previous weekend but Clare were still deserved victors over their neighbours, having led for the majority of the tie and only falling behind once and that for a matter of seconds midway through the opening half.

Essentially, Kevin Kennedy’s side had the better balance on the evening, with the county senior experience of Niall Gilligan, captain Tony Carmody and Declan O’Rourke perfectly complementing the undoubtedly potential of Patrick Kelly, John Fennessy, Andrew Fahey, Kevin Moynihan, Shane Golden, and Daire Keane who would end the day as the side’s top scorer from play with 1-2.

Kelly was outstanding at full-back as was Fennessy outside him while Gilligan provided cool leadership and scorers when the game threatened to turn against them in the second half. That melting pot of talent was just enough to hold off a stubborn Limerick side that had they taken their chances in the second half, could have stole victory.

It was Clare that were the wasteful side in the opening half however with the wind at their backs, hitting nine first half wides that hampered their progress of building on their 1-4 to 0-2 advantage by the 12th minute. Carmody, O’Rourke and Gilligan utilised their experience to good effect in pushing the home side clear but it was 1-1 from Under 21 Daire Keane that really got Clare motoring as he fielded a puck-out to drive at the Limerick defence before billowing the net in the 12th minute.

A rout appeared on the cards at this stage but in the move of the game, Limerick pulled back corner-forward Tommy Quaid as a sweeper which had a two-fold effect. It allowed the Limerick forwards more space up front while also hindering Clare at the other end and it had an almost immediate impact as Michael Ryan thrived on the space to pick off a 18th minute goal.

The Murroe/Boher player followed up with a point to equalise while Tommy Quaid himself put Limerick into the lead for the first time in the 21st minute with an impressive point from the left wing.

With Clare’s defence fragmented, Clare were fortunate to go in level at half-time after a brace of Gilligan frees and they used the break to regroup and re-arm as they came out with all guns blazing for the second half. Gilligan, now on the forty, swapped points with Conor Allis but Clare finally pushed clear once more when Tony Carmody picked out the run of Ronan Keane who took the score of the game when finding the top corner of the net to give his side a 2-7 to 1-7 lead.

That goal seemed to knock the stuffing out of Limerick as Gilligan extended Clare’s advantage with a further brace of points by the turn of the final quarter.

However, Clare didn’t kill off the game and it had to take a Patrick Kelly clearance off the line to maintain their cushion. Two points from substitute Padraig Hickey along with another Gilligan point kept Limerick’s recovery at bay with points of their own through Seanie O’Brien (2) and Niall Maher.

Clare’s full-back line were finding themselves increasingly under pressure but through Kelly, Fahey and Fennessy, they managed to hold out. Late points from Ronan Keane, Daire Keane and O’Rourke appeared to have quenched the Limerick flames but the gloss was taken off the victory with a last gasp goal from Niall Maher.

It wasn’t enough to spoil the party but leaves Clare with plenty of room for improvement ahead of their AllIreland semi-final against Galway on August 13.

Clare

Kilmurry Ibrickane 1-9 – St Joseph’s Miltown 0-6 at St Michael ’s Park, Kilmihil

IT didn’t take long for the men of Miltown to realise that their grip on the Cusack Cup was gone – 12 minutes in fact, because in that time Kilmurry Ibrickane flexed their football muscles and when playing into the gale stormed into a 1-2 to no score lead.

Game over really, because from there Miltown were playing a game of catch-up they never looked like winning against a Kilmurry team, shorn of many regulars but still utterly dominant in nearly everything they did.

No Shane Hickey, no Declan Callinan, no Paul O’Connor, but still with plenty of reserve talent to sweep away the Miltown challenge with the minimum of fuss for this double scores win.

They never really looked back when early points from play by Niall Hickey and Michael Hogan gave them a foothold, while two scores from placed balls by the 12th minute had them on the high road.

Ian McInerney, who hit four points over the hour, floated over a free in the tenth before Enda Coughlan drilled a penalty to the net two minutes later – the kick came after a sweeping Kilmurry move was only ended when Michael Hogan was upended eight yards from goal.

Miltown were on the ropes and though they rallied thanks to a couple of Dessie Molohan frees by the 17th minute, they still trailed by 1-5 to 0-4 at the interval after Kilmurry points from Michael Hogan and Ian McInerney were responded to by points from Micheal Malone and Dessie Molohan before the break. With the wind Kilmurry were never in danger – while playing within themselves their four-point lead was still intact by the 50th minute after points by Peter O’Dwyer and Ian McInerney cancelled out two Eoin Curtin frees to leave matters resting at 1-7 to 0-6. The closing ten minutes were a procession as Kilmurry unloaded their bench long before the finish and further points by Peter O’Dwyer who dominated the midfield exchanges throughout and Ian McInerney eased them into a first final since 2009 when they were shocked by Cooraclare in the final.

Éire Óg 1-7 – O’Curry’s 0-3 at Páirc Naomh Mhuire, Quilty

ÉIRE ÓG bounced back to the top tier at the first attempt after eventually shaking off the challenge of intermediate side O’Curry’s on Sunday. Far from the comprehensive display that the final scoreline suggests, it was only in the final few minutes that the Ennis side finally pulled clear when outscoring their opponents by 0-4 to 0-1.

Much like the other semi-final 24 hours earlier, the blustery conditions totally dictated play but it was in the opening half that the Townies essentially sowed the seeds of victory when soaking up the pressure and scoring the decisive score just before the break. Both sides would only score twice in that first period but with the swirling breeze favouring O’Curry’s, they frustratingly kicked eight wides and only converted two placed balls through Derek Troy and Ger Quinlan while Éire Óg would add to Shane Daniels ninth minute point with a late goal that would ultimately alter the narrative of the game.

O’Curry’s had limited Éire Óg to only a handful of attacks for the previous 28 minutes but when an O’Curry’s attack broke down, their opponents were handed the opportunity to counter-attack and open up the O’Curry’s defence for the first time.

Captain Stephen Hickey began the move when attracting the fullback line before offloading to Brian McMahon who in turn put in David Monaghan to place a low shot under the body of goalkeeper PJ Green.

While it was a hammer blow to O’Curry’s chances, they held the Townies scoreless for the first 12 minutes of the restart led by the tireless Ollie Quinlan but crucially failed to make any meaningful inroads on the Éíre Óg rearguard themselves.

Eventually after four successive wides, Éire Óg found their range with Shane Daniels setting up Sean O’Meara for the opening score of the second half while O’Meara returned the favour when earning a free for Daniels to convert from 45 metres two minutes later.

Instead of kicking on from there however, that four point gap remained until the 56th minute when Daniels (2) , Monaghan and effective substitute Darren O’Neill put the finishing touches to the victory while only seeing a Damien Carmody point in return for O’Curry’s, their first point in almost 40 minutes and first from play in the entire game which tells its own tale.

The result guarantees Cusack Cup football for the Ennis side in 2012 but they will now want to finish the job this weekend in order to build up confidence ahead of the recommencement of the championship in less than five weeks time.

IF the president of the Irish Handball Association, Walter O’Connor, had any doubts about making the long journey to Tuamgraney, they evaporated somewhere en route from Dubai to Dublin.

“It was on Thursday night,” O’Connor told those gathered in Tuamgraney on Saturday night, “and I got talking to a man next to me on the flight. In conversation I told him I was president of the Irish Handball Council. The minute I mentioned handball he mentioned Pat Kirby.

“That tells you about Pat Kirby’s standing and the Kirbys in general. They are handball’s first family and it’s why it’s a huge honour for me to be here to celebrate 100 years of handball in Tuamgraney,” he said.

Of course, O’Connor had no doubts that the journey from Dubai to Dublin and onto Tuamgraney had to be made – it was a pilgrimage of sorts for O’Connor, in his capacity as national president of Irish handball, but also because of the influence the Kirbys had on his career.

“My first memory of handball is when I was two year’s of age when I saw Joey Maher playing Pat Kirby in the World final in Croke Park in 1970. That’s what encouraged me and inspired me to play handball.

“Joey Maher was my coach. He was the legend in our area and my father brought me up on his knee to watch that final. To see them play at the level they played was an inspiration.

“Pat Kirby to me was a legend. Pat Kirby is like Jack Nicklaus in golf in terms of being remembered. The same with John McEnroe or Bjorn Borg in tennis. He’ll always be remembered – he is to the sport of handball what those other legends are to their own sports. “We owe a great debt of gratitude to the Kirby clan for the contribution they have made to the sport and what they’ve given to the sport over the years. They’re fantastic people and fantastic ambassadors for the game of handball.

“I go back a long way with the Kirbys. I have known the Kirbys since I was three and four years of age. I remember when I started playing handball I used to go into the room on my own and let on I was playing Pat Kirby’s son.

“It’s very important that we hold dear our heritage and our tradition – the tradition that the Kirby brothers, Haulie Hogan, Pakie Ryan and all the great players who have played over the years. We need to guard that as much as we can.

“Tuamgraney is a symbol of continuance in handball. Over 100 you have produced fantastic players, winning World titles, American Open titles, you’ve got Diarmuid Nash and Niall Malone and some very good young girls on the way up as well. It’s clubs like Tuamgraney that will help handball grow and get its rightful place in the association.

“Handball is a labour of love. We fought hard to keep ourselves alive – the development of the sport is a big family atmosphere. When you have clubs like Tuamgraney celebrating 100 years and a club that has produced a line of world champions, All-Ireland champions, they’re integral to the survival of handball,” added O’Connor.