Senior Hurling County Semi-Final : Sunday 5th October 2014 The Gaelic Grounds 2:00pm
Kilmallock 0-18 Doon 0-16
Kilmallock supporters studied the weather forecast for the weekend and with the met office predicting wind and rain for Sunday afternoon we foresaw a battle in the Gaelic Grounds with treacherous conditions where anything could happen, anything could go wrong. Doon will always put up a battle but we wanted to stand toe to toe with them on the hurling field with nothing else to contend with.
As it turned out Sunday morning was dry and calm and when the ball was thrown in at two o’clock conditions were ideal for hurling. The first half was hotly contested and it was point for point as both teams tried to forge ahead. Eoin Ryan kept Kilmallock in touch from placed balls and also tagged over a point from play. The Doon goalkeeper pulled off a dramatic double-save first from Jake Mulcahy and on the rebound from Eoin Ryan after fifteen minutes. Two points each from Graeme and Jake Mulcahy and a long range effort from the impressive Robbie Egan had Kilmallock ahead 0-10 to 0-9 at the break but scores were hard to come by and our back-line had to stand strong in the face of a determined Doon attack.
The second half resumed in similar fashion and both teams traded points with Kilmallock just keeping their noses in front. Doon were awarded a dubious penalty midway through the half and with his side trailing by a single point Barry Murphy was instructed to go for goal. With the rule changes for the penalty it is now difficult to convert but still the Kilmallock spectators watched on nervously. Barry Hennessy came to the rescue with a fine save and the danger was averted – for the moment. With the sides tied at 0-16 each Ger O’Loughlin and his team made a double change, first introducing Robbie Hanley and then Kieran Kenneally. Under a dropping ball, the dangerous Kenneally was man-handled and the referee Declan O’Driscoll had no option but to award a penalty. Eoin Ryan, wisely, tapped the ball over the bar to give us the lead with only minutes remaining. On the stroke of full-time Robbie Hanley ghosted onto the end of a long ball and hit what was to be the insurance point. The referee, to Kilmallock’s dismay, played another five minutes of added time and Doon threw everything at us to find a winning score. Out of a “scrum” thirty metres from the Kilmallock goal, Doon were awarded a free. The Doon striker was instructed that he had to score direct. Eight green jerseys stood on the line but it was Barry Hennessy to the rescue again and as he smothered the Doon attempt Declan O’Driscoll blew the final whistle much to the relief of the Balbec supporters.
Before the Kilmallock team reached the dressing-rooms the promised rain arrived at The Gaelic Grounds. Sunday evening was, as forecast, very wet and very windy. But we were on the road home – battle won, job done.
Kilmallock : Barry Hennessy, Liam Hurley, Mark O’Loughlin, Aaron Costello, Liam Walsh, Philip O’Loughlin, Kevin O’Donnell (0-1), Bryan O’Sullivan, Paudie O’Brien (0-1), Jake Mulcahy (0-3), Gavin O’Mahony, Robbie Egan (0-2), Graeme Mulcahy, Capt. (0-3), Eoin Ryan (0-7), Benni Burke.
Substitutes : Robbie Hanley (0-1)for Burke (45 mins), Kieran Kenneally for O’Sullivan (50 mins). Owen Webb O’Rourke, Donal Barry, Andrew O’Shaughnessy, Conor Barry, Kevin Roche, David Barry, Donncha Higgins, Paddy O’Loughlin, Dan Joy, Stephen Quirke, Thomas English.
Congratulations to the players,management and officers of the club on reaching the County Final.Roll on the 19th,up Kilmallock
“Phew”, What a close shave. Performance will have to be upped significantly if we are to win the county title. The most important thing for now is that we have qualified for the final so well done to one and all. We will be contesting the club’s 17th Limerick senior county hurling final with ten in the bag. So come on lads and let’s make it eleven.