It’s Munster senior hurling final day and welcome along to our coverage. It’s the second successive year that Tipperary and Waterford will contest the showpiece but it’s the Gaelic Grounds that will host this encounter rather than Semple Stadium.
Will Waterford overturn Tipperary after losing out in last year’s decider, along with the 2009, 2011 and 2012 finals? Or will Tipperary retain their crown? Throw-in is 4pm.
Here’s the Tipperary team named to start. One change from the semi-final success over Limerick with Niall O’Meara replacing the suspended John O’Dwyer.
Tipperary
1. Darren Gleeson – Portroe
2. Cathal Barrett – Holycross-Ballycahill
3. James Barry – Upperchurch-Drombane
4. Michael Cahill – Thurles Sarsfields
5. Seamus Kennedy – St. Mary’s
6. Ronan Maher – Thurles Sarsfields
7. Padraic Maher – Thurles Sarsfields
8. Brendan Maher (Capt.) – Borris-Ileigh
9. Michael Breen – Ballina
10. Dan McCormack – Borris-Ileigh
11. Patrick Maher – Lorrha-Dorrha
12. Noel McGrath – Loughmore-Castleiney
13. John McGrath – Loughmore-Castleiney
14. Seamus Callanan – Drom & Inch
15. Niall O’Meara – Kilruane MacDonaghs
And here’s how Waterford will shape up. They’re unchanged from the semi-final triumph over Clare.
Waterford
1. Stephen O’Keeffe (Ballygunner)
2. Shane Fives (Tourin)
3. Barry Coughlan (Ballygunner)
4. Noel Connors (Passage)
5. Tadhg de Burca (Clashmore / Kinsalebeg)
6. Austin Gleeson (Mount Sion)
7. Philip Mahony (Ballygunner)
8. Jamie Barron (Fourmilewater)
18. Darragh Fives (Tourin)
10. Kevin Moran (De La Salle)
11. Shane Bennett (Ballysaggart)
12. Michael Walsh (Stradbally)
13. Patrick Curran (Dungarvan)
20. Pauric Mahony (Ballygunner)
21. Maurice Shanahan (Lismore)
Munster MHC Final Full-Time: Tipperary 1-24 Limerick 0-10
A comfortable win for Tipperary in the minor decider, they advance to the All-Ireland semi-final stage.
Some pre-match reading.
Interview here with Tipperary captain Brendan Maher
And a look back at Waterford’s last senior hurling outing at the Gaelic Grounds.
And a reminder of how yesterday’s All-Ireland hurling qualifiers unfolded in Thurles.
The winners of today’s game at the Gaelic Grounds will advance to an All-Ireland semi-final meeting in Croke Park on 14 August.
The losers will face an All-Ireland quarter-final tie on 24 July. If the losers are Tipperary, then there will be a draw to determine whether they will take on Wexford or Clare. If the losers are Waterford, then they will face Wexford as repeat pairings are not allowed and the Deise have already met the Banner this season.
Shane Mawe has been in touch to point out the level of familiarity amongst the Tipperary rearguard.
All Tipp’s back men played Harty Cup for Thurles CBS.
Nearly set to go at the Gaelic Grounds, who’s your tip to win?
Waterford 0-1 Tipperary 0-0
1 min – Less that 20 seconds gone and Patrick Curran clips over a lovely point fro Waterford after excellent work from captain Kevin Moran.
Waterford 0-2 Tipperary 0-0
3 mins – And Austin Gleeson doubles Waterford’s advantage as he converts a sideline.
Waterford 0-3 Tipperary 0-2
6 mins – Seamus Callanan got Tipperary off the mark from a free, Waterford replied through Pauric Mahony before Michael Breen then pointed.
Goal for Tipperary from John McGrath!
Tipperary 1-2 Waterford 0-5
9 mins – Disaster in the Waterford defence as Stephen O’Keeffe cannot control the ball and McGrath nips in to net. Pauric Mahony slots a free at the other end.
Waterford 0-7 Tipperary 1-2
14 mins – Gleeson sideline and Mahony free, Waterford go two in front.
Waterford 0-7 Tipperary 1-3
15 mins – Paraic Maher cuts the deficit Tipp face to one.
Waterford 0-7 Tipperary 1-4
18 mins – All square now after Callanan knocks over a free.
Tipperary 1-5 Waterford 0-7
22 mins – And Tipperary hit the front. Callanan is fouled by Barry Coughlan and he points the resultant free himself.
Tipperary 1-6 Waterford 0-7
26 mins – That’s four points in a row now for Tipperary as Callanan points a free. Then Tipperary have several goal chances in a passage of play, Waterford scramble to clear and eventually it’s Shane Fives who clears it off the line.
Tipperary 1-7 Waterford 0-7
31 mins – So that’s a three-point advantage now for Tipperary, Callanan with another free after Niall O’Meara was fouled by Noel Connors.
Waterford struggling now. Pauric Mahony’s freetaking is not hitting his usual high standards today as he misses one.
Yellow Card - Tipperary’s Ronan Maher is penalised for a foul on Austin Gleeson.
Tipperary 1-7 Waterford 0-8
34 mins – A score that Waterford badly needed as Mahony takes care to point the free.
Dreadful miss from Niall O’Meara for Tipperary. He had the time and space, should have pointed that. Four wides so far for Tipperary but ten for Waterford.
Half-Time: Tipperary 1-7 Waterford 0-8
So Tipperary ahead by two points at the break. Waterford started brightest but they seemed rattled by that John McGrath goal and have conceded plenty frees after that which Seamus Callanan has converted. Underwhelming first-half so far but both sides still in it.
Here’s the first-half scorers:
Tipperary: Seamus Callanan 0-5 (0-5f), John McGrath 1-0, Michael Breen, Padraic Maher 0-1 each.
Waterford: Pauric Mahony 0-5 (0-4f), Austin Gleeson 0-2 (0-2 sideline), Patrick Curran 0-1
Tipperary 1-8 Waterford 0-9
37 mins – Early second-half points swapped from Patrick Curran and Callanan (free). Still two in it.
Tipperary 1-9 Waterford 0-9
39 mins – The first Tipperary point from play in this game from a forward comes from Noel McGrath.
Tipperary 1-10 Waterford 0-9
40 mins – And then Callanan shows sublime skill to get the ball up and clip over a point.
A second goal for Tipperary from John McGrath!
Tipperary 2-11 Waterford 0-10
41 mins – And Tipperary now six points in front. Pauric Mahony had pulled a point back for Waterford but then John McGrath surged through before booting to the net. Another point from Bonner Maher and Tipp are seven clear. They’re flying.
How can Waterford come back from this? They need to start packing a greater attacking punch.
And Pauric Mahony’s freetaking accuracy is really letting him down as he hits another wide for Waterford.
Goal for Tipperary from Michael Breen!
Tipperary 3-11 Waterford 0-10
44 mins – And that looks to be that. Superb vision by John McGrath and it’s Michael Breen who is the beneficiary. He smashes home a fierce shot to the net and that’s his fourth Munster senior championship goal after a brace against Limerick last month and one against Limerick last summer.
Penalty to Tipperary! Callanan is fouled by Barry Coughlan.
Hat-trick completed by Tipperary’s John McGrath!
Tipperary 4-11 Waterford 0-10
48 mins – It’s all going wrong now for Waterford. McGrath fires the penalty to the net as Tipperary extend their advantage to 13 points.
Subs: Tipp bring in Jason Forde for Niall O’Meara. Tom Devine on for Waterford for Shanahan.
Tipperary 4-12 Waterford 0-10
53 mins – We’re at the midway mark of the second-half but this game looks a done deal. Callanan fires over a free for Tipperary. It’s been a really bad day at the office for Waterford.
Tipperary 4-13 Waterford 0-10
55 mins – Another John McGrath point.
Subs: Austin Gleeson gone off for Waterford, Sean Curran on for Tipperary for Dan McCormack. Conor Gleeson replaces Noel Connors on the Waterford team.
Tipperary 4-14 Waterford 0-10
57 mins – Callanan splits the posts again as Tipperary hit another point from a free.
Tipperary 4-15 Waterford 0-10
58 mins – Callanan brings his total to the day for 0-10 for Tipperary.
Sub: Pauric Mahony gone for Waterford as Brian O’Halloran comes in.
Sub: Tipperary take off captain Brendan Maher and introduce Kieran Bergin.
Tipperary 4-16 Waterford 0-11
62 mins – Patrick Curran hits over a point for Waterford from a free, Callanan replies with his 11th point of the day for Tipperary.
Sub: Aidan McCormack on for his championship debut for Tipperary for Noel McGrath.
Sub: Donagh Maher on for Tipperary for Ronan Maher.
Tipperary 4-17 Waterford 0-11
67 mins – Another point for Tipperary, this time from John McGrath.
Goal from Seamus Callanan for Tipperary!
Tipperary 5-17 Waterford 0-12
70 mins – Callanan raises a green flag. What a rout this has been.
Tipperary 5-18 Waterford 0-13
72 mins – Sub Jason Forde fires over a point for Tipperary.
Tipperary 5-19 Waterford 0-13
74 mins – Sub Aidan McCormack points on his debut.
Full-Time: Tipperary 5-19 Waterford 0-13
Well who saw that second half coming? Tipperary only ahead by two points at the break but they ripped Waterford apart in the second-half to run out winners by 21 points. A place in the All-Ireland semi-finals beckons.
Back to the drawing board for Waterford, a quarter-final place beckons against Wexford for them. That’s all from us, thanks for joining in.
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