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UL players celebrate after their Fitzgibbon Cup victory. Cathal Noonan/INPHO
Mad Skills

Lohan hails Kelly - 'Sometimes it's like he's playing a different game to everyone else'

One Clare All-Ireland winner salutes another.

HE STRUCK SIX points, won the man-of-the-match award and had plenty praise showered in his direction.

There was no disputing Tony Kelly’s role in UL’s Fitzgibbon Cup final replay win over Waterford IT last night.

UL manager Brian Lohan was effusive in his praise of his fellow Clare man, whose display illuminated the match.

“Sometimes, it’s like he’s playing a different game to everyone else. He was absolutely outstanding.

“He has a brilliant attitude, a brilliant workrate, he’s a great guy to have involved.”

Having a core of quality intercounty players, like Kelly and others, putting in such effort was a key factor in UL’s victory.

“We had a serious contribution from our intercounty lads, right from the start of the year. That just makes an awful difference when you have that.

“The likes of David [McInerney], Jason [Forde], Tony, John McGrath, Jack Browne, (made) really crucial inputs right from the word ‘go’.”

Brian Lohan 18/2/2015 Brian Lohan steered UL to win the Fitzgibbon Cup title last night. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO

Lohan praised the application levels of his team in a game that they ran out victors in by 2-18 to 1-14. Having led by six points, 1-9 to 0-6, at half-time, Lohan was keen to ensure that there was no complacency.

“I wouldn’t say it was easy,” he said.

“We were able to get crucial scores at crucial times and they maybe missed chances that they would have got last week. We were conscious that we didn’t want to be letting them back into the game. We had built up a bit of a lead.

“At half-time, we wanted to move on and win the second half. I don’t know whether we did now or not [they did, by a point] but we didn’t want to be waiting for the result from 10 or 15 minutes out. We got the result, I was very happy.”

This brilliant piece of skill helped Tony Kelly get man-of-the-match in the Fitzgibbon Cup final

Tony Kelly man-of-the-match as UL celebrate Fitzgibbon Cup final replay win over WIT