Late scoring run powers All-Ireland champs Ardscoil Rís into Dr Harty Cup semi-finals

The Limerick school had five points to spare over their Templemore opponents.

Ardscoil Rís 1-22

Our Lady’s (Templemore) 1-17

Stephen Barry reports from UL 4G pitch

THEY TRAILED UNTIL the 49th minute but resurgent Ardscoil Rís outscored Our Lady’s, Templemore, 1-8 to 0-1 in a late burst to advance to the Harty Cup semi-finals, where they will face Cashel CS.

The reigning All-Ireland champions looked demoralised by a dogged Our Lady’s challenge until Dáire Neville’s 45th-minute goal sparked them into life.

All of a sudden, they were winning clean possession with space to exploit. That they did, scoring eight of the next nine points to turn a four-point deficit into a six-point lead, 1-21 to 1-15, by the hour.

Clonlara’s Michael Collins was in inspired form in the second half, his pace and accuracy helping boost his tally to six points from play.

The game was delayed half an hour at UL due to a venue mix-up by the referee. In the end, Éamonn Stapleton, who had been due to ref a match in Cappamore, which was called off, and was attending as a spectator, was recruited to step in and take charge of this quarter-final.

Despite the delay, Our Lady’s were up for this from the off. They dropped one midfielder Tom Corcoran to cover the two-man full-forward line, while Tipperary minor All-Ireland winner Paddy Phelan was sitting in at centre-back on the dangerous Fintan Fitzgerald.

In attack, Jamie Ormond, in a titanic tussle against Limerick U20 Cian Scully, scored 0-7 across the hour, won five pointed frees, and added another two assists.

They were level three times in the opening quarter before Ciarán O’Shea put distance between the sides with a 16th-minute goal; prodding a breaking ball beyond the defence and pulling it into the net. When Ormond added a free, Our Lady’s led by four.

The lead oscillated between two and four points from there to the half although Ardscoil almost had it level just before the break, Neville playing in Marc O’Brien but Eoghan Kennedy got back to take his effort off the line.

The half-time score; Our Lady’s 1-10 returned from their 15 shots, Ardscoil with 0-9 out of 20 efforts.

Ardscoil had another goal chance when O’Brien squared for Neville but his first-time batted effort flashed over the bar.

Ardscoil needed a spark and they found it when Matthew O’Halloran turned over the sliotar in Templemore territory and fed Neville behind the cover; the Cratloe clubman nearly bursting the net with his finish.

Fitzgerald and Collins struck three points each in the subsequent scoring run against a tiring defence.

In a rainy conclusion, Phelan had a close-range free stopped on the line while Eoin Begley won a penalty for the victors, tapped over by Fitzgerald.

Scorers for Ardscoil Rís: Fintan Fitzgerald 0-9 (5f, 1 pen), Michael Collins 0-6, Dáire Neville 1-1, Marc O’Brien 0-2, John O’Keeffe 0-1, Michael Gavin 0-1, Diarmuid Stritch 0-1, Shane Gleeson 0-1.

Scorers for Our Lady’s: Jamie Ormond 0-7 (5f), Paddy Phelan 0-4 (4f), Ciarán O’Shea 1-1, Michael Cahill 0-2, James Ryan 0-1, Ned Walsh 0-1, Josh McMahon 0-1.

Ardscoil Rís

1. Eoin Deegan (Cratloe)

2. John O’Keeffe (Na Piarsaigh), 3. Seán McMahon (Smith O’Briens), 4. Seán Morrissey (Dromin Athlacca Banogue)

5. Jamie Moylan (Cratloe), 6. Cian Scully (Dromin Athlacca Banogue – joint-capt), 7. James Finn (Na Piarsaigh)

8. Michael Gavin (Ballybrown – joint-capt), 9. Diarmuid Stritch (Clonlara)

10. Shane Gleeson (Adare), 11. Fintan Fitzgerald (Mungret St Paul’s), 12. Matthew O’Halloran (Sixmilebridge)

13. Michael Collins (Clonlara), 14. Dáire Neville (Cratloe), 15. Marc O’Brien (Cratloe)

Subs

25. Eoin Begley (Clonlara) for Gleeson (41)
18. Eoin Carey (Cratloe) for O’Halloran (53)
22. Sam Hickey (Adare) for Neville (59)
26. Patrick Kearney (Adare) for Stritch (60+2)

Our Lady’s Templemore

27. Michael Ryan (Loughmore-Castleiney)

2. Conor Gleeson (Drom & Inch), 3. Jamie Bergin (JK Brackens), 4. Eoghan Kennedy (Drom & Inch)

5. James Ryan (JK Brackens), 6. Eoin Larkin (Roscrea), 7. Ned Delaney (JK Brackens)

8. Tom Corcoran (JK Brackens), 10. Paddy Phelan (Upperchurch-Drombane)

11. Ned Walsh (JK Brackens), 9. Jamie Ormond (JK Brackens), 12. Michael Cahill (JK Brackens)

13. Ciarán O’Shea (JK Brackens), 14. Josh McMahon (Roscrea), 15. Dan McAllister (Drom & Inch)