LAST UPDATE | 24 Mar
Clare 1-24
Tipperary 2-13
LOOK, NOBODY KNOWS how these things could ever be quantified or measured. And it’s a whole load of second-guessing and surmising. Pontificating, even.
But the average five-eighths man or woman might look at Clare and guess that their appetite for a league final might have gotten that bit keener when Limerick were beaten in Supervalu Pairc Ui Chaoimh on Saturday night.
With a meeting on 21 April in Ennis on the menu for the Munster championship opener, there wouldn’t have been a great appetite to meet the Green Machine in the meantime.
But Kilkenny? With a chance to win some badly-needed silverware that takes Clare and Brian Lohan beyond mere plaudits? Yeah they’ll have that. They’ll have a lot of that, as it happens.
They showed all that and more by jumping into a 0-8 to 0-0 lead after the first 11 minutes. Everywhere you looked there were young, lean lads leaping out of their skin on a patchy Portlaoise surface.
In Adam Hogan and Conor Leen in the corner-back positions, with Conor Cleary in between them, they had a scrappy full-back line that looked perfect for the conditions.
Once Tipp got their game going, a Dan McCormack delivery was drilled towards Jake Morris. He killed it with one hand, the other gathering the ball before he rounded Hogan and slotted to the net. It was one of the few moments of summer hurling on a brutal and cold day. And it was as good as it got for Tipp as David Fitzgerald broke down the Clare puckout to himself and proceeded to top-bins a finish past Barry Hogan to deflate Tipp.
Clare started in a whirl of activity in the opening quarter, Keith Smyth setting the tone with the first two points, sending marker Michael Breen on the seat of his pants for the second.
It would be 12 minutes until Tipperary registered their first point of the day, a free from Jason Forde. A minute later there was the hint of a potential goal with Willie Connors perhaps guilty of overcooking the chance, but Forde nonetheless making it count with a point.
But by then Clare had eight points on the board. The Tipp tactic of leaving two attackers up top for Clare gave them Dan McCormack as a sweeper, but left Clare corner-back Hogan free, something he would punish with a point himself as well as initiating moves down that side.
Mark Rodgers was on form from the dead ball, sending three efforts well inside the posts and was just off on a goal chance on the quarter-hour mark, sending just right of the posts having sliced through the defence.
He was to depart the game soon after with injury, but his replacement Aidan McCarthy would prove in the mood as Clare ended the half with 10 different scorers.
On the other hand, Tipp were in the horrors for long stretches. Forde hit three first half wides from the dead ball, Gearoid O’Connor took over and hit a brace wide.
Forde went back on the duty for the second half and missed another. Connors had a go and missed and finally, Sean Ryan converted one out of three attempts.
The second half began with Tipp scoring a goal straight from the throw-in, Sean Hayes rattling the net with his first touch. Fellow sub Alan Tynan also was forcing the issue with some doughty effort as they dragged the lead back to two points with just 45 minutes gone.
From then on, they folded. They scored just twice more, Morris’s point the only from play as Clare piled on another eight points. Aidan McCarthy, sent on during the first half to take over from the injured Rodgers, finished with eight points, seven from frees.
On a rotten day for hurling, Clare showed some savage defiance. It can take them a little bit further in a fortnight.
Scorers for Clare: Aidan McCarthy 0-8 (0-7f), David Fitzgerald 1-3, David Reidy 0-3, Mark Rodgers 0-3 (0-3f), Keith Smyth 0-2, Adam Hogan, Diarmuid Ryan, Cian Galvin, Darragh Lohan, Cathal Malone 0-1 each.
Scorers for Tipperary: Jason Forde 0-6 (0-5f), Jake Morris 1-2, Sean Hayes 1-0, Willie Connors, Dan McCormick, Sean Kenneally, Alan Tynan 0-1 each, Sean Ryan 0-1, (0-1f)
Clare
1. Eibhear Quilligan (Feakle)
2. Adam Hogan (Feakle) 3. Conor Cleary (Kilmaley) 4. Conor Leen (Corofin)
5. Diarmuid Ryan (Cratloe) 6. John Conlon (Clonlara) 7. Cian Galvin (Clarecastle)
8. David Fitzgerald (Inagh-Kilnamona) 9. Darragh Lohan (Wolfe Tones)
10. Cathal Malone (Sixmilebridge) 11. Mark Rodgers (Scariff) 12. Peter Duggan (Clooney-Quin)
13. Keith Smyth (Killanena) 14. Ian Galvin (Clonlara) 15. David Reidy (Eire Óg)
Subs:
26. Aidan McCarthy (Inagh-Kilnamona) for Rodgers (20m [Temp])
19. Seadna Morey (Sixmilebridge) for Lohan (47-54m)
22. Shane Meehan (Banner) for Smyth (52m)
19. Seadna Morey for Conlon (56m)
21. Sean Rynne (Inagh-Kilnamona) for Galvin (63m)
17. Rory Hayes (Wolfe Tones) for Hogan (66m)
25. Patrick Crotty (Scariff) for Reidy (71m)
Tipperary
1. Barry Hogan (Kiladangan)
2. Craig Morgan (Kilruane MacDonaghs) 3. Ronan Maher (Thurles Sarsfields) 4. Michael Breen (Ballina)
5. Bryan O’Mara (Holycross) 6. Robert Byrne (Portroe) 7. Conor Bowe (Moyne Templetuohy)
8. Willie Connors (Kiladangan) 9. Darragh Stakelum (Thurles Sarsfields)
10. Dan McCormack (Borris-Ileigh) 11. Gearóid O’Connor (Moyne Templetuohy) 12. Conor Stakelum (Thurles Sarsfields)
13. Jake Morris (Nenagh) 14. Patrick Maher (Lorrha Dorrha) 15. Jason Forde (Silvermines)
Subs:
18. Sean Hayes (Kiladangan) for Darragh Stakelum (HT)
26. Alan Tynan (Roscrea) for Maher (HT)
19. Sean Kenneally (Moneygall) for Conor Stakelum (43m)
22. Johnny Ryan (Arravale Rovers) for Bowe (55m)
23. Sean Ryan (Templederry) for O’Connor (61m)
Referee: Liam Gordon (Galway)
