THERE WAS ONLY two minutes left on the clock last month in Thurles and Tipperary were on the cusp of victory in their Munster semi-final tie.
Then a bunch of Tipperary players collided under a puckout and the ball spilled loose to Limerick Kevin Downes.
He gathered and sprinted towards goal to set in motion an incident that definitively altered the course of the game. As the Tipperary defence converged on Downes, he kept his cool and handed the ball off to his right where clubmate Shane Dowling was lurking.
Dowling also held his nerve to step inside challenges and fire home his second goal of the day. Limerick bounced on to win the game and the innate understanding between the Na Piarsaigh players had been critical.
Twelve months previously the pair had been restricted to peripheral roles. On the bench during Limerick’s three outings during 2013, they were restricted to substitute roles. But their talent was clear with Dowling grabbing 0-11 and Downes hitting 0-3 during their cameos.
“Last year looking in as a Limerick fan myself it was hard to fathom,” reflects current Limerick selector Paul Beary. “They were quite resolute to lay down a marker this year.I could see myself that there is a great rapport and connectivity between the two on the pitch. We saw that with the cross field ball Shane played to Kevin for a point in the second half and there was the goal as well (against Tipperary).”
As a clubmate Beary is well placed to assess the talent of the pair. After hugely successful careers at underage level with Ardscoil Rís, Na Piarsaigh and Limerick, they have started to make their mark.
In both 2011 and 2013, Na Piarsaigh have been crowned county and provincial senior hurling champions with Downes and Dowling playing pivotal roles. But All-Ireland glory at club level has eluded them and last February’s loss to Portumna was a shattering blow that was tough to absorb.
“It took them a long time,” admits Beary. “But the one thing I learned with Na Piarsaigh is that they are such a tight knit community, that they share their success and share their disappointments.
“At the end of the day it takes time personally – one player might take more time than another. With these things you get to a point where you just want to get on with things.
“We did bring Shane, Cathal King and Kevin back sooner than expected for league matches, which probably surprised a lot of supporters at the time.”
Limerick has helped soothe the disappointment of club setbacks. Downes and Dowling played vital roles in shaping Limerick’s semi-final win over Tipperary. Now they hope to replicate that feat next Sunday in the decider against Cork.
