Will only even become a conversation if Limerick goes to an orange warning which it looks likely to avoid atm.
The weather is tame enough at the moment but I see Cork have moved their Saturday fixtures to Sunday.
It could be tight to get the field in the Gaelic Grounds fully right for county final weekend if thereâs a few bad days.
Frank said itâll blow over. Have faith heâs a meteorologist
Liam Cronin and Diarmuid Mullins have been brought in by kiely as selectors
1 Like
No Mullins?
Whereâs the rest of the 54?
5 Likes
Weâre into the quarter-final stage in four tiers as well as the last round of the Premier Intermediate group. Knockout hurling now, time for the real contenders to stand up and show their worth. Also have a couple of relegation finals which could be the best spectacles of the weekend. Well, I say spectacles but with the rain thatâs forecast, it might be a weekend for the purists. There could be some proper dogfights but in order to go all the way, you need to be able to do it in all types of conditions.
Senior
Sunday October 6
Monaleen (11/2) vs Patrickswell (1/8) @ 2pm in Bruff
Ballybrown (11/2) vs Kilmallock (1/8) @ 5pm in Mick Neville Park
Making a quarter-final will already be seen as a positive for the year for Monaleen but, now that theyâre there, they may as well have a crack off the Well. People are talking about the Well being vulnerable; not everyone is overly impressed with Conor Dolan as coach, yet theyâve won the matches theyâve had to win and havenât been blown away in any of their losses either. For me, the only real question lies over potential absentees for the Well. Aaron Gillane has missed their last two matches (one of them was a must-win), with Cian Lynch & Nigel Foley also missing the last group game. The fact that they burned three junior players (Seanie OâBrien and Ciaranâs two nephews) in the last game against Kilmallock despite the juniors also being in a quarter-final suggests to me that none of them were any way fit to even play 5 or 10 minutes. If their county boys are not available, Monaleen have a real chance. Donnacha ĂâDĂĄlaigh is the top scorer from play in the entire Championship with 2-21 and Matthew Fitzgerald has also racked up a fair bit. But if Gillane is fit, I think he could do absolute wreck against Monaleenâs full-back line. Patrick Kirby has stepped up scoring-wise and Cian has also been in good form when it comes to scores. Patrickswell destroyed Mungret when they really had to and I just think they are on a different level to Monaleen if the county boys are fit. Iâm proceeding on the basis that they are fit and ready to go, and Iâll tip them to win by 8.
Itâs a similar story in the other game. Kilmallock have done what theyâve had to do to make a quarter-final and also burned intermediate players in a non-entity of a match, even though they have a relegation final at that grade to play this weekend. There was no Aaron Costello or Oisin OâReilly in the game against the Well and those are vital players when it comes to the business end. Shane OâBrien has been in superb form, really carrying the load up front and between himself and the two OâReilly brothers, they have hit 9 goals. Pierce Connery has adapted well to senior hurling, Graeme Mulcahy made his return from injury the last day and there was also gametime for Paudie OâBrien, Robbie Egan and Conor Hanley Clarke. Itâs been a weird season for Ballybrown too. On one hand, itâs been a major success: they topped the Senior B group, have gained promotion back to Senior A and are in a quarter-final. Yet, on the other hand, it started so promisingly with wins over Monaleen and Kildimo/Pallaskenry but has tailed off, despite the overall success. They were much less impressive in their victory over South Liberties, were blown away by Adare and only just about hung on against Dromin/Athlacca. They have been led superbly by Aidan OâConnor, despite all that, he hit a hat-trick in the last game to bring his tally from play to 3-15 for the season. Luke OâConnor isnât too far behind but they are just down so many bodies in the backline that itâs just hard to see how they contain Kilmallock. Theyâve called Stevie OâReilly out of retirement and Ned Quinn also played the last day but, for me, theyâve just lost a bit of momentum even though they got their primary job done. Kilmallock should have too much for them and Iâll give the nod to the Balbec by 7.
Premier Intermediate
Saturday October 5
Blackrock vs Newcastlewest @ 2pm in Ballyagran
Bruff vs Effin @ 2pm in Kilfinane
Garryspillane vs Na Piarsaigh 2 @ 2pm in Caherconlish
Glenroe vs Granagh/Ballingarry @ 2pm in Kilmallock
Iâm going to talk about permutations before I go into any individual prediction. Newcastlewest are the only team to be guaranteed a place in the semi-final as they have won six from six. Four teams are fighting for the three remaining semi-final spots and there are a number of different possibilities depending on results in tomorrowâs games. If results go as expected, the loser of Bruff & Effin would still progress to a semi-final ahead of Granagh/Ballingarry as both those sides have the head-to-head advantage over the latter. However, were Garryspillane also to lose, it would bring head-to-head into play and could G/B rack up a big score against Glenroe (Garryspillane beat them by 28 points). It looks as if Na Piarsaigh are doomed but were they to win and Glenroe to lose, we are informed that you canât be relegated on head-to-head and a relegation play-off would have to be played.
Blackrock are the only team other than Newcastlewest themselves with absolutely nothing to play for. Blackrock canât be relegated, they canât make a semi-final after the loss to Granagh/Ballingarry in the last round. NCW are already-through but wonât want to drop points here and I wouldnât expect them to. NCW by 6.
This is potentially a big one. Both sides could easily make it to a semi-final, a draw would guarantee it but a loss for either side and they would be looking anxiously over their shoulder. After their loss to NCW, Bruff recovered well but seemed to lose their way a bit again. I fancy Effin for this one; okay, they lost to NCW but so have everyone else. Other than that, I think their results are the most impressive at this grade and I expect them to just edge this battle. Effin by 3.
The only way Garryspillane donât make a semi-final is for them to lose, Bruff & Effin to draw and G/B to beat Glenroe. That would mean they lose out on head-to-head to G/B. Any other set of results and their exceptional score difference should see them through. They meandered through a couple of games in the middle of this Championship but a slight re-jigging of the team has seen them rack up a 13-point victory over potential semi-finalists, Bruff, and a 28-point victory the last day over struggling Glenroe. I think restoring Dylan OâShea to a more advanced position and pushing Mark Quinlan back gives them a better balance and theyâll be stronger for it when they hit the knockouts. Na Piarsaigh have been competitive in most games but lost their do-or-die battle against Glenroe. Possibly have just lost too many players to their seniors but this is last-chance saloon for them. A win and they will possibly still have a relegation play-off to head into. Any other result and they are relegated. Because Garryspillane have to get the job done to be sure, Iâm going to tip them, their firepower of late between OâShea, Colin Ryan and Bryan Heavey has been very impressive and I just donât think NaP have enough. Garryspillane by 6.
It didnât look that likely after the hammering they took against the Bouncers, but Glenroe look to have saved their season after a victory over Na Piarsaigh last week. Itâs not completely done, a draw would seal the deal but if Garryspillane do beat Na Piarsaigh, they are safe. Their sister club, Ballylanders, survived in senior football after a third consecutive relegation play-off, they are becoming the masters of survival. On the other side are a club who wear similar colours but still have hopes of making a semi-final in their first year at making the grade. I think, in the back of their minds, Glenroe think they have the job done; I would say there were some celebrations in Ballylanders last weekend⌠with G/B still hunting for a semi-final, I actually expect them to do a job here. It may be in vain but Iâm predicting G/B to win by 9.
Intermediate
Saturday October 5
Cappamore (7/2) vs Croagh/Kilfinny (1/6) @ 3pm in Claughaun
Bruree (8/11) vs Knockainey (11/10) @ 5pm in Bruff
Kilmallock vs St. Kieranâs @ 4pm in Ballyagran
There is some talk that C/K would rather not have drawn Cappamore, who came out of their group by virtue of a draw against Knockainey in the final round. But there is a reason they are such heavy favourites with the bookies, they have been massively impressive after their disappointing defeat in the opening round. In Cian OâCarroll, Jack Lenihan, Brian Hannan, Seamus Hickey, they have scoring forwards; they have pace and athleticism all over the pitch and just play a nice brand of hurling. Cappamore would have a reputation for being a strong, dogged team and maybe the conditions tomorrow would suit them if it was a battle. But, at the same time, this is a relatively young Cappamore side⌠now, Iâm not saying that theyâre not dogged and donât love a battle, Iâm sure thatâs bred into them but they are not the Cappamore side of two or three years ago. I think the likes of Sean Whelan, Mikey Fitzgibbon and Liam OâDonnell are serious young players but I think they are without Jason Fitzgibbon, Joe Lonergan, the likes of Eamon Gleeson have retired. While I donât think torrential rain will suit the style of hurling that C/K want to play, I think they have more players who youâd rely on to get scores from play in bad weather. So, C/K by 6.
Iâm a little surprised that Bruree are favourites to beat Knockainey. They did have a very impressive victory over Murroe/Boher in the last group game but struggled to beat St. Kieranâs only the week before. Sam Cronolly grabbed two goals the last day and is the main man in attack, but will definitely need more support in a quarter-final. Stephen McDonaghâs young fella, Darragh, is a very lively presence around the middle of the field while the OâDeas, Kieran and Jimmy, are still soldiering on. Knockainey are coached by Shaughs and still have a few warriors of their own, Patrick Kirby now in goal and Nigel Finch going at full-back. Youâd love to see Finch go toe-to-toe with someone like Jimmy OâDea but if Cronolly is in there, it could be exactly the type of match-up Finch would hate (although the predicted weather couldnât hurt). At the other end though, they have pace and lively forwards. They were the most free-scoring team in their group, racking up 13-87 across their five group games with at least two goals scored in every game. They carry that threat at the top end of the pitch and, in my opinion, have a better spread of scorers. Mikey OâGrady is a serious player; young Rory Reale is very lively and with the Clearys, Barron and Lonergan; they just seem to have more options than Bruree. Will they be afraid to dog it out if it does end up a washout? I donât think that could be levelled at this Knockainey side either. Bruree have introduced a lot of youth but are still physically very strong and good on breaks, but Iâm edging towards Knockainey on this one. Knockainey by 2.
The relegation final will be very hard to call: Kilmallock, like Knockainey, have also hit 13 goals in the group stage; their problem was the amount they were conceding at the other end. Unlike Kieranâs, however, they did manage a win after a first-round win over Croom. But four consecutive losses and Croom producing a bit of a shock to beat Feohanagh in the last round meant they ended up in the relegation play-off. Kieranâs ran Pallasgreen to a point, Bruree to two points but were well-beaten in their other clashes; a 36-point destruction at the hands of Croagh/Kilfinny being the most painful. But theyâll have been gearing up for this eventuality for quite a while, thereâs been no football in the past few weeks to distract them and they wonât go down without a fight. They really lack firepower, 2-54 across five games is fairly awful (thatâs an average of 12 points per game) but are dogged and know their own limitations. Kilmallock burned their centre-back, Sean Carroll, in the non-event last round of the senior Championship and that will be a big loss. Tom Savage is also gone from the players that they had available in their only Championship win and that opens up an opportunity for Kieranâs. For me, it is hard to back Kieranâs when they have struggled with scoring so badly but I think Kilmallock are much weaker than they have been in recent seasons. The absolute belt of a ball that Cillian Ambrose has for Kieranâs could be some asset in bad conditions and they do have serious athleticism in the likes of the McEnerys, while Ian Mackessy is very accurate. Iâll give them the nod to win by 1.
Premier Junior
Saturday October 5
AK Desmonds vs Old Christians @ 4pm in Ballybrown
Caherline (2/1) vs Knockaderry (2/5) @ 5pm in Adare
Sunday October 6
Drom/Broadford (11/8) vs St. Patrickâs (4/6) @ 2pm in Croagh
In another relegation final tomorrow, two sides who had very respectable years in 2023 fight it out for the privilege to stay at Premier Junior. Christians also opened this season with an excellent draw against Patâs but have suffered four defeats since then. AK Desmonds have only suffered one properly heavy defeat and have largely been in touch in games, but fallen to five defeats. The loss of Willie OâMeara has been huge and there is a huge amount of responsibility on the shoulders of Oisin OâFarrell to get scores. Christians will probably struggle to mark him but if they do focus on him, can the likes of the OâBrien brothers, Tadhg & Senan, pick up some of the scoring slack? At the other end, the likes of Kevin Howard, Dylan Blackhall and Conor Madden are all well able to hurl but AK will feel that they can get at the weakest links in the team. A hard one to call, Iâm going to lean slightly towards Desmonds to get the job done by 2.
Caherline defeated Monagea in what was effectively a straight shootout for a quarter-final spot but Knockaderry will be another step up again, I feel. Andrew Brennan is still leading the charge at centre-forward and is some operator at this level. I think Paudie Wixted is as good a player as is at this level and the likes of Hugh Murnane and Jake Kennedy have been producing this year also. But I like the way Knockaderry have gone about their business after an opening-round defeat. They had a narrow victory over Crecora/Manister but have been very comfortable in their other victories and wouldnât be surprised if this followed a similar trend. Tom Condon has found a new lease of life at centre-back and you just know heâll revel out there tomorrow (if he goes toe-to-toe with Brennan that will be worth the entry fee alone, Brennan is a monster under a high ball). Mark Danaher is up there with the best freetakers in the county, deadly accurate, Mike Molloy is a very lively operator, Kieran Storin can do damage and Pat Downes is another warrior in defence. I think they have a nice balance to their team and I fancy them to win by 5.
The other quarter-final is even harder to call as both sides had mixed form across the season. Patâs edged through by a point against Crecora/Manister with some people questioning the wisdom of C/Mâs tactic to have CON effectively play as a full-back to mark Hego in the second half. I am presuming that GearĂłid will be back at centre-back from the start tomorrow, with Diarmuid being the leader of the attack. On the other side, you have a Drom/Broadford side who had a miraculous comeback against Tour in round one which proved vital in the end; they were hammered by both Feenagh/Kilmeedy & Monagea but recovered to shock Caherline by a point and ended up finishing ahead of a Monagea side who beat them by 17 points. A weird Championship at the best of times, this one. I think Kevin Noonan is back at centre-back for them, always a good hurler, they still have Garrett plugging away and in the likes of Damien Burke, Jack Pierce and Keith Lacey; they have pacy and lively forwards. But Iâm going to give the nod to St. Patâs, I think. I think, outside of Feenagh/Kilmeedy, the other group was stronger and Patâs did really well to come out of it. They have that little bit of star quality too and could be the difference tomorrow. Patâs by 3.
Junior A
Saturday October 5
Rathkeale (5/4) vs Templeglantine (4/6) @ 1pm in Newcastlewest
Claughaun (5/4) vs Patrickswell 2 (4/6) @ 4pm in Mungret
I think these ones are almost impossible to call. Iâll be straight and say that I havenât seen any of these matches so Iâm going purely off second-hand reports and the formbook. But what the formbook tells me doesnât make any fucking sense. Templeglantine may have been through already but how can they lose by 10 to Ahane (maybe if all the Fr. Caseyâs footballers werenât playing)? And their victories, other than the one against Killeedy, were not as impressive as you probably would expect either. This is a team with players like Mark McCarthy, Adam Fitzgerald, John Riordan⌠you expect them to be pushing hard for this title, not experiencing those kind of results. So, I really donât know. On the other side, you have Rathkeale who have done well to make a quarter-final; potentially against the odds. They rode their luck a little bit but were never embarrassed and dug out a vital win against Ballybricken/Bohermore. From what I know of both teams, I have to make Templeglantine the favourites but Iâve not had the best of luck with this grade. Glantine by 3.
I spoke earlier about Seanie OâBrien and the two Careys being burned by the Well seniors and I canât help but think that they will miss their ability at this level. Itâs not as if they cruised through the group with them available. I know there are still fellas like Peter Harty, Tom Nolan, Calvin Carroll and Billy Earls down there but thatâs three huge players to lose all in one go. So, I have to make Claughaun favourites. A little bit like Rathkeale, they rode their luck at times and would they have beaten Monaleen in the last round if Monaleen werenât already through? Impossible to know but they stuck four goals past them when they had to and although they needed Bruff to beat Killeedy, things went their way. Again, itâs not as if they were beaten by much in the losses they did suffer either so Iâll go with them to have too much now. Claughaun by 4.
11 Likes
Gillane is back training anyway be shocked if heâs not starting
This on in Kilbreedy now
Very very high
Heâd be as well take the time now and he might be back for the tail end of the round robin
Makes sense. Originally fixed for Claughaun at 3 with Claughaun playing The Well in Mungret an hour later. I donât know how the board expect to have volunteers at a venue when their own club is playing at more or less the same time yet they repeatedly do it.
2 Likes
Co. Board will be hoping this one is sorted in normal time Iâd say. Canât imagine light will be great coming close to 7pm in todayâs conditions.
Glantine and Rathkeale moved to Coolyroe. NCW closing up shop with the slight bit of adverse weather again
The weather has come as predicted anyway, not pleasant for hurling.
Two goals for Paudie Murphy inside 10 minutes for Granagh/Ballingarry; 2-4 to 0-0 up on Glenroe. Theyâre doing their bit anyway.
Big Diarmuid Dennehy got an early goal for Bruff against Effin but Effin have a narrow lead.
Garryspillane also got an early goal against Na Piarsaigh; they lead by 4.
NCW 0-7 to 0-0 up on Blackrock.
Not yet half-time but as it stands, the top 4 from beforehand would make the semis, G/B to miss out on head-to-head.
Garryspillane up 1-8 to 0-4 at half time. They scored the first 1-2, Calum Sheehan got the goal with a lovely overhead flick on the run. NaP will play with a gale and horizontal rain in the second half.
G/B have done what they can for themselves, up 3-8 to 0-4.
1 Like