He does as does Josh o conor, not sure of the loophole⌠I think Colin Barry did for awhile also cappagh may of had no underage when those lads were coming through
He did not play last week.
I donât think thereâs any requirement for Croagh lads to play with Cappagh? Itâs more of a gentlemens agreement than a parish rule from what I recall. Theyâd be entitled to play with any neighbouring football club.
No loophole required as Croagh/Kilfinny do not play football. So our lads free to play football with whomever they choose. Most play for Cappagh as there has always been a crossover between the two (although Croagh give a lot more players lately to Cappaghâs team (7) than vice versa (1).
Adam Shanagher, Josh OâConnor and the two Meade brothers are the four Croagh lads that play football with Rathkeale. Think they all play soccer with Rathkeale AFC so itâs a natural thing for them to throw their lot in with the footballers.
It was viscous. You could cut it with a knife
Championship finals weekend is upon us, feel like a kid at Christmas 
- The Well
- The Latte drinkers
0
voters
Whoâs going to win it?
Does WOD play today?
On Dalos pod they said he might feature and that his appearance or not might decide the game.
The Well a great price today. If NAP start Downes CB the Well will definitely win. Even if they donât NAP seem to be off the pace this year and the Well look to have their house in order.
Casey Vs Gillane should be box office
Thatâs what the gaa is all about,I love to see it.Still hating some club 20 years later.Outstanding.
2 Likes
JOC hurled with Rathkeale until 2020 The Meades would be Rathkeale men too. JOC and Shanagher wouldâve played more soccer for ballingarry and the Meades play for Creeves
2 Likes
Michael Casey has never picked up Gillane before, but Cathal King must be 35 now.
So it is possible I suppose.
Anyway, as I posted above, most of the ball will be going over his headâŚ
The word in the coffee shops of Caherdavin and the Ennis road says OâDonoghue starts.
6 Likes
Four county hurling finals this weekend and all very difficult to call, thatâs just the way youâd want it. It was a disappointing season for me personally, we felt we didnât quite do ourselves justice but, outside of that, there have been loads of great games, great stories and serious drama. Probably peaked in the semi-final weekend with some incredible contests. Hopefully the finals can live up to what has gone before.
Senior Final
Saturday October 28
Na Piarsaigh (8/11) vs Patrickswell (11/8) @ 5.15pm in the Gaelic Grounds
The showpiece game is obviously the one this evening inside in the Gaelic Grounds, live on TG4 for anybody who wonât make it inside. Plenty of All Stars and truly top class hurlers will be on display, as well as some fine club hurlers. And it is a hard one to call. Na Piarsaigh started the season poorly with a defeat against the Well and while they picked up four group wins after that, I wouldnât have said they were particularly amazing bar the win against Doon, where they absolutely blew them away. But they got the job done in each of those games, got out of the group without getting out of second gear really. And they are always a team who tend to get better as the year progresses, peaking as they reach the knockout stages. And thatâs where you are truly measured. But they definitely rode their luck against an injury-stricken Doon in the semi-final. Going all the way to penalties definitely wasnât the part of any plan. They performed nowhere near how they can and if they play like that this afternoon, they will lose. Patrickswell arenât missing half as many players as Doon were and donât have the same aversion to winning big games. But surely Na Piarsaigh will be better? One important factor is obviously Will OâDonoghue; he has been an incalculable loss all year long. Not only his ability, his energy & physicality but also his leadership on the field and the way he drives the team forward. No matter how well his replacement players, they wonât offer all those other factors in the same way. And he is expected to be back today which will obviously be a big boost⌠even though the last game of hurling he played was three months ago. How sharp will he be? Na Piarsaigh have maybe been criticised in recent years for playing the same players for the most part, not really bringing in youth except where given no other choice. Shano has changed that up a bit this year and brought in Vince Harrington, Wayne Kearns, JJ Carey and John Fitz into the setup and they have largely impressed. But this will be a first senior county final for them and weâll see how they get on. A lot of talk has also focused on the Kevin Downes at 6 experiment⌠personally, I donât think it has really worked but they are still in a county final. Can the Well expose that?
It sounds like Iâm being very critical of Na Piarsaigh and I am but thatâs because we hold them to such a high standard because of the depth of quality of player that they have. If you look at the weaker players on the Patrickswell team versus the weaker players on the Na Piarsaigh team, Na Piarsaighâs are way ahead ability-wise. The Well obviously started the year brilliantly by beating Na Piarsaigh but, thereafter, were not overly impressive outside of flashes. They played out a great match against Kilmallock in the group stages but lost to a Doon side who had just received a hammering, scraped past Ahane and two late goals put a more flattering reflection on a fairly underwhelming performance against us. Even in the quarter-final against their neighbours Ballybrown, it was similar, a couple of goals at the end made it look like a bigger win than it really was; they rode their luck at times. But again, like Na Piarsaigh, they were getting the job done. And then, when they really needed to, they delivered a massive performance in the semi-final to beat a fancied Kilmallock side. Their big players all stood up and they gave them a bit of a beating in the end. We have to remember that they didnât even reach a semi-final last year (while Lynch-less), being beaten by South Liberties and to turn that around and to be in a final that they have a fair chance of winning is impressive. Obviously, they now have a significantly better management team, they have Cian Lynch back and are just playing a better style of hurling. Gillane has been a massive threat on the edge of the square and they have the shooters from out the field to draw teams out like Byrnes, Evan Fitz, Cian Fitz & Jack Kelliher. Josh Considine, Patrick Kirby and Nigel Foley are all back in contention for selection which does strengthen them significantly too.
Tactically, the Well got it spot on against Na Piarsaigh the first day. They shut off the space in front of Peter Casey and basically ensured that he got no decent service after he did a bit of damage early on and John Flynn will probably have to do an exceptional job again to handle the little wizard. Breen gets goals inside there too and if the Well have a weakness, itâs definitely in that full-back line so they will need to stop the supply of ball going in. Now, Na Piarsaighâs radar from out the field was way off that day in a windy Claughaun and they have generally racked up bigger scores from out the field since then, and Downes was still learning the ropes at centre-back. Gillane scored an incredible goal to win it and if we get to see a 60-minute battle between himself & Mike Casey, that could be a joy to watch. Again, that depends on the Well getting ball into him. Both sides have an elite forward inside, they absolutely have to feed him. You would think Byrnes and Lynch are well capable of getting Gillane the supply he needs if they are given room (and Kilmallock afforded way too much room to Byrnes) but they do need the supporting cast to step up. Kelliher is a great shooter but has been relatively quiet this year, Jordan Higgins brings ballwinning ability & athleticism to the half-forward line and has had a good year but they also need even more from the goal threat that is Kevin OâBrien, they need him to run at Downes. Because of the depth of Na Piarsaighâs talents, itâs often a different player each day who delivers a big performance but I do think they will need DaithĂ Dempsey; if the rumours about him being injured are true, that would be a massive blow.
Itâs very hard to call as we still donât know where either team are really at, despite being at county final stage. That is unusual but, based on most recent form, I think I have to go for the Well? They were so impressive in their win over Kilmallock while Na Piarsaigh werenât really against Doon. WOD will make a massive impact but Iâm going to go with the Well to shade it. The Well by 2, Gillane to shine.
Premier Intermediate Final
Saturday October 28
Blackrock (5/4) vs Dromin/Athlacca (8/11) @ 3.15pm in the Gaelic Grounds
I definitely wouldnât have predicted this to be the final of the Premier Intermediate from the outset, I probably would have had Newcastlewest, Effin & Bruff all as more likely winners than either of those two teams. That may seem surprising considering Blackrock only just came down from Senior and had played a couple of years at that grade. But they had lost some important players in their prime like Dylan Dawson, Marty Farrell, Daithi Heffernan and Kevin Palmer; not to mention losing Jimmy Quilty Jnr to a cruciate only weeks before Championship began. Down those names, they have had to dip back into the older brigade with Richie Mac, Richie Murphy, Liam Walsh, Davy Moloney, Paudie Leahy & RuairĂ OâShaughnessy still some of their most important players. Ian OâBrien has had a super season too but alongside those, they have got big contributions from younger players like Colm OâKeeffe (who has taken on free-taking duties aswell), Sean OâNeill (capable of getting big tallies from play), Callan Ensor (who brings a lot of energy to the middle) and Killian Aherne. Fair play to Peter Finn and his management team for eking the most out of this group, considering what they have lost. They wouldnât have been favourites to beat Effin in the semi-final but they did so relatively comprehensively in the end.
On the other side, Dromin/Athlacca wouldnât have a huge pick of players but have had a decent crop of young players coming through over the past few years and a decent chunk of their older heads, who they were relying on for a long time, have moved on. They won a B U-21 last year and a lot of those players are in key positions for their Premier Intermediates this year. William Dore at full-back was a Limerick U-20 this year, David Griffin at centre-forward was on that U-21 winning team for last year. Daniel Scully and Shane Fitzgibbon are only in their first year of adult hurling; while Jack Fitzgibbon, Shane Scully and Dore are all only in their second year. Disappointingly for them, their standout young hurler, Cian Scully, who was so influential this year has missed most of the season through injury but they have done very well to get this far without him. Obviously, they do have a few experienced heads too, none moreso than the Reidy brothers and David, in particular, is capable of delivering absolutely massive performances at this level.
I do think that could be a big factor, Reidy will be the outstanding player on show and a player of racking up big scores from play as well as winning ball. D/A have an incredibly young backline; other than Peter Ryan at 6, it is very young and they will have a few wily old heads in the Blackrock forward line to deal with. Blackrock are very dogged and they drew Effin into a battle and ground it out extremely impressively. D/A have injected a lot of pace into their team with the likes of Fitzgibbon, Breen, Daniel Scully, etc. which could hurt what I consider a slow enough Blackrock backline but the heavier ground probably suits the physicality that Blackrock will have, and Blackrock do have shooters from out the field in Leahy, OâKeeffe, Aherne, Walsh, etc.
I think itâs very hard to call. Both sides have delivered poor performances, both have had very impressive performance and, most importantly, both got the job done in the semi-final. As a lot of good teams do, both have probably found their best team as the Championship has gone in. D/A have been able to welcome back the likes of Mike Reidy and Sean OâLeary as the Championship went on, serious assets at this level. Blackrock have done a bit of moving around aswell: Richie Murphy has gone back in goal, Liam Walsh has come out the field, a move that has definitely strengthened them, I think, and Callan Ensor has been released up the field; he might have a job on David Reidy to do today. Iâm going to tip Dromin/Athlacca to get the win, although itâs one of those where basically no result would shock me. I think their younger players have enough grit about them to match Blackrock in a dogfight, even if they are giving way in experience and physicality. I think they just have that little bit more firepower with the likes of Breen, OâLeary, Fitzgibbon & Scully as well as the elite forward on show in Reidy. If Blackrock are able to get the space to get those shots off from out the field, they will have a fair chance but I expect that space to be choked up. D/A by 3.
Intermediate Final
Sunday October 29
Croagh/Kilfinny (8/13) vs Granagh/Ballingarry (6/4) @ 2pm in Ballyagran
What a game we have in store tomorrow afternoon. For any neutral, I think this would have been the final that people would have hoped for. And with a healthy TFK angle aswell with @dodgy_keeper & @Gary_Birtles_Lovechi going head-to-head. Should be an absolute cracker between the two most impressive sides in the division by a mile this season. C/K got their job in the group done early, once they beat Bruree, they knew they were top and they could even afford to rest players against Kilmallock 2 which did lead to a slip-up. But they comfortably disposed of Hospital/Herbertstown again in the semi-final to reach their third Intermediate final in a row. The first one was probably bonus territory and came up against a very strong Effin side. They just didnât perform at all last year and were well-beaten by Na Piarsaigh 2, in a match they will feel they could have won. To lose three finals in a row would definitely be an unwanted record, particularly against your neighbours. The one question I would have over C/K is when was the last time they had a real challenge? Possibly that Bruree game in the group and, even then, they ran out fairly comfortable winners in the end. Losing with their subs to Kilmallock doesnât really count; are they going through as battle-hardened as they need to be?
Because Granagh/Ballingarry blew everyone away in the group but had to get through a real battle in the semi-final against Murroe/Boher, only winning by a point after extra time. If they had weaknesses, they will be more readily able to identify them after that than perhaps Croagh are. G/B were so impressive in the group, racking up massive tallies, scoring plenty of goals and having a huge range of scorers. But the last day, they were asked to dig deep when it looked like it was swinging away from them and they found an answer. Dodge was the man in the end, winning a free to bring it to extra-time, scoring a brilliant point in the first half of extra-time against the wind and then the flicked goal in the second half to win it. What a warrior. But Sean OâConnor also stepped up with 0-20 (0-5 from play), his movement out the field and ability to find space to get shots away is hugely impressive. It had been Luke Flynn at full-forward who had been their main man for most of the year but Cathal OâKeeffe, Darragh Casey and Paudie Murphy have all been chipping in with a few points a game too. They did lose Davy Condron to injury relatively early the last day which will be a blow, he has been making an impact off the bench also, but having started him, they lost him.
When speaking about Dodge, youâd also have to mention the contribution Seamus Hickey has brought to C/K; heâs had an absolutely massive year, a goal threat as well as getting a few points almost every day. Iâd say he is more than a little relieved that it was G/B who came through the other semi-final, rather than Murroe/Boher and having to deal with that dilemma. I absolutely love the energy of C/Kâs midfield of Josh OâConnor & Adam Shanagher; they are your typical all-action modern midfielders. The ground they cover, they work they do supporting both attack and defence is absolutely incredible and I do think it is one area they will have an advantage. G/Bâs midfield duo of Darragh Casey and Josh Mulcaire-Quille are similar in a lot of ways, all action, get through lots of work but while Casey is an aerial powerhouse too, I donât think they are quite as good a unit yet as Shanagher & OâConnor. Cian OâCarroll, much like Sean OâConnor, is a very accurate shooter from play and frees but C/K will need scores from the likes of Bryan Flynn, Brian Hannon and Jack Lenihan too.
I do think that M/B showed that goals can be got against G/B; like a lot of winning teams (Iâve already mentioned it about the Well), they have pushed a lot of their strength up the field so while they score lots of goals, they could concede them. And Hickey et al will be licking their lips at that, they love to run at defenders. How do you stop it? You simply stop the ball going in and thatâs where the work rate out the field comes in. Do C/K have a similar vulnerability, G/B have certainly scored lots of goals? It is hard to know, I do rate Barry Lenihan as one of the best backs in the division and all those other Lenihans arenât bad either (they love a Lenihan in Croagh). Tom McMahon holds the thing nicely together at centre-back (although his counterpart in G/B, Jack Cagney, has had a super year, a really good hurler). My concern with C/K remains the fact that they may not be battle-hardened and that may be their biggest stumbling block. If they reach the pitch of the game early on, I do think that they might have enough to edge it. Theyâve been building towards this for a few years and I think that this is now their time. G/B have been so impressive and it definitely wouldnât surprise me were they to win but Iâm going to give the nod to C/K by 2. Iâd nearly say this is the most likely one to go to extra-time (and/or a replay???) too.
Junior A Final
Sunday October 29
Feenagh/Kilmeedy vs Mungret/St. Paulâs @ 1pm in Kilmallock
On paper, this maybe looks like the most straightforward in that Feenagh/Kilmeedy have been so impressive all year. They were one of only two teams to win all five group games, and they were in what looked like a particularly tough group from the outset. Now, Mungret came through their group without losing a game either so thatâs not the be-all and end-all. There has been a couple of crossover games between the two aswell; F/K hammered St. Patâs by 13 points in the group stage, Mungret beat them by 5 in the quarter-final. Mungret drew with Drom/Broadford in their group game, F/K beat D/B by 7 in the quarter-final (which was also a local derby). Based purely on that, you would have to continue to lean towards F/K. Mungret did rack up 1-24 in beating Monagea in the semi-final despite conceding 4 goals but F/K comfortably disposed of an impressive Kilteely/Dromkeen side.
I saw F/K a bit earlier in the year and was really impressed with their slickness. I wasnât sure whether they would be able to get over the teams who pushed right up on them and tried to bring them into a dogfight. Their movement on puckouts and general play is very good, but they are perhaps short another ballwinner around the middle and thatâs where I thought K/D might have an edge on them. But they just outhurled them as they have with other teams all year and I think youâd have to make them favourites. They have some range of options, particularly in attack, they will be leaving some fairly impressive players on the bench. Bryan Hannigan has come back into the team, the two OâGormans are in fine form, Moss Fitzgibbon at 11, young RuairĂ OâConnor, the accurate shooting of Diarmuid Coleman. Iâm not even sure players like Luke Ryan & Neilus Irwin featured the last day and they are fine junior players.
Mungret werenât expected to do a whole pile at the start of the year but the club as a whole has had a very good year. Senior hurlers got promoted to Senior A and put up a fair fight against Doon. Intermediate footballers are favourites to win the county. And now the junior hurlers are also in a county final, despite having lost a fair few players along the way. They do have players with Premier Intermediate/Senior experience like Conor Lynch, Conor Flahive, Eoghan Mulcahy, Chams Jagana and Mike Mullins. Flahive is at 6 now but was previously a Limerick U-20 starter, Mulcahy was one of their standout performers at Premier Intermediate level only a couple of years ago while Mullins was always one of their main ballwinners and is a monster under a high ball. And surrounding that slightly more experienced core are a lot of young, very lively hurlers with pace & movement.
It should be a good contest but F/K are one of the few teams at junior level that have a serious depth to their panel and while Mungret have massive numbers, I would say that the top few players on F/Kâs team would be better than Mungretâs top couple and they still have depth in reserve. Been really impressed with how Mark Keane has them set up this year; in my experience, F/K were always one of the ultimate underachievers at this level and I think they will go all the way tomorrow. F/K by 5.
10 Likes
Anyone in GG for the early final?
Forgot that about Josh. The Meades live right on the parish boundary - their house is in Croagh, most of their petrol station is in Rathkeale.
0-10 to 0-8 at HT in the Premier Intermediate final in favour of backup.
Kinda going as I expected, it is a bit of a dogfight. Backs on both sides on top, both sides getting lots of bodies back in their defence and forwards outnumbered.
Blackrock slightly better at getting a bit of space for their forwards, RuairĂ OâShaughnessy has 0-3 from play and has been the most dangerous player on show.
David Reidy has been fairly well-handled, hasnât hurled as much ball as you would like. Did get one point from play and has tackled well but not enough ball. Looks like itâs Simon Hennessy detailed to mark him, heâs moved out to midfield and Marty Farrell is back from Australia and into the starting lineup.
Davy Moloney was a physical presence at 14 for Blackrock and won a few balls but heâs since gone off and been replaced by Barry OâShaughnessy, another experienced head. Moloneyâs knee was heavily strapped but he did seem to run off so not sure what the story is there.
D/A are getting frees very close to goal and have had half goal chances. A few dangerous balls dropping in that Jack Fitzgibbon has got a hurley too but nothing clearcut yet. Blackrock generally happy to foul before the goal chance properly develops. Liam Walsh sitting very deep, Richie Mac hurling a lot of ball; Marty Farrell & Killian Aherne involved a bit too.
Paudie Leahy has landed a couple of big frees from distance and got a nice score from play but really beyond OâShaughnessy and him, not a whole pile from their forwards yet. Sean OâNeill got one lovely score but Iâd say it was the only time he touched the ball really. And itâs similar for D/A, their backs like Shane Fitzgibbon & Peter Ryan have got on a lot of ball, Mike Reidy has hurled a lot in midfield but not a whole pile of possessions for their forwards. Peter McMahon & Sean OâLeary, the deepest of their forwards, are probably the most involved. Fitzgibbon & Breen look like they could threaten but not enough service.
Theyâll need more from Reidy to win. Both sides scoring in bursts. Blackrock have probably had the game more played on their terms so far and would be the happier. Maybe feel they should go in further ahead. I do think D/A have a bit of a threat but they need better service and will need to get a better handle on ROS.
2 Likes