If you look at the top 20 teams (senior and prem intermediate) you have Kilmallock, Na P, K/P, Doon, Ballybrown, Well, Ahane, Effin, SL, D/A with a really elite forward. The rest would have decent forwards and the likes of Knockainey and Glenroe wouldnât really have a forward that stands out at all
whatâs the name of the slight lad that hurled with Limerick from Newcastle? He surely ates it up at that level?
Not sure, did he play minor a few years ago? Probably Brian Nix youâre thinking
thatâs the lad⌠he looked a right bit of stuff
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Very very good player but not exactly a free-scoring forward yet. A player who would benefit massively from training under Kinnerk.
But NCW have a lot of very tidy forwards now; no one quite elite but a handful the next level down.
I donât think he was playing against Effin which makes that win all the more impressive.
you still need that lad that will get you the goals when the game is in the mix. They wonât get to senior without it
Diarmuid Kelly is probably their best forward. He has all the tools and Iâd consider him better than a few of the forwards on Kielys panel. Con Hayes would be another top forward they have too. The Hurley boys all tidy players too
Yeah Kelly is excellent. Has the pace, athleticism & well able to take a score. And probably has that goalscoring touch.
Eoin & Brian Hurley are very good too. Hayes could end up being the best of the lot, but still very young, first season of adult hurling.
They have a nice balance to their team alright.
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When you add Ethan Hurley (at presumably centre back) to that group mentioned you have a very solid team that should challenge big time this year
Monaleen bate them quare handy
It seems to be a bit of a bear pit right now. All teams bar Knockainey have a very realistic chance of winning it. Monaleen are hard to read and youâd imagine they are favourites but Glenroe beat them surprisingly. The rest are dogged, talented and will give it a good run
I would say Monaleen and NCW final, with Glenroe and Bruff the other semi finalists
Newcastle have put up scores of 2-9 and 1-11 against Monaleen and Glenroe. They put up a big score alright against Cappamore.
Their backs must be fair bad if yourself and @Aristotle are lauding their forwards
They were without Nix and Kelly for the first 3 rounds to be fair
No Nix or Kelly that day, always going to struggle without your two best forwards.
And Monaleen will feel that they should never have been relegated at all. Went from being a team regularly competing at the top end of the Senior B to just being so flat in every single game last year. Reduced format probably didnât help them, the battle of a relegation final just not their thing.
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who was over them?
Damien & Liam Reale.
5 or 6 years, maybe the message just got a little tired.
oh fuck ya. only the very best can sustain it that long. If things arenât going well even more so because you have to be a bastard
In a group of three, they didnât perform against an Adare side who ended up running Patrickswell very very close. Adare of 2021 were a lot, lot better than Adare of 2022.
Then they played us; we had a lot of momentum behind us after winning the county the year before. Monaleen a week after a bad defeat⌠we blew them away in the first half.
And then they were in a relegation final against a battle-hardened Blackrock. Monaleen definitely have more hurling ability than Blackrock but Quilty had them well set-up, and if they can turn the match into a real battle, you have to be able to outfight them and thatâs not really Monaleenâs game.
If it was a regular group match, Iâd say Monaleen would have beaten them. But the pressure of a relegation final, you always kinda felt Blackrock would have enough.
Blackrock are hard bate in anything.