Tipp minors impress in win over Deise
Tipperary 3-27 Waterford 0-15
Tipperary ran riot in the last quarter of this Munster minor hurling semi-final against Waterford at Semple Stadium on Wednesday last, outscoring their rivals by 2-9 to 0-1 for a twenty one points victory and a place in the final against Clare.
In what was a hugely impressive performance by the Tipp boys nobody did more to sink Waterford than full forward Tom Delaney who registered a whopping 1-12 from play (0-6 in the first half) in a man of the match performance that had the delighted Tipp following singing his praises afterwards.
Bear in mind that Tipperary were lucky two points winners when these sides met in the round-robin section of the championship at the start of April and accord due praise to manager James Woodlock and his backroom team for the work they have done in the interim to whip into shape what now looks like a potential title-winning combination.
The bonus for Tipp in this win is that irrespective of how the provincial final goes, they will also be involved in the All-Ireland semi-final, but of course with a Munster title in their sights, all eyes will be focused on the Clash with Clare this week.
There was little indication in the early stages of what was to follow. Scores came thick and fast in the opening ten minutes, Tom Delaney and Paddy McCormack prominent for Tipp as they shared ten points with the visitors in a high quality start to the game.
The second quarter however was Tipperary’s. Delaney continued to lead the Waterford defence a merry dance as the Premier boys began to pull away. They were 0-12 to 0-6 clear when Tipp custodian Eoin Horgan foiled a Peter Cummins drive for a Waterford goal in the 26th minute, and Waterford also butchered another goal chance three minutes later, opportunities they needed to convert to stay in the game.
To emphasise the point, in injury time in the first half, Waterford goalie Brian Callaghan and his fullback Bobby Drohan collided under a high ball leaving Tom Delaney to take full advantage with a Tipperary goal for an interval lead of 1-14 to 0-8.
Waterford’s championship ambitions were on life-support. They needed a huge second half and battled gamely through the third quarter to get a foothold but Tipperary stayed comfortably clear, 1-18 to 0-14 by the end of the third quarter.
The game was not beyond Waterford at that stage but the last quarter belonged to Tipperary who outscored their rivals by 2-9 to 0-1 in a blistering finish. It was 1-26 to 0-15 to Tipperary as injury time approached. Then Jack Hayes, who had come on as a sub, netted after being unselfishly set up by Tom Delaney, hit Tipp’s second goal, and a minute later Darragh McCarthy grabbed a third for an emphatic victory for Tipperary.
There was much to admire about this Tipperary display both in terms of the quality of the fare served up, the attitude of the players in fighting for the “dirty ball”, and the creativity shown in making use of possession. Of course Cahir’s Tom Delaney’s inspiring performance was the talking point afterwards but he was not alone in this regard. Borris-Ileigh’s Paddy McCormack also had an eye-catching evening while Tadhg Sheehan was composure personified at the heart of the defence. Adam Daly, Sam O Farrell, Jack O Callaghan, and Joe Egan were others to shine while sub Darragh McCarthy also made his mark.
Waterford came with high expectations but after a bright start faded steadily from the picture. In Conor Keane they had a defender of high quality and Jack Twomey was their main threat in attack, Peter Cummins, Billy O Connell, and Aaron O Neill also put in a good shift but generally, they were struggling in too many quarters to seriously threaten the home contingent.
MATCH DIGEST
Man of the Match – Tom Delaney, Tipperary.
Tipperary – Eoin Horgan (Knockavilla); Chris O Donnell (Ballylooby), Aaron O Halloran (Swans), Jack Quinlan (Fethard); Sam O Farrell (Nenagh), Tadhg Sheehan (St Mary’s), Jack O Callaghan (Portroe); Ciaran Foley (Borrisokane), Adam Daly (Knockavilla,0-2); Conor Martin (Cappawhite,0-2), Joe Egan (Moycarkey, 0-2), Paddy Phelan (Upperchurch); Damien Corbett (Gortnahoe, 0-4, 4fs), Tom Delaney (Cahir,1-12), Paddy McCormack (Borris-Ileigh,0-4). Subs – Cathal English (Fr Sheehy’s) for Corbett (49mins), Darragh McCarthy (Toomevara, 1-1) for Phelan(52mins), Sam Rowan (Mullinahone) for Martin(58mins), Jack Hayes (Moycarkey,1-0) for McCormack(59mins), Keith Loughnane (Sarsfields) for Sheehan (59 mins)
Waterford - Brian Callaghan; Conor Keane, Bobby Drohan, Tony Brennan; Billy O Connell, Aaron O Neill, Darragh Walsh; Daniel Lalor, Peter Cummins (0-1); Michael Morrissey (0-1), Sean Mackey, Gearoid Power (0-1); Ben O Sullivan (0-1), Jack Twomey (0-10, 9fs), Jake Henley. Subs - Josh Hegarty for Lalor (20mins), Conor Tobin for Henley (h/t), Barry Flynn for Power (50mins), Cormac Dunphy for Walsh (59mins)
Ref - Jarlath Donnellan, Clare