Kelly disappointed with Loughmore performance
By Noel Dundon
Loughmore/Castleiney manager Eamon Kelly was disappointed that his charges had not played to their potential in the clash with Ballygunner on Sunday, but no sooner had he uttered the words than he followed up with the thought that they were not allowed to play to their expected level.
It had been a difficult day for the Tipperary champions and like everybody else in Walsh Park on the day, Eamon cited the spell just before half time as being their undoing.
“We are disappointed that we didn’t play to our potential, but I suppose we were not let do so,” he began.
“There were just two or three points in it with 29 minutes on the clock then with four minutes of injury time they scored 1-6 and that ten point gap remained until the end of the game.
“Without a doubt we are disappointed with our own performance, but you have to give credit to Ballygunner because they are a really seasoned outfit. They are very well organised, and they don’t panic on the ball, so you have to give great credit to them. Their experience of these days stands to them as well and you just have to admire them. They are a super team.”
Walsh Park has been a difficult venue for Tipperary teams over the last number of years, and last Sunday was no different. But, despite this the faithful from the parish of Loughmore/Castleiney travelled in big numbers to cheer on their side.
It didn’t matter though; the outcome was the same as it has been with the hosts having the upper hand.
“We can’t blame the grounds or the facilities or anything like that, we just didn’t perform, and we are disappointed with that,” Kelly continued.
“That’s all you can control really when it comes to game like this, and we didn’t do it. It is what it is – we have to be honest and say that it has been a very good year for us.
“This is a special club, and we were unfortunate to have had Brian McGrath sick all week and then Noel McGrath sick today and we didn’t know whether he would start or not. These are not excuses but as a club it is hard to be faced with these situations.”
When asked about the return of John Meagher and whether there was temptation to start him in the game, Eamon said: “We were very tempted to start John Meagher, of course we were, but we felt that there was nobody we wanted to leave off in order to do that. It was great to have him in reserve and he did well for us when he came on.”
The Loughmore/Castleiney men go again next weekend when they travel to Ennis to take on Éire Óg in the Munster senior football semi-final – another big test of the side.