Sluggish Kiladangan make the extra man count

GAA: FBD Insurance County Senior Hurling Championship Quarter Final

Kiladangan 1-14

Clonoulty/Rossmore 0-12

Report: Shane Brophy at FBD Semple Stadium

Kiladangan remain in the hunt for a second County Senior Hurling Championship title in three years but unless they improve markedly, the Dan Breen cup won’t be coming back to the club next month.

They were deserved winners in what was a poor quarter final on Sunday, massively impacted by the sending off of Clonoulty/Rossmore’s Aaron Ryan after just nineteen minutes. At that stage, the West men were leading 0-7 to 0-2, full value for it as they were playing at a higher pace and tempo than a very sluggish Kiladangan side.

With the extra man, Kiladangan are too good of a side not to take advantage of it, and they managed to claw the deficit back by working the ball around to find the extra man throughout the field to get their scores. However, they never looked remotely at their best, shooting fourteen wides, however the spark and energy that has been their calling-card in recent years remains missing.

But for the performance of Tadhg Gallagher, they might have come up short as the midfielders’ impressive campaign continued with a haul of 1-3 from play, his goal in the 56th minute finally putting daylight between the sides, a trademark solo through the heart of the defence before a tidy finish past Martin Sadlier, and it needed to be as the Clonoulty keeper denied Bryan McLoughney with a superb first half save.

Wherever the energy has gone, Kiladangan have got to rediscover as it is hard to imagine them winning this game without Clonoulty going down to fourteen men as Declan Ryan’s charges were comfortable until then, with Enda Heffernan and Ciaran Quirke to the fore in defence while Michael Ryan, Cathal Bourke and the clearly ailing Jack Ryan were impressive in attack for the West men.

Indeed, Clonoulty will wonder what could have happened if David Sweeney hadn’t been given just a yellow card on 24 minutes following an off the ball incident with Cathal Bourke, when many expected a red. Indeed, Ryan’s sending off shows the value of good management as his second yellow card was avoidable, whereas Kiladangan moved quickly to sub off Fergal Hayes after just twelve minutes when he has been booked and had conceded a number of frees at that stage. He started in place of the unlucky John O’Meara who came on and played well.

Even with the numerical disadvantage it took Kiladangan until the 41st minute to get their noses in front. This was also against a Clonoulty side further depleted by the loss of Jack Ryan through injury at half time, leaving their attack now shorn so many of their starters they would have been banking on at the start of the championship, including the dearly departed Dillon Quirke who was to the forefront of many peoples’ minds during the game as it was his clubs first game back in Semple Stadium since their skippers tragic death in August.

It brings to an end a traumatic year for Clonoulty/Rossmore, one they would have hoped to honour their fallen captain, and they certainly did that, even if they haven’t gone onto win the championship. They literally ran out of bodies in attack and if you consider the forward line that finished was down Dillon Quirke, Timmy & Conor Hammersley, and Jack Ryan for their 2021, no club could sustain those losses of ability and leadership.

For Kiladangan, they find themselves in a semi-final without playing near their best in recent games, which is both a concern and a positive as if they can get it to click, they still have the ability to go all the way.

Player of the Match: Tadhg Gallagher (Kiladangan)

Kiladangan: Barry Hogan (6); David Sweeney (0-1, 7), James Quigley (8), Fergal Hayes (5); Darren Moran (6), Declan McGrath (7), Alan Flynn (0-1, 7); Tadhg Gallagher (1-3, 8), Tom O’Meara (7); Sean Hayes (0-1, 6), Joe Gallagher (7), Paul Flynn (0-2, 7); Bryan McLoughney (0-5, 4f) 6), Billy Seymour (0-1, 6), Willie Connors (6).

Subs: John O’Meara (7) for F Hayes (12); Dan O’Meara (6) for S Hayes (46); Jack Loughnane (6) for T O’Meara (52); Sean Hayes for McLoughney (55); Eoghan Sharkey (NR) for Connors (60).

Clonoulty/Rossmore: Martin Sadlier (7); Ronan Heffernan (7), Enda Heffernan (8), James Ryan (7); Ciaran Quirke (0-1, 7), John O’Keeffe (7), Sean O’Connor (7); Tommy Ryan (6), Robert Doyle (6); Aaron Ryan (0-1, 5), Cathal Bourke (0-4, 3f) 6), Jack Ryan (0-5, 2f, 1 65) 7); Stephen Ferncombe (6), Michael Ryan (0-1, 7), Danny Slattery (6).

Subs: Thomas Butler (6) for Jack Ryan (HT inj); Jimmy Maher (6) for M Ryan (48); Padraig White (6) for Doyle (52); James Hammersley (6) for Ferncombe (55); Padraig Carew (NR) for T Ryan (58).

Referee: Michael Kennedy (Newcastle).