14 of the 16 clubs have something to play for
County Senior Hurling Championship Round 3 preview
By James Hayden
GROUP 1
Permutations: All four teams can still qualify for the knockout stage. The only thing that is certain is that Kilruane MacDonaghs can’t finish bottom. The 2022 champions need just a draw to confirm themselves as group winners but a defeat to Toomevara, coupled with a Borris-Ileigh win over Drom could see them miss out on score difference, such are the fine margins. Drom & Inch can still make the quarter finals but need to beat Borris-Ileigh by at least five points provided Toomevara lose to Kilruane.
Saturday, 24th August
Kilruane MacDonaghs v Toomevara in Nenagh @ 3.45pm
With two wins on the bounce for the first time since their county title winning campaign of 2022, Kilruane will go into this encounter top of the group, but are still not guaranteed progression.
The Thomas Williams managed side will definitely be without the services of Sean MacAdams who has returned to Australia while influential forward Thomas Cleary is a doubt after sustaining a nasty cut to his hand in their narrow victory over Borris-Ileigh in the second round.
Toomevara will hopefully have Jake Ryan and Kevin McCarthy fully fit and will have to go out all guns blazing for the win. Toomevara impressed in their second round win over Drom & Inch and manager Ken Dunne will have his ‘Greyhounds’ side well-primed for what will be a tough battle as they seek their second win of the championship having registered a well-deserved five-point win over Drom & Inch in the second round. Verdict: Toomevara
Borris-Ileigh v Drom & Inch in Holycross @ 3:45pm
Despite leading for nigh on sixty minutes, Borris-Ileigh suffered a bitterly disappointing one point victory in their second-round game against Kilruane and now face into a must-win clash with near neighbours and age-old rivals Drom & Inch in a bid to maintain their interest in the race for Dan Breen.
Injury worries have beset Borris with Kevin Maher in a race to be fit, but will welcome JD Devaney back from suspension.
Drom & Inch will have to pull themselves up by their bootstraps if they are to avoid finishing bottom of the group but are in with an outside chance of progressing should results and score difference fall in their favour.
A very hard game to call given the nature of the local rivalry but Borris-Ileigh may just have that little too much in the tank for Jamie Moloney and his Drom & Inch teammates. Verdict: Borris-Ileigh
GROUP 2
Permutations: This group is straightforward. Roscrea v Thurles is a dead-rubber as Ros will finish bottom as they have lost the head-to-head battle with Moycarkey/Borris and Mullinahone above them. The same goes for Thurles Sarsfields in terms of being group winners. It means Moycarkey v Mullinahone is winner-takes-all but a drew would be enough for the Mid side to progress on score difference.
Sunday, 25th August
Thurles Sarsfields v Roscrea in Templemore @ 3.45pm.
Thures Sarsfields have had way too much in the tank for both Mullinahone and Moycarkey/Borris in their first two encounters and the same should be the same for their final round clash with Roscrea.
Roscrea have flattered to deceive this year and are already consigned to a relegation battle, a battle they will be focusing on as they bid to retain their Dan Breen status.
The challenge of Thurles Sars’ will be a formidable one especially considering the present form of Darragh Stakelum, Aidan McCormack, Conor Stakelum and Ronan Maher and they really should have too much in the tank for Liam England’s side.
Padraic Maher has guided his side safely through to the knockout stages and the challenge of Roscrea may afford him the chance to experiment with a couple of fringe players. A win for Roscrea, albeit unlikely, would serve to boost morale but there are bigger fish to fry in the looming relegation battle. Verdict: Thurles Sarsfields
CJ Kickhams Mullinahone v Moycarkey/Borris in Cashel @ 3:45pm
A winner takes all battle to see who will progress to the knock-out stages.
Mullinahone impressed in their three-point win over Roscrea with Michael Dunne bagging five points from play while the velocity and pinpoint accurate nature of Eoin Kelly’s puckouts offered the men from the South a deadly platform from which to build attacks from.
Manager, Eddie Brennan has struggled to get the best consistently out of Moycarkey/Borris, but a win here could really kick-start their campaign following a ten-point defeat to Thurles Sarsfields in the second round.
Kieran Morris came off the bench to register six points that day, while they have quality peppered throughout the side with the likes of Rhys Shelly, Max Hackett, Kyle Shelly, Jack Fallon, and Jack Hayes. A win is a must for Moycarkey as they bid to go one step further than last year. However, Eoin Kelly and Co. may have a serious say yet! Verdict: Mullinahone
GROUP 3
Permutations: Loughmore/Castleiney need one more point to secure top spot but play a Nenagh side that need to win to have a chance of progressing, should Holycross get the better of Lorrha. If that happens, it comes down to the results between the three teams only, so Nenagh’s big win over Lorrha wouldn’t be counted.
Lorrha can still qualify but their score difference is so weak if they ended up on two points each with Holycross and Nenagh. Their aim will be escaping from the bottom and a win over Holycross would see them trump them on head-to-head, provided Nenagh get a win or a draw with Loughmore.
Sunday, 25th August
Loughmore/Castleiney v Nenagh Eire in Borrisoleigh @ 4.00pm
Undoubtedly the tie of the round as Nenagh Éire Óg bid to maintain their interest in the championship but standing in their way is a formidable foe in the guise of Eamonn Kelly’s managed Loughmore-Castleiney side.
Loughmore, the Mid champions have impressed in their victories over Lorrha and Holycross. For the first time in a long time the Loughmore bench is strong, and they have a notable strength in depth throughout and a win over Nenagh would really set down a marker as serious contenders for this year’s county championship.
Nenagh slipped up against Holycross and that five-point defeat led to a much changed starting fifteen demolishing a shell-shocked Lorrha side in the second round. Nenagh deployed a far more direct tactic, and it will be interesting to see what tactics are put in play here.
The match-ups will be crucial as Loughmore will seek to get the sliotar to their shooters. Cutting out the supply of ball at source will be paramount but with the likes of Noel McGrath, John McGrath, Brian McGrath, Ciaran Connolly, and Liam McGrath Loughmore the Mid champions possess all the tools in the locker to unpick Nenagh’s defence.
Nenagh will be depending on Jake Morris for the majority of their scores but with Michael Heffernan, Tommy Heffernan, Ben West, and Philip Hickey all back in the scoring groove he should have ample assistance in the scoring stakes. Verdict: Nenagh Éire Óg
Holycross/Ballycahill v Lorrha in Templederry @ 4.00pm
Lorrha face a stiff challenge in their bid to avoid a relegation battle but a win over Holycross/Ballycahill could secure the necessary escape route for the Lower Ormond men.
Considering the nature of their heavy defeat to Nenagh Éire Óg in the second round, Lorrha will only be chomping at the bit to atone for their disappointing performance. Throw in the fact that they pushed Loughmore all the way in their opening round game and you have a very interesting game in prospect.
Ken Hogan will have his charges well-primed in advance of this crucial clash while Holycross must bounce back from a seven-point defeat to Loughmore in what was a far from exciting encounter.
Holycross, who were without the injured Ben Hennessy and Jimmie Lahart in the second round, are still well-placed to qualify but they will have to overcome a Lorrha side fighting for survival and while they have the necessary wherewithal and talent the question is do they have the stomach for the fight when the chips are well and truly down next Sunday. Verdict: Holycross/Ballycahill
GROUP 4
Permutations: JK Brackens are through to the knockout stages but need one more point to secure top spot. They play champions Kiladangan who will be targeting a positive result to avoid a scenario where a defeat would allow Clonoulty/Rossmore to make up a fourteen-point deficit on score difference should they beat Templederry. The Kenyons can’t make the knockout stages, but a win would see them avoid the relegation playoffs with Clonoulty falling in.
Sunday 25th August
Kiladangan v JK Brackens in Dolla @ 1.00pm
A cracking encounter in prospect as two high-scoring sides face off against each other.
JK Brackens are through to the last knockout stage already, but they will want to put a serious marker down and test their mettle against the reigning north and county champions.
Both sides have an arsenal of forwards capable of winning any game with JK Brackens Jamie Ormond, Andrew Ormond, and Lyndon Fairbrother capable of picking apart any defence.
Manager Shane Keegan and his backroom team have fostered a fantastic work ethic with this Brackens side who are scoring for sport and who will provide serious opposition for Kiladangan. The only concern would be their tendency to concede with a whopping 7-34 shipped in their opening two games.
Kiladangan are a side that will punish any complacency in defence, and they definitely have the defensive quality to tie down an in-form Brackens attack.
Kiladangan’s 20-point victory over Templederry in the last round failed to test the county champions but Brackens will bring a different challenge and should provide a stiffer test for John O’Meara’s charges. Verdict: Kiladangan
Clonoulty/Rossmore v Templederry Kenyons at The Ragg @ 1.00pm
Following back-to-back defeats, Templederry are rooted to the bottom of the group and in dire need of a win in a bid to stave off a relegation battle. Having conceded 10-57 in those two games against JK Brackens and Kiladangan it will be a very tall ask for them to overcome the men from the West.
Templederry battled hard against Kiladangan in their second-round encounter but were without the injured Adrian Ryan and Brian Stapleton. A number of players carried knocks into that game and Templederry will be hoping that they will have as many bodies fit for this weekend.
A win for Clonoulty, who have just one point on the board following their opening round draw with Kiladangan, will see them avoid relegation in what has been a very disappointing campaign so far for Tom Butler and his side. The question is whether they can contain Templederry’s scoring talisman Sean Ryan. If they do so they will go a long way towards staving off a relegation battle. However, if Templederry get a run on the West men though it could all end in tears for Clonoulty. Verdict: Clonoulty/Rossmore