South Tipp U 21A Championship Hurling Final 2015
Swan hold off Kickham’s Rally
Carrick Swan 1-14 Mullinahone C.J. Kickhams 0-13
The curtain fell on the 2015 South Tipp Hurling season in Kilsheelan on Sunday afternoon. Carrick Swan proved a little too good for a brave Mullinahone side in the U21A final. This fixture drew a good crowd to the Suirside venue. While the rain held off, a strong breeze blew down the field towards the road goal.
Kickhams had the first use of the elements and when Swan led by 1-6 to 0-5 at the interval, the Mullinahone goose looked to be well and truly cooked. When Gavin O’Halloran pointed a free in the third minute of the second half, it looked as if the prognosis was correct. However, facing the elements Mullinahone fought back bravely and by the middle of the half the gap was down to a point 1-8 to 0-10.
The lack of a scoring forward to give support to Micheál Dunne was to tell against Mullinahone in the last quarter. Only Enda Keane of the other five forwards troubled Swan who were able to breathe a sigh of relief when the final whistle sounded after three minutes of added time. Swan had just gone four points clear. In spite of the heavy conditions both sides played good hurling which made one regret that this final did not take place in the fine weather of Summer or Autumn.
The game between two determined sides sparked into life from the moment referee, Willie Barrett threw in the ball. Swan were on top in the early stages though points were exchanged in the first 12 minutes. Martin Griffin and Gavin O’Halloran gave Swan the lead, but each time Micheál Duune pointed frees to pull them back. Gavin O’Halloran from a free and Jack Cooke put points on the board for Swan, but Dunne from a free and Enda Keane from a neat Jack Shelly pass had the sides level in 23 minutes. Both free takers were off target in the next few minutes before Jack Cooke restored Swan’s lead. Gavin O’Halloran added another point, but a Dunne free cut the deficit. In added time a Swan free was mishit into the goal area and when the Mullinahone backs failed to clear Dean Walsh was on hand to shake the net and get the game’s most important score. Half time Carrick Swan 1-6, C.J.Kickhams 0-5.
In spite of the odds now seemingly stacked against them, Mullinahone upped their game in the second half and managed to fight back. A Gavin O’Halloran free made the gap five points in the third minute of the second half, but when Micheál Dunne was fouled a minute later, he pointed the resultant free. In five minutes Colin Shelly pointed. In seven minutes when Luke Gahan saw yellow, Micheál Dunne cut the gap to two points. O’Halloran and Dunne exchanged points. Swan’s Eric O’Halloran was yellow carded in 12 minutes and they introduced Evan Hogan as a sub in 14 minutes. Swan picked up a third yellow card as the pressure seemed to be getting to them. Another Dunne point had the gap down to just one, but a fine point from Aaron Dunne in 17 minutes steadied the Swan ship. Gavin O’Halloran pointed, but Micheál Dunne replied to keep the pressure on. Dean Walsh pointed and when sub Evan Hogan pointed in 23 minutes, the gap was four.
Dunne pointed a free to cut this gap to three, but Dean Walsh opened it to four again. Jack Shelly (M) saw a yellow card in 28 minutes, but another Dunne point brought the game back to just a single goal. As the game entered added time Dunne sent a free wide. Swan sent on Bill Barrett and in 33 minutes Jack Cooke pointed to make the game safe for Swan. Final score, Carrick Swan 1-14, Mullinahone C.J. Kickhams 0-13.
After the game Chairman of the South Board, Michael Cooney presented the winners’ trophy to the Swan captain Colm Waters who was unable to play in the final because of injury. Swan were delighted to win a trophy that they last won in 2013. The present team also won the South Tipp U-18 A title three years ago in 2012. In their winning run to the title Swan won all of their games. They beat Ballingarry and Mullinahone and St.Marys conceded to them in the League section. They defeated Kilsheelan in the semi-final and now Mullinahone in the final. They were a stronger team than Mullinahone and in the end in the conditions this counted. While disappointed with the end result, Mullinahone should be happy with their six games in the championship losing only, albeit twice to Swan, but both defeats were narrow. Overall, the 2015 championship provided quite a number of good competitive games.
Teams:
Carrick Swans: Kieran Lonergan, Danny Walsh, Scott Hogan, Shane Torpey, Dale O’Hanlon, Colin Loughman, Tommy McGrath, Gavin O’Halloran, Eric O’Halloran, Dean Waters, Luke Gahan, Martin Griffin, Dean Walsh, Jack Cooke, Aaron Dunne. Subs used: Evan Hogan, Bill Barrett.
Mullinahone C.J. Kickhams: Richie Walsh, Paul Luttrell, George Browning, Liam Hicks, Darragh Kelly, Luke Mullally, Graham Horan, Jack Shelly, Michael Cody, David Walzer, Enda Keane, Colin Shelly, Joe Hogan, Micheal Dunne, Sean Walzer.
Referee: Willie Barrett (Ardfinnan)
Report supplied by Ricky Sheehan
