Second half scorefest sees Ballygunner down dogged Doon

Munster Senior Club Hurling Championship Quarter-Final

Doon (Limerick) - 0-20

Ballygunner (Waterford) - 0-25

The Big Match coverage comes with thanks to George Corbett Skoda.

A vintage second-half performance from Ballygunner saw them make it ten wins in a row in Munster - as they came from five points down early in the second half to beat a Doon side by the same margin come the final whistle.

Pauric Mahony (0-11), Dessie Hutchinson (0-6) and Patrick Fitzgerald (0-5) proved unstoppable - providing 0-22 between them as the Gunners hit 17 points after the break.

Ballygunner went into the game seeking their tenth Munster win on the spin having captured the last three provincial titles on offer - while for Doon, it was a case of unknown territory having only captured their first Limerick senior crown seven days prior. Still, any team capable of winning in the Treaty posed a considerable threat to the Gunners, one which they would refuse to take lightly irrespective of any context.

Captain Conor Sheahan opened the scoring with five minutes played before Adam English and Pauric Mahony traded dead balls - then a superb Patrick Fitzgerald effort from a difficult angle moved Ballygunner 0-3 to 0-1 ahead on 11 minutes.

English and Mahony then again traded frees, but it was Derek McGrath's men who brought the intensity - exemplified in particular by the performances of Darragh O'Donovan and Pat Ryan. Chris Thomas split the posts after fine work from English, before the excellent Ryan brought the sides level at 0-4 each.

Thomas then fired his second to move Doon 0-5 to 0-4 ahead before Mahony's third free and a trademark Dessie Hutchinson effort flipped proceedings to move the 3-in-a-row Munster champions back 6-5 to the good. The excellence of Stephen O'Keeffe in goal prevented two further points, and a Mahony wonderscore following fine work from Harry Ruddle gave the Gunners a two-point margin.

Tadhg Foley then used all his frame to deny Kevin Maher a certain goal - but three points in succession from the simply excellent Adam English soon had it 0-9 to 0-7 - the last of the treble an outstanding free from some distance.

A Mahony free reduced arrears to the minimum but Eddie Stokes was then on hand to add his name to the scoresheet. Darragh O'Donovan then got in on the act with a fantastic run and point having dispossessed Ian Kenny and suddenly a shock was on the cards.

As English knocked over another dead ball, the half-time scoreline read Doon 0-12 Ballygunner 0-8 - history in the making at the Gaelic Grounds?

Chris Thomas came out of the blocks excellently once again notching his third to give the Limerick champions a five point lead but Mahony was once again deadly accurate from the dead ball soon after. Then, Doon spurned a golden opportunity on 33 minutes.

Corner-forward Jack Ryan was sent racing away but O'Keeffe denied him with a world-class save that only he can seem to produce - and down Ballygunner burst down the pitch for Hutchinson to knock over his second.

3 November 2024; Jack Ryan of Doon reacts to missing a goal chance during the AIB Munster GAA Senior Club Hurling Championship quarter-final match between Doon and Ballygunner at TUS Gaelic Grounds in Limerick. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Mahony then found the radar from the dead ball twice in succession - as Ballygunner again proved, if you give them opportunities - they will punish you.

The gap was suddenly down to one on 38 minutes - but when Sheahan was in acres moments afterward and found by Hutchinson - we were level for a third time.

Momentum was now with the Waterford kingpins, winning every dirty ball and bursting at breakneck speed. Mikey Mahony was next to add his name to the scoresheet - six points in a row for Ballygunner - a game turned on its' head in five minutes.

Mahony's ninth of the afternoon was Ballygunner's seventh in a row before English was on hand to arrest the slump and Pat Ryan worked wonders once again to level matters for a fifth occasion on 44 minutes.

Young Patrick Fitzgerald was lively throughout and capitalised on a loose sliotar to move Ballygunner 0-16 to 0-15 in front as we entered the final quarter with the game finely poised - Ballygunner in their groove but Doon refusing to give in.

Hutchinson's third point saw him torment the defence before splitting the posts, his fourth was probably no more than ten seconds later and it was every bit as impressive from the 65-metre line as Ballygunner moved three points up.

Chris Thomas definitely didn't deserve to be on a losing side and did everything he could to ensure that wouldn't happen with his fourth point of the afternoon, before Jack Ryan got his head down and drove at the Gunners defence to make it 18-17.

A rare wide from a Mahony free offered Derek McGrath and Doon further hope, but English fired a rare wide as the stakes proved that little bit higher all of a sudden.

Richie English flew out with a superb block to deny Mahony, but they weren't to be denied - Mikey Mahony making amends as he unleashed a monster from the right flank to give some more breathing room.

The warrior-like effort of Doon was epitomised by the sight of Richie English being carried from the field like a war hero - but Ballygunner aren't interested in fairytales as we've so often seen - Fitzgerald spinning and slotting over his third and Ballygunner's twentieth.

Pauric Mahony brought his personal tally to double figures on 55 minutes as the Gunners now had a four-point cushion and breathing room, or did they?

Pat Ryan bore down on goal but he was to be denied by a combination of Barry Coughlan and Stephen O'Keeffe denied him - but Adam English wouldn't be denied by the requisite '65. Three minutes remained and just three points separated the sides, as you could hear a pin drop in Limerick.

The irrepressible English was again on hand to dent the scoreboard from a free, were Ballygunner to finally be slayed in Munster? Not yet at least, as Patrick Fitzgerald's fourth proved to be to Doon's detriment.

Who better to add the nail to the coffin than Pauric Mahony? The picture of consistency - he was dragged down, got up and knocked over his eleventh score of the evening as three minutes added time were announced.

Doon needed something big and needed it fast - but Ballygunner simply didn't care, Hutchinson swiveled and slapped over a stunner from the left-hand sideline that pushed the boat out to five. They had trailed by as many not so long ago.

Trust Dessie Hutchinson to have the final say - once again defying physics with an effort that simply defied description - Michael Kennedy's full-time whistle sounded - Ballygunner 0-25 Doon 0-20.

Derek McGrath's men died in their boots but Ballygunner simply refuse to roll over - ten in a row in Munster, they face Loughmore-Castleiney of Tipperary on November 17th at Walsh Park as the quest for four-in-a-row remains alive and well. Write them off at your peril.

Doon: Tomas Lynch; Eoin Fitzgerald, Tommy Hayes, Cian O'Donovan; Chris Thomas, Barry Murphy, Richie English; Darragh O'Donovan, Pat Ryan; Mikey O'Brien, Adam English, Eddie Stokes; Jack Ryan, Kevin Maher, Darragh Stapleton.

Subs: Gareth Thomas for Darragh Stapleton (43); Patrick Cummins for Richie English (52)

Scorers: Adam English (0-10; 0-8f; 0-1 '65); Chris Thomas (0-4); Pat Ryan (0-2); Darragh O'Donovan, Eddie Stokes, Jack Ryan and Cian O'Donovan (0-1 each)

Ballygunner: Stephen O'Keeffe; Ian Kenny, Barry Coughlan, Tadhg Foley; Harry Ruddle, Philip Mahony, Ronan Power; Conor Sheahan, Paddy Leavy; Dessie Hutchinson, Pauric Mahony, Peter Hogan; Patrick Fitzgerald, Kevin Mahony, Mikey Mahony.

Subs: Cormac Power for Kevin Mahony (55); Shane O'Sullivan for Mikey Mahony (60)

Scorers: Pauric Mahony (0-11; 0-9f); Dessie Hutchinson (0-6); Patrick Fitzgerald (0-5); Mikey Mahony (0-2); Conor Sheahan (0-1)

Referee: Michael Kennedy (Tipperary)

The Big Match coverage comes with thanks to George Corbett Skoda.