Senior Hurling Semi Final, Walsh Park
Roanmore 1-15
Dungarvan 0-12
Roanmore opened the scoring through Shane Mackey in the first minute of the game, with a blustery shower blowing in across Walsh Park. The rain had held off until that point, but the squally downpour made for slippery conditions underfoot.
It only took Dungarvan until the third minute of the game to register on the scoreboard, with Patrick Curran sending one through the posts, with his brother Cathal following up moments later with a point of his own. That heralded the start of a period where Dungarvan went four scores unanswered, leaving Roanmore trailing 0.4 – 0.1.
It was Shane Mackey who got the ball back rolling for the Skyblues with a point from play.
A promising attack from late entrant on the team sheet Brian Nolan was stopped when he was dragged down just outside the D, Gavin O Brien stood up for his first placed ball of the day, comfortably putting it over the bar and subsequently starting a scoring run for Roanmore that would see them notch three more without reply.
Dungarvan lead 0.4 to 0.1 after nine minutes, but went the next 11 minutes without a score, until Cathal Curran broke the deadlock with his second of the day.
In that barren period for Dungarvan full forward Cathal Curran was shown a yellow card for an off the ball incident with Frank McGrath, while Keelan Daly was also shown yellow for a late hit on Billy Nolan. On the other side, Darragh Lyons was put I the book and shown a yellow for dragging down Ethan Flynn who had created a dangerous attacking chance for Roanmore.
Roanmore had some scary moments of their own when Cathal Curran found his way into space and Jack Chester was called upon to stop a point blank shot.
The sides were level five times in the first half, but the opening half hour ended with a narrow Dungarvan lead of 0.8 points to 0.7
In the second half, Gavin O Brien opened up again with two frees over placed balls while a Cathal Curran strike on the run was the only score of the first 10 minutes for Dungarvan.
Roanmore had faced the goal threats in the opening half, but the early going in the second half saw Shane Mackey bear down on the Dungarvan net with Darragh Duggan standing tall to deny him.
Moments later it was Emmet O’ Toloe who worked his way down the left flank for Roanmore, he struck for goal, and with Darragh Duggan getting the tip of his hurley to it, the ball glanced off the bar and fell into the frenetic goal mouth where O’ Toole was lying in wait to recycle and bury it to the back of the net. That moment set the tone for the rest of the game.
The score at the second half water break; Dungarvan 1.09 – 0.11 Roanmore.
Once the refreshments (and tactics boards) had been put away it was Roanmore who refused to relinquish their lead. Dungarvan battled to find a foothold back in the game, but the ball was repeatedly sent in high into the square, hoovered up and sent right back out by Roanmore again and again.
It wasn’t all plain sailing for Roanmore though, eight second half wides looked likely to put all their good work at risk – with five of those wides from play, and all of them coming one after another.
But the final 10 minutes saw Roanmore lay down a final marker for why they were deserving of their place in the final. Eoin Madigan shot for a point, which stated another onslaught from Gavin O’ Brien to secure the victory 1.15 – 0-12.
