Kilkenny SHC- Fennelly goal key to Shamrocks victory

It was tight for long periods but, like they always tend to do when it matters most, Shamrocks found a way to overcome Tullaroan in last Saturday’s senior hurling championship semi-final in UPMC Nowlan Park.

The five in a row chasing Shamrocks looked like they were going to run riot early on in the game but, helped by a goal from Mossy Keoghan, Tullaroan really got into it with the likes of Shane Walsh and Dylan Simpson putting in big performances for the defeated side.

The sides were level at half-time but once Colin Fennelly found the net in the 38th minute, the defending champions were able to push ahead and win by four points in the end.

The victory sees Shamrocks qualify for a fifth final in a row. After winning the previous four they will be aiming for their own piece of history when facing James Stephens on Sunday.

Within eight minutes of the throw-in Shamrocks were four points to the good after a TJ Reid free was added to by efforts from play courtesy of Eoin Cody and Colin Fennelly (2).

Tullaroan will have been a little bit concerned at that stage as when the Shamrocks get a run on you they can be a difficult side to stop.

They finally got on the scoreboard in the ninth minute when Shane Walsh converted a free While TJ Reid replied in kind down the other end, Tullaroan did get on level terms a couple of minutes later.

Four points in a row from a combination of Mossy Keoghan, Shane Walsh and Bill Gaffney gave Tullaroan plenty of momentum as they began to grow into the game.

Shamrocks responded with points from Reid and Niall Shortall but again Tullaroan came back. When Shane Walsh and Dylan Simpson found the target, there was nothing to separate the sides, who were locked at 0-7 each.

Simpson and Reid continued the closely-fought nature of the game but it opened up a bit when Tullaroan scored the opening goal of the game in the 21st minute.

Mossy Keoghan latched onto a loose ball before embarking on a brilliant run which ended in him blasting a shot past Dean Mason in the Shamrocks goal.

Tullaroan went three points clear at that point but in true champions style, the Shamrocks’ reply was emphatic .

Pat Hoban’s team hit the following four points to win back the lead as frees from TJ Reid were followed by points from play by Eoin Cody and Evan Shefflin.

Shane Walsh did ensure that Tullaroan went into the break on level terms though as a cracking 30 minutes of hurling came to an end.

Tullaroan were almost rocked by a Shamrocks goal within seconds of the restart when Colin Fennelly set up Killian Corcoran who had a shot saved by Paul Buggy.

Evan Shefflin and Shane Walsh then swapped efforts before Shamrocks retook the lead with points from Reid and Eoin Kenneally.

Padraig Walsh then fired over an inspirational effort from distance after brilliantly catching a puck-out.

That stirred the Tullaroan crowd but that enthusiasm was soon quashed when TJ hit another free before Colin Fennelly struck for goal.

A long clearance from Richie Reid found TJ and while he was originally denied, the ball eventually found its way to Joey Cuddihy who found Fennelly and he made no mistake in scoring.

That gave Shamrocks a five-point lead. Tullaroan were chasing from that point on.

Joey Cuddihy made it a six-point game in the 41st minute and while Tullaroan did get the deficit back to three points at different stages, Shamrocks maintained their grip on the game with TJ, Colin Fennelly, Joey Cuddihy and captain Ronan Corcoran all pointing that saw them emerge as 1-24 to 1-20 winners.

Tullaroan will be left hugely frustrated as they did a lot of things right on Saturday including shutting down the threat of the in-form Adrian Mullen who failed to score from play.

They had big performances all over the field but in essence that sums up the Shamrocks brilliance and now only James Stephens stand in the way of a fifth championship in a row.

Teams & Scorers

Shamrocks - TJ Reid (0-11, 0-8 frees); Colin Fennelly (1-3); Eoin Cody (0-3); Joey Cuddihy, Evan Shefflin (0-2 each); Niall Shortall, Eoin Kenneally, Ronan Corcoran (0-1 each).

Tullaroan - Shane Walsh (0-10, 0-7 frees); Martin Keoghan (1-2); Dylan Simpson (0-4); Bill Gaffney (0-2); Padraig Walsh, Peter Walsh (0-1 each).

Shamrocks - Dean Mason; Killian Corcoran, Joey Holden, Brian Butler; Evan Shefflin, Richie Reid, Darragh Corcoran; Ronan Corcoran, Darren Mullen; Adrian Mullen, TJ Reid, Eoin Cody; Eoin Kenneally, Colin Fennelly, Niall Shortall.

Subs: Joey Cuddihy for Shortall, h-t; Liam Barron for Butler, 53 mins.

Tullaroan - Paul Buggy; Ger Luby, Tommy Walsh, Josh Moore; Martin Walsh, Padraig Walsh, Tomas Dunne; Jack Keoghan, Joe Coughlan; John Walton, Martin Keoghan, Gearoid Dunne; Dylan Simpson, Bill Gaffney, Shane Walsh.

Subs: Peter Walsh for Walton, 48 mins; Tommy Walsh for Coughlan, 57 mins; Sean Leahy for Simpson, 58 mins.

Referee - Owen Beehan (Fenians).