With no less than three finals taking place at the weekend, Clare hurling followers are in for a real treat. Clare FM’s Páraic McMahon previews the U21 hurling finals.
Kilmaley vs Éire Óg 11/04/15 at 16:45 in Cusack Park.
For the first time in over five years, Éire Óg will compete in the U21 A Hurling final. Similarly Kilmaley have failed to dominate the grade with their maiden victory coming in 1975, however their recent record at minor level is the best in the club’s history and so the majority of their panel aim to add U21 medals to the minor medals currently sitting in their back-pockets. The lack of success enjoyed by Éire Óg on the hurling field will really wet their appetite come Saturday afternoon and is going to be central to their performance.
They say ‘winning is a habit’ and this current Kilmaley crop epitomise this. Three county minor titles in the last five years just show how hard a grip Kilmaley have on the underage hurling scene in Clare. Characteristics like a strong mentality, composure and collectiveness come hand in hand with winning teams. One negative aspect that can creep into winning teams is complacency, more often than not when this happens, the culprits are punished. So far, there have been glimpses of complacency with this Kilmaley team. In was evident in the final ten minutes of their quarter-final versus Inagh/Kilnamona where Kilmaley took the foot off the pedal and allowed Inamona to hit four late points to really put the pressure on. Saturday in Cusack Park is a big game have no doubt about that, on the big stage mistakes become more obvious, faults become glaring to the naked eye and complacency is punished on the big stage every single time. In their semi-final victory over Clarecastle it was their balance all over the field that booked their spot in the final. Kilmaley may not have All-Stars from one to fifteen but in each line of the field, they have at least one very strong hurler which is sufficient at this level. Cian Moloney has been in sparkling form during this championship with 1-19 to his name in just two games, both Conor Cleary and Michael O’Malley are showing the benefits of training under Davy Fitzgerald as they are playing key roles for Kilmaley, former Clare minor captain Aidan McGuane is one of the vital cogs in the Kilmaley engine, Páraic McNamara with four points from play in the semi-final is a big threat up front while Brian Cahill serves as a cool head in the half-back line.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder and the lack of silverware that has entered the GAA Grounds at Clonroadmore in recent years will be a massive driving force for the challengers on Saturday afternoon. Shane O’Donnell has paraded through Ennis with the Liam McCarthy and the Cross of Cashel, two very noble guests and a prestigious honour for any Clare man. However, SOD as he is affectionately known has not won honours with his clubmates on the hurling field and he will hope to rectify this at the weekend. Physically the Townies are stonger than their opponents, they outmuscled Newmarket-on-Fergus in the quarter-final and outplayed Ballyea in the semi-final with their hurling. The wheels are beginning to spin at the right time for the Ennis club. Interestingly, Kevin Brennan a former Clare minor goalkeeper and current netminder with the Éire Óg senior team is the trainer of the side and Brennan was in fact the last Ennis man to lift aloft the U21 A Hurling trophy when he captained the side in 2010. Brennan knows what it takes to be a champion at this grade, Kilmaley have yet to make the breakthrough at U21. Needless to say Shane O’Donnell is pivotal to the Townies, at full-forward he is a brilliant targetman and while he’s able to score, crucially he is one of the most unselfish hurlers in Clare and he will set up scores all day, more than likely Aidan McGuane will be assigned to quieten O’Donnell. Conor Brennan returns to the fold after serving a one-game suspension while Liam Corry at centre back needs to put in a performance that Donal Moloney will take note of when he is putting together his Clare U21 hurling team. At midfield Dara Walsh has been fading in and out of games and will face off with Michael O’Malley in what may be the game-deciding battle. Eimhin Courtney offers blistering pace to the Ennis club’s attack while Kieran Malone has been doing well at midfield, freetaker Nathan Murray has been key to Éire Óg reaching this stage.
As throw-in nears, a number of questions remained unanswered; who will mark Shane O’Donnell, will Kilmaley risk taking Aidan McGuane out of the game in order to attempt to silence O’Donnell, is the pitch going to suit Éire Óg more, will either side opt for a sweeper, is current form going to be maintained by the star players, what colour jersey will Jim Hickey wear. A lot of questions need to answered, but the big question remains in the fight between experience versus hunger which camp is going to be victorious. All will be revealed in Cusack Park on Saturday.
Tulla vs Cratloe 11/04/15 at 15:00 in Cusack Park
The curtain raiser sees Tulla and Cratloe go toe-to-toe. Following impressive displays in their paths to the final, both sides will have serious momentum behind them.
Tulla were written off for their semi-final against Clonlara. The thing about the men from the Windswept Hill is they have no interest in reading the script or adhering to it, such is their bullish attitude. They will need to continue with that attitude come Saturday afternoon. Key to Tulla’s success to date in this competition has been their clinical nature in front of goal, they dispatched of Wolfe Tones early on in the year because unlike the Tones, Tulla had the bottle in front of goal and took their chances. All over the field, they are a balanced side and this will really aid their cause. Niall Bolton has been on the periphery of County panels for a few seasons now and while that is good for gaining experience, on the field is where the real action is, at centre-back on Saturday Bolton has a chance to shine and earn his place on a County starting fifteen. Full-back Daniel Vaughan will let little past him and it is no coincidence that Vaughan is an accomplished goalkeeper. Mark Lynch is an exciting player in the middle of the park while up front Brian Fahy and Colin Corbett have a lot to offer.
Despite dominating Clare GAA in 2014, one thing missing in Cratloe GAA is underage success. Technically U21 is no longer underage but it’s the market yet to be controlled by the Cratloe club. The South Clare club have beaten St Josephs Doora/Barefield and Crusheen/Tubber in their 2015 campaign with little fuss despite being the underdogs. Podge Collins is a selector with the side and during the week the Clare footballer spoke of how big an achievement a win would be for the club. When it comes to Cratloe it is ‘all for one and one for all’ everyone in the tight-knit village will be behind the team in their quest for glory. Remarkably the entire Cratloe team is underage for 2016 so regardless a move to the A ranks looks certain. Shane Gleeson has been the main man so far in the scoring stakes and he will play a key role at the weekend. Centre-back Shane O’Leary has gained invaluable experience with the Cratloe seniors and he is capable of quietening any attacker in the County. Central to any winning team is communication and in goalkeeper Eoin O’Kelly, Cratloe have one of the loudest custodians in Munster and he has notched up two clean sheets from two games. Jack McInerney has been lively in attack for Cratloe while corner-back Richie Murray is competent in snuffing out any danger.
It will be a tight contest between these sides and whichever side comes out on top will do so after a battle.
Corofin vs Bodyke 10/04/15 at 17:45 in Cusack Park
A memorable evening’s hurling will be had by both Corofin and Bodyke when they face off in the C decider on Friday.
While they do receive a lot of criticism at times, the Clare County Board are to be praised for giving the hurlers of Bodyke and Corofin the opportunity to play in the County Grounds. The North Clare side will look to Clare Senior footballer Jamie Malone for guidance in this one while Liam Corbett will rely on his experience of big days playing for the Banner at minor level, elsewhere Eoin Clancy and Fergus Killeen are strong hurlers for Corofin. Bodyke’s star man Paddy Fitzgerald is a major doubt having picked up a hamstring injury lately, if the Clare U21 panellist is absent his loss could be fatal. Nevertheless in this thirteen a side decider, anything could happen on the big day.
