Our senior hurlers made sure of their place in the last four of this year's championship following a hard fought win over Ballybrown on Thursday night last. Played under lights in Adare, conditions were ideal for hurling. We were without William O’Donoghue who was to get married on Friday, while Ballybrown were without their star man Aidan O’Connor, him having picked up a wrist injury earlier in the championship.
It was point for point in the opening minutes before Peter Casey rattled the opposition net following an outrageous crossfield pass from Conor Boylan. Conor floated the ball beautifully from the sideline to meet Peter’s midriff at full speed. Peter carried and bounced the ball calmly past the Ballybrown goalkeeper. Our second goal came from the stick of Dáithí Dempsey to put us 6 ahead with 20 minutes played. Snappy build up play starting from a well taken James Finn sideline that found Conor Boylan, who duly found Tommy Grimes. Tommy gave a well timed handpass to the fast moving Dáithí. Dáithí, heading towards goal, turned sharply to shrug off his man and blasted the ball to the net. Ballybrown hit back with a goal and a few more points to stay in touch. We entered the break 3 ahead but it could have been closer had Shane Dowling not pulled off an exceptional save to deny Ballybrown late in the first half. Half time score: Na Piarsaigh 2-10 Ballybrown 1-10
Ballybrown levelled the tie directly from the throw-in, grabbing their second goal of the game. We responded well with a free from Keith Dempsey and Tommy Grimes registering his first point from play. Tommy played a key role in Thursday’s win recording 3 points along with giving a man-of-the-match display at midfield. Great to see him come in and make a meaningful impact following a tough few months on the sideline. The game was in the melting pot with 4 to play and us leading by 2. The next score would be crucial and luckily for us it came from a Na Piarsaigh man. Will Henn from out close to the sideline, splitting the posts. Ballybrown responded before Ronan Lynch added his fourth long range free of the evening. The value of Ronan’s long range free taking cannot be understated, him going 100% from placed balls again on Thursday night. 3 ahead and time winding down, Kevin Downes blasts over the insurance score following a great catch. Ballybrown pushed for a goal in the dying moments but we held them to a point.
The semi-finals are due to be played on the weekend of the 9th of October with Kilmallock on the opposite side of the draw. Doon, Monaleen, Mungret and Adare all enter the draw for the quarter finals, due to be held early in the week.
Team: Shane Dowling, Jerome Boylan, Vince Harrington, Emmet McEvoy, Ronan Lynch(0-04f), Mike Casey, James Finn, Tommy Grimes(0-03), JJ Carey, Keith Dempsey(0-05, 3f, 1’65), Peter Casey(1-03), Dáithí Dempsey(1-03), Conor Boylan(0-01), Dylan Lynch, Eoin Brosnan.
Sub: Will Henn(0-01), Kevin Downes(0-01), Adrian Breen.
Our Senior hurling squad that defeated Ballybrown on Thursday night last.
Intermediate Hurling Championship Round 5
Na Piarsaigh 5-24
Mungret 2-12
Our intermediate hurlers finished their championship on a high following a convincing win over Mungret in Páirc Uí Drimngúil on Friday evening. Both teams entered the game knowing they couldn’t advance to the knockout stage or be in danger of relegation. While there was zero jeopardy on the line for either side, an entertaining game ensued. We rattled the net five times, with Mark Hogan getting his name on 3 of those goals. Marucs Hogan chipped in with 1-06 from play, while Josh Sheehan settled for a goal and a point. David O’Keeffe put in a solid performance at midfield alongside Wayne Kearns. Danny Sheehan was selected between the sticks, providing a calm presence throughout the hour. Eight of Friday’s team will be eligible for the under 21 hurling championship, due to start on the 18th of October. They are Danny Sheehan, Harry McGann, Mike Duggan, David O’Keeffe, Alex Kearns, Paul McDonagh, Mark Hogan and Josh Sheehan.
Team: Danny Sheehan, Harry McGann, Josh O’Halloran, Mike Duggan, Padraig Heaney, Evan Gilvarry, Pa O’Neill(0-01), David O’Keeffe(0-02), Wayne Kearns(0-01), Alex Kearns(0-08, 6f), Kevin Daly(0-03), Paul McDonagh(0-01), Marcus Hogan(1-06), Mark Hogan(3-01), Josh Sheehan(1-01).
Junior B Hurling Championship Round 5
Na Piarsaigh 4-16
Granagh Ballingarry 3-11
A brilliant result for our Junior B's on Saturday sees us through to a county quarter final. Fair play to Fergal Brosnan, his management team and all the players for their efforts thus far and we wish them the very best in the knockout stage of the championship. Doon will be our opponents in the quarter final with fixture yet to be announced.
Team: Bobby Collins, Ben Murray, Brain Hartnett, Kevin McNamara, Tadhg Mullane, Marcus Murphy, Ferdia Minihane, John O’Tiarnaigh, Padraig Murnane, Steven Mitchell, Louis Murphy, Sean Harrington, Dillon Skehan, Gearoid Synnott, Ben O’Regan.
Sub: Conor Stack, Andrew Stack, Conor Bermingham, Cillian Chawke, Joe Kehoe, Ronan Benson and James McGann.
Intermediate Football Championship Round 5
Na Piarsaigh 2-10
Gerald Griffins 0-11
The Intermediate Footballers finished the group stage with a 2-10 to 0-11 win over Gerald Griffins on Saturday, bouncing back from Wednesday’s defeat on a short turnaround.
The forwards set the tone early with a high work rate. Ralph Leonard forced a turnover which led to Mark Hogan finding the net, helping the Intermediate Footballers into a 1-5 to 0-4 half-time lead.
The second-half performance was very good, with some sharp hand-passing and movement. Ralph Leonard was fouled for a penalty, which Kieran Daly converted to extend the lead.
There were some great scores along the way, with Christy O’Hagan getting the crowd going with a fist pump after landing his effort. Cian Counihan also produced a brilliant outside-of-the-boot score, moments after the opposition were roaring, “He doesn’t want it!” Anyone who knows Cian will know that was never likely to be the case!
The Intermediate Footballers saw out the game well to secure a 2-10 to 0-11 victory. Next up is the quarter-final against St. Patrick’s on 3rd October in Claughaun.
Team: Eoghain Sherlock, Christy O’Hagan, Cian Counihan, Cathal McMullan, Darragh Jordan, Sean Long, Adam Jordan, Ralph Leonard, Jack McCarthy, Daniel Collins, Kieran Daly, James Daly, Dylan Cronin, Evan Egan, Mark Hogan.
Sub: Ferdia Minihane, Tommy Grimes, Aaron Rush, Stephen O’Halloran.
Intermediate Football Championship Round 1
Na Piarsaigh 1-10
St. Senan's 3-13
Team: Eoghain Sherlock, Aaron Rush, Cian Counihan(0-01), Cathal McMullan, Adam Jordan(0-01), Ralph Leonard, Christy O'Hagan, Jack McCarthy, Darragh Jordan, Ronan Houlihan, Kieran Daly(0-02, 1f), James Daly, Daniel Collins, Evan Egan, Mark Hogan(0-02).
