All-Ireland SHC: Dublin stun Limerick at Croke Park

All-Ireland SHC Quarter-Final

Dublin 2-24 Limerick 0-28

By Paul Keane at Croke Park

We won't be so bold as to say we saw this coming. In truth, just about nobody outside of Niall O Ceallachain and his awesome Dublin team probably did.

But it's happened. Dublin, essentially written off beforehand, are through to an All-Ireland SHC semi-final against Kilkenny or Cork that just about nobody predicted. And Limerick, the All-Ireland favourites, are out.

Two goals midway through the second-half, which arrived within seconds of eachother, from substitute John Hetherton and Cian O'Sullivan, put the Dubs in a winning position at Croke Park.

And the raging underdogs held on for a famous win, their biggest since the 2013 Championship when they won the Leinster title and went on to contest their last All-Ireland semi-final.

The win over John Kiely's team of generational talents was all the more unlikely because O Ceallachain's side lost captain Chris Crummey after just 15 minutes for a high tackle on Gearoid Hegarty that drew a straight red card.

Powerful Hetherton's half-time introduction was certainly significant as he scored a goal and played a big role in the other one.

But Dublin had heroes all around from the field, from Man of the Match Conor Burke, who sniped five points after being recalled to the team, to free-taker Sean Currie who scored nine points to brothers Ronan and Brian Hayes, as well as former football star Conor McHugh.

Dublin will play the Munster or Leinster champions in an All-Ireland semi-final on the weekend of July 5/6, but Limerick's season is over, their exit from the Championship one of the great shocks of modern Championship hurling.

The red card looked like a game changer but it ultimately threw All-Ireland favourites Limerick off their stride far more than Dublin.

Limerick were 0-7 to 0-5 ahead when Crummey drove hard across Hegarty and appeared to catch him with an arm across the faceguard.

Hegarty's head certainly shot back as if clear contact had been made and referee Liam Gordon was certain it was a straight red card offence.

At half-time, Dublin manager O Ceallachain argued the toss with Gordon while the teams were heading in and was booked for his protests.

Still, Dublin were in a surprisingly healthy position at that stage, leading by 0-15 to 0-12 despite the reduced personnel.

Dublin scored four of the next five points immediately after the red card, Currie with four of those, including two from frees as Limerick got a little ragged and cynical.

Aidan O'Connor and Aaron Gillane scored two excellent points for Dublin in the first-half. O'Connor used his skill to jink away from the Dublin defence for his score and Gillane snatched an arrowed Cian Lynch pass from the air for his one.

But the genius moments were fleeting from a once mighty team who struggled to muster the same energy and intensity as 14-man Dublin.

The beaten Munster finalists looked a little weary and fatigued, despite Dublin having played just last weekend, and were glad that the Dubs blasted nine first-half wides and dropped two more attempts short.

Bringing on Hetherton at half-time was a clear move by the Dublin management to offer a new dimension in attack.

The St Vincent's man immediately made his mark, using his hulking frame and aerial prowess to snatch a ball from the air. It came to nothing but it was a forewarning for Limerick.

The Shannonsiders, to their credit, dominated the first 15 minutes of the second-half with Adam English and O'Connor sniping some excellent scores.

They led by a point in the 51st minute, 0-19 to 0-18, but then came those two Dublin goals.

Hetherton displayed his full skill set for the first of them, swivelling after a lay-off by O'Sullivan and blasting to the far top corner of Nickie Quaid's net.

A minute later, Hetherton rose up for a high ball and the ball broke kindly off for him for O'Sullivan to sweep up and slam to the net.

Limerick looked stunned. So did the Dublin supporters who were streaming in early for the Dublin footballers' clash with Cork later on.

Leading now by 2-18 to 0-19, it was Dublin's game to lose. Many probably still thought they would and Limerick certainly threw the kitchen sink at it late on, bringing on Peter Casey and Shane O'Brien to try to wrestle the game back in their direction.

Gillane finished up with nine points and there were late scores from Casey and the industrious English but Dublin picked off enough scores to remain just about in the clear.

There was late drama when, with three in it, Diarmaid Byrnes went for goal with a free but the shot was blocked by a scrum of Dublin defenders and Hetherton, who else, came thundering out with the ball in his hand.

Scorers for Dublin: Sean Currie 0-9 (5fs), Conor Burke 0-5, Cian O'Sullivan 1-1, John Hetherton 1-0, Ronan Hayes 0-3, Rian McBride 0-2, Brian Hayes 0-2, Chris Crummey 0-1, Fergal Whitely 0-1.

Scorers for Limerick: Aaron Gillane 0-9 (6fs, 1 65), Adam English 0-5, Gearoid Hegarty 0-4, Aidan O'Connor 0-3, Tom Morrissey 0-2, Cian Lynch 0-2, Barry Nash 0-1, Cathal O'Neill 0-1, Peter Casey 0-1

Dublin: Sean Brennan; John Bellew, Paddy Smyth, Conor McHugh; Paddy Doyle, Chris Crummey, Andrew Dunphy; Conor Burke, Brian Hayes; Rian McBride, Fergal Whitely, Cian O'Sullivan; Sean Currie, Ronan Hayes, Diarmaid O'Dulaing.

Subs: John Hetherton for O Dulaing h/t, Darragh power for Whitely 52, Donal Burke for McBride 64, Colin Currie for Ronan Hayes 69, David Lucey for McHugh 75.

​Limerick: ​Nickie Quaid; Sean Finn, Dan Morrissey, Mike Casey; Diarmaid Byrnes, Kyle Hayes, Barry Nash; Adam English, William O'Donoghue; Gearoid Hegarty, Cian Lynch, Tom Morrissey; Aaron Gillane, Aidan O'Connor, David Reidy.

Subs: Cathal O'Neill for Tom Morrissey 23-24, blood, Barry Murphy for Casey h/t, O'Neill for Morrissey h/t, Declan Hannon for Nash 51, Peter Casey for O'Donoghue 58, Shane O'Brien for O'Connor 64.

Referee: Liam Gordon (Galway).