Donnacha Ó Dalaigh of Limerick celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship Round 1 match between Clare and Limerick at Cusack Park in Ennis, Clare. Photo by John Sheridan/Sportsfile.
Munster Senior Hurling Championship Round 1
LIMERICK 3-15 CLARE1-18
By Eoin Brennan at Cusack Park
It was a comeback of champions' proportions as Limerick produced an almost incredulous twelve point turnaround to floor hosts Clare and pick up two valuable opening points in the Munster Senior Hurling Championship.
A packed Cusack Park attendance of 20,055 looked to be treated to a rousing home victory when powering nine points clear by the turn of the final quarter. However, despite the inspirational introduction of captain Tony Kelly, Clare would be sucker-punched by a resurgent Limerick who raided for three devastating goals in a seven minute blitz to sink their hosts.
Six down nearing the final ten minutes, an innocuous Diarmaid Byrnes free from 65 metres managed to nestle in the top left corner of Eibhear Quilligan’s net to spark a complete role reversal before Gearoid Hegarty teed up further goals for substitute Donnacha Ó Dalaigh and Aaron Gillane to garner an unlikely but rousing opening round triumph.
Clare will rue the manner of all three goals along with how they collectively faltered in the scorching son. Limerick started with intent as Aaron Gillane could have easily grabbed a brace of goals in the first three minutes alone on their way to a 0-4 to 0-2 lead.
Mark Rodgers also had a shot saved at the other end by Nickie Quaid as the Banner finally settled, mainly thanks to a clinical display of freetaking from Aidan McCarthy whose seven placed balls turned the tide before also being on the end of a Shane O’Donnell centre to finish the half with a home goal at 1-10 to 0-08.
Limerick uncharacteristically hit ten wides in that first half and it didn’t improve much on the restart either as the holders only had a solitary Aaron Gillane free to show for their third quarter efforts.
Instead, the Banner stretched the gap to nine, with Mark Rodgers (2), David Fitzgerald, McCarthy and substitute Seadna Morey on target to soar 1-15 to 0-09 in front by the 52nd minute.
Game over? Not with a five-in-a-row All-Ireland chasing Limerick involved as they clawed their way back into contention before pulling the trigger with those three hammerblow goals to secure a first Cusack Park championship victory in 34 years.
Scorers for Limerick: Aaron Gillane (1-5, 5f); Donnacha Ó Dalaigh (1-1); Gearoid Hegarty (0-3); Diarmaid Byrnes (1-0f); Cathal O’Neill, David Reidy (0-2 each); Kyle Hayes, Cian Lynch (0-1 each)
Scorers for Clare: Aidan McCarthy (1-10, 8f); David Fitzgerald, Mark Rodgers, Tony Kelly (f) (0-2 each); Shane O’Donnell, Seadna Morey (0-1 each)
LIMERICK: Nickie Quaid; Mike Casey, Dan Morrissey, Barry Nash; Diarmaid Byrnes, Declan Hannon, Kyle Hayes: William O’Donoghue, Cian Lynch; Gearoid Hegarty, Tom Morrissey, Cathal O’Neill; Seamus Flanagan, Aaron Gillane, David Reidy
Subs: Sean Finn for Casey (5, inj), Donnacha Ó Dalaigh for Flanagan (45), Conor Boylan for T. Morrissey (48), Adam English for O’Donoghue (59), Aidan O’Connor for Gillane (67)
CLARE: Eibhear Quilligan; Adam Hogan, Conor Cleary, Rory Hayes; Diarmuid Ryan, John Conlon, David McInerney; Darragh Lohan, Cathal Malone; David Fitzgerald, David Reidy, Peter Duggan; Aidan McCarthy, Shane O’Donnell, Mark Rodgers
Subs: Seadna Morey for Lohan (HT), Tony Kelly for Reidy (54), Paul Flanagan for Hayes (58), Shane Meehan for Rodgers (62), Aron Shanagher for Fitzgerald (69)
Referee: Colm Lyons (Cork)