Round-up: Dalata Hotel Group Munster U20 Championship action
Tipperary's Liam Freaney and Clare's Daire Culligan pictured with referee Eoghan Ó Muircheartaigh. Photo by Tipperary GAA
Dalata Hotel Group Munster U20 Football Championship
Clare 1-16 Tipperary 1-11
Waterford 4-11 Limerick 2-7
By Stephen Barry
Clare and Waterford got their Dalata Hotel Group Munster U20 Football Championship campaigns off to winning starts with deserved victories over Tipperary and Limerick.
Seán Fennell kicked 1-6 as Clare defeated Tipp at Páirc Naomh Mhuire, Quilty. The Kilrush Shamrocks midfielder was a marked man, but escaped for a storming 14th-minute goal bookended by a pair of orange flags, all in the space of 90 seconds.
Tipp had started with a James Power two-pointer, but once Clare began to monopolise their kick-outs, the hosts reeled off 1-6 without reply between the 10th and 15th minutes.
Tipp gained a lifeline in the 19th minute when Liam Freaney’s booming two-point attempt dropped short and Liam Kiely was on hand to bundle home. Shane Ryan and Freaney cut the gap to two, but a pair of Daire Culligan frees left it 1-10 to 1-6 at half-time.
Darragh Townsend and Fennell opened up a six-point lead on the resumption, but Tipp brought it back to a one-score game with a pair of Freaney frees and a Kiely point for 1-12 to 1-9.
Tipp were reliant on frees as Freaney and Mark Neville kept them within three after 49 minutes.
However, those would be Tipp’s last scores as a Culligan brace, bringing his total to 0-7, wrapped up a five-point win.
Meanwhile, four second-half goals fired Waterford to a 10-point victory away to Limerick at Mick Neville Park, Rathkeale.
There were four early two-pointers; three for the wind-assisted Déise, through Paddy McCarthy, a Joe Brennan free, and Daithí Colleran, against a sole Andrew Kearney free. Waterford stretched ahead to complete an eight-point streak and lead 0-10 to 0-4 at half-time.
That cushion was halved by Aidan O’Shea’s fisted goal before Paul Bagnell’s shot was spilled to the net at the other end.
Owen Dee was sent off for the hosts and Brennan’s emphatic penalty turned the game further in Waterford’s favour.
Callum Kiely pulled one back for Limerick and Pádraic Phelan's two-pointer had the gap at four. Déise substitute Callum Royle put it beyond doubt by netting a brace in stoppage time.
