Tuesday's Fitzgibbon Cup Action
Eamonn Cregan
There are two Fitzgibbon Cup quarter-finals taking place on Tuesday, with the second two to follow on Wednesday.
Tuesday, February 16
Independent.ie Fitzgibbon Cup Quarter-Finals
Mary Immaculate College v GMIT, MICL Grounds, 2pm
Mary I's huge 1-20 to 0-5 win over a below par DIT last week sealed their place in the last eight. Given that the other two Limerick third level institutions, UL and LIT, also qualified for the quarter-finals, it was something that Éamonn Cregan's side were obviously determined to achieve, having missed out on finals weekend in their home city last year.
With Limerick stars Declan Hannon and Cian Lynch leading the way in the win over DIT, it wasn't hard to see why Mary I were so dominant. Hannon hit 0-9 in the win, while Darragh Corry (Clare), who hit 1-2 from play, also impressed as did Darragh O'Donovan (Limerick).
Throw the likes of Ronan Maher (Tipperary), Colm Galvin (Clare) and Niall O'Meara (Tipperary) into the mix and you can see why some in Mary I feel this could be the year they finally win a competition they have never won before.
With all due respect to GMIT, they face a huge challenge against Mary I. They qualified from Group D, the only three-team group, thanks to a 1-4 to 0-4 win over fellow underdogs UUJ in appalling weather conditions at the Connacht GAA Centre in Bekan last week.
Indiscipline hit a slightly more fancied UUJ side hard in that encounter, with the two reds cards they shipped before the closing 10 minutes costing them dearly in the final straight. Darragh Burke's goal 12 minutes from time finally edged the tie in the Galway side's favour, but it was quite simply not a day for hurling, so it's probably wise not to read too much into the result.
In their previous game in the group, GMIT were beaten 3-22 to 0-7 by CIT. That might be a better indicator of the lie of the land ahead of this game, but in Burke, Brendan Tuohey, Conor Gardiner and Jarlath Mannion, GMIT have players who will ask questions of the Mary I defence.
The winners of the game will advance to the Fitzgibbon Finals Weekend, which will take place at Cork IT on February 26/27.
UCD in action
IT Carlow v UCD, Carlow IT, 7pm
IT Carlow reached the Fitzgibbon Cup quarter-finals last year and would dearly love to go one better at their home campus on Tuesday evening, when they host UCD.
DJ Carey's side booked their place in the last eight in impressive fashion, topping Group B with three wins from three, beating DCU (1-21 to 1-8), St Pat's (4-17 to 2-14) and finally, WIT (1-8 to 1-5) in the final group game played last week.
Freetaker Stephen 'Picky' Maher is their go-to scorer - he's hit 0-26 in the three games to date - and alongside the likes of Kevin Kelly (Kilkenny), Chris Bolger (Kilkenny), Jack Fagan (Meath), Colin Dunford (Waterford) and Cha Dwyer (Laois), he is part of a talented squad that looks capable of genuinely challenging for a competition they have never previously won.
The win over 2014 champions Waterford IT, although technically a dead rubber, given that both had already qualified, underlined those already widely accepted credentials.
UCD haven't won the Fitzgibbon Cup since 2001 and haven't reached the final since 2006. Their appearances at finals weekends have also been infrequent over the last decade, so much is riding on Tuesday night's game in Carlow for them.
They advanced from Group A, sensationally knocking out UCC on a final day of drama thanks to their vital, if somewhat unimpressive, 1-13 to 0-10 win over Maynooth University. In fairness, that under-par display came in poor conditions - the big result for Nicky English's side had been when they defeated UCC 2-12 to 0-13 in the first game of the group.
With the likes of Cian O'Callaghan, Colm Cronin, Oisín O'Rourke (all Dublin), David Breen (Limerick), Eoin Conroy (Wexford), Padraic Guinan (Offaly) and Ross King (Laois) in their side, UCD have quality, while it was Kilkenny youngster James Maher who impressed most in the gritty win over Maynooth, hitting 0-4 from play in an eye-catching display.
The winners of the game will advance to the Fitzgibbon Finals Weekend, which will take place at Cork IT on February 26/27.
