An injury time goal from hosts Roscrea saw the Nenagh Éire Óg minor A hurlers suffer a defeat in reasonably dramatic circumstances at a roasting hot Roscrea on Thursday evening.
Ger Gavin North Tipperary
Minor A Hurling Championship
Nenagh Éire Óg 1-17 Roscrea 2-17
The sides traded frees early on before an Andrew Coffey point gave Éire Óg the lead in the eighth minute. The sides were locked at 0-3 apiece in the 14th minute before points from Donnacha Quinn (two) and Jack Molamphy helped Éire Óg into a 0-6 to 0-3 lead by the 19th minute.
Éire Óg maintained that three-point advantage for the remainder of the opening half. A Roscrea effort did narrow the deficit in the 25th minute, but two late Aidan Healy points helped Éire Óg into a 0-10 to 0-8 interval lead.
Éire Óg were now playing into a light breeze, but started the second half in positive fashion with three Donnacha Quinn points (two frees) forcing the Blues five points clear before Michael Collins landed a long-range free in the 36th minute to leave six between them – 0-14 to 0-8.
The sides then traded points before two Roscrea efforts reduced the gap to four points. Then, in the 42nd minute, Sam Conlon fired home a Roscrea goal and suddenly there was just the one in it (0-15 to 1-11).
Three minutes later Michael Collins won a free which Donnacha Quinn converted, but Roscrea responded with two frees of their own to level matters (0-16 to 1-13) by the 48th minute. Seconds later Roscrea landed a long-range free to take the lead.
Éire Óg responded in style when good work from Jack Molamphy and Gary Howard culminated in an Anthony Walsh goal in the 50th minute – 1-16 to 1-14.
Roscrea hit back with a free, but that effort was cancelled out when Christopher Ryan set up Andrew Coffey for Éire Óg’s final point in the 53rd minute.
To their credit Roscrea finished strongly with a converted free and a point from play levelling it up with five minutes to play.
Éire Óg narrowly missed out on a late goal when Donnacha Quinn beat the advancing Roscrea ‘keeper with a clever flick, but, unfortunately, the ball bounced agonisingly wide of the goal in the 56th minute.
In the 61st minute Andrew Coffey was fouled and Barry Heffernan enjoyed an opportunity to fire Éire Óg into the lead with a long-range free. Cruelly, Barry’s monster effort hit a post, was cleared and somehow a Roscrea shot snuck in under the Éire Óg crossbar at the opposite end of the field.
The Blues face Toomevara in the next round on Tuesday, July 23rd at MacDonagh Park, Nenagh (throw-in 7.30pm). Your support on that occasion would be much appreciated.
Nenagh Éire Óg: Brian Gubbins, Conor Ryan, Barry Heffernan, Oisín Ryan, John Cahalan, Michael Collins (0-1, 0-1 free), Aodhán Geaney, Andrew Coffey (0-2), Christopher Ryan, Aidan Healy (0-2), Jack Molamphy (0-1), Donnacha Quinn (0-10, 0-6 frees), Luke Kennedy, Gary Howard (0-1), James Mackey. Subs: (45th) Anthony Walsh (1-0) for Aidan Healy, (57th) Gavin O’Connor for Luke Kennedy.
Referee: Michael Murphy (Toomevara).
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