Waterford Crystal Cup Senior Hurling Quarter Final – Limerick 1-15 Clare 0-18

Hannon to the rescue for Limerick

Clare 0-18 Limerick 1-15

By Diarmuid O’ Flynn for the Irish Examiner newspaper

A virtuoso display from teenage star Declan Hannon denied Clare a merited home win in Sixmilebridge in a marathon Waterford Crystal quarter-final on Saturday evening. The sides were tied at the end of the regulation 70 minutes, 0-13 (Clare) to 1-10 (Limerick), the deadly Hannon with 1-8 for the visitors. They were still deadlocked after 20 minutes of extra-time on 0-17 to 1-14 apiece, with Hannon landing three more points. A further 10 minutes was still not enough to separate two big-hearted teams, just a point apiece added as both defences were increasingly dominant in heavy conditions. Referee Cathal McAllister had seen enough, and though the programme unequivocally stated that extra-time would be played ‘until a result is achieved’, two and a half hours after play had started McAllister signalled an end to proceedings. The replay has been fixed for tomorrow evening at the Gaelic Grounds (7pm) and on the evidence of this display, it deserves a bumper crowd.

Looking sharper and hungrier than their visitors, Clare led by three points at the end of the opening half (0-7 to 0-4). Midfielders Nicky O’Connell and Pat Donnellan had a point apiece from play, corner-forwards Eoin Hayes and Jonny Clancy likewise while tricky full-forward Aaron Cunningham (2) and O’Connell (1) had the other Clare points from placed balls. Hannon hit four (two 65s, two frees) for Limerick. Clare maintained that gap until the 60th minute (0-11 to 0-8) when Hannon — after good work by Mark Carmody and Jim Bob Ryan — was pulled down in the box in the act of goaling. The Adare youngster bounced up and drilled home the resultant penalty to tie the game. Twice Clare regained the lead, twice they were hauled back.

Into our first period of extra-time and again it was Clare nosing ahead with a pointed free apiece from O’Connell and Cunningham, but Hannon, beating off the close attention of three defenders, pulled one back for Limerick before half-time. Twice more in the second half of extra-time Clare again edged two points in front, substitute John Conlon getting a huge cheer for an angled point on his home ground (set up by Cunningham), but with another McNamara point and two from the superb Hannon, Limerick again came back to tie.

Referee McAllister was headed for the dressing room but was stopped and informed that a further period of extra-time had to be played. So off we went again. To their great credit not a single player on either team showed any slackening off of effort with neither side prepared to lose a game into which they had put so much effort. Two minutes into the second extra-time, the 92nd minute of action, Limerick went ahead for the first time in the match, a point from wing-forward Conor Allis but Aaron Cunningham cancelled that within minutes. It proved the final score of a hugely entertaining encounter. “Declan Hannon has everything,” said John Allen in this his first competitive outing as Limerick manager. “He’s after filling out, he’s now a lot bigger physically, strong; he’s two-sided, a fine free-taker, his work-rate has radically improved over the last two months. He is a really good player.” Not that John’s satisfaction was confined to one player, nor should it have been. “We had a very weakened side out and Clare had done so well last weekend. It would have been a very bad start for us if we had been at the receiving end of a bad beating. For that reason I’m very pleased with the result, very pleased with the work-rate and the effort, the sheer will to win the fellas showed was heartwarming.”

Equally pleased was Clare first-year manager Davy Fitzgerald. “We’re delighted. Of course we wanted to win it and so did they. We played a different style tonight, we wanted to see how we would get on and we got on all right with it. Tonight wouldn’t have suited a lot of our fellas — we have a lot of young fellas and small fellas but it was good in that we didn’t back down. They’ve beaten us the last few times we met competitively so we stopped the rot. The (league) game in three weeks is the game. They will be at full tilt and so will we. They will reckon they will have the edge, probably should have won an All-Ireland quarter-final last year, we are meant to be a good bit off that. Hopefully we’ll have bridged the gap.”

Scorers for Clare: N O’Connell 0-7 (0-3f, 0-1 65); A Cunningham 0-6 (0-6f); P Donnellan 0-2; E Hayes, J Clancy, J Conlon, 0-1 each.

Scorers for Limerick: D Hannon 1-11 (1-0p, 0-5f, 0-2 65s); C Allis 0-2; W McNamara 0-2.

CLARE: P Kelly; D O’Donovan, C Dillon, C Cooney; J McInerney, E Barrett, S Morey; N O’Connell, P Donnellan; C Chaplin, D Keane, F Lynch; E Hayes, A Cunningham, J Clancy.

Subs: C Galvin (Hayes 50); J Conlon (Keane 56); P Kelly (Chaplin 95).

LIMERICK: N Quaid; S Walsh, T Condon, S O’Neill; B O’Sullivan, W McNamara, T Ryan; D O’Grady, C Allis; D Hannon, J Ryan, N Maher; M Carmody, T Quaid, E Gleeson.

Subs: G Mulcahy (T Quaid 29); G O’Mahony (Maher 45); T O’Callaghan (O’Sullivan 45); B Geary (Gleeson 55); D Moloney (Walsh 80), M Carr (Ryan 98).

Referee: C McAllister (Cork)

Neighbours inseparable

Report from the Irish Times newspaper

WATERFORD CRYSTAL CUP/Limerick 1-15 Clare 0-18 (after double extra time)

TWO LOTS of extra-time couldn’t separate neighbours and rivals Clare and Limerick in the Waterford Crystal Senior Hurling Cup quarter-final, played under lights at Sixmilebridge on Saturday. At the end of normal time the sides were level, again after two periods of 10 minutes and even when a further two phases of five minutes were played, they were locked on level scores. Over the 100 minutes, Limerick led only once, yet it was Clare who had to come from behind through an Aaron Cunningham pointed free, close to the end of this highly entertaining marathon.

It took a Declan Hannon free in injury-time – after Clare’s James McInerney was adjudged to have thrown the sliotar – to send the tie to extra-time. Clare led by 0-15 to 1-11 at the end of 10 minutes but they were again level at the end of normal extra-time, 0-17 to 1-14. Limerick, with new manager John Allen on the sideline for the first time, agreed another two five-minute periods. The replay will be held at Limerick’s Gaelic Grounds on Tuesday night at 7pm.

LIMERICK: N Quaid; S Walsh; T Condon; S O’Neill; B O’Sullivan; W McNamara (0-2); T Ryan; D O’Grady; C Allis (0-2), D Hannon (1-11, 0-8 frees); J Ryan; N Maher; M Carmody; T Quaid; E Gleeson. Subs: G Mulcahy for Quaid (28 mins); G O’Mahoney for Maher (45 mins); T O’Callaghan for O’Sullivan (45 mins); B Geary for Gleeson (54 mins); D Moloney for Walsh (80 mins); M Carr for Ryan (98 mins).

CLARE: P Kelly (Inagh-Kilnamona); D O’Donovan; C Dillon; C Cooney; J McInerney; E Barrett; S Morey; N O’Connell (0-6, 0-4 frees); P Donnellan (0-3); C Chaplin; D Keane; F Lynch; E Hayes (0-1), A Cunningham (0-6, frees); J Clancy (0-1). Subs: C Galvin for Hayes (50 mins); J Conlon (0-1) for Keane (56 mins); P Kelly (Clarecastle) for Chaplin (95 mins).

Referee: C McAllister (Cork).

(After double extra-time)

For the Record

Waterford Crystal Cup Senior Hurling 2012

Preliminary Round

Sunday January 22^nd

@ Dolla                                              Tipperary 2-24 Limerick Institute of Technology 1-16

Sunday January 29^th

@ Fitzgerald Stadium Killarney       Kerry 1-20 IT Tralee 1-15

@ Sixmilebridge                               Clare 3-25 WIT 0-5

Quarter-Finals (Extra time)

Saturday February 4^th

@ MacDonagh Park Nenagh          Tipperary v University of Limerick               @ 2:00pm

@ Pairc Ui Rinn                                Cork v Kerry                                                   @ 3:00pm

@ Sixmilebridge                               Limerick v Clare                                            @ 7:00pm

Sunday February 5^th

@ WIT Sportsgrounds                      Waterford v UCC                                          @ 2:00pm

Semi-Finals (Extra time)
Sunday February 12^th

@ TBC                                               Cork or Kerry v UL or Tipperary
@ TBC                                               Limerick or Clare v Waterford or UCC

Final (Extra time)

Sunday February 19^th

Waterford Crystal Cup Senior Hurling – Odds and Ends

Clare are the only team who have won at least one game each year since the Waterford Crystal Cup competition began in 2006.

Limerick won the first Waterford Crystal Cup title in 2006, winning four matches in the process. Since then, in three appearances in the competition they have failed to win a game.

39 players scored in the three matches played in the preliminary round.

Cork have won four of their eight matches played in the Waterford Crystal Cup since 2007 with three victory over third level colleges teams and a one-point victory over Waterford in the 2007 semi-final.

Tipperary won their first 6 home matches in the Waterford Crystal Cup from 2006 to 2009 before losing their first round matches in 2010 (v Clare at Borrisoleigh) and in 2011 (v WIT at Clonmel).

Tipperary hold the record for the longest winning streak in the Waterford Crystal Cup since the competition began under that guise in 2006 when they won 10 consecutive matches between 2007 and 2009.

The University of Limerick is the only third level college to have a winning record in the Waterford Crystal Cup since 2006 – winning 7 games and losing 6.

Waterford have won 11 of their last 13 matches in the Waterford Crystal Cup, including a current winning streak of 7 matches.

The record of the Third Level Colleges in the Waterford Crystal Cup since 2006 is Won 18, Lost 37, a 33% success rate. Since the Third Level Colleges entered the McGrath Cup (Senior Football) in 2005, their success rate is 32%.

IT Tralee is the only team not to win a game in the Waterford Crystal Cup since 2006, losing their first match in the last 5 seasons.

None of the five teams who take part in the Munster Senior Hurling Championship have a losing record in the Waterford Crystal Cup since 2006.

Waterford Crystal Cup

Waterford Crystal began their sponsorship of the Munster pre-season hurling competition in 2006. Prior to this, the competition was played in different formats dating back to the early 1990’s and was most popularly known as the South Eastern Hurling League which also included county teams from Leinster.

Waterford Crystal Cup Senior Hurling Roll Of Honour

Waterford (2) – 2010, 2011

Tipperary (2) – 2007, 2008

Clare (1) – 2009

Limerick (1) – 2006

Waterford Crystal Cup – 2012 Scorers