All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship Semi-Final – Tipperary 2-17 Dublin 1-15

Tipperary defeated Dublin by 2-17 to 1-15 in the All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship Semi-Final on Sunday August 16th at Croke Park.

Minor: Tipperary finish well to sink Dublin

ELECTRIC IRELAND ALL-IRELAND MHC SEMI-FINAL: DUBLIN 1-15 TIPPERARY 2-17

By Paul Keane at Croke Park for GAA.ie

Munster champions Tipperary finished strong at Croke Park, eventually shaking off a determined Dublin side to claim their place alongside Galway in the Electric Ireland All-Ireland minor hurling final. Liam Cahill’s side were tied with the beaten Leinster finalists after 50 minutes but blasted six points in a row to give themselves some breathing room by full-time.

Lyndon Fairbrother led the scoring with seven points in total for the Premier County and four of those came in that late six-point spree when the game hung in the balance. It was tough on a Dublin side that fought gamely throughout and an influential performer in Matthew Oliver who contributed 10 points across the hour.

Dublin were seeking to return to a first final since 2012 when they lost heavily to, ironically, Tipperary. That was also Tipp’s last final appearance though they came into this contest as favourites to return to the decider following their Munster success. Dublin lost to Kilkenny by two points in the Leinster final but felt they let victory slip away and turned over Antrim with ease in the quarter-finals. Boss Johnny McGuirk spoke of unfinished business after that contest and they came to Croke Park armed with both power and purpose.

With 10 minutes on the clock, Tipperary looked all set to build on their favourites tag as they strolled into a 1-3 to 0-1 lead. Free-taker Fairbrother got them off the mark with two points though it was David Gleeson’s 10th minute goal that put them well in the clear.
Dublin showed impressive resolve to haul themselves back into the game with four points in a row, three from their placed ball expert Oliver.

The sides then traded goals in a four-minute spell as the game hotted up noticeably. Tommy Nolan got Tipp’s second after being well fed by Cian Darcy before Fergal Whitely stroked home a Dublin goal with a powerful strike from the turf. Dublin enjoyed real form in the closing stages of the half and two more Oliver points saw them tie it up at half-time, 1-9 to 2-6. Dublin nudged two clear early in the second-half as they hit their fourth and fifth points without reply.

But Tipp were quickly back on level terms in an open and entertaining encounter and the sides would share parity on several occasions in the third quarter. Ciaran Dowling was excellent for Dublin and blasted a couple of beautiful points from the right wing. Tipp found scores slightly easier to come by as the game neared its conclusion though and hit a crucial six in a row of points between the 48th and 58th minutes, a decisive burst as they claimed a five-point win.
***
Scorers for Tipperary: Lyndon Fairbrother 0-7 (5f), Tommy Nolan 1-3, David Gleeson 1-0, Ruadhan Mulrooney 0-2, Cian Darcy 0-1, Daragh Carey 0-1, Garry Ryan 0-1, Alan Tynan 0-1, Shane Neville 0-1

Scorers for Dublin: Matthew Oliver 0-10 (7f, 1 ’65’), Ciaran Dowling 0-4, Fergal Whitely 1-0, Alex Considine 0-1.

TIPPERARY: Padraig Hayes; Enda Heffernan, Emmet Moloney, James Quigley; Kevin Hassett, Brian McGrath, Darragh Peters; Daragh Carey, Liam McCutcheon; Garry Ryan, Alan Tynan, Cian Darcy; Tommy Nolan, David Gleeson, Lyndon Fairbrother. Subs: Ruadhan Mulrooney for McCutcheon (25), Jack Skehan for Darcy (47), Michael Connors for Gleeson (47), Shane Neville for Ryan (61).

DUBLIN: Eoin Skelly; Cian Hendricken, Darragh Butler, Conor Ryan; Daire Gray, Paddy Smyth, Eoin Foley; Matthew Oliver, Carl Sammon; Ciaran Dowling, Mark Maguire, Eoghan Conroy; Alex Considine, Fergal Whitely, Eoghan Dunne. Subs: Cian O’Sullivan for Dunne (40), G King for Whitely (43), Donnacha Ryan for Gray (45), Conor Burke for O’Sullivan (59), Sean Hickey for Sammon (60).

Referee: Paud O’Dwyer (Carlow)

Fixture Details

16.08.2015 (Sun)
Electric Ireland GAA Hurling All-Ireland Minor Championship Semi Final
Páirc an Chrócaigh 14:00
Áth Cliath v Tiobraid Árann
Referee: Paud O’Dwyer (Ceatharlach)
(E.T. if Necessary)

Team News

The Tipperary team to play Dublin in next Sunday’s Electric Ireland All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship Semi-Final in Croke Park at 2pm has been announced. Manager Liam Cahill has confirmed the same starting XV that won the Munster Championship on July 12th last with the team lining out as follows;

1. Padraic Hayes – Ballingarry
2. Enda Heffernan – Clonoulty Rossmore
3. Emmet Moloney – Drom & Inch
4. James Quigley – Kildangan
5. Kevin Hassett – Drom & Inch
6. Brian McGrath – Loughmore Castleiney
7. Darragh Peters – Kilruane MacDonaghs (Capt.)
8. Darragh Carey – Templederry Kenyons
9. Liam McCutcheon – Templederry Kenyons
10. Cian Darcy – Kilruane MacDonaghs
11. Garry Ryan – Borrisokane
12. Alan Tynan – Roscrea
13. Thomas Nolan – Drom & Inch
14. David Gleeson – Ballinahinch
15. Lyndon Fairbrother – JK Brackens