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You are > Home > GAA: Sion leave title behind in Limerick
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Saturday, November 22, 2003
GAA: Sion leave title behind in Limerick
By Phil Fanning
PATRICKSWELL 0- 16 MOUNT SION 1-11
HAVING retained their county senior hurling title a week earlier in Walsh Park, Mount Sion bade farewell to their Munster title in Limerick on Sunday last as two late points, in injury time, carried a gritty but mediocre Patrickswell side past the winning post.
Few in the upgraded stadium that is the Limerick Gaelic Grounds would disagree that the Waterford champions looked the better side but failure to turn possession into scores costs games and that was the situation here. A total of 19 wides over the hour tells its own story.
Chances went a begging from good positions, both in play and from frees, for the defending champions while Patrickswell, through the freetaking expertise of Paul O’Grady, took full advantage of every opportunity that came their way.
For Mount Sion supporters this game was comparable to the defeat by Dunloy earlier this year. The game was always there for the taking but the drive and sense of purpose to grasp it failed to manifest itself.
THREE GAMES IN THREE WEEKS
Playing a third high profile tie in just 15 days obviously took its toll and affected the level of performance but in the end the players themselves will have to accept that they left this game behind them.
A heavy fog enveloped the stadium for much of the Sunday morning, clearing just an hour before the game, ensuring that the playing surface was dead and slow. Patrickswell were on the field 15 minutes before throw in while Mount Sion arrived out just minutes before the throw in.
Mount Sion’s first attack was repulsed and Kevin Carey opened the scoring for Patrickswell inside a minute.
Eoin McGrath put Eoin Kelly in but his shot was wide. Barry Browne was sent crashing as he raced towards goal and Ken McGrath pointed the free to level the scores.
It was obvious that the Patrickswell tactics were for veteran Tony Carmody to tie up Tony Browne at centre back, while full back Anthony Foley received an early yellow card for a foul stroke on Ken McGrath.
An Eoin Kelly free put Sion in front in the 6th minute.
Mount Sion were having difficulty judging the pace of the ball on the wet surface as two points from frees by O’Grady and one from play by Peter O’Reilly put the ‘Well’ 0-4 to 0-2 clear after just nine minutes.
The Mount Sion forwards had the pace to trouble the defence but chances were lost as Eoin Kelly and Michael White were off target and a Ken McGrath pass put Eoin McGrath through but he overran the ball and had to settle for a ‘65’, which Eoin Kelly put wide. The threatened breakthrough however came in the 13th minute when a breaking ball fell to Barry Browne and he brilliantly volleyed to the net from ten metres for a 1-2 to 0-4 lead.
Patrickswell replied to level when O’Grady was fouled from the puck out and pointed his free but almost immediately Mount Sion were back in front when John Cleere broke out of defence to set Eoin Kelly up for a point and a 1-3 to 0-5 lead.
ON TOP
Going into the second quarter, Mount Sion were very much on top, with Brian Greene dominating in the half back line but while the openings were being created up front, the chances were being squandered as the wides tally mounted.
Patrickswell were just hanging in when Kevin Carey forced a ‘65’ and O’Grady duly levelled in the 19th minute.
Again Michael White and Barry Browne squandered good chances for Sion to regain the lead as Patrickswell seemed to gain confidence and it took a brilliant overhead catch by Jamie O’Meara to deny Gary Kirby a seemingly certain goal.
In a scoreless 10 minute period O’Grady had a rare miss from a free and another from play, while Sean Ryan and Ken McGrath were wide for Sion.
Michael White finally broke the deadlock in the 28th minute for the lead point and a minute later he broke through along the end line but was dispossessed for a ‘65’, which Eoin Kelly sent wide.
DEADLOCKED AT BREAK
As the game moved into injury time, a dangerous shot across the goal by Dec O’Grady was put out for a ‘65’ by Ian O’Regan and Paul O’Grady duly equalised to leave the halftime score Mount Sion 1-4, Patrickswell 0-7.
The start of the second half saw Eoin Kelly in midfield for Sion in a switch of positions with Michael Frisby. Within seconds Ken McGrath had Mount Sion in front following a foul on Eoin McGrath.
Michael White was pulled back by referee Barrett, rather harshly, for over carrying. The ball was moved forward into the Sion half for dissent but O’Grady shot wide.
Mount Sion proceeded to dominate but Eoin Kelly was badly wide before a Sean Ryan centre put Eoin McGrath clear in front of goal but he opted to take his point from close range. A short free from Ken McGrath found Eoin Kelly unmarked and on the run he sent over a fine point from the right wing. In the 37th minute Kelly again sent over from a free in midfield and a four points clear Mount Sion looked set to take a firm hold on this game.
The grip began to loosen, however, as a needless free was conceded in midfield and O’Grady lifted the ‘Well’ back into the game with a point.
Mount Sion began to fade again in midfield and in the 45th minute great defensive work by Flannery was nullified when he lost the ball on the ‘65’ and conceded the free which O’Grady again pointed.
TOO MANY WIDES
Frustration was now setting in for Mount Sion as O’Grady hit his first point from play in the 46th minute.
Patrickswell were now well back in the game and according to plan they withdrew ineffective veterans Anthony Carmody and Gary Kirby from attack to be replaced by teenagers John McDermott and Brian Geoghegan. Almost immediately McDermott made his presence felt with an equalising point and the momentum was now with Patrickswell.
Mount Sion sent on Ian Power and Daniel Kelly for White and Frisby but points in the 48th and 49th minutes from Declan O’Grady and Kevin Carey put Patrickswell two points clear.
STRUGGLING SION
With the Mount Sion midfield faded completely out of the game, it was left to wing backs John Cleere and particularly Brian Greene to rally their side, driving forward out of defence. A foul on Sean Ryan and Ken McGrath pointed. Mount Sion were now coming back strongly with Ken McGrath winning good ball while operating at wing forward. Sean Ryan won good possession but failed to pick up Ian Power loose in front of goal and shot weakly wide from a good position but in the 57th minute he was fouled in possession and slotted over the equaliser.
Once again the game had turned Mount Sion’s way. John Cleere did great work to clear out of defence to Ken McGrath, who was fouled but the free was driven wide. The error was compounded when substitute McDermott shot Patrickswell back into the lead. At this stage, however, it was McGrath who was keeping Mount Sion in the game as he won every ball in the air on the right wing and when he was fouled in possession he sent over the equalising point in the 59th minute.
A draw now began to look very much on the cards but as the game moved into two minutes of injury time an Eoin Foley cross from the right wing saw Ian O’Regan advance off his line as Kirwan and McDermott backtracked towards goal. The keeper received a blow of a hurley and was stretched as play continued and Flannery deflected a shot out for a ‘65’.
After O’Regan was treated Paul O’Grady sent over to put his side back in front.
In the dying seconds as Eoin Foley picked up a loose ball in midfield to send over his only point and clinch victory, Mount Sion’s Eoin McGrath appeared to take out his frustration on referee Willie Barrett and received a straight red card. The final whistle sounded and Mount Sion had left their title behind them.
Once again it was a case of a Waterford side failing to take full advantage of their overall superiority and Mount Sion can blame no-one only themselves for this defeat.
BITTER DISSAPOINTMENT
The defence played well throughout, giving little away, with Brian Flannery and John Cleere in particular backing up a top class display by Brian Greene. Tony Browne was denied the chance to impose his will on this tie by the spoiling tactics of Carmody but he came strongly into it in the closing stages. The Waterford champions were never in it in midfield but for the opening ten minutes of the second half.
In attack the forwards saw enough ball to win the game comfortably but the scores just would not come on the day from placed balls and play and consequently the price was paid.
In the closing minutes some brilliant hurling by Ken McGrath just failed to save the day.
Patrickswell go into the final against NewtownShandrum where they will be rank outsiders and that will suit them. They are a good young side who took full advantage of the opportunity provided them by the opposition and will go on improving as a result.
Scorers – Patrickswell: P. O’Grady 0-10 (0-1 from play), K. Carey and J. McDermott 0-2 each; P. O’Reilly and D. O’Grady 0-1 each.
Mount Sion: K. McGrath 0-5 (all frees), E. Kelly 0-4 (2 frees), B. Browne 1-0, E. McGrath and M. White 0-1 each.
PATRICKSWELL: E. Murphy, M. Foley, A. Foley, P. Earls, T. O’Brien, C. Carey, P. O’Reilly, Peter O’Reilly, P. O’Grady, E. Foley, A. Carmody, P. Carey, D. McGrady, G. Kirby, K. Carey, J. McDermott for Kirby; B. Geoghegan for Carmody.
MOUNT SION: I. O’Regan, J. O’Meara, A. Kirwan, B. Flannery, J. Cleere, T. Browne, B. Greene, R. McGrath, M. Frisby, E. Kelly, S. Ryan, K. McGrath, M. White, K. McGrath, B. Browne. Subs: I. Power for White; D. Kelly for Frisby.
Referee: W Barrett, Tipperary.
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