Offaly 2009 Senior Hurling Championship Semi Finals

[Kemo Sabe]

bazza you are right that little piece used by a certain person was mentioned alright .so just want to say a big thank you to the journalist he had a little part to play in the win .keep up the good work look forward to reading your article for the county final

[Lone Shark]

Jaysus.

Well all I can say is that I couldn't have been more wrong, but for Tullamore and indeed all the other clubs in Offaly who will take satisfaction from this, I couldn't be more delighted. I wasn't at the game since I was otherwise committed but I'm very sorry I missed it now - however I won't lie, not in my wildest dreams did I ever consider this could happen. Indeed if you asked me to pick a more shocking result in a meaningful championship fixture, club or county, in my time going to games, I don't think I could think of one.

I'd echo Bord na Mona man's point as well - there's obviously great mental resilience in these lads. To lose a six point lead playing into the wind and still dig out the win is fantastic, and something that not a lot of other clubs in the county could have managed. Kevin Martin has obviously got these lads in a very good place mentally and that's to the credit of everyone involved.

As for the motivation provided by certain articles, well all I can say is that the view held in that piece would have been pretty widely held all over the county, but all the motivation in the world isn't worth muck if you don't have the hurling to back it up, and Tullamore obviously have a lot more of it in their tank than I gave them credit for. Well done to them.

[Plain of the Herbs]

Helter skelter in O’Connor Park. Cathal Parlon causing early bother for Damien Kilmartin, scoring 2 goals for a 2-0 to 0-2 lead on 5 minutes. A penalty at the other end, Ger Healion being hauled down in the square, Brian Leonard dispatching the penalty to the net. A minute later, Ciaran Slevin placed by Ger Healion – goal. 2-2 to 2-0.

On ten minutes Ger Healion fielded again, pulled down again. Leonard’s penalty whams off the crossbar and rebounds all the way to Leonard to pull first time and bury it. 3-4 to 2-0.

Coolderry steadied and picked off a few points, but on 20 minutes another goal, Daniel Currams this time. 4-7 to 2-6. Score for score to the break at which time it’s 4-10 to 2-11.

The second half was mundane by comparison. Kilcormac dominated, Coolderry lived on scraps. Almost all the Coolderry men were tried in three positions, to no avail.

Halfway through the second half Coolderry got back to within 4 points and there was a glimmer of hope. A Currams goal when he could have taken the point sealed it, the lead now 5-14 to 3-15.

Kilcormac destroyed Coolderry in the air and won practically all of the individual duels. Daniel Currams sustained a hand injury late in the game and could be a worry for the final. Not the first hand injury he’s suffered this year.

Coolderry were back to the bad old Coolderry. What possessed them to start Kevin Brady at full back? Corcoran had did well at full back all year, ditto Brady at wing, and by the time they were restored to their preferred roles the K/K ship had sailed. Martin Corcoran lasted 20 mins at centre back before he was moved up to centre forward – Joe Brady making the journey in the opposite direction. Only Cathal Parlon caused bother in the forwards and K/K switched to remedy that early on, Chris Guinan going to full back. Brian Carroll never got a sniff. The usual.

Peter Healion had a horse of a game at centre back. Cassidy did well, so did both Lee and Mahon. Ger Healion had them in bother every time he gained possession. Brian Leonard was mighty.

Keeping feet on the ground and expectations in check will occupy K/K minds in the lead up to the final. That and worries over Currams’ fitness.

Kilcormac and Tullamore in the final. Who’d have thought it a month ago?

Scorers: Kilcormac/Killoughey: Brian Leonard 2-4(1-0 pen, 0-1f, 0-2 ‘65s), Daniel Currams 2-3, Ciaran Slevin 1-4, (2f), Killian Leonard, Eamonn Lee, James Gorman, Conor Mahon & Kevin Grogan 0-1 each.
Coolderry: Cathal Parlon 3-2, Damien Murray 0-8, (5f, 1 ‘65’), Martin Corcoran 0-2 (1f), Eoin Ryan 0-2, Brian Carroll & James Masterson 0-1 each.

[old yellar]

i wasnt at the game today but it would come as no surprise that carroll was anonymous. i think hes very overated.. well done to tullamore on beating birr. a year for the underdog maybe..

[bula bula]

Well done to all in the Tullamore set up for setting up the biggest shock in Offaly club hurling in my lifetime. Shame on me for not having the faith to select them in the tipsters and hats off to Kemo Sabe for his loyalty. A final in store that I doubt anyone would have predicted at the start of the year and best of luck to the town. The hurling crown coming over to north Offaly perhaps, who would have thought it. Big pressure on Kilcormac.

[Bord na Mona man]

The hurling crown coming over to north Offaly perhaps, who would have thought it. Big pressure on Kilcormac.

And Brosna Gaels winning the Intermediate.
The axis is starting to tilt towards the North of the county!

[GOOFY]

Well done the Gaels yesterday, fair play to them. Also bazza, 4 clubs indeed but all d players are from the one parish (all footballing clubs with a much smaller pick than Birr), but your right it wasnt easy for Birr - they lost.

[bazza]

They hardly have a smaller pick than Birr do they? 4 football clubs equates to about 150 GAA players. A small pick indeed. As a matter of interest when were the Gaels formed? And what were they called beforehand or have they always been about?

[Phoenix]

Congratulations to Brosna Gaels, Tullamore and KK.

Shame on me also for not tipping Tullamore.

With all due respect to two great traditional clubs (Birr and Coolderry) - it'll be great to have a final between two clubs for whom a senior county club title will be a welcome novelty - Kilcormac/Killoughey amalgamation and Tullamore. There'll be a real feelgood factor about it!!!

[Bord na Mona man]

They hardly have a smaller pick than Birr do they? 4 football clubs equates to about 150 GAA players. A small pick indeed. As a matter of interest when were the Gaels formed? And what were they called beforehand or have they always been about?

The Brosna Gaels consortium is about 10 years old now.
Can anyone fill in how they used to field at underage before that?
Was it the traditional split of Doon paired with Pullagh and Ballycumber + Tubber?

[Plain of the Herbs]

T’was remiss of me not to congratulate Brosna Gaels on a marvellous win on Sunday. It was a privilege to be there to see history being made as much as it was to have seen Killurin win the JHC last year.

Brosna Gaels were well deserving of their win, they played some fine hurling and there was no doubt about the result.

The win was very much on the cards when they led 8 – 6 at half time and Gaels looked set for the win when they led 2-14 to 1-9 with ten minutes to go and were hurling well. Birr came back at them though and got back to within four, and when Egan fresh-aired a 20m free with the pressure on thinks looked wobbly. Even more so when birr got to within 3 with 2 mins left, but Egan nailed a free from 40 yards for the insurance point.

As for underage, Doon Óg (the whole parish) won an U14 ‘B’ title in 1998 and an U16 ‘B’ a year later. I’m not sure when they adopted the name Brosna Gaels though, and I doubt there was much hurling played in the parish before the mid-90’s. ‘Tis only 4 years ago they beat Lusmagh in a Junior ‘B’ semi final!

And with Brosna Gaels going up to senior next year the entire Ferbane Electoral Area will be playing senior hurling!

[GreatDayForTheParish]

I must confess I'm delighted with the Brosna Gaels result. Whether they will offer much resistance at Senior reamins to be seen but I always feel there should be a promotion/relegation between Senior and Intermediate and with Brosna's win the natural order continues.

As for the Birr Tullamore result well what can I say, never in a million years did I see this coming. Out of curiosity I would be interested to know when was the last time a 1/50 team lost a GAA game. Great result for Tullamore but more importantly it was a deserved result. On the day they were better and hungrier than an out of sorts Birr with Shane Dooley in magnificent form. Tullamore now march on to a County Final where they wil once again be underdogs, a situation they should enjoy. As for Birr, well they now stand at a crossroads. By my reckoning roughly half their team has been on the go since the early 2000's, gradual replacemnets will thus need to be sourced over the next few years. Their free-taking and general forward play was poor on Satrurday (although Tullamore's defence was excellent) and positioning of certain players in the forwards seemed was questionable. Birr could very easily win the Sean Robbins again next year or just as easily they could be about to enter a fallow period with sparse success over the next few years. If the later occurs, they can have absolutely no complaints, having won 10 out of the last 12 titles. After a decade of almost complete Birr dominance, Tullamore's win can only be good for Offaly hurling.

As for K/K, the upcoming Final is a glorious opportuinity for them. They have been there or there abouts for the last few years, being knocked out on nearly every occasion by Birr. They are now in a final without any of the 'Big Three' (Coolderry, Birr and St.Rynagh's) but for a team that a tendancy to blow hot and cold they would do well to be very very wary of a Tullamore team that is in the final on merit. Nobody would begrudge them a title, it is however up to them to earn it. Backed by a few years of underage success they have some fantastic young hurlers, a Senior title is the next step. Coolderry must be very disappionted, having now lost their third semi-final in a row, all to different teams. The young team that was predicted to sweep all before them in the wake of winning the title in 2004 has now underachieved to some extent. They certainly have the ability, it's just a question of getting it out of them.