Never mind the wider implications, just look at that goal count. If, as a neutral, you weren’t wearing a broad smile at the end, perhaps hurling isn’t for you.

TWO late goals gave James Stephens a flattering victory margin in yesterday’s Kilkenny SHC semi-final, the city club ending with a nine-point win over St. Martin’s after an entertaining battle which could have gone either way until Eoin Larkin’s crucial 57th-minute strike.

IT was something of a phoney war in that both sides were keeping a little in reserve for the championship, but Ballyhale Shamrocks picked up their first title of the year when winning the senior hurling league final against James Stephens on Saturday.