Malone tactics work as Clare power on
The hosts deservedly led by 1-7 to 0-3 at the break. Clare employed inside forward Sean Malone as their go-to man. His first-half return of 1-2 endorsed this tactic. He grabbed the opening score, a point, after six minutes with a right footed effort and his goal came about as a result of some fancy footwork by fellow forwards, Nigel Murray and Alan Sweeney, before Malone rocked the Limerick net with a rocket of a shot.
It took the visitors 11 minutes to get their opener, a pointed free by team captain Mikey Morrissey, but it signalled a purple patch, with the young Limerick lads forging ahead by 0-3 to 0-1 by the 19th minute. But once Malone goaled on 23 minutes it was but one-way traffic until the break. The Banner recorded 1-6 to no score in that period.
In the second period, normal service was resumed, with Limerick finding scores hard to come by. Keelan Sexton added two Clare point early on and when substitute toe-poked over the Limerick goal-line in the 44th minute, the game was over as a contest.
After a goalmouth scramble, Clare wing-back Liam Devitt back-heeled from the edge of the square and just as the ball was crossing the line, Lynch made certain of the score.
All Limerick could come up with after half-time, score wise, was two points by sub Adam Storan, while Sexton and Malone completed the scoring for Clare with a point apiece.
S Malone (1-3), K Sexton (0-5) 3 f’s, c Lynch (0-1), C Pyne, C Hehir, C Brennan (0-1) each.
M Morrissey (0-2) f’s, A Storan (0-2), E Sheehy (0-1)
K Roche, K Killeen, C Pyne, C O’Halloran, L Devitt, P Lillis, C Hehir, D Bohannon, S O’Donoghue, A Sweeney, N Murray, K Sexton (Capt.), P McNamara, C Brennan, S Malone.
C Murray for McNamara inj. (17), C Lynch for O’Donoghue inj. (33), N McCarthy for Lillis (37), M Nugent for n Murray (46), J Morrissey for Sweeney (50), C Downes for Hehir (59).
A Murphy, D Hanley, L O’Connell, F Murphy, J Wallace, S Ivess, S Murphy, A Kerins, M Whelan C McSweeney, M Morrissey, (Capt.), E Sheehy, D Kelly, M Connolly, J Ryan.
Subs, P Maher for Hanley (half-time), A Storan for Ryan (37), C Stephenson for Whelan (46), R Hayes for C McSweeney (52), D Corrigan for Connolly (55), A White for Morrissey (55).
S Mulvihill (Kerry)
Eamon Ward
