Kerry emerge from extended clash

Carlow 1-15 Kerry 2-12 (after extra-time)

Kerry were forced to dig deep to earn a draw against a resilient Carlow side in an epic Christy Ring Cup semi-final clash at Dr Cullen Park this evening.

Heavy rain failed to deter either side as both teams began in determined fashion, but it was the hosts who made most of the early exchanges.

An early Paudie Kehoe goal fired the hosts into a 1-1 to 0-1 advantage as Carlow made the perfect start.

However despite the Barrowsiders' positive work in the opening stages, Kerry took a 1-5 to 1-4 lead at the interval with Shane Brick netting his side's first goal in the 13th minute.

It was a John Mike Dooley point which edged the visitors in front at half-time, with Carlow ruing the seven wides they amassed during the opening half.

Carlow responded well on the restart, with five unanswered points in a

13-minute spell.

Their midfielder James Hickey kicked off this purple patch with the equalising score 45 seconds into the second half.

The hosts were eager for a goal but it failed to arrive as Kerry goalkeeper Aidan Healy denied Robbie Foley of a certain goal when he deflected the ball out for a ’65'.

However, Carlow held their composure with centre-back Shane Kavanagh slotting over the resulting free.

Composed Carlow continued to add points through Foley and Kehoe before Kerry gained dominance once more.

A Shane Brick free and a superb long-range point by John Mike Dooley brought the visitors back into contention with Kerry hitting three of the next four points to level the tie at 1-10 apiece with 15 minutes remaining.

A trio of unanswered scores from Carlow then looked to have earned the reigning champions a place in the decider.

But Kingdom scorer-in-chief Shane Brick was not finished yet as he aimed a 30-yard free in the direction of Dooley who flicked the ball to the net.

The sides were evenly balanced in extra-time with Hickey and Evan Sweeney trading scores in the first period.

Again the sides were deadlocked on restart as both counties added a point each, but neither side could manage to find the winning score.

All that means Carlow and Kerry will have to meet again on Saturday week to see who will face Down in the final.