Cats back to winning ways

NHL DIVISION 1:

Limerick 0-16 Kilkenny 2-17, Gaelic Grounds

Kilkenny got back to winning ways in the National League's top flight as they beat bottom side Limerick at the Gaelic Grounds this afternoon.

First half goals from Aidan Fogarty and Eoin Larkin proved crucial for the Cats, with this young Limerick side putting in another spirited display.

TJ Reid landed 0-9 (0-6f) to help Kilkenny take a 2-12 to 0-7 half-time advantage. They got off to an ideal start when Fogarty rippled the Shannonsiders' net in the second minute.

Paudie McNamara led the Limerick scoring, hitting double figures in the second half, and a harsh call saw the hosts lose centre-back Andrew Brennan to a red card.

For Limerick, it was their sixth defeat of the league campaign, but not by as big a margin as was feared.

The performance gave Limerick manager Justin McCarthy enough to be happy about, however Kilkenny, clearly not at full pace, strolled to a win that was more comfortable than the scoreline suggests.

For McCarthy's men, they now face into a winner-takes-all clash with Dublin at Parnell Park to decide who makes the dreaded drop down to Division 2.

That Limerick, who have welcomed David Breen back into the fold, are making progress there is no doubt, but this time their lack of experience was again exposed.

Comfort came in the performance of full-forward Paudie McNamara who notched 0-11 of Limerick's final total, landing nine points from frees and one from the sideline.

If ever a team needed a good start it was Limerick but they were given a 90-second sucker punch when Fogarty waltzed through the unsettled home defence to blast low for a goal.

McNamara had a point to settle the home nerves, but by the tenth minute Kilkenny led 1-4 to 0-3 with TJ Reid putting over all four Kilkenny points from frees.

Reid landed a superb point with a delightfully curled sideline cut and by half-time, the young Kilkenny captain had scored nine points - six frees, one sideline cut and two from play.

Just as they began the first half with a goal, Kilkenny finished it with another great strike by corner forward Larkin to put 11 points between the sides at the interval. Four of Limerick's first half points tally came from McNamara.

Limerick fared much better on the resumption and squandered two great goal scoring opportunities. But all the time Kilkenny, showing more fluency than of late, were capable of picking off their points.

Noel Hickey made a welcome return to action at full-back, something which greatly pleased manager Brian Cody.

"It is great to have Noel back. He has missed a lot and while he has been training well, it was great to see him back in competitive action," admitted Cody afterwards.

Hickey marshalled a very solid Cats defence in which Jackie Tyrrell also shone.

Reid was not seen to much effect in a second half in which he failed to score, but midfielder John Mulhall increased his influence on proceedings and both he and Derek Lyng posed a constant threat.

Apart from McNamara, Limerick had little to offer up front but in defence they had some very promising players. None fared better than corner back Shane O'Neill who had a terrific game and was ably assisted by Andrew Brennan whose day by spoilt by his second yellow card, five minutes from the end.

Giving his post-match reaction, McCarthy remains adamant that Limerick are a work in progress.

"We had a few new guys out there today. It was great for them to play against the All-Ireland champions," he said.

"I feel we are making progress in every game. We are doing things in training now that are beginning to pay off. It's a learning process. The team have great heart and we are progressing.

"It's going to be very hard to win in Dublin but we will give it a go and give it our best shot."

Cody added: "We had a bit of a cushion at half-time, but we never pulled away and fair play to Limerick for that.

"For us it was all about getting the win as we lost three games already. It was good to get the two points."

LIMERICK: T Flynn; D Lynch, D Kenny, S O’Neill; S O’Riordan, A Brennan, C King; N Quaid, P Browne; S Herlihy (0-1), B O'Sullivan (0-1), C Mullane; G Mulcahy (0-1), P McNamara (0-11, 0-9f, 0-1 '65'), R McKeogh (0-2).

Subs used: D Breen for Quaid (half-time), T O'Brien (Patrickswell) for Herlihy (50 mins), T O'Brien (Bruree) for Mullane (51).

KILKENNY: R O’Neill; D Fogarty, N Hickey, PJ Delaney; T Walsh, J Tyrell, J Tennyson; P Hartley, J Fitzpatrick; J Mulhall (0-3), D Lyng (0-1), TJ Reid (0-9, 0-6f, 0-1sl); E Larkin (1-1), M Comerford (0-2), A Fogarty (1-1).

Subs used: P Hogan for Walsh (52 mins), S Cummins for Tennyson, R Hogan for Fogarty (both 60).

Referee: Alan Kelly (Galway)