Kerry make statement with convincing win over Down in Joe McDonagh opener

TOP SCORER: Shane Conway of Kerry. Pic: Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile

Down 1-14 Kerry 1-26 

The Kerry hurlers kicked off their Joe McDonagh Cup campaign with a very convincing away victory against Down at Ballycran on Saturday afternoon.

The Munster outfit  - managed by former Waterford hurler, Stephen Molumphy - looked like a team seeking to secure glory this term having fallen at the vital point on previous occasions. 

Down were exceedingly wayward early on, and Kerry immediately seized the opportunity to take control of the encounter.

Shane Conway exploded into the match with three quick points in a row. Conway’s third was set up by Colin Walsh and Conway’s first free was due to Walsh also, who was causing the hosts all sorts of problems from deep.

Kerry were rampant now and Down’s wide tally was mounting. Marauding midfielder Eoin Ross followed up the play and blew past Stephen Keith from Close range.

Pearse Óg McCrickard finally raised a white flag after some double digit misses but a lot of the Ulster sides woes would be down to Kerry’s sweeper Fionan MacKessy.

MacKessey seemed to be everywhere. On top of his dominance the St.Brendan’s man drove forward and registered two booming scores. Buoyed by the presence of MacKessy’s performance Kerry were really buoyed by those two points.

In stark contrast Down were resorted to change tactics, Ronan Sheehan decided to go short with the puck outs and it worked to some degree. McCrickard landed two fine scores wide on the sideline in front of the away dug out.

Despite McCrickard and Ross added to his tally and captain Dooley won a ball out in front to smack over the bar to finish off a satisfying half for the Kingdom as they led 1-9 to 0-6 at the interval.

McCrickard lulled all in attendance that there would be a Mourne revival when clipped over the first score of the second half with a free. Kerry simply took over and overpowered their hosts with eight of the next nine scores in the game.

Kerry’s shot selection was crystal clear and Shane Conway’s confidence saw him curl over a sideline cut while defenders Cillian Trant and Darragh Shanahan also getting their names on the scoresheet with ease.

Down needed McCrickard again to get going and the unusually quiet Daithí Sands got his first point before crashing an effort the crossbar. That wasn’t Down’s last dealings with the Ballycran metal work.

Substitute Ruairí McCrickard then hit the post with a goal at his mercy but he was fouled and his resultant penalty was superbly saved by John B O’Halloran. That summed up Down’s day.

Ruairí McCrickard did find the net but it was too little too late as impressive Kerry replacements Niall Mulcahy and Dan Goggin combined came off the bench to hit five points between them as the Munster men travelled home worthy winners.

Elsewhere in the opening round of the competition, there were wins for both Carlow and Offaly. 

Carlow made light work of Kildare, winning out on a scoreline of 5-23 to 0-19, as marksman Paddy Boland scored a hat-trick in the first half of the encounter. 

That first half goal flurry saw Carlow leading 3-11 to 0-3 points at the 25-minute mark, and they never looked back.

Offaly's clash with Laois was of a much closer nature. 

Eoghan Cahill was superb in front of goal for the winners, notching a cool 2-11 for his side. His tally proved important in what turned out to be a three point victory for the hosts.

Scorers for Down: P Og McCrickard 0-6 (3f), R McCrickard 1-0, J Doran, T McGrattan 0-2 each, D Sands, F Turpin, T McGrattan, T Prenter 0-1 each.

Scorers for Kerry: S Conway 0-8 (4f, 1sl), E Ross 1-3, D Goggin 0-3, D Shanahan, Niall Mulcahy 0-2 each, C Trant, P Lucid, G Dooley, B Barrett and E Leen 0-1 each.

Down: S Keith; T Murray, J McManus, D Mallon; M Fisher, M Conlon, N McFarland; L Savage, P Óg McCrickard; R McCusker, P Sheehan, B Trainor; T Prenter, D Sands, T McGrattan.

Subs: F Turpin for McCusker (ht), R McCrickard for Sheehan (ht) J Doran for Trainor (45), O McManus for Prenter (51). 

Kerry: J B O’Halloran; K O’Connor, E Leen, E Murphy; C Trant, D Shanahan, F MacKessy; E Ross, P O’Connor; G Dooley, C Walsh, M Leane; S Conway, J Conway, B Barrett. 

Subs: N Mulcahy for Dooley (42), D Goggin for Barrett (47), P Lucid for J Conway (56), S Weir for O’Connor (64), T Doyle for Ross (70).

Referee: Patrick Murphy (Carlow)