Another second-half surge leaves Ballygunner an hour from Munster history

Ballygunner's Shane O'Sullivan and Conor Boylan of Na Piarsaigh

Munster Club SHC semi-final: NA PIARSAIGH (Limerick) 1-9 BALLYGUNNER (Waterford) 0-16

Ballygunner are 60 minutes away from becoming the first club to claim three consecutive Munster SHC titles after overcoming Na Piarsaigh in TUS Gaelic Grounds this evening.

A third consecutive provincial win over Na Piarsaigh and the second time in 12 months that they ruled supreme in the second half, Ballygunner will face Clonlara for a place in history the weekend after next.

A 3,627 crowd watched on as the All-Ireland runners-up outsmarted and outworked Na Piarsaigh in this scrappy semi-final. Leading 0-7 to 0-6 at half-time having faced the wind, Ballygunner owned the third quarter, outscoring Na Piarsaigh by four points to one. Shane Dowling also kept out a Ronan Power effort but six points without reply saw Ballygunner jump eight ahead by the 52nd minute.

Na Piarsaigh, whose final score from play came in the 19th minute, came back with a couple of Ronan Lynch points prior to Adrian Breen’s 60th minute goal that threatened an unlikely comeback. However, Pauric Mahony’s 11th point of the game gave Ballygunner a cushion.

Dessie Hutchinson had two goal openings inside the first six minutes. Dowling was level to his near post shot in the third minute and three minutes later Mike Casey was able to get in the way of the Waterford star’s shot after Mike Foley had erred with a pass.

From Pauric Mahony’s first minute free to the half-time whistle, Ballygunner were never in arrears. In some mediocre fare, their work-rate wasn’t questionable as they were getting in several blocks and hooks on Na Piarsaigh’s attempts at the posts.

Ballygunner’s first point from play came in the 14th minute when Power struck from distance to give the Munster champions a two-point cushion. Almost immediately, it could have been cancelled out as William O’Donoghue found David Dempsey at the edge of the square but Barry Coughlan did so well to stop his advance.

Courtesy of two Mahony frees and a Hutchinson point scored soon after a Na Piarsaigh puck-out, Ballygunner jumped four points ahead in the 22nd minute. The home side’s finish to the half was better, though. Lynch converted a 25th minute free, followed it up with a 65 and then landed a monster free after O’Donoghue claimed a Stephen O’Keeffe restart.

Tempers flare between the sides at the end of the first half

A Kevin Mahony foul on Vince Harington as referee Michael Kennedy blew for half-time prompted some verbals and pushing between players but it was diffused relatively quickly by the respective management teams.

Scorers for Na Piarsaigh: Pauric Mahony (0-11, 6 frees, 2 65s); D. Hutchinson, R. Power (0-2 each); H. Ruddle (0-1).

Scorers for Ballygunner: R. Lynch (0-7, 6 frees, 1 65); A. Breen (1-1), W. Henn (0-1).

NA PIARSAIGH: S. Dowling, E. McEvoy, M. Casey (c), C. King; V. Harington, W. O’Donoghue, M. Foley; C. Boylan, J.J. Carey; K. Downes, P. Casey, D. Dempsey; W. Henn, R. Lynch, D. Dempsey.

Subs for Na Piarsaigh: K. Dempsey for J.J. Carey (44); J. Fitzgerald for M. Foley (49); W. Kearns for C. King (52).

BALLYGUNNER: S. O’Keeffe (j-c); T. Foley, B. Coughlan, I. Kenny; S. O’Sullivan, Philip Mahony (j-c), R. Power; C. Sheahan, P. Leavy; P. Hogan, M. Mahony, Pauric Mahony; P. Fitzgerald, D. Hutchinson, K. Mahony.

Subs for Ballygunner: H. Ruddle for P. Fitzgerald (46); B. O’Keeffe for P. Hogan (60+1).

Referee: M. Kennedy (Tipperary).