St Kieran's coast to convincing Leinster Colleges crown

Winning St Kierans College team celebrate with the Leinster Cup Pic via St Kierans College

Leinster Senior Colleges Final: St Kieran's College 2-21 Kilkenny CBS 0-5 

St Kieran's wrapped up a first Corn Ui Dhuill Leinster Senior Colleges hurling title since 2019 when running out hugely convincing winners over city neighbours Kilkenny CBS in UPMC Nowlan Park.

First-half goals from Aaron McEvoy and Sean Hunt laid the platform for the defending All-Ireland champions in what proved to be a much more one-sided affair than expected.

The two schools met only last December in the group stages at Dicksboro GAA Club and Kieran's only won that by a point but there was no such close affair for Brian Dowling's team on this occasion as they dominated from start to finish.

Within ten minutes of play, the famed Kilkenny nursery had opened up a 1-5 to 0-0 lead with Sean Hunt's goal added to points from Aaron McEvoy and Tomas Roche.

CBS kept in touch with efforts from Ryan Corcoran (Free) and Brian Moore but their paltry two point total from play over the course of the 60 minutes told it's own story.

By the time, the interval arrived Kieran's led 2-8 to 0-3 with top-scorer McEvoy scoring a superb individual goal as the more experienced side took command on the scoreboard.

It was a case of more of the same in the second half and the game petered out long before the full-time whistle as Kieran's registered 13 more points in a display that will have the rest of the country on notice.

Kieran's now go straight through to the All-Ireland semi-finals while Kilkenny CBS must somehow pick themselves up for a quarter-final outing the weekend after next.

Scorers for St Kieran's College: A McEvoy 1-9 (7fs), S Hunt 1-2, J Hughes 0-3 (2fs), S Deely, R Glynn (0-2 each), J O'Neill, T Roche, E McDermott (0-1 each) 

Scorers for Kilkenny CBS: R Corcoran 0-3 (3fs), B Moore, N Drennan (0-1 each) 

ST KIERAN'S COLLEGE: S Manogue; S Bergin, T Brennan, T Kelly; T McPhillips, J Neary, C Hickey; S Deely, E Lauhoff; E McDermott, A McEvoy, T Roche; R Glynn, S Hunt, R Connellan.

Subs: J Hughes for McEvoy (20) (Blood Sub), A McEvoy for Hughes (23) (Blood Sub Reversal), J Hughes for E.McDermott (35), O Bateman for McPhillips (46), B McDermott for McEvoy (50), J O'Neill for Glynn (52).

KILKENNY CBS: D Power; P Purcell, J Dowling, D Hennessey; B O'Neill, M Stynes, B Brennan; A Cass, M Bolger; G Kelly, A Clifford, S Culleton; E O'Casaide, B Moore, R Corcoran.

Subs: B Whelan for Purcell (10), R Harrison for Bolger (35), J Bergin for Cass (48), N Drennan for Culleton (49), L Staunton for O'Casaide (52).

Referee: Eamonn Furlong (Wexford)