Tipperary open Munster U20 hurling championship with convincing win over Limerick

TIPP TOP: Limerick's Cian Scully trying to find a way through the Tipperary defence to score a late goal. Picture by Kieran Ryan-Benson

Limerick 1-17

Tipperary 3-18

Tipperary opened their Munster U20 hurling campaign with a convincing victory over Limerick at Mick Neville Park.

Nenagh CBS Harty Cup star Darragh McCarthy was in sensational form for Brendan Cummins’ side and was a lynchpin in their emphatic performance.

He landed 1-9 of their total and further three pointers from Oisin O’Donoghue and Senan Butler saw them home.

Limerick have now lost their two games to date and must beat Cork and Waterford to have any hope of staying in the competition.

The home side made a fast start to the game with two Con Hayes strikes and one from Matthew Fitzgerald seeing them 0-3 to 0-0 after three minutes.

They continued in the ascendancy in the early stages thanks to two Oisin O’Farrell frees and a Cian Scully shot from distance.

Tipperary slowly came into the game and took full control with six points in the space of four minutes up to the quarter hour to lead 0-9 to 0-6 in front.

McCarthy was imperious inside but was aided and abetted by the slick play of centre forward Conor Martin throughout the first half.

McCarthy and Paddy McCormack stretched Tipperary’s advantage to five points with two further placed balls but Limerick were handed a lifeline after Hugh Flanagan fired a penalty to the net.

Cathal English and Shane O’Brien traded scores before O’Donoghue ghosted in for Tipperary’s opening goal. McCarthy followed up with a penalty to give them a 2-12 to 1-8 half time lead.

Flanagan opened the scoring in the second half for Limerick but McCarthy again had the answer with two well-taken frees to keep his side on top.

Limerick were unable to pierce a well-drilled Tipperary defensive set up as they went on the hunt for goals in the final quarter.

Tipperary defence holds firm late in the game as Chris O'Donnell clears his fullback line .. Picture by Kieran Ryan-Benson

Matthew Fitzgerald and Cian Scully did what they could in defence to launch promising attacks but to no avail.

The packed stand in Rathkeale hoped for a Limerick comeback in the final quarter but it was Cummins’ young guns that coasted home in the end with Butler’s goal 10 minutes from time sealing a comfortable victory.

Scorers for Limerick: H Flanagan (1-1, 1-0 pen); O O’Farrell (3f), C Scully (1f, 1 ‘65) (0-3 each); C Hayes, M Riordan (2f) (0-2 each); M Fitzgerald, S O’Brien, F Fitzgerald, W Kearns, D Ferland and V Harrington (0-1 each).

Scorers for Tipperary: D McCarthy (1-9, 1-0 pen, 7f); O O’Donoghue (1-2), S Butler (1-0), C Martin (0-3), C English (0-2), R Connolly and P McCormack (1f) (0-1 each).

LIMERICK: P Connery; M Fitzgibbon, D Langan, S Fitzgibbon; V Harrington, M Fitzgerald, C Scully; J Fitzgerald, C Hayes; F Fitzgerald, S O’Brien, R O’Farrell; D Coughlan, O O’Farrell, H Flanagan.

Subs: W Kearns for M Fitzgibbon (h-t), D Ferland for O’Farrell (45), M Riordan for Coughlan (46), D Scully for Flanagan (51), T Boddy for Fitzgerald (61).

TIPPERARY: E Horgan; C O’Donnell, A O’Halloran, P O’Dwyer; R Connolly, B Currivan, J Collins; S O’Farrell, A Daly; C English, C Martin, O O’Donoghue; D McCarthy, P McCormack, S Butler.

Subs: E Craddock for O’Farrell (37), C Gleeson for Collins (49), D Corbett for Butler (52), J Ormond for English (53), J Quinlan for O’Halloran (57).

Referee: S Scanlon (Cork).