Early Breen brace sends Na Piarsaigh on way to fourth final in a row

Kilmallock found themselves 10 down at half-time, 2-13 to 0-9.

Adrian Breen in action for Limerick. Pic: ©INPHO/Ryan Byrne

Limerick SHC semi-final: Na Piarsaigh 2-20 Kilmallock 1-17 

When they had to, Na Piarsaigh turned on the charm as they powered into a fourth consecutive final on the back of an excellent first half in Bruff.

Not that they played within themselves but their best hurling came in blitzes here. They didn’t panic when Kilmallock enjoyed the ascendancy either but hitting them for 1-6 in no more than five first-half minutes and then scoring five points in a row before Kilmallock’s consolation goal at the death were key periods for them.

At centre-forward, man of the match Peter Casey is playing some beautiful hurling and he sent over five first-half points and continued to be an outlet against the wind after the turnaround. Adrian Breen was a two-time goalscorer and Daithí Dempsey was a menace as a primary ball-winner.

With a good breeze, Na Piarsaigh would have expected to be ahead at half-time and their start was perfect. Conor Hanley-Clarke tried to bring down a long-range Ronan Lynch ball in the second minute but Breen was quickest to react and returned the sliotar past the Kilmallock goalkeeper.

Na Piarsaigh tagged on three points before Shane O’Brien opened Kilmallock’s scoring in the seventh minute. Dempsey was causing bother down the left wing and won two frees, which in the 11th minute restored the six-point lead Na Piarsaigh had after five minutes.

A purple patch in the middle of the half brought Kilmallock to within two points. Dropping back, Michael Houlihan and Oisín O’Reilly were industrious and if O’Brien wasn’t converting frees he was making the ball stick in the full-forward line.

Na Piarsaigh absorbed that period when they hit back with an unanswered tally of 1-4. Casey produced three of those points and Breen nabbed his second goal in the 24th minute as James Finn squared a ball that Kilmallock full-back Mark O’Loughlin was unable to negotiate.

At one stage, Kilmallock’s arrears extended to 12 points. A couple of placed balls eased some of that difficulty by half-time, trailing 0-9 to 2-13, and they hit the ground running with the wind in the second half, scoring the first four points although O’Reilly had a goal attempt denied by Shane Dowling less than four minutes into it.

Anytime O’Brien found the ball, he was threatening but there wasn’t enough being done around him. Sure, Graeme Mulcahy’s introduction at half-time into the middle of the park helped the supply chain but Na Piarsaigh’s backs weren’t going to let O’Brien rule the roost as he did in scoring 2-13 against Monaleen a couple of weeks ago.

Na Piarsaigh substitute Tommy Grimes settled his side with their first point of the half in the 39th minute, Will Henn followed with his second point and Kevin Downes’s third free undid much of the inroads Kilmallock had made.

“The Baalbec” did score four of the next five points to suggest the finale would be a tense one and O’Brien was continuing to keep his county-mate Mike Casey busy.

However, Downes picked off three points, two from frees and another from 65, in additional time prior to Oisín Enright’s late goal.

Scorers for Na Piarsaigh: A. Breen (2-1); K. Downes (0-6, 5 frees, 1 65); P. Casey (0-5); W. Henn, D. Dempsey (0-2 each); M. Casey, R. Lynch, T. Grimes, D. Lynch (0-1 each).

Scorers for Kilmallock: S. O’Brien (0-9, 6 frees); C. Hanley-Clarke (0-3, frees); O. Enright (1-0); C. O’Connor, D. Woulfe, M. Houlihan, O. O’Reilly, P. O’Brien (0-1 each).

NA PIARSAIGH: S. Dowling; J. Boylan (c), M. Casey, V. Harrington; E. McEvoy, R. Lynch, M. Foley; W. O’Donoghue, J. Finn; J.J. Carey, P. Casey, D. Dempsey; J. Downes, W. Henn, A. Breen.

Subs for Na Piarsaigh: T. Grimes for J. Finn (36); D. Lynch for J.J. Carey (46); K. Dempsey for D. Dempsey (51); W. Kearns for W. Jenn (60+2).

KILMALLOCK: C. Hanley-Clarke; A. Costello, M. O’Loughlin, D. O’Brien; R. Egan (c), R. Hanley, S. Carroll; K. Hayes, C. O’Connor; P. O’Reilly, M. Houlihan, G. O’Mahony; O. O’Reilly, S. O’Brien, D. Woulfe.

Subs for Kilmallock: G. Mulcahy for M. O’Loughlin (h-t); T. Savage for P. O’Reilly (40); P. O’Brien for D. Woulfe, C. Staunton for G. O’Mahony (both 46); O. Enright for A. Costello (blood, 58-ft).

Referee: J. Murphy (Glenroe)