Goal machine Hayes dismantles Éire Óg Ennis
In red and in blue, Brian Hayes’ favourite colour is green. It is a colour he wears exceptionally well.
Even in the middle of November, his green flag numbers for 2025 refuse to slow down. His green numbers for 2025 are gloriously impressive.
Five goals for the Cork hurlers on the road to League ribbons. Another five on the road to All-Ireland final Sunday.
Two majors off two starts in the local hurling championship. Two majors off four starts across St Finbarr's all-conquering local football campaign. A Munster club hat-trick here, his second hat-trick in a second code for 2025.
Add them all up and what you have is Brian Hayes, across red and blue exploits, boasting a green return of 17 for a year that has at least one more outing still to come.
His opener in Sunday’s Munster semi-final was massively fortuitous. A point attempt dropped short that Ennis ‘keeper Cian Howard failed to deal with.
That observation is not designed to take from the Barrs No.9. In a near carbon copy of his county final major, he began the move by fetching a restart, continued his run from midfield to collect the final pass - from midfield partner Ian Maguire - before finding the net.
His second and third arrived while operating as a member of the inside pair. A Luke Hannigan-won opposition restart and sublime Eoin McGreevy pass, on 44 and 57 minutes respectively, both found the hurler of the year nominee inside the cover.
The Barrs’ ability to deploy Hayes inside and leave him stationed there for lengthy spells had less to do with their comfort on the scoreboard and far more the middle-third depth they now possess.
Luke Hannigan, in his first championship start of the year, was outstanding under Barrs and Ennis restarts. Rickey Barrett, on occasion, drifted out to lend an effective hand in this department. All that without mentioning concertmaster Ian Maguire.
And when all those big boys in blue returned to terra firma, William Buckley and his ravenous appetite to hoover breaks was never far off in the distance.
If Dingle’s Mark O’Connor is still at home for the Munster final in a fortnight, there’s going to be some fun in the kickout contest.
Hayes’ opener turned the momentum in favour of the Cork champions. Éire Óg Ennis’ once solid kickout was corrupted and lost. The visitors to Páirc Uí Chaoimh retained eight of their opening nine restarts. In the five that directly followed Hayes’ goal, they failed to retain four of them. The Barrs pointed each time.
An unanswered 1-8 - supplied by Hayes, Buckley, John Wigginton Barrett, Steven Sherlock, and Rickey Barrett - propelled them from three behind on 13 minutes to 1-10 to 0-5 in front approaching the half hour. An eight-point lead against the elements.
Their opponents’ threat was far narrower. They did not carry the same spread. Mark McInerney was responsible for five of their six first-half scores. His orange and white flags in first-half stoppages ended an 18-minute scoreless spell and brought them back within five at the break. They’d come no closer.
The Barrs’ aerial dominance was outshone in the second period by their running overlaps and sumptuous kick-passing. The Clare champions were powerless to stem the flow of ball in and equally powerless to tie down the ghosting inside targets of Wigginton Barrett and Hayes.
The latter’s second goal, to leave the scoreboard reading 2-13 to 0-10, removed all doubt from the outcome.
We counted four more goal openings not taken, all four ending in white flags. It was one of few criticisms one could attach to this 15-point victory.
A weekend to savour for the Barrs. A first Munster camogie title collected, a ninth Munster football final appearance punched. If Saturday was enthralling from the women, Sunday was exhibition stuff from the men.
The time for savouring is limited. Ashbourne this Saturday for an All-Ireland camogie semi-final, the weekend after will presumably take them to either Thurles or the Gaelic Grounds for the provincial decider against Dingle.
These are once again the best of times out Togher direction. Fresh tapestries they seek to stitch. They are not leaning into tradition, they are concerned only with continuing a glorious present.
B Hayes (3-3); S Sherlock (0-6, tp, 0-2 45s, 0-1 free); J Wigginton Barrett (0-4); R Barrett, E Twomey (0-2 each); W Buckley, E Dennehy, C Myers Murray (0-1 each).
M McInerney (0-10, 2tp, tp free, 0-2 frees); G Murray (0-2); D Moroney, M Doherty (0-1 each).
D Newman; B Hennessy, A O’Connor, S Ryan; E Dennehy, C Doolan, C Dennehy; I Maguire, B Hayes; E Twomey, W Buckley, L Hannigan; J Wigginton Barrett, R Barrett, S Sherlock.
E McGreevy for Buckley, C Myers Murray for Barrett (both 50); T Egan for Hannigan, B O’Connell for C Dennehy (both 52); J Burns for Hennessy (56).
C Howard; M Doherty, A Fitzgerald, D Ryan; C Russell, G D’Auria, D Moroney; D McNamara, D O’Brien; J Collins, G Murray, R Lanigan; M McInerney, I Ugwueru, L Pyne.
J Joyce for O’Brien (42); A McGrath for J Collins (48); N McMahon for Moroney (53).
S Lonergan (Tipperary).
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