Clare SHC round-up: Scariff and Inagh-Kilnamona soar into semi-finals

Scariff become the ninth different team to contest the penultimate stage in the last three seasons

Scariff and Inagh-Kilnamona are the first two into the hat for Sunday's Clare SHC semi-final draw following contrasting last eight victories in Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg in Ennis. Pic: Ray McManus/Sportsfile

Scariff and Inagh-Kilnamona are the first two into the hat for Sunday's Clare SHC semi-final draw following contrasting last eight victories in Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg in Ennis.

Scariff actually became the ninth different team to contest the penultimate stage in the last three seasons after Mark Rodgers fired the last three points in injury-time to inch the East Clare men to a 1-25 to 0-27 triumph over last year’s finalists Clooney-Quin.

Having suffered defeat in their opening two bouts, Donal Moloney’s side have fully capitalised on an unlikely championship lifeline with a rousing 13-point final group victory over Crusheen edging them through to the business end on score difference.

Indeed Scariff, despite being shy of the services of Patrick Ryan and Liam Crotty, carried that momentum into Saturday’s opening quarter-final, utilising the wind with braces for Mark Rodgers and Shane Kavanagh to carve out a 0-8 to 0-4 advantage after only nine minutes.

Peter Duggan kept Clooney-Quin in touch with frees but Scariff were relieved to see a Dannan Fox just whistle past the right post. Clare senior trio Duggan, Jack O’Neill and Ryan Taylor slashed the arrears to just the minimum entering the second quarter but crucially Scariff were able to keep their noses in front, especially after goalkeeper William Kavanagh denied Darragh McNamara in the 20th minute.

As the tie crept inexorably towards half-time though, late points from Peter Duggan and Jack O’Neill finally regained parity at 0-14 apiece, only for Scariff to emphatically respond.

With the clock just reaching the half hour mark, it was 2023 National Young Hurler of the Year Mark Rodgers that picked up a break 45 metres out and bore down on goal before jinking inside the last defender and crashing the ball past goalkeeper Keith Hogan.

Quickly followed by a Rory Ryan point, Scariff took a 1-15 to 0-14 lead into the dressing room and actually nudged themselves five in front on the resumption when Ryan again struck.

A missed goal chance for Peter Duggan and a timely hook on Dannan Fox just as he was about to pull the trigger left a wind-assisted Clooney-Quin frustrated and consequently took them until the turn of the final quarter to finally repair the damage.

A three-point blitz in as many minutes through Peter Duggan (2) and Darragh Keogh reeled in Scariff at 1-18 to 0-21 before a five-minute barren patch was finally brokenly Jerry O’Connor and Jack O’Neill. It put Clooney-Quin into the ascendency for the very first time at 0-23 to 1-18, a two-point margin that was still in situ heading into injury-time.

Crucially Scariff never panicked though, with the Rodgers brothers Mark (2) and Paul winning frees for the former to arrow over and clinch a first semi-final spot in three season and only their second penultimate stage appearance in 22 years.

2021 Finalists Inagh-Kilnamona subsequently prevailed over Cratloe by 1-23 to 1-17 but that scoreline doesn’t tell the full story of a surprisingly seesaw encounter.

Against the conditions, Inagh-Kilnamona were clinical, with a fourth minute Kealan Guyler goal accentuated by Clare 2024 All-Ireland Senior winning contingent of Aidan McCarthy (5), David Fitzgerald (3) and Sean Rynne on their way to a nine-point cushion.

Rian Considine’s accuracy from placed balls did lessen the interval damage to seven at 1-14 to 0-10 while the leaders were thankful to goalkeeper Eamonn Foudy for repelling a Tadhg Lohan shot at his near post.

With Inagh-Kilnamona welcoming the wind for the new half, nothing but a handsome win seemed on the cards. Appearances can be deceiving though as Cratloe, having somehow remained unbeaten in the group stages despite trailing in injury-time in all three matches, again proved the kings of defiance with a full recovery.

Considine’s frees allied to a brace of excellent Daire Neville points chipped away at the deficit before Marc O’Brien cut in from the left corner to billow the net and slash the arrears to just the minimum at the three-quarters mark at 1-17 to 1-16.

Inevitably it was the inspirational Diarmuid Ryan that spectacularly equalised from distance in the 47th minute but try as they might, Cratloe just couldn’t inch ahead at any stage as ten second half wides proved costly.

Instead, a bizarrely lacklustre Inagh-Kilnamona picked themselves up off the canvas led by Aidan McCarthy who raided for the next three points, two from frees, to regain control.

Fred Hegarty scored a sumptuous lineball and added another from play while substitute Gearoid Barry also got in on the scoring action as Inagh-Kilnamona scored the last six points to relievedly get over the line and into their second semi-final in three years.