Solid UCC defending key to progress

THE hurlers of UCC had to draw on all their experience to get the better of a dogged Garda College in a dour Ulster Bank Fitzgibbon Cup first round clash at Templemore yesterday.

When coach Mark Landers sits down to analyse the result, he’ll point to his defence for digging out this victory. A two-point half-time lead (1-5 to 0-6), after playing with the aid of the strong wind and rain, didn’t look to be enough. But the entire back-line performed heroically in the face of incessant Garda pressure and, for that alone, UCC deserved their win.

“We knew coming up it wasn’t going to be easy,” said coach Landers. “But our defence was magnificent in the second-half in the face of constant pressure. While it was essentially a team effort, Shane O’Neill, Canice Hickey and Kevin Hartnett defied the best the Garda forwards had to offer and we’ll go to Galway for the quarter-final confident we can grind out another win.”