Waterford Minor team to play Kilkenny

The following is the Waterford Minor Hurling team to play Kilkenny on Saturday night next.

1.  Shane Forristal  Mount Sion

2.  Jamie Barron     Fourmilewater

3.  Damien Ahern    Ferrybank

4.  Colin Walsh       St Olivers

5.  Ian Kenny          Ballygunner

6.  Darren Foley      Clashmore/Kinsalbeg

7.  Jim Power          Butlerstown

8.  Shane McNulty   De La Salle

9.  Ray Barry           St Carthages

10.Jake Dillon          De La Salle

11 Gavin O'Brien      Roanmore (capt)

12 Donie Breathnach An Rinn

13. Peter O'Keefe     St Carthages

14. Stephen Bennett St Carthages

15. Cathal Curran      Dungarvan

Hope for Deise in Galway's Quarter Record

Galway in the Quarter-Finals

Over the years, many fancied Galway hurling teams have crashed out of the championship at the quarter-final stage. Here we take a look at some of their most disappointing losses at this stage of the Championship

2010

Tipperary 3-17 Galway 3-16

It took a late winner from hurler of the year, Lar Corbett to seal a narrow victory for Tipperary in a game that until the incredible final was billed as the game of the year. Galway stayed with the eventual All-Ireland champions for most of the game and with Eanna Ryan, Damien Hayes and Joe Canning all scoring goals, they led by two points with time almost up. However, Tipperary came with a late rally and points from John O’Brien, Gearoid Ryan and Corbett’s late effort were enough to put Tipperary through to a semi-final against Munster champions, Waterford.

2009

Waterford 1-16 Galway 0-18

At this stage two years ago, a late winner from John Mullane sent Waterford through to a rematch of the 2008 All-Ireland final with Kilkenny. Once again, Galway could be accused of collapsing on the big stage having lead by six points with only 13 minutes remaining. However, Waterford manager, Davy Fitzgerald brought Dan and Maurice Shanahan and Shane Walsh off the bench. With the game in the melting pot with two minutes remaining, big Dan claimed a long ball, off-loaded to Shane Walsh whose goal brought Waterford right back into the game. In injury time, Mullane scored a winner after being set up by Declan Prendergast. There was still time for Galway to draw level but Joe Canning’s late effort went wide.

2007

Kilkenny 3-22 Galway 1-18

Galway put up a spirited display against a Kilkenny team that was at their peak, before eventually losing by ten points. With ten minutes remaining, a point from Fergal Healy brought Galway level with the Cats but in the remaining ten minutes, Galway fell asunder and Kilkenny wrapped up the game. Galway were very much the architects of their own downfall. Eddie Brennan was left unmarked to score Kilkenny’s second goal and as Galway chased the game in the closing stages, they were hit on the counter-attack and Brennan’s second goal of the game wrapped up a comfortable Kilkenny victory. This game also marked the final appearances in the Galway colours of Eugene Cloonan and Kevin Broderick.

2006

Kilkenny 2-22 Galway 3-14

Galway looked a pale shadow of the team that had ambushed Kilkenny in the semi-final of 2005 and were beaten by 14 man Kilkenny. Galway were left to rue the concession of a soft goal when a James ‘Cha’ Fitzpatrick free was dropped into the net by Liam Donoghue, gifting the Cats an early goal. Kilkenny had a strangle-hold on the game by half-time with Aidan Fogarty’s goal helping them into a 2-3 to 0-6 lead. Galway did rally somewhat in the second half and although they did score goals through Niall Healy and substitutes David Tierney and Eugene Cloonan, it was too little too late and Kilkenny marched on eventually preventing Cork from winning the All-Ireland title for the third year in a row.

2002

Clare 1-15 Galway 0-17

Although they came into the game as favourites, Galway went under to near neighbours, Clare in a tight and tense All-Ireland quarter-final. The feeling in Galway was that they had played the better hurling in the game but they still exited the championship. Galway led for much of the game but Clare came back into it when Niall Gilligan goaled from a 21 yard free. Clare led as the game neared its conclusion but a point from Ger Farragher brought Galway back on level terms. In a frantic finish, Colin Lynch shot a late winner for Clare although Galway followers felt that referee, Willie Barrett blew the final whistle rather promptly after Lynch’s point and that they should have been given another minute or two to force a draw.

1999

Clare 3-15 Galway 2-18

(Replay) Clare 3-18 Galway 2-14

Galway fell to close rivals Clare at the second time of asking after failing to put them away on the first day when even a mammoth effort from Ollie Fahy who finished with a personal tally of 2-2 failed to seal a win for the tribesmen. However as so often happened to Clare under Ger Loughnane, they blew away the opposition in the replay when two goals from Niall Gilligan sent Clare on their way to a semi-final clash with Cork. The replay signalled the arrival on to the national stage of a certain Eugene Cloonan whose tally of 1-10 sent a message to the hurling world. How his talent was prevented from reaching its potential is one of the main questions surrounding the Galway hurling team of the last decade.

1998

Waterford 1-20 Galway 1-10

Waterford came into this All-Ireland quarter-final on the back of a thirteen point beating by Clare in an infamous Munster final replay a week previously. Galway were expected to end the Waterford dream but it was the Deise who prevailed. Inspired by a magnificent performance from the soon to be hurler of the year, Tony Browne at midfield, Waterford proved far too slick for a Galway side who once again flattered to deceive on the big stage. Once the returning Sean Daly goaled for Waterford, they never looked in any danger and Galway again limped disappointingly out of the championship.

1997

Kilkenny 4-15 Galway 3-16

This game will be remembered as one of the best games of the last 15 years and is certainly a game that Galway will feel that got away from them. Galway were tantalising in the first half and although two of the goals they scored in the first half, should have been kept out by Kilkenny goalkeeper, Adrian Ronan, the tribesmen deserved their nine point half-time lead. However, the game changed dramatically in the second-half as a certain DJ Carey took centre-stage. Carey finished with a tally of 2-8, almost single-handedly dragging Kilkenny into the semi-final. Kilkenny hit Galway for 1-5 without reply at the beginning of the second half and then a goal from substitute, Ken O’Shea proved enough to put Kilkenny through to a semi-final clash with eventual champions, Clare. 

  

Waterford Senior team to play Limerick

Waterford Senior Hurling team to play Limerick on Sunday

1.       Clinton Hennessy (Ardmore)

2.       Darragh Fives (Tourin)

3.       Wayne Hutchinson (Ballygunner)

4.       Noel Connors (Passage)

5.       Tony Browne (Mount Sion)

6.       Michael Walsh (Stradbally)

7.       Kevin Moran (De La Salle)

8.       Shane O’Sullivan (Ballygunner)

9.       Richie Foley (Abbeyside)

10.   Maurice Shanahan (Lismore

11.   Stephen Molumphy (Ballyduff Upper)

12.   Pauric Mahony (Ballygunner)

13.   John Mullane (De La Salle)

14.   Shane Walsh (Fourmilewater)

15.   Brian O’Sullivan (Ballygunner)

An interesting selection in many ways! There is a broad selection of clubs represented. The traditional powerhouse of Waterford hurling, Mount Sion have only one representative on the team while Ballygunner have four. Even at that, the word on the street seems to indicate that David O’Sullivan was very unlucky to lose out to the ageless Tony Browne for the number five jersey. The big talking point will be the omission of Eoin Kelly but his form when played during the league and in the club championships would indicate that he just did not have enough done. He is a very useful sub to bring on, and it is a long year yet.

There is no shortage of scoring forwards there either, and we can expect Shane O’Sullivan to switch with Stephen Molumphy either before the ball is thrown in or at some stage of the game.

The Limerick team has also been named;

1. Nicky Quaid
2. Damien Reale
3. Seamus Hickey
4. Tom Condon
5. Wayne McNamara
6. Brian Geary
7. Gavin O’Mahoney
8. Donal O’Grady
9. Paul Browne
10. James Ryan
11. Richie McCarthy
12. Niall Moran
13. Sean Tobin
14. Kevin Downes
15. Graeme Mulcahy

Waterford Intermediate team to play Limerick

Waterford Intermediate team to play Limerick on Sunday

1.Stephen O'Keeffe - Ballygunner
2. Barry Coughlan - Ballygunner
3. Ian Flynn - De La Salle
4. Mark O'Brien - Tallow
5. Brian Phelan - De La Salle - Captain
6. Chris Ryan - Mt Sion
7. Seamus Hannon - Ballyduff Upper
8. Eddie Barrett - De La Salle
9. Dean Twomey - De La Salle
10. Paudie Nevin - De La Salle
11. Stephen Power - Ballygunner
12. Paul Power - Portlaw
13. Adam Brophy - St. Saviours
14. Thomas Connors - Passage
15. Chris O'Gorman – Lismore

I have to say I think that this is a very strong team. I think the county board deserve a pat on the back on having the foresight to elect a selector from each of the county finalists (Mick Mahony – Ballygunner and Seamus Quirke – De La Salle) plus one from the West (Eddie Cunningham). The Intermediate team has been held back in recent years due to players not making themselves available and it seems that players seem to be willing to turn up for selectors that they know personally.

I know preparations haven’t been ideal, but who knows, a good performance here should set them up for another appearance in a Munster final, where they will meet the winners of Cork V Clare.

Timmy O'Keeffe wants changes to Football Championship

I see Timmy O’Keeffe has called for a radical change to the All-Ireland football championship in the wake of Waterford’s embarrassing 17-point defeat to Cork in the Munster semi-final last weekend. O’Keeffe has called for the football championship to be altered in such a way as to compare with the All-Ireland hurling championship whereby only a limited number of team compete for the Liam McCarthy Cup. O’Keeffe has hinted that the GAA should consider introducing a secondary competition along the lines of Hurling’s Christy Ring or Lory Meagher Cups for the weaker counties. He also went on to say that there would be promotion and relegation from the Sam Maguire competition to this new lower tier competition.

Since O’Keeffe’s comments appeared in today’s edition of the Irish Independent, Internet web forums have been awash with comment about this issue, with a mixture of comments both in favour and against O’Keeffe’s proposal.

One aspect of O’Keeffe’s idea which makes perfect, logical sense is where he states that this is the only GAA competition where the strongest teams and the weakest teams can meet each other. He points to the club championship where Junior teams and Senior teams do not play against each other, so why should All-Ireland champions like Cork play against relatively weak teams like Waterford.

There is probably a lot of merit in O’Keeffe’s idea but the GAA must be extremely cautious when attempting to introduce a secondary competition for weaker counties. When the Tommy Murphy Cup was introduced some years ago, there was not a lot of interest in it from the weaker counties, even though there was a Croke Park final up for grabs. However, the fact that the winner of this new competition would be promoted should arouse interest in all those counties who are eligible to participate.

Although I have gone on record to say that I am not in favour of the seeded draw in the Munster championship, I also tend to agree with Timmy’s idea here. As for the seeded draw argument – if teams are in the same championship, we should not attempt to say who is weaker and who is stronger. After all, the task of finding out the strongest team in a competition should be done between the white lines and not in a Munster Council boardroom.

If Waterford are not to compete in the All-Ireland series, then it would probably be a good idea if they were to play in a competition against teams of their own calibre. Perhaps, the GAA could call it the All-Ireland Intermediate championship with the winners getting promoted to play in the All-Ireland senior championship the following year.

Of course, there would be several stumbling blocks to bring through such a major revamp of the football championship. At congress, most counties are represented by a conservative bunch who will vote for the status quo, no matter what. Any change such as this would require a two-thirds majority and in the past, this has sounded the death-knell of many a good idea.

Another major hurdle to changing the current format of the Championship, would be what would come of the Provincial championship. Again, there are oodles of traditionalists in every county, who would rather cut off their right arm than get rid of the provincial Championships even if there would be a tangible benefit to the future of the game.

Waterford - Player Ratings v Wexford

Stephen O’Keeffe – 8 Another good performance from the teenager and another memorable save to deny Rory Jacob as well. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, this lad could go on to become one of the all-time greats.

Darragh Fives – 8 This lad seems to get better and better with every game. He started off the year hoping to get a run in the Waterford Crystal Cup but at this stage he is in possession of the jersey and it is getting difficult to see who can take it off him.

Shane Fives – 8 For the second week in a row, he looked very comfortable at the edge of the square. Near the end when we were under pressure, he came out with a lot of ball and used it very well. It is early days but, he looks promising.

Noel Connors – 6 He was in big trouble on Rory Jacob in the first half and the Wexford man could have had 1-2 bagged by half-time. He did settle down in the second half and looked more like the All-star that he is.

Wayne Hutchinson – 9 A very impressive full debut from the Ballygunner man. He looked comfortable under the high ball, won a lot of low ball, came out of a few rucks with possession. He was also unlucky not to get a score.

Michael Walsh – 9 Man of the match for the second week in a row. He seemed to be targeted for some special treatment by the Wexford attack but he stood up to it well. Made one spectacular catch in the first half before being decked by a Wexford forward!

Jamie Nagle – 8 This was looking like a typical neat and tidy Nagle appearance until the last 15 minutes when he was the best player on the pitch. He had a succession of Wexford attackers in his pocket and almost grabbed a trademark long-range point.

Shane O’Sullivan – 7 He is rapidly becoming one of the key players on this Waterford team and one of its unsung heroes. He gets through a massive amount of work and takes a multitude of belts over the course of a game.

Philip Mahony – 7 He almost gets through as much work as his uncle beside him. He looked a little too keen at time yesterday, and gave away a couple of frees as a result. It could be argued that he would be more at home in the half-back line but he could well win a jersey in this position.

Shane Casey – 6 Shane tried hard throughout but besides his effort that led to Prendergast’s goal he never looked like scoring. He has looked sharper than in other years but needs to get on the scoresheet more in order to get a regular place in the team.

Richie Foley – 6 This was without a doubt Richie’s worst display of the year, coming on the back if his best display ever against Dublin. He missed two easy frees, failed to score anything from a 21 yard free and a penalty. To his credit, he didn’t hide and was still showing for the ball deep in stoppage time.

Pauric Mahony – 8 This lad has an old head on young shoulders. He has a hurling brain that defies his tender years. He scored an excellent point and got a scolding form his manager when he offloaded to Shane O’Sullivan when his own score was there for the taking. It says a lot about the trust Davy has in him that he finished the game in the key position of centre-forward.

Tomás Ryan – 7 This was a much better showing than his display against Dublin a week ago. He showed better for the ball, scored two points and was unlucky not to get a goal or two when the ball just failed to run for him. If he starts to win his own ball, he will be very dangerous.

Seamus Prendergast – 7 A mixed bag again from the Ardmore man. There was a ton of ball sent in to him and he probably won less than half of it. From the ball that he did win, he caused havoc as there is only one way of stopping him – illegally.

Stephen Molumphy – 5 This was probably the worst display yet in a Waterford jersey from the captain. However, he is not a corner-forward and never will be. He needs to be brought out the field quickly before his morale is damaged.

Subs:

Maurice Shanahan – 8 The introduction of Shanahan proved to be the winning of the game for Waterford. He notched three points after his arrival and took over the free-taking duties to good effect. He is sure to start next week and let’s hope this is the beginning of a good run of form for the Lismore man.

Shane Walsh and Stephen Power – Not on long enough to be rated.  

De La Salle - Player Ratings V Clarinbridge

Steven Brenner – 6 He possibly could have stopped Mark Kerins penalty as it was at an ideal height for a goalkeeper. He had no chance with any of the other two goals and his puck-out was long and accurate throughout.

Darren Russell – 7 Another good game from Russell who has had to change his style slightly after playing most of his career to date out the field. He has adapted well to playing at corner-back and uses his pace and hurling ability to full effect.

Ian Flynn – 6 He struggled to deal with the mobility of Alan Kerins in the opening stages and would have been relieved to see him moved out the field. He coped a lot better with Mark Kerins when he came in on him and cleared a lot of balls in general play

Michael Doherty – 8 De La Salle are in the luxurious position of being able to play Doherty in his best position of corner-back. He didn’t give Paul Coen a sniff for long periods and was probably out on his feet with tiredness when Coen got his two late points.

Brian Phelan – 7 He was a lot quieter than on other days but he really came into the game when it really mattered. He has a remarkable ability to do the right thing all the time, hitting it long when needed and off-loading hand-passes to Moran on occasion. He kept his head to score the point which forced extra-time.

Kevin Moran – 9 Once again Moran was immense. Since moving to centre-back in August, he has got better and better with every game. It will be interesting to see if Davy Fitzgerald sees him as a runner at centre-back. In my opinion, it’s worth a shot. Strong in the air, a brilliant point and wreaks havoc when he drives forward. Man of the Match.

Stephen Daniels – 8 Once again, Daniels did his bit for the cause. He has a fantastic ability under the dropping ball and almost always gets a good clearance in. He is bound to get a run with the county team in the remainder of the league and after that, it’s up to himself.

Conan Watt – 5 He was struggling with a back injury in the days leading up to the game and never really got going. He tried hard and battled all day but he simply wasn’t fit enough to make an impact.

Dean Twomey – 8 He did his burgeoning reputation no harm at all with another good display at midfield. He showed his ability to pick off scores from out the field but needs to stop drifting out of games. Sources tell me he may get a run on the county team which may do his confidence the world of good.

Paudie Nevin – 6 It wasn’t his best game and he only managed a point from play over the course of the game. He was up against a very good player in Micheal Donoghue and never got the opportunity to run at the Clarinbridge defence.

David Greene – 6 He battled hard over the game but didn’t get a lot of freedom off David Forde who was immense at centre-back for Clarinbridge.

John Mullane – 8 Once again, the De La Salle talisman stood up to the plate. Five points from play is more than pulling your weight and he was the go-to man yet again. He will be haunted by the missed free in the first half which proved critical.

Jake Dillon – 8 This guy is going to be a star. He was absolutely brilliant yesterday, grabbing three super points from play. The thing I like most about him is his ability to win his own ball which is a rarity amongst forwards but so important nonetheless

Eddie Barrett – 6 Barrett failed to make an impact throughout bar a superb early pass which picked out Mullane for his first score of the game. He looked very promising at underage level and needs to impose himself on games and take more responsibility.

John Keane – 7 Keane has been a useful acquisition for De La Salle as he has a great ability to pick off a score. He may not seem to be in the game for long stages but he only needs a sighting of the posts and the ball is over.

Subs:

Eoin Madigan – 9 Another excellent performance off the bench from Madigan and one may well wonder what might have been if he had been started. He is a huge man who can win ball but he complements that with a graceful touch as epitomised by his score-taking.

Lee Hayes – 7 He wasn’t on long enough to make much of an impression but he did score an excellent point which looked as if it had won the game for De La Salle

Waterford V Dublin (Player Ratings)

Adrian Power - 8
Made one superb save during the first half to deny Peadar Carton a certain goal. However, he will be slightly disappointed with the second Dublin goal. A goalkeeper should have come out and taken both man and ball. Puck out remains a useful weapon though.

Darragh Fives - 8
Another good performance from the younger of the Fives brothers. He kept Carton anonymous for long periods. He will probably end up in the half-back line but for now he is doing a very useful job in the corner.

Jerome Maher - 5
It wasn't a great day for Maher who had endless trouble with Liam Rushe in the first twenty minutes before being moved to corner-back and eventually being replaced.

Noel Connors - 6
It wasn't Noel Connors best display in a Waterford jersey but we all know at this stage what he can do and he will get better. Taken for three points by Dotsie O'Callaghan which will disappoint him but we won't get unduly worries yet.

Shane Fives - 8
It was a good performance from Fives who looked comfortable at wing-back and snuffed out the threat of Liam Rushe when moved to full-back. He should get a run of games at full-back now which will help.

Michael Walsh - 7
It wasn't a vintage performance from 'Brick' but he still won vital balls when they were needed most. One wonders whether he really needs to play every single game and may benefit from being rested once in a while.

Jamie Nagle - 7
At this stage we know what exactly we are going to get from Nagle. Everything he does is neat and tidy but at times he seems to lack the aggression required for this level. He tends to get bullied out of it by the really top teams. Great point yesterday though!

Shane O'Sullivan - 8
Another typical O'Sullivan performance. He gets through a lot of the hard work that others don't, wins the dirty ball and wins an abundance of frees. He has added a lot of consistency to his play over the last couple of years and continued in that vein of form yesterday.

Philip Mahony - 7
It was a solid if not spectacular debut for the older of the Mahony brothers. His eventual home will probably be somewhere in the half-back line but maybe there was a reason Fitzgerald put him in midfield alongside his Uncle. Won a lot of ball and kept it moving into the forwards.

Stephen Molumphy - 6
The captain was not as good yesterday as he was in the Waterford Crystal Cup against Cork. However, the effort levles never dropped and he was out of position for the entire second half. He scored a good point which won't do the confidence any harm.

Richie Foley - 9
Man of the Match, Man of the Month and certainly the Man of the Moment. Scored 2-10 yesterday. He took his frees very well but also notched 1-3 from play. He now looks like a valid option at cenntre-forward come championship time.

Pauric Mahony - 8
It was a very good debut by Mahony yesterday in which he scored two points. He also showed a level of maturity and intelligence which belied his tender years with some smart passes. He is going to be around for a long time to come.

Shane Casey - 7
He looked sharper than he has done for some time yesterday. He took his point well and gave a fortunate assist for Foley's first goal. He also worked very hard when moved to wing-forward and cleared a couple of balls near the end, one of which resulted in a point for Prendergast.

Seamus Prendergast - 8
He may not look like he is moving very freely at times but he is ana absolute nightmare to mark. He scored 1-1, won a ton of frees and would have won a lot more if the referee was on his game. He looks to be approaching something like his best form.

Tomás Ryan - 5
It wasn't a day to remember for the young Tallow man. With so many players absent he had a chance to lay down a marker but he failed to do so. He look nervy and left an early ball which should hae been straigh-forward run through his legs.

Substitutes
Wayne Hutchinson - 7
He did well when introduced at half-time. Won and cleared a couple of balls early on which helped him settle. He looked short of pace when McCormack out-aced him for Dublin's second goal but he is only back from a long term injury and will improve.

Eamon Murphy and Ken McGrath - Not on long enough to be rated.

Waterford Team to play Dublin

The Waterford team to play Dublin in the opening round of the National League was named last night and makes for very interesting reading. There are several players coming in for their National League debuts, including the Mahony brothers from Ballygunner who are named at midfield (Philip) and wing-forward (Pauric) respectively. It is very interesting to note that the only other Ballygunner player named in the first fifteen, Shane O'Sullivan is an uncle of the Mahony's. O'Sullivan will partner his nephew, Philip at midfield.
Shane Fives who has been on the panel for a couple of seasons gets a chance to stake a claim for a more permanent place, gets his opportunity at right-half back. In keeping with the family theme, Shane's younger brother, Darragh makes his debut at corner-back behind him.
Clinton Hennessy retains the goalkeeping jersey while after an impressive Waterford Crystal Cup campaign, Jerome Maher holds on to the number 3 jersey, with regular incumbent, Liam Lawlor out with a knee injury.
After playing a starring role during the successful Waterford Crystal Cup campaign, Richie Foley lines out at centre-forward while Tomás Ryan returns after missing a large chunk lf last year with an ankle injury.
However, the list of players who are unavailable for Waterford reads like a veritabel who's who of Waterford hurling with, Ken McGrath, Eoin McGrath, Maurice Shanahan, Tony Browne, Kevin Moran and John Mullane all unavailable for one reason or another. Ken McGrath is listed amongst the substitutes and may well be used if needed.
The full team is as follows;
1. Clinton Hennessy (Ardmore)
2. Darragh Fives (Tourin)
3. Jerome Maher (Geraldines)
4. Noel Connors (Passage)
5. Shane Fives (Tourin)
6. Michael Walsh (Stradbally)
7. Jamie Nagle (Dungarvan)
8. Shane O'Sullivan (Ballygunner)
9. Philip Mahony (Ballygunner)
10. Stephen Molumphy (Ballyduff Upper)
11. Richie Foley (Abbeyside)
12. Pauric Mahony (Ballygunner)
13. Shane Casey (Dunhill)
14. Seamus Prendergast (Ardmore)
15. Tomas Ryan (Tallow)

Wexford 4-11 Waterford 2-6

Waterford’s footballers had a disastrous start to their Division 3 campaign when they conceded four goals on their way to a 4-11 to 2-6 defeat to Wexford on Sunday. It ended up being a day to forget for John Owens men who had played so well for so much of the first half before coming unstuck in first half injury time, conceding 1-3 and handing the initiative to the home side.

Up to that point, John Owens will have been quite happy with the progress his team were making. Waterford’s short passing game led to long periods of possession which seemed to frustrate Wexford who at times, were over-anxious to make use of the strong wind at their backs. On multiple occasions during the opening half, Wexford were over-zealous in trying to get the ball into their dangerous full-forward line. There were several occasions when the ball ran tamely out over Tom Wall’s end-line, much to the joy of the small Waterford band of supporters.

Wexford did look like the more likely team to score as Waterford hardly created any scoring opportunities in the opening half. Wing-forwards Brian Wall and Wayne Hennessy played so deep that there were times when they passed the ball forward to their colleague in the half-back line, most notably Shane Briggs and Eamon Walsh, both of whom made efforts to get forward whenever the opportunity arose.

With the Waterford defence coming under so much pressure, it was inevitable that they would crack at some stage. Wexford strung together some excellent moves throughout the half and kicked some excellent points, with Brian Malone, Ciaran Lyng and free-taker Ben Brosnan all getting on the score-sheet.

The only scores Waterford managed to get during the first half were a fine effort from play by Brian Phelan, and a free from Patrick Hurney.

Just as it looked as if Waterford would go in at half-time within touching distance of the home side, disaster struck. There was a long hold-up after an injury to Wexford wing-back, Adrian Flynn who was forced to leave the field on a stretcher.

The problems for Waterford began in that time added on when Tomas O’Gorman lost possession with a wayward pass. In the blink of an eye, Wexford had worked the ball across to new full-forward, Kevin O’Grady who planted the ball past Tom Wall and into the back of the net.

As the Waterford heads dropped, Wexford came forward in droves. They followed the goal with a delightful score from the dangerous Brosnan who curled the ball over form 35 yards with the outside of the boot.

This all left Wexford leading by 1-9 to 0-2 at the break.

Waterford needed an exceptional start to the second half if they were to have any chance of getting anything out of this game. However, a good start was not forthcoming and another quick-fire passing movement involving Ciaran Lyng and Redmond Barry led to a goal for Ben Brosnan and a twelve point lead for Wexford.

Waterford did make some progress when they played the long ball into Tommy Prendergast and this tactic yielded a goal in the 51^st minute when Prendergast rounded his marker before goaling. Four minutes later, substitute Michael O’Gorman set up Patrick Hurney for another Waterford goal as John Owens men threatened to make a game of it. However, it was not to be and Wexford managed to score two more goals in the final quarter with Ben Brosnan grabbing his second of the game and Ciaran Lyng rounding off a superb display with a fine goal near the end.

There were several observations one could make about this Waterford team from watching this game. Not surprisingly when playing against the wind, they set out to negate Wexford and to a certain extent they did this quite well for most of the first half. However, a couple of lapses in concentration near the end of the half had disastrous consequences and Waterford were then forced to chase the game in the second half.

Waterford struggled to win primary possession at midfield for most of the game and this put them on the back foot from almost the very beginning. In modern day football, you have to win kick-outs and this is something that Waterford failed to do. One would wonder why Tommy Prendergast was not brought out to that sector because there were long periods when he was virtually a spectator in this game.

Waterford also gave away the ball too cheaply at times and gifted hard won possession back to Wexford on many occasions.

However, it was not all negative for John Owens. There were good performances from Shane Briggs and Maurice O’Gorman. There are still several players to come back from the treatment table, including three key players in Tony Grey, Gary Hurney and Liam O’Lionain. These three are all vital players for Waterford and without them, there is a considerable hole in the side.

As regards the chances of retaining their position in Division 3, a big improvement will be required if they are to get the all-important wins. The forward line looked a little lightweight and struggled to hold on to the ball when it was played to them. This was where the loss of Gary Hurney was most expensive. They will certainly need to beat old-rivals Limerick in Dungarvan on February 20^th as Limerick will certainly be smarting following a surprise defeat to Tipperary last Sunday. All in all, it looks like an uphill challenge for Waterford, but they have faced similar mountains before and succeeded, so here’s hoping they can do so again.

Waterford Football Team to Play Wexford

The following is the Waterford team to play Wexford in the opening round of the National Football League on Sunday.

Tom Wall, Kieran Connery, Tomas O'Gorman, Conor Phelan, Eamon Walsh, Shane Briggs, Maurice O'Gorman, Brian Phelan, Mick Ahern, Brian Wall, Kevin Power, Wayne Hennessy, Patrick Hurney, Tommy Prendergast, Sean Fleming

Waterford manager, John Owens has picked a very strong team for this game as he looks to open up their campaign against a Wexford team that was hammered twice in the O'Byrne Cup. Clashmore corner-forward, Sean Fleming is the only player that did not feature on last year's team and he takes his place after impressive showings in the McGrath Cup.

A lot has been made in the media that Waterford's main priority this year is to retain their status in Division 3 but Owens has rubbished those claims this week, saying that Waterford, just like everyone else in the Division will be hoping to win promotion to Division 2.

Goalkeeper Poll

We had a very interesting result to our Goalkeeper poll, where we asked Waterford hurling supporters who they thought Davy Fitzgerald should entrust with the Number 1 jersey for the year ahead.

Finishing in first place, and the person Waterford supporters would most like to see playing on goal for Waterford in 2011 was Ballygunner’s teenage star, Stephen O’Keeffe. O'Keeffe won 44% of the votes with Clinton Hennessy in second place with 38% and Adrian Power in third place with 17%. O’Keeffe first caught the eye in 2009 in the Waterford minor’s run to the Munster title. He made two saves in particular in the final which left the large Thurles crowd in awe at the youngster’s agility. Since then, O’Keeffe has gone on to make the Ballygunner Number 1 jersey his own, displacing the long-serving Patrick Haran in the process. In Ballygunner’s successful 2009 Championship campaign, O’Keeffe again caught the eye with some superlative stops.

There are several facets to O’Keeffe’s play as a goalkeeper which make him stand out from the rest of his peers. The first, and probably the number one characteristic is his shot stopping. O’Keeffe makes saves that you would not see any other goalkeeper making, bar Brendan Cummins or Damien Fitzhenry. Even when a forward plays the ball low to the corners, O’Keeffe is still well able to get down and scoop the ball back out. His save in the County Under 21 final against Dungarvan last year was simply incredible when not twice but three times in quick succession, he got down to thwart the Dungarvan forwards.

The second aspect is not just his ability under the high ball but his confidence. On more than one occasion this year, I have seen O’Keefe come out of his square and get up above both the full-back and the full-forward to make a clean catch and clear the ball. In this regard, it does help that he is over six feet tall.

Then, when it comes to clearing the ball, O’Keeffe has a monstrous drive on the ball. His puck-out may not have the length of Adrian Power’s but it is a lot more accurate and may prove an asset if Waterford have the likes of Seam us Prendergast, Maurice Shanahan or Richie Foley in the half-forward line. Even from general play and when clearing the ball on the back foot, O’Keeffe is able to clear the ball well downfield and out of harm’s way.

O’Keeffe has also developed into something of a sweeper-keeper, in that he comes out of the goal to lend a hand to defenders. In Ballygunner’s game against Cratloe in the 2009 Munster club championship, Gunners’ full-back Alan Kirwan was being chased back towards his own corner flag with the ball. Instead of watching his full-back deal with the situation, O’Keeffe came out of the goal, Kirwan played the ball to him and O’Keeffe cleared it 80 yards down the field. Danger averted!

It remains to be seen who Fitzgerald will start with in the Goalkeeper’s jersey this year. With Adrian Power currently sidelined with an injury, and Clinton Hennessy having played all the games in the Waterford Crystal Cup, there is every chance that O’Keeffe will get a chance during the National League. If he does get the opportunity, chances are that he will grab it with both opportunities. Davy Fitzgerald will have a tough decision to make when the Limerick game comes around in June but that is a testament to the talent of the three guys he has at his disposal. We may not be well-endowed with talent all over the field but it looks as if the goalkeeping position is safe for years to come.

McGrath back for another year

Ken McGrath

It is great news that Ken McGrath has put his injury and illness nightmare of the last two years behind him and is ready to give it another lash in 2011 to finally bring the Liam McCarthy Cup across the Suir. Along with his Mount Sion team-mate, Tony Browne, McGrath can lend considerable experience to a Waterford panel which is likely to be flooded with members of the highly promising underage teams of the last two seasons.

In his hey-day, McGrath was one of the most elegant and stylish hurlers in the game and was one of the last players to have mastered the ancient art of overhead striking. Whether it was at centre-back or centre-forward, McGrath had the ability to dominate games. Who can ever forget his masterful performance at centre-forward in the 2002 Munster final or the legendary ‘catch’ at the death in the 2004 Munster final.

For the past two years, McGrath has struggled with injury and illness but there were signs in last year’s All-Ireland semi-final against Tipperary that McGrath was approaching something like his best form.

In an article which appeared in today’s Irish Independent, McGrath stated that he was glad that 2010 was over from a hurling point of view and that he would be rejoining the Waterford panel for training next Tuesday night.

The dogs in the street could see that McGrath had lost a lot of weight in 2009 and he looked a shadow of his former self when lining out against Limerick in a best-forgotten Munster championship clash. For the first time, McGrath spoke out about the weight-loss that has blighted him over the last two years, putting it down to a condition called sarcoidosis which affects the lungs. Now for the first time, it all makes sense!

McGrath also went on to explain that although his knees are never going to be 100%, they are currently as good as they have been in a long time and that he is looking forward to getting back into the swing of things.

As well as being excellent news for all Waterford supporters, this must also be music to the ears of Waterford manager, Davy Fitzgerald. There can be no doubt that McGrath will be recognised as one of the best players to ever pull on the famous white jersey and he would be an addition to any squad. Whether he can ever make it back to anything like his best remains to be seen but even an 80% Ken McGrath would be a lot better than some other players at full pelt.

The next decision for Davy Fitz may well be what position to deploy McGrath in. Sentimentalists may well like to see him at centre-back but it would be a massive ask for him to slot straight back in to such a pivotal position after a two year absence from the position and continue on as if he had never been away.

Others may well like to see him at the edge of the square where he could present a real goal-threat with his aerial ability and eye for goal. However, I feel that where Waterford need McGrath most is in his old stomping ground on the 40. Since McGrath went back to centre-back, we haven’t really had a reliable, scoring centre-forward who can also win the ‘dirty’ ball and bring others into the game. Remember, for a time, it was genuinely believed in many quarters that McGrath was developing into one of the finest centre-forwards to grace the ancient game.

There may be a legitimate argument for playing McGrath at full-forward but there is also the danger that he would be out of the game for long periods in there. McGrath is the type of player that needs to be where the action is. That is when he is at his best, out where the hurleys are flying, winning possession, making space and scoring points.

Whether McGrath is able to nail down a regular starting spot on the team remains to be seen but one thing is for certain, he sure won’t go down without a massive fight. It would have been very easy for him to walk away after last year’s All-Ireland semi-final with his head held high after an impressive cameo but that is not the type of individual he is. Hurling and Waterford hurling in particular are things that McGrath holds dear. It is often said that it is not about the size of the man in the fight but the size of the fight in the man that is most important but in McGrath, Waterford have a big man full to the brim of those fighting qualities.

Thoughts On Relegation

Senior Hurling Relegation

While I was having a quick browse through the Waterford GAA discussion page on boards.ie, I noticed some interesting posts about the Waterford senior hurling championship for 2011. What surprised me greatly about some of the responses was there was almost as much debate about who was going to be relegated as there was about who was going to win the championship.

Normally no one even mentions the dreaded R ‘word’ until at least half-way through the championship when they can see what teams are struggling. However, this year for some reason, people are already discussing who is still going to be around this time next year.

The general consensus seems to be that there are only three teams in the equation for the drop to the Intermediate championship and I don’t think anyone would be awful surprised at the names of the clubs mentioned. The two most recent winners of the Intermediate championship, Dungarvan and Roanmore are in the mix as are Stradbally who have narrowly avoided relegation for the last two years.

Many people also seemed to think that Roanmore were the better equipped of the three teams mentioned to have a ‘crack’ at the senior championship and that the relegation issue would probably come down to a clash of the other two teams.

This also surprised me as I would be of the opinion that this youthful Dungarvan side is only going to get better and having survived their first year amongst the big boys, they could well kick on and become a force in the senior championship over the nest few seasons, a la Passage in 2010.

It may well be wishful thinking by the city dwellers that browse boards.ie but to say that Roanmore will go further in the championship than Dungarvan is, in this writer’s opinion a bit of a fallacy. Roanmore came from absolutely nowhere to win the Intermediate championship last season, beating a relatively weak Clonea side in the final. A year previously, Dungarvan had beaten a far superior Clonea side in an absorbing county final and Dungarvan side have probably improved since then.

Although Roanmore have a couple of players such as Stephen Flynn and Stephen Murphy who were chipping in with two or three points a game, they remained largely dependent on Gavin O’Brien for the majority of their scores last season. They will need others to step up to the plate in order to take the pressure off O’Brien (who is still eligible for minor this year) and that is not as easy in the cut and thrust of senior championship. The Gracedieu based outfit do have a strong defence where Waterford panellist Frank McGrath and Ger Quinlan are the star players. They will need these two players to perform out of their skins of they are to keep out the calibre of forward they will meet in a few months time.

When you compare that to the Dungarvan side, you will see that the old boro men have the necessary strength in depth to have an extended run in the championship. They have exceptional young players in Colm Curran, Darren Duggan and Eoin Healy while the likes of Jamie Nagle and Gavin Crotty have been getting game time in the Waterford Crystal Cup for the Waterford senior team.

The last mentioned team that appear to be in the equation are ‘Brick’ Walsh’s Stradbally. Over the years, Stradbally have given a lot to the senior championship and it was a testament to their never-say-die attitude that they managed to avoid the drop for the last two years. Although football is most certainly their priority, they still manage to perform to a high level in the small ball code as well. It must also be noted that they have never availed of the opportunity to rest big players in hurling games, even when they have had big football matches coming up and for that they must be praised.

It would be unfair of me to comment on who I think will slip through the trapdoor to Intermediate in 2011 and I will not do so. Needless to say, it is always sad to see someone relegated but that is part and parcel of the championship and just as someone will go down, someone else will also come up.

Waterford Crystal Cup Quarter-Final

Waterford Crystal Cup Quarter-Final

Waterford 1-12 C.I.T 0-11

Waterford recovered from a shocking first half display to eventually shake off the challenge of the student s of C.I.T to book a semi-final spot against Clare this weekend. On a freezing cold day in Walsh Park, it was a five-star performance from Abbeyside star, Richie Foley which was the catalyst for Waterford’s victory.

It was a strange looking Waterford side which took to the field with Mount Sion’s Christopher Ryan, Tourin’s Darragh Fives and Dungarvan’s Gavin Crotty making their competitive debuts for Davy Fitzgerald’s side. Perhaps the unfamiliarity was a contributing factor to the sluggish start that they made.

Although an early free from Richie Foley cancelled out an excellent opening score from CIT’s Cork panellist Lorcan McLoughlin, the students were by far the better team for the majority of the opening period.

CIT made good progress down the right hand side of their attack where Tony Murphy and Clare native Patrick O’Connor looked dangerous. These two players linked up well on several occasions in the first half, resulting in three points for CIT.

Up at the other end, Waterford were making little or no impression with CIT’s John O’Callaghan and Ross Cashman looking very impressive at full and centre-back respectively.

With Ryan Clifford proving a most reliable free-taker CIT eventually managed to open up a five point lead with 23 minutes on the clock as the scoreboard read 0-6 to 0-1 in the rebel college’s favour.

Waterford did rally somewhat as half-time approached, as a Maurice Shanahan free and a scrappy Seamus Prendergast point narrowed the CIT lead to four points.

However, playing with a stiff breeze, the students attacked again and a Ryan Clifford free and another excellent effort from Murphy gave the visitors a 0-9 to 0-3 lead at the break.

Davy Fitzgerald probably issued a few stern words to his charges at half-time and brought Roanmore’s Frank McGrath on for Christopher Ryan. With the words of their manager echoing in their ears, Waterford injected some urgency to their play for the second half and two points in as many minutes from Gavin Crotty and Foley had the deficit down to four points.

Although Tony Murphy did manage a point for CIT, the pendulum continued to swing in the Decies favour as Richie Foley fired over a free.

Davy Fitzgerald brought on Ballygunner teenager, Pauric Mahony for his debut and he made an instant impression, being brought down for a 21 yard free in the 43^rd minute. Richie Foley stepped up and buried the resultant free in the back of the net narrow the CIT lead to a point.

The students temporarily threatened to weather the storm when Clifford scored another free but further Waterford points from Foley and Brian O’Halloran soon had the home side back on level terms.

With both the initiative and the wind in their favour, Waterford were never going to lose the game from that position and four more frees from the unerring Foley dragged Waterford into this weekend’s semi-final.

Waterford’s aspirations of further progress in this competition did receive a blow with 16 minutes to go, when Maurice Shanahan picked up a straight red card for a wild pull.

Although neither the performance or the game will live long in the memory, this game did give Davy Fitzgerald a chance to blood some of the younger members of his extended panel as along with those already mentioned, Dunhill’s Eamonn Murphy also made an appearance on Sunday. There would only be a handful of players who would be completely happy with their performances but amongst those would be Liam Lawlor, Darragh Fives, Michael Walsh, Richie Foley and Seamus Prendergast.

There was a small degree of Waterford interest in the CIT team as Dungarvan’s Shane Kearney played very well at right-corner back. Although Stephen Daniels was listed on the CIT panel, he did not line out, which may have had something to do with John Mullane’s stag in Newcastle.

Waterford: C Hennessy: J Maher, L Lawlor, C Ryan; D Fives, M Walsh, J Nagle; S Molumphy, B O’Halloran; S Prendergast, R Foley, M Shanahan; G Crotty, S Walsh, S Casey; Subs: F McGrath for C Ryan, P Mahony for G Crotty, E Murphy for S Casey Scorers: R Foley 1-8 (1-7f), M Shanahan 0-1f, S Prendergast 0-1, G Crotty 0-1, B O’Halloran 0-1

C.I.T. T Quaid; S Kearney, J O’Callaghan, J Herlihy; S McDonald, R Cashman, C Leahy; L McLoughlin, S White; P O’Connor, C Casey, M Bowles; T Murphy, M O’Sullivan, R Clifford; Subs: S O’Brien for M Bowles, N Kelly for L  McLoughlin, S Corcoran for C Casey Scorers: R Clifford 0-5f, P O’Connor 0-3, T Murphy 0-2, L McLoughlin 0-1

Referee: T Ryan (Tipperary)

McGrath Cup Semi-Final

McGrath Cup Semi-Final

Clare 1-10 Waterford 0-10

Waterford’s bid for a place in the McGrath Cup final against Kerry came a cropper against a resurgent Clare team in Ardmore last Sunday. In a game that was moved from Brickey Rangers’ Bushy Park, Clare proved too strong for a somewhat experimental Waterford team which included several fringe players.

Clare manager, Micheál McDermott has revamped his squad over the winter and has controversially used the GAA’s parental rule to bring in players that are based in other counties. It was one of those players, David O’Connor who plays for St Brigids in Dublin who came off the bench to score the game’s all important goal in the 43^rd minute.

Having started so badly against Tipperary in the quarter-final, Waterford got off to a better start in this game and Portlaw’s Michael Donnelly put Waterford in front with two early frees which helped to settle the home side’s nerves.

Waterford’s superiority was short-lived, with newcomer Niall Browne looking impressive Clare quickly got back into the game with the Kildare native kicking their opening score.

Despite playing second fiddle around the middle of the field, where Browne was having a huge influence on the game, Waterford did manage to keep their noses in front for the majority of the half, but just about as Alan Clohessy was in fine form for the Banner men.

The hero of the Tipperary game, Kevin Power continued his rich vein of form with another good point and Patrick Hurney forced to step up to the plate due to the absence of his brother Gary, also had his scoring boots on, allowing John Owens men to lead 0-6 to 0-5 at the interval.

Both managers decided to alter things at the break, with the introduction of O’Connor proving to be the game’s key move. It must be noted that the introduction of Mick Ahern at midfield for Waterford did dramatically improve the fortunes of Waterford in this sector.

Clare were soon back on level terms when Clohessy scored his third point of the game and a few minutes later, we had the game’s crucial score. An excellent team movement involving Clohessy and Rory Donnelly resulted in O’Connor firing past Tom Wall.

From then on, Waterford were chasing the game and although substitute, Sean Fleming impressed with two points, Clare, with David Tubridy on the mark kept their noses in front to secure a place in Saturday’s final against Kerry.

This is not a game that will live long in the memory and will be remembered with some disappointment by John Owens. With Kerry, Cork and Limerick all on the other side of the draw, he will have seen this as a major opportunity to reach a major final and test his side against one of the best teams in the country.

However, there were some positives for Owens to take from the game, most notably the performances of Tomás O’Gorman, Shane Briggs, Mick Ahern, Patrick Hurney and Sean Fleming.

Waterford: T Wall; J Hurney, T O'Gorman, K Connery; E Walsh, S Briggs, J Phelan; B Phelan, T Prendergast; M Donnelly (0-3), K Power (0-1), B Wall; JJ Hutchinson, P Hurney (0-3), P Whyte (0-1). Subs: S Fleming (0-2) for Hutchinson; M Ahern for Power; M O'Gorman for Prendergast Scorers: P Hurney 0-3, M Donnelly 0-3, S Fleming 0-2, K Power 0-1, P Whyte 0-1

Clare: Joe Hayes; L Healy, B Duggan, M McMahon; Graham Kelly, Gordon Kelly, John Hayes; C Ryan, C O'Connor; D Daly, D Tubridy, N Browne; R Donnelly, T Ryan, A Clohessy. Subs: G Fannin for Graham Kelly; D O'Connor for C Ryan; D O'Brien for T Ryan; D O'Neill for Browne Scorers: D O’Connor 1-0, D Tubridy 0-3, A Clohessy 0-3, C O’Connor 0-1, N Browne 0-1, R Donnelly 0-1, G Fannin 0-1

Referee: D O'Mahoney (Tipperary)

Senior Hurling Fixtures 2011

Snowcream
Senior Hurling Championship 2011
Group One				Group Two
De La Salle				Ballygunner
Lismore				Passage
Ballyduff Upper				Mt Sion
Fourmilewater				Tallow
Stradbally				Dungarvan
Abbeyside				Roanmore
Round 1 - Week End 23rd / 24th April
Stradbally	V	De La Salle		Dungarvan	V	Ballygunner
Lismore	V	Fourmilewater		Passage	V	Tallow
Ballyduff Upper	V	Abbeyside		Mt Sion	V	Roanmore
Round 2 - Week End 30th April / 1st May
De La Salle	V	Abbeyside		Ballygunner	V	Roanmore
Stradbally	V	Fourmilewater		Dungarvan	V	Tallow
Ballyduff Upper	V	Lismore		Mt Sion	V	Passage
Round 3 - Week End 18th / 19th June
De La Salle	V	Lismore		Ballygunner	V	Passage
Stradbally	V	Abbeyside		Dungarvan	V	Roanmore
Ballyduff Upper	V	Fourmilewater		Mt Sion	V	Tallow
Round 4 - Week End 16th / 17th July
Fourmilewater	V	De La Salle		Tallow	V	Ballygunner
Abbeyside	V	Lismore		Roanmore	V	Passage
Ballyduff Upper	V	Stradbally		Mt Sion	V	Dungarvan
Round 5 - Week End 20th / 21st August
De La Salle	V	Ballyduff Upper		Ballygunner	V	Mt Sion
Lismore	V	Stradbally		Passage	V	Dungarvan
Fourmilewater	V	Abbeyside		Tallow	V	Roanmore
Quarter Finals - 17th September
County Senior Hurling Semi-Finals  -   25th September
County Senior Final  -   Sunday 9th October
Munster Club v Tipperary Champions - Away - 30th October

The Park Hotel
COUNTY SENIOR  HURLING LEAGUE 2011
Group 1				Group 2
De La Salle				Lismore
Passage				Ballygunner
Ballyduff Upper				Mt. Sion
Tallow				Fourmilewater
Stradbally				Dungarvan
Roanmore				Abbeyside
First named team plays at home
Round 1 -Sunday 10th April - 7pm
Tallow	V	De La Salle		Lismore	V	Abbeyside
Passage	V	Roanmore		Fourmilewater	V	Dungarvan
Stradbally	V	Ballyduff Upper		Mt. Sion	V	Ballygunner
Round 2 - Sunday 17th April - 7pm
De La Salle	V	Roanmore		Fourmilewater	V	Lismore
Tallow	V	Stradbally		Ballygunner	V	Abbeyside
Ballyduff Upper	V	Passage		Mt. Sion	V	Dungarvan
Round 3 - Wednesday 25th May - 7.30pm
De La Salle	V	Ballyduff Upper		Lismore	V	Mt. Sion
Passage	V	Stradbally		Dungarvan	V	Ballygunner
Roanmore	V	Tallow		Abbeyside	V	Fourmilewater
Round 4 - Saturday 4th June 7.30pm
De La Salle	V	Passage		Dungarvan	V	Lismore
Stradbally	V	Roanmore		Ballygunner	V	Fourmilewater
Ballyduff Upper	V	Tallow		Abbeyside	V	Mt. Sion
Round 5 - Sunday 3rd July 7pm
Stradbally	V	De La Salle		Lismore	V	Ballygunner
Tallow	V	Passage		Dungarvan	V	Abbeyside
Roanmore	V	Ballyduff Upper		Fourmilewater	V	Mt. Sion
Semi Finals - Saturday 9th July 7.30pm - Neutral Venue
Final - Sunday 31st July - Time & Venue - TBA
Top two teams in each group qualify for semi-finals  - Extra time in semi-finals & Final
In League Section:
-  Two points for a win - one for a draw
-   Teams scoring three or more goals earn a bonus point

Sargent Cup 2011 - Senior Hurling
	One Group
1	Abbeyside
2	Roanmore
3	Ballyduff Upper
4	Ballygunner
5	De La Salle
6	Dungarvan
7	Fourmilewater
8	Lismore
9	Mt. Sion
10	Passage
11	Stradbally
12	Tallow
				First Round
	Four Byes			Four Games				Quarter Finals	Semi Finals
A	Ballygunner	V	E	Ballyduff Upper	V	Dungarvan		(1 )  A  v  E	1  v  2
B	Abbeyside	V	F	Lismore	V	Roanmore		(2)  B  v  F
C	Mount Sion	V	G	Stradbally	V	Fourmilewater		(3)  C  v  G	3  v  4
D	De La Salle	V	H	Passage	V	Tallow		(4)  D  v  H
Fixture Dates  - Extra Time required in all games in all rounds if required
Round One - Four Games -  Wednesday - 18th May - 7.00pm - First Named team plays at home
Quarter Finals - Sunday 22nd May - 2.30pm Team with bye has home advantage
Semi Final - Sunday 29th May
Final - in Cappoquin - Monday 6th June