Nenagh overcome early Newport scare

GAA: Hibernian Inn North Tipperary Senior Hurling Championship Round 1

Nenagh Éire Óg 1-21

Newport 2-9

Report: Thomas Conway in Portroe

MATCH DIGEST

Man of the Match: Conor Ryan (Nenagh Éire-Óg)

SCORERS – Nenagh Eire Og: Mikey Heffernan 0-6 (3 frees, 1 '65), Jake Morris 0-5; Tommy Heffernan 0-4; James Mackey 1-1; Paddy Murphy 0-3; Killian Gleeson, Daire Quinn 0-1 each.

Newport: Kealan Floyd 0-6 frees; Colin Floyd 1-2; Daniel Carew 1-0; Peter O’Sullivan 0-1.

A second-half onslaught of skilled point-scoring secured Nenagh Éire Óg’s place in the last eight of the North Senior Hurling Championship, ensuring Brian Horgan’s side remain on course to claim a tenth divisional title.

That course might have been disrupted had Newport managed to sustain a fearless first-half performance which saw them land two early goals, but Nenagh’s experience eventually came to show, and the 2018 county finalists put on an exhibition after half-time, out-scoring their opponents by 0-11 to 0-3.

Yet it had all looked so promising for Newport in the early stages, as Tom Moylan’s side emerged from a torrential deluge of rain with a goal already to their name, striking in the fourth minute to jump-start their challenge. As well as the rain, the points were also flowing, Nenagh’s share coming predominantly from Mikey Heffernan frees, as some lacklustre efforts from play trailed wide.

Jake Morris, the Heffernan’s, and Paddy Murphy would all find their groove come the second half, but that opening quarter did little to instil confidence in a stellar Nenagh forward line. Newport, on the other hand, were firing off all cylinders, Kealan Floyd accurate from frees, while his cousin Colin hovered dangerously around the goal area, constantly marshalled by Barry Heffernan.

Murphy found the target from just before the water-break, leaving Newport with a narrow advantage, 1-3 to 0-5, but immediately upon the restart, they would extend that advantage to four. Daniel Carew’s mercurial pace was already causing problems down the right wing, and in the eighteenth minute, he lit up the Newport attack with another quicksilver run, sending the ball across the large square, where it eventually rolled out to the awaiting Colin Floyd. No time to take the ball in hand, Floyd used his instincts and pulled off lightning-fast lift-and-strike movement, rocketing the ball past Mark Tuite and ramping up his side’s momentum.

Nenagh responded with a point from Tommy Heffernan, before introducing Pearse Morris to shake up the action. Seconds later, James Mackey scooped up a breaking-ball around 35 metres out on the stand side. He may well have miscued his shot, but the midfielder is an intelligent hurler with excellent vision, so it’s more than likely that he noticed Newport keeper Paul Hogan straying dangerously beyond the goal-line. Whatever the case, Mackey let fly, sending the ball over Hogan’s head before watching it dip into the net. 2-4 to 1-6 - parity not quite restored, but momentum surely with Nenagh.

A flurry of late first-half points showcased some of the best of each forward line - Murphy and Mikey Heffernan adding scores for Nenagh, before Newport’s Colin Floyd ripped one over from the tightest of angles. Moments later, Tommy Heffernan struck another sweetly at the far end, before his brother ended the first-half action with a free, Nenagh now leading by the slimmest of margins, 1-10 to 2-6.

An unusually quiet first-half from Tipperary ace Jake Morris was partly due to the stringent marking of the Newport full-back line, all of whom were excellent in the opening thirty, negating any potential goal threat which Nenagh had posed. It was obvious however, within seconds of the restart, that Morris was intent on making his mark. He did so with familiar style, zipping the ball over moments after the throw-in, adding a second from close-range, before clipping over another from the stand-side, and then positioning himself on the opposite wing to collect a superb cross-field pass from Conor Ryan. He cut inside and fired his fourth of the second half.

It was around eight minutes of utter dominance from the 22-year-old, and the show would have been complete if only he had managed to convert the penalty which he himself earned in the 38th minute. However, the effort was poorly struck, hammered straight into the sodden turf, leaving Paul Hogan to pull off a tricky but unspectacular save, and giving Newport something to latch onto.

Unfortunately for Newport, they just couldn’t translate that psychological boost into scores. It wasn’t entirely a question of lacking ammunition in their forward-line, or failing to match Nenagh’s workrate, but their opponents were simply too polished and powerful for Newport to mount any kind of revival.

A sprinkling of late points pushed the winning side beyond reach - Killian Gleeson marking his introduction with a score, Paddy Murphy slotting his third, and Daire Quinn floating up the field to land another.

Conor Ryan and his colleagues in the half-back line sprayed balls in every direction, while the forwards suddenly began to look smooth and untouchable. ‘Aristocratic’ was the most suitable word to describe Nenagh at that stage, but if they want to secure a reputation as this year's aristocrats of North Tipp hurling, they'll have to prove their worth against some formidable opponents.

TEAMS - Nenagh Éire Óg: Mark Tuite (7), Paul McLoughlin (7), Barry Heffernan (8), Adam Grattan (7), Daire Quinn (7), Conor Ryan (9), Adam Healy (7), James Mackey (8), Conor Hennessy (7), Paddy Murphy (7), Jamie Cottrell (7), Jake Morris (8), Tommy Heffernan (8), Anthony Walsh (7), Mikey Heffernan (8).

Subs: Pearse Morris (7) for Cottrell (24 inj); Killian Gleeson (7) for Hennessy (49); Ben West (NR) for Walsh (60+1).

Newport: Paul Hogan (7), Jordan Young (7), Odhran Floyd (8), Rob Houlihan (7), Cian Flanagan (7), Conor Floyd (7), Andrew Hickey (6), Peter O’Sullivan (7), Thomas Floyd (7), Darragh Carroll (7), Seán O’Brien (6), Daniel Carew (7), Kealan Floyd (7), Colin Floyd (7), Pa Ryan (6).

Subs: Aaron O’Neill (6) for O’Brien (47); Aidan Moloney (6) for Ryan (53); Jack Delahunty (NR) for T Floyd (60+1).

Referee: Alan Tierney (Shannon Rovers).