Clough and Dolla to host North Senior Hurling semi-finals
By Shane Brophy
North Tipperary Senior Hurling Championship Semi-Finals preview
Saturday 15th July
Templederry Kenyons v Nenagh Eire Og in Cloughjordan @ 5.00pm
The sides meet in the semi-final for the second year in a row at the same venue. Templederry will be hoping to be more competitive having suffered a 4-18 to 0-13 defeat twelve months ago and could be disadvantaged by coming in cold for this clash having had the bye to the semi-finals.
Nenagh, on the other hand, are battle-hardened after their 0-24 to 0-21 win over Toomevara, and you could see them gelling a little more as the game went on.
Templederry will have to try and restrict the influence of Jake Morris who scored 2-2 in the corresponding game last year and started this year’s championship with seven points from play on Sunday. Templederry will look to county man Sean Ryan to lead the charge in attack, but they also have a very potent attack if they can click with Gearoid Ryan, Adrian Ryan and Eanna Murray. Verdict: Nenagh Eire Og
Sunday 16th July
Borris-Ileigh v Kiladangan in Dolla @ 4.00pm
A really intriguing renewal of Borris-Ileigh v Kiladangan is in prospect for a number of reasons. It is the first time the sides will have met in the championship since the 2019 county final where Borris-Ileigh upset Kiladangan and went onto reach the All-Ireland Final.
Looking forward, the sides will also meet in the group stage of the county championship and in a group that also contains Thurles Sarsfields and Clonoulty/Rossmore, finishing in the top two spots is by no means a formality so winning a North title and having a backdoor to the knockout stage of the championship is a ticket well-worth having.
Borris-Ileigh performed the better of the two sides in their respective quarter finals and look hungrier and sharper than they were at this stage last year. Kiladangan will have to find more and be more accurate than they were against Roscrea, but they will be expected to rise their levels. Verdict: Borris-Ileigh