Mid & North battles in senior semi-finals

By Shane Brophy

Loughmore/Castleiney v Thurles Sarsfields in FBD Semple Stadium on Saturday 30th September at 7.15pm

A repeat of the classic 2021 final which went to a replay which completed Loughmore/Castleiney’s remarkable senior hurling and football double.

It also proved to be Padraic Maher’s last competitive game, been forced to retire not long after through, but his passion for hurling and Sarsfields has taken him immediately into the managerial ranks and he has started well with a Mid title and is now on the cups of guiding his side back to a county final.

It has been a long campaign for Sarsfields, starting in the Mid with wins over JK Brackens, Holycross/Ballycahill and Upperchurch/Drombane to win the divisional crown, but the heavy loss to Kiladangan in the first round of the county was a shock to the system. They just got over Clonoulty/Rossmore but since then have motoring with impressive wins over Borris-Ileigh, Nenagh Eire Og, and Drom & Inch.

However, they know Loughmore/Castleiney are the ultimate test in skill and mentality, and if they were to pass this test, they know they can go all the way. This Thurles Sarsfields side carries more of a physical edge than recent years, a nod to Maher’s style as a player, and coupled with their hurling, ability, it makes them a very potent force.

Loughmore/Castleiney come in with an unblemished record in the county stage with wins over Templederry Kenyons, Holycross/Ballycahill, Upperchurch/Drombane, and Roscrea, but Sarsfields are a big step up in quality.

What Loughmore don’t lack is the scoring power to go with their near neighbours with John McGrath on top form while Philip O’Connell has added massively this year. The return to fitness of Ed & Ciaran Connolly is timely while they should have Noel McGrath available after missing the senior football quarter final defeat to Moyle Rovers with a hip injury which hampered him against Roscrea.

Loughmore cannot afford to start this game passively as they did in the quarter final, and they are unlikely to up against their great rivals. They need their defence to play out of their skins as the loss of Joey Hennessy and John Meagher at full and centre-back respectively has left them porous, and with the quality of the Sarsfields, they cannot afford to be that way again.

However, that vulnerability could be the decisive factor in a game that will have live coverage on RTE2 this Saturday evening, and with national eyes on it, hopefully it will be another classic. Verdict: Thurles Sarsfields

Kiladangan v Toomevara in FBD Semple Stadium on Sunday 1st October @ 3.30pm

The road to Semple Stadium for a county semi-final is a well-trodden one for Kiladangan as they face into their fifth consecutive game at this stage whereas Toomevara’s last appearance was the last time Kiladangan weren’t involved, 2018.

Kiladangan certainly come in battle-hardened after a North Championship run with games against Roscrea, Borris-Ileigh, and a final loss to Nenagh Eire Og, before heading into the group of death there they defeated Thurles Sarsfields and Clonoulty/Rossmore, with their only blemish being the first half display against Borris-Ileigh which led to that narrow defeat. They were pushed all the way in the quarter final by Holycross/Ballycahill and manager John O’Meara was pleased with the mentality the players showed in the closing minutes to come from behind and get the win.

“We knew coming into it, irrelevant of who people might think are the favourites, it was a county championship quarter final, and we knew well there would be little in it,” O’Meara said.

“Our sole objective was to ensure we would be back training on the following Tuesday, and thankfully we saw it out in the end. Holycross made us fight every inch of the way. It wasn’t until the 59th minute that we took the lead. We showed great character and composure coming down the home-straight when the game needed to be won.”

Both James Quigley and Willie Connors, who have been hampered by injury in the campaign, came through the second half of that game and should be in line for starts having trained well over the last two weeks as Kiladangan get close to having a full squad at their disposal.

However, injury has hit Toomevara at the wrong time with half-back Jake Ryan in a race against time to be fit having limped off with an ankle injury in the first half of the quarter final win over Clonoulty/Rossmore. An ankle ailment also ruled out Sean Flaherty from that game and they are hopeful he might be available to add to their young but potent bench in which Adam Hall and Kenny Ryan were the match winners in the quarter final.

For manager Ken Dunne, the semi-final, while welcome to be in, wasn’t a target at the start of the year.

“It’s a building process with this outfit,” said the Toomevara great.

“At the start of the year we didn’t talk about county semi-finals or even quarter finals, we just wanted to get the group back in and get them fit, and working to a way we know they can be competitive.

“I felt over the last couple of years we haven’t been doing that, so it has been about building blocks and getting back to basics with this group and it has paid off so far, but we are very conscious we are not where we want to be yet, but we are in a good place.”

Since their North quarter final defeat to Nenagh Eire Og, Toomevara have gone unbeaten with group wins over Kilruane MacDonaghs, Moycarkey/Borris, and Roscrea before the extra time quarter final win over Clonoulty/Rossmore, but it was the first round win over Kilruane that Dunne felt was the most important.

“There was a bit of pressure there against Kilruane, but I don’t know for what reason but that week I felt fairly comfortable going into it as I knew we had the work done and knew we would get a performance. We hurled really well and while Kilruane might not have brought their best on the day but in years gone by we might not have closed out that game as well as we did. It was a nice start to get off to.”

Kiladangan have had the Indian sign over Toomevara over the last decade at under 21 and senior level, including this years Division 1 League final at Semple Stadium which they won by four points, but Toomevara have developed a lot since then. However, Kiladangan’s experience at this stage could the difference in determining the outcome. Verdict: Kiladangan