Tipp fail to match Carlow’s hunger and energy
By Liam Hogan
They say lightening never strikes the same place twice!
Ask any Tipperary supporter and they will tell it can strike three times as last Sunday’s first round Tailteann Cup defeat to Carlow will tell you.
Just like what happened in 2018 when Jake Morris hit the upright and Clare turned defeat into victory with a goal straight away, while more recently Noel McGrath’s well struck penalty against Cork who then turned defence into attack, and they scored a goal. A six-point turnaround!
It happened again last Sunday in Carlow. Tipp struggled through the first half against a very wasteful Carlow side but yet managed to hold a 1-5 to 0-4 lead as the game approached the half hour mark.
The busy Conal Kennedy won possession out around the Carlow forty-five and the Commercials clubman burst through a gap in the Carlow defence and from the twenty-metre line, struck a powerful shot that came back off the upright. Carlow recovered and turned defence into attack where Jamie Clarke’s high delivery broke kindly for midfielder Niall Hickey who took advantage of a breaking ball close to goal and sent a low shot past Michael O’Reilly.
One point separated the sides as they made their way to the dressing rooms for the half time break, but it could have been more for Tipperary.
Two goals were score in a half, but chances were few and far between. Carlow full back Mikey Bambrick should have scored a goal in the sixth minute when he kicked the ball wide from close range. It was easier to score the goal than miss.
Carlow were the busier side in that period but had kicked five wides in the opening ten minutes before Martin Kehoe had the opening score, when he goaled from close range. Teddy Doyle might have scored a second in the eighteenth minute but was denied by the twin force of Liam Roberts and Seanie Bambrick.
By half time Carlow had kicked nine wides to four for Tipp and once the second half began, they resumed what they were doing in the early stages of the first half- defending in numbers and breaking from the back with play going through hands of half back Seanie Bambrick and Conor Boyle.
Midfielders Niall Hickey and Jamie Clarke continued the trend. Centre forward Eoghan Ruth certainly didn’t lack confidence. Earlier in the first half he kicked two long range having kicked two wides. In the second half he contributed to much of the play in the second half from the midfield area.
Carlow began the second half looking more confident and it took them six minutes to draw level at 1-6 each before a busy Colm Hulton gave them the lead in the 44th minute, a lead they never relinquished from there to the final whistle.
Tipp played very much on the back foot in the second half, and they looked sluggish as the game wore on.
Carlow meanwhile had players on the move all the time as the two corner forwards Colm Hulton and Conor Crowley moved into the right spaces to pick up valuable points. Midfielder Jamie Clarke also scored as did half backs Seanie Bambrick and Conor Doyle as the Barrow men scored eight points from play in the second half.
The introduction of Liam McGrath in the 52nd minute injected some life intp the Tipp attack as his two quick points in added time cut the deficit from to two, 1-11 to 1-9.
The Carlow kickout by goalkeeper Ciaran Cunningham was long for a change and Jamie Clarke careered forward before creating a one – two with Conor Crowley before Clarke scored.
Conor Sweeney never had it so difficult as the Carlow defence kept a close eye on the Tipp captain and his free left two between the teams and seconds later, his Munster semi-final repeat from the side-line drifted wide. Too little too late.
Sunday’s clash with Carlow was the first championship clash since their round 2 qualifier meeting in 2003 which saw Tipperary win 1-14 to 0-13 at Semple Stadium and on hearing the final whistle the sizeable home following greeted this victory with unbridled joy as did the players on the field where there was much hugging and back slapping, as they progress to a round 2 home clash with Westmeath, one win away from Croke Park.
Afterall, they faced a Tipp side, that three months previous, inflicted an eleven-point routing in a round six division 4 league clash. Moreover, Carlow conceded five goals to Louth in the Leinster championship which hardly helped their confidence.
Then again Tipperary’s championship run has not been good either. They scraped over Waterford in the Munster championship quarter final but had to succumb to Limerick in the semi-final. In addition, Tipperary lost two key men to injury in Bill Maher and Robbie Kiely, two leaders in the Tipp fifteen. Tipp needed a full fifteen at their best and needed more than what they got from Shane O’Connell, Jimmy Feehan, Kevin Fahey, Sean O’Connell, Conal Kennedy, Teddy Doyle, and Jack Kennedy who didn’t let the side down.