Burgess goal touch crucial in North Final win

GAA: North Tipperary Under 21 ‘B’ Hurling Final

Burgess 4-9

Lorrha Rovers 2-10

Report: Shane Brophy in Roscrea

MATCH DIGEST

Player of the Match: Micheal Ryan (Burgess)

SCORERS – Burgess: Eoin Grace 2-7 (0-7 frees); Micheal Ryan 2-1 (1-0 free); Tom Gibson 0-1.

Lorrha Rovers: Colm Fogarty 2-10 (1-10 frees)

Christmas came a day late for Burgess as they claimed the North Under 21 ‘B’ Hurling title with final victory over Lorrha Rovers on St Stephen’s Day.

Burgess laid the platform for the victory in the first half when they led 3-4 to 0-8, having played into a fresh icy breeze. Their ability to get goals was the difference as their best players Eoin Grace and Micheal Ryan proved to be a thorn in the Lorrha Rovers defence right through.

Both players contributed all bar one of the Burgess total of 4-9, with captain Tom Gibson adding the other late on to help put the finishing touch to a deserved win where their energy and physicality were too much for a Lorrha Rovers side who didn’t bring that same edge.

Lorrha Rovers were also reliant on Colm Fogarty for scores with the former Tipp minor and under 21 player, contributing all of their 2-10 total, with all bar the final goal coming from placed balls.

The combo of Lorrha, Shannon Rovers and Knockshegowna, never got into a flow, or were never allowed to by Burgess who were hungrier onto the breaking ball in the difficult conditions, although the pitch in Roscrea held up well despite all the rain over the previous 48 hours.

At this time of the year when scoring is a little harder, getting in front early is always a benefit and Burgess got that with an early 1-1 blast inside three minutes, a free from Eoin Grace before he turned in a miss-hit dipping Micheal Ryan shot to the net to give them the perfect start.

Colm Fogarty got Lorrha Rovers off the mark a minute later and would add two more by the tenth minute. Grace and Michael Ryan were also on target for Burgess, the latter performing superbly well for a player playing with two broken fingers and his enforced move to full forward because of the injury might well have worked in his sides favour as he gave them a physical presence and excellent ball-winner, which yielded two frees which Eoin Grace converted for a 1-4 to 0-3 lead.

Midway through the half, Lorrha Rovers got on top but the struggled to get quality ball to their inside forward line, but they were winning frees further out with Colm Fogarty accurate thrice more to cut the margin to one on 24 minutes.

Burgess made the key burst in a three-minute spell between the 25th & 27th minutes with goals from Eoin Grace, his shot having too much power for keeper Rory Duffy, with Micheal Ryan getting the second, a first time pull in the square which flew high into the net. Colm Fogarty added two more frees but with a 3-4 to 0-8 half time deficit, they had it all to do in the second half.

Those odds were extended in the second minute of the second half when a Micheal Ryan long range free went straight into the net and now with an eight-point advantage, it was Burgess’ game to lose.

Eoin Grace would add two further frees as Lorrha Rovers struggled at the other end with Colm Fogarty’s radar malfunctioning for a period before he managed their first point of the half on 52 minutes.

Both sides were reduced to fourteen men two minutes later when Burgess’ Micheal Ryan and Lorrha Rovers James Guinan were dismissed with straight red cards after an altercation following a foul on Eoin Grace which led to his sixth free of the game.

Lorrha Rovers kept plugging away and Colm Fogarty bought his points tally to ten before he blasted a free to the net on the hour mark to give his side some hope, but still six adrift.

The sending off of Donnacha O’Meara for a second bookable offence in added time didn’t help their hopes of a remarkable comeback as Tom Gibson eased any Burgess nerves with an inspirational captains score.

Colm Fogarty responded with a cracking goal in the sixth minute of added time, a first time pull from fourteen yards, after being played in by Cathal Hogan, one of the few times the Lorrha Rovers forwards managed to link up.

However, Burgess would have the final say as Eoin Grace brought his tally to 2-7, with a free with the last puck of the game to win the North Under 21 ‘B’ Hurling title for a fourth time.

TEAMS – Burgess: Oisin Tucker (6); Daire Hogan (7), Jack O’Keeffe (7), Aidan O’Dwyer (7); Cian Sharkey (6), Tom Gibson (7) Liam Grace (7); Kieran Grace (6), Sean Dunne (6); Cormac McAuliffe (6), Aaron Sharkey (6), Conor Cooney (7); Eoin Grace (8), Micheal Ryan (8), Joe Cooney (6).

Subs: Kiefer O’Brien (6) for McAuliffe (41); Luke Conneally (6) for A Sharkey (45); Jack O’Brien (NR) for C Cooney (60+7); Dylan Hough (NR) for J Cooney (60+7).

Lorrha Rovers: Rory Duffy (L 6); Jack Ryan (L 7), James Guinan (L 6), Kevin Cahalan (L 6); Oisin McMahon (SR 7), Darragh Guinan (L 8), Tom Duggan (L 6); Oisin Guinan (L 6), Marcus Esmonde (SR 7); Cathal Hogan (SR 7), Michael Tierney (SR 6), Donnacha O’Meara (L 6); Martin Gorman (L 6), Michael Egan (K 6), Colm Fogarty (L 8).

Subs: Adam Stanley (K 6) for O Guinan (39 inj); Brandon Kennedy (L 6) for Egan (58 inj); Fergus O’Donoghue (L NR) for Esmonde (60+5 inj).

Referee: Pat Murray (Moneygall).