Fogarty stars as Lorrha ease past Templederry

GAA: Liam Buckley Car Sales North Tipperary Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship Quarter Final

Lorrha 1-31

Templederry Kenyons 1-22

By James Hayden at MacDonagh Park, Nenagh

MATCH DIGEST

Player of the Match: Colm Fogarty (Lorrha)

SCORERS – Lorrha: Colm Fogarty 1-12 (1-0 pen, 0-4 frees); Donnacha O’Meara 0-5; Conor Kennedy 0-4; Eoin McIntyre 0-3; Niall McIntyre, David Sullivan 0-2 each; Brian Hogan (free), Martin Gorman, Patrick Maher 0-1 each.

Templederry Kenyons: Colm Murray 0-5 (4 frees, 1 ’65); Adrian Ryan, Eanna Murray (2 frees, 1 ’65); 0-4 each; Pa O’Leary 0-3; Cathal O’Brien 1-0; Mattie Hogan, Tom Stapleton, Brian Stapleton, Sean Collins, Paudie Ryan 0-1 each.

Lorrha delivered a powerful statement of intent in the North Tipperary Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship as they comfortably dispatched Templederry Kenyons in a one-sided quarter final on Saturday.

With both clubs having dropped from the senior ranks in the past two years and boasting an abundance of experience throughout their respective line-ups, this tie was expected to be one of the standout clashes of the opening round.

Instead, Lorrha produced a dominant display from start to finish, overwhelming Templederry with a combination of intensity, accuracy and clinical finishing.

Templederry arrived without several key figures. Talismanic forward Sean Ryan is currently in the United States, while Padraig Ryan and Gearóid Ryan were also unavailable. Those absences proved costly as the Kenyons struggled to cope with a rampant Lorrha outfit that effectively had the game done and dusted by the interval break.

Lorrha themselves were missing Darragh Guinan, Christopher Fogarty, Tom Duggan, Lee Hogan, and Liam Donoghue, but the return of influential goalkeeper Brian Hogan was a significant boost for Barry Moran's charges. The Tipp keeper’s impact was evident throughout, with his laser-like puck-outs repeatedly launching attacks and placing Templederry under sustained pressure.

While Hogan excelled at one end, it was captain Colm Fogarty who stole the show at the other. The Lorrha captain delivered a masterclass, finishing with 1-12, eight points of which came from play. It was a performance full of leadership, flair, and scoring excellence that may well have piqued the interest of county manager Liam Cahill.

With ideal conditions, the game exploded into life. Both sides traded three points apiece inside the opening three minutes, with Templederry wing-forward Eanna Murray’s sublime long-range strike the pick of the early scores. However, Lorrha quickly found their rhythm; consecutive points from Donnacha O'Meara and Conor Kennedy nudged them into a 0-5 to 0-3 lead after just five minutes.

Templederry almost found a goal in response, but Hogan raced from his line to smother Sean Collins' first-time effort. Murray converted the resulting 65’, but Lorrha immediately hit back in devastating fashion. Martin Gorman was fouled while bearing down on goal by goalkeeper John Kennedy, and Fogarty emphatically dispatched the resulting penalty to the net.

That goal opened the floodgates. With confidence coursing through the team, Lorrha began to dominate every sector of the field. Points from Kennedy, Fogarty, Niall & Eoin McIntyre stretched the advantage to 1-11 to 0-6 by the mid-point of the half.

The Lower Ormond men then turned the screw. They outscored Templederry 0-6 to 0-3 in the second quarter, with Fogarty orchestrating proceedings and producing moments of real quality. One outstanding underhand catch under intense pressure drew widespread admiration from the sizeable attendance.

Templederry struggled to gain any foothold as Lorrha's relentless movement and accuracy continued to yield scores. Fogarty added two frees and another point from play during the closing stages of the half as the men in blue surged into a commanding lead. Murray landed a difficult free on the stroke of half-time, but Templederry still trailed by thirteen points, 1-18 to 0-9, at the interval.

Any hope of a Templederry revival were swiftly extinguished after the restart. Lorrha opened the second half with four unanswered points through David Sullivan, Brian Hogan (free), Martin Gorman and Fogarty, removing any lingering doubt about the eventual outcome.

Adrian Ryan, Templederry's most dangerous attacking outlet, responded with the second of his four points from play, but Hogan was again called upon to produce an excellent save as the Kenyons searched desperately for a goal.

Further scores from Lorrha maintained their momentum before a fine long-range effort from Brian Stapleton provided some respite for Templederry.

Lorrha had an opportunity to put further daylight between the sides when Martin Gorman was brought down by Darragh Carey, but on this occasion goalkeeper John Kennedy came to Templederry's rescue with a fine save from Fogarty's second penalty.

To their credit, Templederry continued to battle despite the widening gap on the scoreboard. Scores from Colm Murray and Adrian Ryan reflected their determination, while a late injury-time goal from substitute Cathal O'Brien added a degree of respectability.

Nevertheless, the outcome was never in doubt. Lorrha's superiority throughout was reflected in a convincing and thoroughly deserved victory that sends them directly into a semi-final brimming with confidence.

More significantly, the manner of this performance has firmly established Lorrha as one of the leading contenders this North & County Championship.

With key players returning, experienced leaders performing at a high level and younger players making valuable contributions, they look capable of mounting serious challenges in both the championships.

Templederry, meanwhile, must quickly regroup ahead of the county championship where they face a challenging group containing Moneygall, Burgess and Lorrha once again.

If they are to make a meaningful impact in the race for the Séamus Ó Riain Cup, they will need a full complement of players available and a significant improvement on this display.

TEAMS - Lorrha: Brian Hogan (8); Denis O’Meara (8), Ciaran Hough (7), Oisin Guinan (7); Killian Fitzgerald (8), Michael Dolan (7), James Guinan (7); Niall McIntyre (7), David Sullivan (7); Martin Gorman (7), Colm Fogarty (Capt 9), Patrick Maher (8); Donnacha O’Meara (8), Eoin McIntyre (7), Conor Kennedy (8).

Sub: Tom Duggan (NR) for Haugh (60+1).

Templederry Kenyons: John Kennedy (7); Brian Rohan (6), Tom Stapleton (7), Mikey Ryan (6); Darragh Carey (7), Brian Stapleton (7), Liam McCutcheon (6); Pio Kennedy (Capt 7), Colm Murray (7); Eanna Murray (7), Pa O’Leary (7), Sean Collins (7); Michael Collins (6), Mattie Hogan (7), Adrian Ryan (7).

Subs: Paudie Ryan (7) for McCutcheon (52); Cathal O’Brien (7) for Hogan (53).

Referee: Ger Fitzpatrick (Roscrea).