Lacklustre Tipp succumb to Clare in minor championship
Electric Ireland Munster Minor Hurling Championship Round 3
Clare 2-13
Tipperary 1-9
Report: James Hayden in Ennis
MATCH DIGEST
Man of the Match: Tony Butler (Clare)
SCORERS – Clare: Keith Smyth 1-2 (1-0 pen, 0-2 frees); Diarmuid Cahill 1-1; Shane Meehan 0-3 (1 free); Conner Hegarty, Tony Butler, Sean Ronan 0-2 each; Cian Galvin 0-1 free.
Tipperary: Jack Leamy 0-3 (1 65’); Kyle Shelly 1-0; John Campion, Colm Fogarty 0-2 each; Paddy Creedon, Luke Seacy 0-1 each.
A distinctly lacklustre Tipperary minor side succumbed to a more determined Clare challenge in a disappointing Munster Hurling Campionship clash on Sunday afternoon.
Bouyed by their victory over Waterford in Semple Stadium a fortnight previous, there was an expectation on Tipp’s minors to perform, but those expectations failed to materialise as they slipped to a second disappointing defeat of the campaign.
In an error-strewn clash, with both sides guilty of poor shot selection and choosing the wrong options on many an occasion, it was the Banner County who forged a four-point interval lead, thanks mainly to a 24th minute Diarmaid Cahill goal, after the Corofin forward had slipped the shackles of Tipp full-back Conor O’Dwyer, before linking up well with Oisin O’Donnell and neatly finishing past the advancing Shane Gleeson in the Tipperary goal.
On a blustery day at Cusack Park, Clare won the toss and elected to play into the teeth of a stiff breeze blowing into the Tulla Road end and deployed a sweeper for the opening half with captain Cian Galvin slipping into the pocket behind his half-back line, a move replicated by John Campion on the Tipp side.
Tipperary minor hurling manager Paul Collins cut a disappointed figure following his side’s defeat to Clare in Ennis on Sunday.
The defeat leaves Tipp with just two points from three games and effectively ended their aspirations of putting back to back Munster titles together following a hugely below-par performance at a wind-whipped Cusack Park.
“The hardest part of it was our performance. It was well below the levels of what we expected of each other”, Collins admitted.
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