6/9/2024 - Junior B Hurling - Sean Ogs vs Worcester Fenians

By Neil McEnaney

Full Time Score: 

Sean Ogs 1-11 

Worcester 2-3

A miserable rainy day didn’t get in the way of a great game of hurling between Sean Ogs and Worcester today. The last time these sides met, Worcester ran out comfortable winners. Today it went the other way, with Sean Ogs having a full squad of men and playing some great hurling. Worcester were down a few men, most notably Jimmy Rigney, who’s wife recently had a baby girl! Congrats, but in the words of Roy Keane: ‘It wasn’t him who had the baby!’

 

Sean Ogs started the strongest and quickly raced to a 6 point lead with Brian Cahill taking a couple of nice points. Worcester had a number of goal chances that they just couldn’t get over the line. It was a first half played in tough conditions that led to both defences being on top. Simon Sinnot led the way for the Worcester defence while Michael Scully did likewise for Sean Ogs.

 

Worcester got into their scoring rhythm before half time, putting 3 points on the board to shorten the gap.

 

Half Time Score: Sean Ogs 0-7 Worcester 0-3

 

The second half started with a great point from a free taken by Daithi Howard from a tight angle on the right. A long ball into the Sean Ogs goal mouth found its way to Sean Sullivan who made no mistake from close range burying the goal. Sean Ogs responded immediately with a well taken free from Howard before they were denied a goal of their own by the post!

 

A long ball pucked in by Sinnot found it’s way to the full forward Tom Laul who scored a great goal from close range! All square! Sean Ogs 0-9 Worcester 2-3.

 

With 15minutes to go, Sean Ogs couldn’t have had a better response. A long ball pucked into Daithi Howard who buried it into the bottom corner of the net. Sean Ogs then went on to add a few insurance points from Brian Cahill and Declan Shea to see out the game.

 

Full Time Score: Sean Ogs 1-11 Worcester 2-3

 

Man of the Match: Brian Cahill

 

Teams:

Sean Ogs: Colm O’Malley, Aidan Flanagan, John O’Riordan, Jack Kelly, John Longworth, Michael Scully, Brian Cahill, Niall O’Malley, Sean McCarthy, Declan Shea, Liam O’Driscoll, Daithi Howard, Ciaran Flanagan

Subs: Conor Kelly, Robert Murphy, Conor Smith, Eoin Faherty, Brendan Smith

 

Worcester: Dan Smith, Dan Williams, Mark Leporte, Zach Podedworng, Simon Sinnot, Jack Green, Patrick Heffernan, Patrick Sullivan, Sean Sullivan, Sean O’Shaughnessy, Joe Wall, Tom Laul, Brendan Reed

Subs: Dylan Walsh, Brendan Hehir, Pat Murray, Matt Dufrane

Dublin Hurling Gains a Valuable Asset - Ryan O'Dwyer

Birthplace of the GAA. Winners of the first All-Ireland hurling championship. John Doyle and Nicky English. Semple Stadium. 26 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championships. It may not take as long to travel from Dublin to Tipp these days, but in terms of hurling tradition the distance is vast. One of the newest additions to the Dublin Senior Hurling squad comes from the rich hurling tradition of Tipperary. Along with Conal Keaney, Ryan O’Dwyer has joined the Dublin hurling set up and given a boost to the 2011 prospects of the metropolitan’s hurlers. A native of Cashel, O’Dwyer has quite a hurling resume despite his relatively young age of 24 years. O’Dwyer made his senior county debut with the Tipperary hurlers in 2007, the year of the trilogy with Limerick, and has won National League title and Munster titles. A supremely talented athlete, O’Dwyer has also represented his native county in football at senior level.

Ryan O'Dwyer feels big things are not far away for the Dubs.

How does a lad from Cashel end up donning the sky blue of the Dubs? Having moved to Dublin after accepting a teaching post at St. MacDara’s in Templeogue, O’Dwyer joined Kilmacud Croke’s and was approached by Anthony Daly about joining the Dublin hurling squad. O’Dwyer was given an offer he could not resist. “I jumped at the opportunity” said O’Dwyer. “It was a no-brainer really. Dublin are a team on the way up, a top tier team. If you take Kilkenny and Tipperary out of it, Dublin are definitely third or fourth in line in the country. On any given day Dublin would give either of those two a run for their money.”

Hurling tradition runs deep in Tipperary, and while there has been a tremendous focus on the small ball game in Dublin over the last decade, there is still a lot of catching up to do in the history department. O’Dwyer feels that the breakthrough to the beginnings of establishing a hurling tradition in Dublin is very close, and that the obstacles are more mental than anything else. “Skill-wise there is absolutely no difference between Dublin and Tipperary,” said Ryan emphatically. “Tipp expect to win because their history dictates it. Dublin does not have that history. Dublin might take the field and think that there is no chance of beating the other lads. If Dublin can get out of that mindset we can win. Dublin have to learn not to fear other teams.”

Despite being a little nervy at the entering the Dublin setup, O’Dwyer has been extremely happy with the transition. “The change has been brilliant. I’m enjoying it. I was nervous going down to training the first night, not sure if lads would be thinking who does this guy think he is. Everybody involved has made me feel welcome.” said O’Dwyer. The Tipp native continued, “Lads went out of their way to talk to me and make me feel included. That made it so easy.”

Dublin have had a good start to the league with a draw against Munster Champions, Waterford, and a recent win against the All-Ireland Champions, O’Dwyer’s native Tipperary. “It’s not very often you get to play the All-Ireland champions in Croke Park” enthused O’Dwyer. “It was an exciting experience. National League, Croke Park under lights, if you couldn’t get up for that you can’t get up for anything.” O’Dwyer was coming back from a shoulder injury and did not start the game but came on late in the first half. “I got back from the injury sooner than I expected. Usually that type of injury takes 6 weeks to recover from, but I was back in 3. I worked harder on that than on anything in my life. My main aim was to get on the pitch, and not just because it was Tipp. It would have made no difference if it was Galway or anybody else. It was a double header with the footballers and there was a lot of build up to it. I had to be out there.”

Dublin have several one-off notches in their belt over recent years, and at minor and under-21 level have experienced success. However, a major success such as a National League title, Leinster championship, or All-Ireland remains elusive at senior level. O’Dwyer feels that the breakthrough is not far away, and while in the near term expectations have to be realistic, winning has to be the goal. “Somebody told me that Dublin’s main aim should be to stay in Division 1 of the league.” O’Dwyer discounts that assessment. “You play to be the best, our goal should be to win Division 1 and win a Leinster championship with it. I believe Dublin will win Leinster sooner rather than later.”

O'Dwyer in full flight for the Wexford Hurling Club vs Tipp in Boston.

O’Dwyer spent the last two summers in Boston playing with the Wexford Hurling Club and the Galway Football Club. O’Dwyer won a North American Championship with Wexford in 2009, but that year had lost the Boston final in controversial circumstances. O’Dwyer did not start that Boston final as he had injured his leg, but came on in the second half and Wexford almost won it, however, a last second goal was disallowed. The disappointment still sticks with O’Dwyer, but he could not say enough about his time in Boston. O’Dwyer clearly feels that he has a home away from home in the States. “I can’t speak highly enough of the lads out there. I had the time of my life,” gushed O’Dwyer. “I made friends for life, any time I go to America I know I’ll have a place to stay in Boston. The lads there would do anything for you. It means so much to them. “ O’Dwyer was committed to the cause of the clubs he played with, and was also impressed with the standard of play. “The hurling out there is as strong as anything I’ve played. The Wexford team I was on would be as good as a top 2 or 3 team in Tipp. You’ll have the best summer of your life out there, but you’ll hurl serious,” he added.


Dublin senior hurling has gained a valuable asset in O’Dwyer. The man comes to play and there is no doubting his enthusiasm. Talking does not seem to be a problem for him, but he can also do his talking on the field. If making the collective push for the big breakthrough in Dublin hurling is the sum of many small individual pushes, there no doubt that O’Dwyer will account for a bit more than a nudge.

By Rory O'Donnell

Junior Hurling Final: Croft to the Rescue for Tom's - Again.

Tipperary 1-11 Fr. Tom Burke’s 1-14


Fr. Tom Burke’s junior hurlers prevailed over Tipperary in an exciting encounter that went down to the wire. For the second week in a row, a last minute goal put Tom’s in the lead with time ticking off the clock, and for the second week in a row it was substitute Robbie Croft who got the credit for the game winning score. The sides were level at half time, and it looked like a Kevin O’Donnell goal with less then 10 minutes to go would be the deciding score, but it was Tom’s with the final say in the end.

Mike Markham finds his way out of defence blocked.

The teams were level on nine points each at the end of the first 30 minutes. Tipp had the better of the early exchanges but Tom’s came into the game as the half wore on. Corner forward, Mark Alward was the primary marksman for Tipp. Alward accounted for seven of Tipperary’s first half points, both from frees and from play. Tom’s had a hard time containing the Tipp dangerman. Tom’s lost David Hession to injury early in the game, a tough loss given Hession’s role in taking long frees. Hession had accounted for Tom’s first two points from frees The westerners coped however, and John Cuddy ably took over the role of free taker. Along with Cuddy, Aidan Staunton and Mark Waldren chipped in to keep the scoreboard ticking over for Tom’s.

Seamie Leahy on a run for Tipp.

Tom’s suffered another blow early in the second half as Staunton had to leave the field of play having shipped an injury. Tom’s responded to the loss with James Dooley on the wing exhorting his teammates to look for something better from themselves,and Tom’s fought hard. Cuddy was on target with three early frees, two from long range, while Alward put two dead ball chances over for Tipp. Tipp then found their way through the Tom’s defences and Darragh Kealy hit the crossbar with a bullet, then Seamie Leahy had a goal chance that Dermot Fox saved. Leahy will probably feel that he should have done better. Kevin O’Donnell did not make any mistake with the third goal chance to fall to Tipp. A long Alward free dropped into the Tom’s penalty area and O’Donnell shunted the ball home from close range. The goal put Tipp a point to the good and day looked as if it may well be theirs. With anxiety building as the game approached the final whistle, Tom’s made the breakthrough. Croft, who had toiled hard since coming on at corner forward, looked like he tipped a long Cuddy free past Tipp keeper Mark Daly. Tom’s up by two points. Larry Guinan and Eugene Cummins held the fort at the back for Tom’s as they made some great fetches as Tipp roared back up the field in search of a score before it was too late. Cuddy made it a three point advantage for Tom’s with a free. Tipp had a late chance to level affairs with a 14 yard free. James Howard took it but a wall of Tom’s men held firm and cleared the danger. Great joy for Tom’s with the sound of the final whistle, and an exciting end to a fine game of hurling.


Tipp: M. Daly, S. Sinnott, T. Fitzgerald, S. Ryan, M. Jordan, R. O’Brien, J. Duane, S. Leahy (0-1), K.O’Donnell (1-1), J. Fealy, D. Kealy, J. McGrath, M. Alward (0-9). Tom’s: D. Fox, M. Moore, L. Guinan, P. Staunton, E. Cummins, M. Markham, K. Mooney, D. Hession (0-2), J. Dooley, M. Waldren (0-2), J. Cuddy (0-8), A. Staunton (0-1), R. Griffin. Subs: M. Callaghan (0-1), R. Croft (1-0).
 
By Rory O'Donnell

Saturday Aug 21 - Junior Hurling Sem-Final: Fr. Tom Burke's v Wexford

Fr. Tom Burke’s 2-8 Wexford 0-12


Tom’s trailed for almost all of this junior hurling semi-final, and the first lead that they held was in injury time. Trailing by four points early in the second half, Tom’s dug deep and set themselves up for a dramatic injury time winning goal, scored by Robbie Croft, who had entered as a substitute.

Two Tom's men under the puckout.

Wexford held the advantage in the early exchanges. Dave Power’s free-taking was good and Wexford took advantage of frees blown their way. Power opened the scoring with a free, and that was followed by two James Foley strikes from play. Tom’s leveled the scores with a goal from Robert Griffin. A long ball from Aidan Staunton hit Griffin on the edge of the square and Griffin finished well. However, with Wexford’s defence clearing their lines well and the midfield moving the ball well, the Brighton side soon restored their lead. Niall Maloney and Dave Power put three points over the bar between them. Eugene Cummins put Tom’s lone point of the first half over the bar with a fine effort, and at the break it was Wexford by two point, 0-6 to 1-1.

Tom’s enjoyed the advantage of a slight breeze in the second half, but it was Wexford who struck first to start the second period. Colm Kearns put a nice strike over the bar right out of the gates and Dave Power made it a four point Wexford lead soon afterwards. The sides traded scores, David Hession put a 65 over the bar for Tom’s and Colm Kearns answered for Wexford. Tom’s raised their efforts and with 20 minutes to go sensed that a win was there for the taking. Gary Hannifey and Robbie Croft had entered the fray for Tom’s. Hannifey got very involved at wing forward, while Croft’s major contribution would come at the very end. A point from Mark Waldren and another long free from Hession cut Wexford’s lead in half, and Robert Griffin reduced it to one. Tom’s drew level after Dave Power had restored Wexford’s lead to two, Hession and Hannifey the responsible parties. After Dave Power put Wexford one to the good, and yellow cards were issued to Mark Gordon and Mark Waldren, it looked as if Tom’s would come up short. Tom’s had one last chance. Dermot Fox came out from goal and dropped a long bomb into the Wexford square. Croft grabbed the breaking ball and amid a crowd of defenders, booted the ball into the back of the net. Tom’s hung on for the last couple of injury time minutes and advance into the junior hurling final where they face Tipperary.

John Joe O'Neill clears for Wexford.

Tom’s: D. Fox, L. Guinan, M. Markham, M. Gordon, E. Cummins (0-1), A. Staunton, P. Staunton, K. Mooney, D. Scullane, D. Hession (0-4), J. Dooley, R. Griffin (1-1), M. Waldren (0-1). Subs: G. Hannifey (0-1), R. Croft (1-0). Wexford: E. Spruhan, JJ O’Neill, P. Nolan, T. Murphy, J. Hanley, S. Gallagher, C. O’Caireallain, P. Grace, N. Maloney (0-1), C. Kearns (0-2), C. McArdle, J. Foley (0-2), D. Power (0-7).


By Rory O'Donnell