Na Piarsaigh (Limerick) 2-15 Thurles Sarsfields (Tipperary) 0-17
Limerick champions Na Piarsaigh have qualified for their third Munster club hurling final in five years after a 2-15 to 0-17 win over Thurles Sarsfields at the Gaelic Grounds.
Peter Casey's goal eight minutes into the second half gave his side the lead for the first time since the second minute and a second from David Dempsey five minutes from time sealed their progression to the final.
Na Piarsaigh will now take on Waterford champions Ballygunner in the final next weekend at Semple Stadium.
After a rip-roaring first-half Thurles Sarsfields would have been delighted and thoroughly deserved to lead by 0-012 to 0-09. Perhaps they could have led by more – especially as they had amassed five points by the ninth minute, but after a tense opening quarter Na Piarsaigh charged back into the contest.
The game got under way after an immaculately observed minute's silence and spontaneous round of applause for Thurles Sarsfields selector Jack Griffin who died following a car accident recently. And his former charges were soon showing their full array of talents as points from Aidan McCormack (2) and Stephen Cahill gave them a 0-3 to 0-1 lead by the fifth minute.
Around this time Na Piarsaigh were experiencing serious difficulties in securing possession from their own puck-outs – at one stage they lost four in a row – but a couple of frees from Shane Dowling and a Kevin Ryan point from play kept them in touch.
Pa Bourke hit a fine point after 13 minutes when he fielded a well-struck side line cut and took a big hit for his trouble, but Dowling continued to punish every infringement by Sarsfields in the own half to chip away at the deficit.
David Dempsey could have fired Sarsfields into the lead in the 15th minute but he was unable to make the required contact with the goal at his mercy – instead a free from Bourke at the other end stretched Sarsfields' lead to three points once more.
Points seemed to come easier to Sarsfields though, and after Aidan McCormack landed his third of the opening half, Alan Dempsey hit back with a long-range score from the right for Na Piarsaigh.
Despite the heavy overnight wind and rain, the underfoot conditions were almost perfect and both teams put on a display of all the basics of the game – a couple of blocks and a hook from the Na Piarsaigh defence denied Bourke a certain score four minutes from the break.
And a minute later Michael Cahill brilliantly hooked Casey and Patrick McCormack followed it up with a splendid save to deny Dowling, while a couple of late points, including a volleyed effort from Lar Corbett – that was brilliantly turned over the bar by Podge Kennedy – sent Sarsfields in three points ahead.
Kevin Downes and Kevin Ryan hit good scores either side of a free from Bourke, but the key score arrived for the Limerick men in the 38th minute. A long delivery to the edge of the square was broken by Downes and after he gathered the break and cut back off the end line, Casey rattled the roof of the net for a 1-11 to 0-13 lead.
A point straight away from David Dempsey added to Sarsfields' woes, but Bourke's seventh point – his fourth free – and Bill McCarthy's point on the run soon had the Tipp champions level with nine minutes remaining.
Under the floodlights of an increasingly darkening Gaelic Grounds Na Piarsaigh kicked for home in spectacular style. Cathal King's inspirational point lifted his side into the lead, and five minutes from the end David Dempsey showed great composure to fire past McCormack, to put the result beyond doubt.
Na Piarsaigh: P Kennedy; K Breen, M Casey, K Kennedy; M Foley, R Lynch, C King (c) (0-01); A Dempsey (0-02), W O'Donoghue; S Dowling (0-07, 0-07f), D Dempsey (1-01), K Ryan (0-02); K Downes (0-01), P Casey (1-01), A Breen. Subs: P Gleeson for Foley (53 mins).
Thurles Sarsfields: P McCormack; M Cahill, S Maher, David Maher; D Kennedy, P Maher (c), R Maher; S Cahill (0-02), J Maher (0-01); Denis Maher, A McCormack (0-03), B McCarthy (0-01); L Corbett (0-01), C Lanigan (0-01), P Bourke (0-08, 0-05f, 0-01'65). Subs: S Lillis for Kennedy (51 mins), R Ruth for Lanigan (58 mins).
Referee: Diarmuid Kirwain (Cork).
