St Mullins 2-14 Raharney 1-11
A wonderful individual display by Marty Kavanagh enabled St Mullins to come back from being five points down after just 18 minutes to eventually defeat Raharney by a flattering six-point margin in an entertaining quarter-final clash in the Leinster club senior hurling championship in Mullingar.
There was very little between the sides in a very lively first half.
It was virtually tit-for-tat scoring in the opening quarter at the end of which the teams were tied at 0-5 each.
The standard of free-taking was good, with both Marty Kavanagh and Killian Doyle on song at either end from placed balls.
Raharney were ahead by 0-7 to 0-5 when they scored the game’s first goal in the 18th minute. Robbie Greville picked up a great delivery from Darren Giles and bore down on goal before firing a low shot past Kevin Kehoe.
However, the Carlow champions outscored their Westmeath counterparts by 0-5 to 0-0 during the remainder of the first half.
The first four of these points came from frees by Kavanagh, while John (Minor) Murphy struck for a neat point from play with the last puck of the half in stoppage time. At the break, the scoreboard read: St Mullins 0-10 Raharney 1-7.
Raharney were a point to the good ten minutes into the second half when fine play by Marty Kavanagh and John Walsh teed up James Doyle for a well taken goal for the visitors.
The home team lost Ciaran Doyle to a second yellow card in the 47th minute but, despite their numerical disadvantage, they created two great goal chances.
However, they failed to convert either, with Kehoe doing particularly well to keep out Greville’s effort.
St Mullins led by two points with a matter of seconds remaining in normal time when that man Kavanagh superbly caught the ball from a James Doyle pass and he gave Andrew Doyle no chance for the clinching goal.
Raharney were reduced to 13 men when Greville was dismissed for a second yellow card offence in added-time before Doyle sealed St Mullins’ place in the provincial semi-final against Cuala with a fine point from play.
St Mullins: K Kehoe; P Doyle, J Doran, G Bennett; D Whelan, P Kehoe, G Coady; J Kavanagh, M Walsh; M Kavanagh (1-10, 0-07f), J Walsh, John Murphy; John (Minor) Murphy (0-01), S Murphy (0-01), J Doyle (1-02). Sub: P Connors for John (Minor) Murphy (54).
Raharney: A Doyle; S Quinn, C Jordan, D Giles; G Greville, P Greville, A Sheils; N Flanagan, C Boyle (0-02); R Greville (1-00), K Doyle (0-05, 0-04f), J Boyle (0-01); J Goonery (0-01), J Shaw (0-01), C Doyle (0-01).
Referee: S Cleere (Kilkenny).
