Limerick 1-20 Cork 1-18
Limerick will meet Galway in the semi-finals of the Allianz Hurling League after they finished strongly to beat Cork by 1-20 to 1-18 at Páirc Uí Rinn.
In a game where the lead changed hands nine times, the Shannonsiders responded to Patrick Horgan’s point to tie the game at 1-17 each, with scores from Kyle Hayes, Gearóid Hegarty and John Fitzgibbon to open up the game’s first three-point lead since the first half.
Cork continued to press but, while they did have an injury-time score from Mark Coleman, the chance of a match-winning goal didn’t come and they join Kilkenny and Waterford as Division 1A sides beaten by Division 1B opposition in the last eight.
Limerick began well, with points from Dowling, Lynch and Hayes followed by David Dempsey’s goal after Gearóid Hegarty set him up, making it 1-04 to 0-02.
After Cork’s Séamus Harnedy and Cian Lynch exchanged points, the Rebels surged into their most impressive period of the game, scoring an unanswered 1-05.
The goal came from Luke Meade after he got on the end of Lorcán McLoughlin’s ball inside the Limerick defence.
That put them 1-08 to 1-05 in front, but Limerick replied with four points of their own, three from Dowling followed by a lead score from Hegarty, only for Alan Cadogan to tie the match at 1-09 each in first-half injury-time.
The game remained close in the early stages of the second period, but the 7,892 present looked to have seen Limerick take decisive control when Hegarty and then Dowling (two) put them 1-16 to 1-14 in front.
Two Patrick Horgan frees levelled matters once more and the Cork attacker responded to Dowling’s ninth point with his eighth, making it 1-17 each with three minutes left.
Ultimately though, it was Limerick’s day.
Cork: A Nash (0-01f); S McDonnell, D Griffin, C Spillane; C Joyce, M Ellis, M Coleman (0-02, 0-01 65); L McLoughlin, D Brosnan; B Cooper (0-01), S Harnedy (0-03), L Meade (1-01); Alan Cadogan (0-02), P Horgan (0-08, 0-07f), D Fitzgibbon
Subs: B Lawton for Griffin (half-time), M Cahalane for Fitzgibbon (42), D Kearney for Brosnan (54), L O’Farrell for Cadogan (70)
Limerick: N Quaid; R English, R McCarthy, M Casey; D Byrnes, D Hannon, S Hickey; W O’Donoghue, A Dempsey (0-01); S Dowling (0-09, 0-08 frees), D Dempsey (1-01), G Hegarty (0-04); G Mulcahy, K Hayes (0-02), C Lynch (0-2)
Subs: B Nash for D Dempsey, P Ryan for A Dempsey (both 50), P Casey for Mulcahy (52), J Fitzgibbon for O’Donoghue (61), G O’Mahony for Hannon (62)
Referee: F Horgan (Tipperary)
