Winning start for Clare hurlers

Clare 2-24 Kerry 1-15

Clare have made a winning start under new management duo Donal Moloney and Gerry O’Connor, beating Kerry in the Munster hurling league at Austin Stack park in Tralee.

Kerry were well in contention for over three quarters of this tie but the visitors pulled away in the closing minutes and eight unanswered points sealed a merited victory over a Kerry side that showed some great skill in the opening half.

Clare’s sharpness helped them to a four point lead at half time when the score was 1-12 to 0-11. Kerry led briefly after eight minutes when the score was 0-3 to 0-2 but Clare hit the next five points while conceding one to open a four point lead.

They were five up after twenty minutes but the home side fought back and hit four in a row to level the tie at 0-10 each on the half hour mark, the levelling score coming from Clarecastle man Patrick Kelly who was the Kerry centre back

A minute later a great run from defence by Seadna Morey led to the Clare goal which came from Kevin Hehir.

Twenty two minutes into the second half Podge Collins, Clare captain on the day, struck for his side’s second goal but two minutes later Mikey Boyle found the Kerry net leaving the score at 2-16 to 1-14. From here to the finish, however, Clare dominated and pulled away for a comfortable win

Clare; Andrew Fahy (Whitegate); Eoin Quirke (Whitegate), David Fitzgerald (Inagh-Kilnamona), Seadna Morey (Sixmilebridge) 0-1; Jason McCarthy (Inagh-Kilnamona) 0-1, Conor Cleary (Kilmaley), Brendan Bugler (Whitegate); Colm Galvin (Clonlara 0-1 Kevin Hehir (Inagh-Kilnamona) 1-1; Cathal Malone (Sixmilebridge) 0-1, Podge Collins (Cratloe) 1-3, Aaron Cunningham (Wolfe Tones) 0-1; David Reidy (Éire Óg) 0-10,all frees, Aron Shanagher (Wolfe Tones), 0-1, Cathal McInerney (Cratloe) 0-2

Subs; Peter Duggan (Clooney-Quin) 0-2 for McInerney; Shane Golden (Sixmileridge) for Hehir; Cathal O’Connell (Clonlara) for Collins; Cian Dillon (Crusheen) for Bugler; Shane Mc

Kerry; Martin Stackpoole; Sean Weir, Rory Hogan, Bryan Murphy; John Buckley, Patrick Kelly 0-1, Darren Dineen; Paudie O’Connor 0-1, Thomas Casey 0-1, Padraig Boyle 0-1), Daniel Collins, Mikey Boyle (1-0); John Egan (0-2 Shane Nolan(0-7, Jordan Conway; (0-2)

Subs; Billy Lyons for Horgan; James O’Connor for Buckley; Fionan Horgan for Casey; John Griffin for Egan; Philip Lucid for P. Boyle

Referee; Jason Mullins, Limerick

By Seamus Hayes