Sports

Inagh-Kilnamona 0-15   Tulla 0-9 CLARE senior hurling champions less than two years ago, Tulla are out of the 2009 title race following this loss to Inagh-Kilnamona at Cusack Park on Sunday evening.Davy Fitzgerald recently committed to helping out with the Inagh-Kilnamona preparations and this was their first game. He directed operations from the TV box on the stand and while this wasn’t a very memorable game, the Sixmilebridge man must have been pleased with the workrate of the winners.

Kilmihil 0-10   Shannon Gaels 0-7 KILMIHIL will definitely play senior football in 2010, while Shannon Gaels’ future as a senior club is less certain. While the 2008 intermediate champions have a senior B semi-final to think about, their neighbours have a relegation semi-final and the spectre of demotion to dwell upon. Kilmihil won because they made much better use of the strong wind advantage in Cooraclare last Friday evening, while they were also much more keen for battle than their opponents.

Kilrush 0-10   Éire Óg 0-8 INSPIRED principally by wing-back Con O’Brien, who kicked three points from play and Donal O’Sullivan, who played as well as he ever has at midfield, Kilrush clinched a senior championship quarter final spot in Kilmihil last Sunday. The game was postponed seven days earlier but if anything the weather was worse a week later.  

CLARE U-15s were victorious in the rescheduled Munster Hurling Championship at the weekend.

Rock Rovers 2   Lifford A 0 ROCK Rovers marked their arrival in the premier league with an impressive win over fellow Ennis side Lifford A who have been strong challengers for the title in the past two seasons.They took the lead shortly before the break when a Barry Woods cross deflected off Lifford defender Hamak Kuku and into the net. Early in the second half, Lifford were hit a double blow. Niall White picked up a second yellow card which ended his participation in the game and shortly afterwards, Daryl Eade goaled for the winners to give them a winning start to the new season.

AFTER 18 months on the sidelines, six-time champion jockey, Kieren Fallon makes his eagerly awaited return to race-riding at Lingfield on Friday. Arguably, one of the greatest jockeys of all time, the Crusheen man has served his time for a lengthy ban he picked up when a second positive test for a prohibitive substance emerged following a routine dope test in France.

Clare 3-23 Galway 5-15 WHEN the time comes to review the 2009 hurling season, this All-Ireland U-21 semi-final will be in any shortlist for the title of game of the year. Neighbours Clare and Galway produced a truly memorable contest at Semple Stadium in Thurles on Saturday before 5,741 people and, while there would have been few complaints had the match ended in stalemate, such was the quality of the game, the newly-crowned Munster champions just about deserved the victory. They now qualify for a tilt at the defending All-Ireland champions Kilkenny on September 13.