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Fitness seals the win for Clare


Martin Duggan sprints ahead of Galway’s Brian Mahoney. Photograph by John KellyClare 2-18

Galway 2-9

Clare’s chances of winning a place in the All-Ireland intermediate hurling final didn’t look good when they found themselves two goals in arrears after just a minute and a half of play in their semi-final with Galway at Cusack Park in Ennis on Saturday evening.

However, a strong second-half showing by the fitter home side saw them turn
the tables on their neighbours and progress to play Kilkenny in the final on August 27.
A switch in the full-back line early in the second half, which saw Mark Earley move to the edge of the square with Patrick Kelly going to the corner, benefited both players and the team enormously.
Clare’s full-back line had been in all sorts of trouble in the opening half with Kelly and Alan Brigdale struggling to find the form they had shown in the earlier rounds. Once the switch was made, the team grew in confidence with the half-backs and midfielders also stepping up a gear.
A nine-point winning margin for the home side didn’t look at all likely after Brian Murphy and Kevin Keehan had Galway goals in less than two minutes after the throw-in.
Murphy struck first when he won possession from a Keehan cross and then full-forward Keehan grabbed a high delivery before blasting to the net. Every time the ball dropped into the Clare goalmouth in the opening stages there was panic, with Keehan from nearby Beagh causing huge problems for his NUI Galway team mate Kelly. Galway should have had another goal or two in the early stages but poor finishing let them down.
Although stunned by the concession of those early goals, Clare received a massive boost in the fourth minute when the best forward on view, Padraig Hickey had Clare’s opening goal. It was a vital score and it helped Clare recover a little from the bad start.
Galway continued to look the better side for the remainder of the half but failed to stretch their lead and Clare were relieved to be just a goal behind, 1-7 to 2-7, when the half-time whistle sounded, having played against the breeze.
When play resumed Niall Gilligan pointed from play, having won possession from a John Fennessy delivery before Andrew Fahy made a vital stop from Keehan at the expense of a 65’ that Joe O’Leary converted.
At this stage the Clare management switched Kelly and Earley in the full-back line and from here on things improved for the Banner men. After a Martin Duggan effort was signalled as a point but then, rightly, disallowed after the referee consulted with his umpires and linesman, Galway went four clear when Keehan pointed a 35m free in the ninth minute. It was to be Galway’s final score, as Clare took control in most areas.
Two Gilligan frees, the second a penalty, and two superb efforts from Padraig Hickey had the teams level by the three-quarter stage.
With the big home support in the official attendance of 3,554 getting fully behind Clare, they took the lead for the first time when Gilligan converted a 65’ with 12 minutes to play. The Sixmilebridge veteran quickly added another from a close in free before Hickey hit a wonder point to put Clare three clear with eight minutes remaining.
At this point team captain Tony Carmody burst into the action and he had two long-range points at either side of a well-deserved score for the hard-working Martin Duggan to bring the gap to six with just three minutes to go.
It was all Clare now and they finished off a remarkable comeback in the first minute of injury time when substitute Joe O’Connor blasted to the net after O’Grady in the Galway goal had saved from Kevin Dilleen.
Earley and Kelly were superb in the Clare defence in the final 25 minutes, while Michael Hawes at centre-back also had a good second half. Ronan Keane and Shane Golden did well at midfield as the game progressed, while up front Padraig Hickey was the stand out player with Martin Duggan also getting through a huge amount of work.
Kevin Keehan and Brian Murphy caused problems for the Clare attack in the first half while, at the back, Pat Holland and David Hayes did well.
Referee Tony Carroll from Offaly didn’t have a good game and both teams were fortunate to finish with a full compliment of players. Galway full-back Damian McClearn was fortunate to escape a second yellow midway through the first half for a foul on Niall Gilligan while, around the same time at the other end of the pitch, Clare full-back Patrick Kelly was fortunate to escape censure for a tackle on Kevin Keehan.

Clare:
Andrew Fahy (Whitegate); Mark Earley (Tubber), Patrick Kelly (Clarecastle), Alan Brigdale (Crusheen); John Fennessy (Sixmilebridge), Michael Hawes (Cratloe), Kevin Moynihan (Éire Óg); Ronan Keane (Éire Óg), Shane Golden (Sixmilebridge); Martin Duggan (Clooney-Quin), Tony Carmody (Sixmilebridge; capt), Kevin Dilleen (St Joseph’s); Declan O’Rourke (Wolfe Tones), Niall Gilligan (Sixmilebridge), Padraig Hickey (Broadford).
Sub: Joe O’Connor (Parteen) for O’Rourke (40 minutes).
Scorers: Niall Gilligan (0-8, 6f, 1 ’65); Padraig Hickey (1-4); Tony Carmody (0-2); Ronan Keane, Shane Golden, Kevin Dilleen, Martin Duggan (0-1 each).
Frees for: 8; wides: 8; 65s: 2
Bookings: None
Galway: Kevin O’Grady; Alan Leech, Damien McClearn (capt) Pat Holland; Joe O’Leary, David Hayes, Brian Mahoney; Kevin Brady, Niall Callanan; Enda Concannon, Keith Kilkenny, Fergal Healy; Brian Murphy, Kevin Keehan, Conor Kavanagh.
Subs: Joseph Cooney for Concannon (22 minutes); Barry Hanley for Kavanagh; Kevin Burke for Callanan (35 minutes); Martin Corcoran for Hanley (49 minutes); Rory Gantley for Kilkenny (56 minutes).
Scorers: Kevin Keehan (1-5, 0-4f); Brian Murphy (1-2), Joe O’Leary (free) Keith Kilkenny (0-1) each.
Frees for: 7; wides: 8; 65s: 1
Bookings: Damian McClearn (13 minutes); Brian Mahoney (50 minutes).
Referee: Tony Carroll, Offaly.

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