All Ireland Minor Hurling Championship

hurlingguru wrote:Yes a great victory. Seems to be a very strong minor team which could go all the way but you never know what Galway will produce.

Galway have a very strong side this year and if they get over Kilkenny both sides will meet in the semi's

Banner flies high once again
Clare 1-20 Waterford 3-9
By Fintan O’Toole

Monday, July 11, 2011

THEIR senior fortunes may be at a low ebb but the underage ranks continue to generate promise for Clare hurling.



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After their U21 heroics in 2009, they have prospered at minor level for the past two seasons and collected the county’s second successive Munster MHC crown at Páirc Uí Chaoimh yesterday. It was a historic occasion for Clare completing back-to-back triumphs and their latest was richly deserved.

The scoreboard may have proclaimed a five-point gap but in truth Clare were far superior. By the 48th minute they had stormed ahead by 1-19 to 1-7 and, despite Waterford pouncing for late goals courtesy of Adam O’Sullivan and captain Gavin O’Brien, Clare were never in danger of relinquishing their advantage.

Clare measured up to the expectations surrounding this team. They carried strong form into the match on the back of their semi-final dismissal of Tipperary and shredded Waterford’s notions of success with a powerful first-half display.

"We’re from Clare and we’re not used to good luck stories," reflected joint manager Gerry O’Connor afterwards.

"We’ve been through the hard times, to get one in-a-row is a big achievement and two in-a-row is beyond our wildest dreams. It was a brilliant start by us in the first-half. Our support play and point-scoring was phenomenal. Tony Kelly and Peter Duggan got some incredible scores, and our half-backs were overlapping the whole time."

Clare settled quickly to the task at hand and demonstrated the host of exciting prospects they possess in their lineup. Their defence were in commanding form and provided the bedrock for their challenge, with Seadna Morey, Jarlath Colleran and Jamie Shanahan all to the fore.

The telepathic relationship between midfield duo Colm Galvin and Tony Kelly surfaced again as they controlled their sector, while Cathal O’Connell and Aaron Cunningham showed accuracy in front of goal from the off.

Shane O’Donnell may not have raised a flag during the game but his ball-winning abilities caused problems for the Waterford rearguard and he was frequently fouled for placed balls that O’Connell relentlessly converted.

By the 20th minute, Clare had chalked up a remarkable 12 points and the flawless marksmanship of O’Connell was central to that advantage.

"Cathal is a remarkable young fella," revealed joint manager Donal Moloney.

"His attention to detail is phenomenal. We brought him on in last year’s Munster final and people said he was too small, but he’s a big heart. He’s the playmaker in our team and his freetaking is fantastic."

By the interval Clare were ahead 0-14 to 1-4 and Waterford’s prospects were already ominous. They struggled to get the ball past the defensive barrier that Clare erected in their half-forward line and Waterford’s key attacking duo Jake Dillon and Stephen Bennett were clearly targeted.

The Clare defence nullified those threats excellently and the fact neither registered a score from play was a testament to the proficiency of the Banner rearguard.

Waterford generated some hope when Adam O’Sullivan found the net in the 15th minute after excellent approach work by Bennett but it was a rare moment when they unlocked the Clare defence in the first-half.

Waterford goalkeeper Paddy Cooke was in stellar form as he denied full-forward Oisín Hickey with two outstanding blocks. But Hickey raced through early in the second-half after a superb pass by Shanahan and he made no mistake in rifling his shot to the bottom corner of the net.

That stretched Clare’s lead to 1-15 to 1-4 and they were never going to be pegged back from there. Waterford battled on with O’Sullivan bundling home his second goal and O’Brien rocketing a shot to the net in the 56th minute, yet the gap was too great to bridge and they were destined for the All-Ireland quarter-finals. Clare will head to the All-Ireland semi-final stage with a view to atoning for last year’s final defeat to Kilkenny.

"We were very proud last September of how the lads did," said Moloney. "The dream this year is to go one better. But there are significant obstacles to overcome. Galway have a brilliant team this year, Dublin are Leinster champions and I don’t think we’ve seen the last of Waterford and Kilkenny either. There’s interesting challenges ahead for us."

Scorers for Clare: C O’Connell 0-10 (0-10f), T Kelly 0-3 (0-1 65), O Hickey 1-0, A Cunningham, C Galvin 0-2 each, J Colleran, J Shanahan, P Duggan 0-1 each.

Scorers for Waterford: A O’Sullivan 2-1, J Dillon 0-5 (4fs, 1 65), G O’Brien 1-1, D Breathnach 0-2.

CLARE: E Quilligan; J Browne, N O’Connor, S Morey; J Colleran, J Shanahan, G O’Connell; C Galvin, T Kelly; P Duggan, C O’Connell, E Enright; S O’Donnell, O Hickey, A Cunningham.

Sub: A Mulready for Enright (55).

WATERFORD: P Cooke; J Barron, D Ahern, C Walsh; S O’Neill, D Foley, R Barry; S McNulty, G O’Brien; C Dunford, J Dillon, D Flynn; A O’Sullivan, S Bennett, C Chester.

Subs: D Breathnach for Dunford (ht), C Curran for Chester (39), I Kenny for O’Neill (46), M Harney for Flynn (50).

Referee: J O’Connell (Cork).




H'on the mighty Clon, two of the stars of the show and two more on the bench, how do we do it!!!

Galway 8-26 Antrim 0-12

The Puke wrote:Galway 8-26 Antrim 0-12

Tipp U21s annihilated Antrim last year - can't see what purpose this serves at all ...

Semi final line up is

Dublin V Waterford

&

Clare v Galway

The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

The Puke wrote:The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

Would you ever cop on to yourself ....

The Puke wrote:Semi final line up is

Dublin V Waterford

&

Clare v Galway

The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

At minor level it's so hard to call so that post is pure bile..

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:Semi final line up is

Dublin V Waterford

&

Clare v Galway

The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

At minor level it's so hard to call so that post is pure bile..

Indeed and it's not, on all known form both Clare and Galway are a nice bit better than the rest of the sides at this grade and results from both challenge matches and championship back this up

Feel free to come back and bump this if either Dublin or Waterford win the All Ireland but I am fairly confident in my original statement and that I will be proven right come the first week of september

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:Semi final line up is

Dublin V Waterford

&

Clare v Galway

The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

At minor level it's so hard to call so that post is pure bile..

Indeed and it's not, on all known form both Clare and Galway are a nice bit better than the rest of the sides at this grade and results from both challenge matches and championship back this up

Feel free to come back and bump this if either Dublin or Waterford win the All Ireland but I am fairly confident in my original statement and that I will be proven right come the first week of september

Dublin will be happy to be the outsider's of the 4..A lot of Dublin hurling people believe in this team..But saying that Waterford will be a hard nut to crack

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:Semi final line up is

Dublin V Waterford

&

Clare v Galway

The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

At minor level it's so hard to call so that post is pure bile..

Indeed and it's not, on all known form both Clare and Galway are a nice bit better than the rest of the sides at this grade and results from both challenge matches and championship back this up

Feel free to come back and bump this if either Dublin or Waterford win the All Ireland but I am fairly confident in my original statement and that I will be proven right come the first week of september

Dublin will be happy to be the outsider's of the 4..A lot of Dublin hurling people believe in this team..But saying that Waterford will be a hard nut to crack

What is more impressive about Waterford's win at the weekend is the fact they were missing 6 lads that started the Munster final against Clare, a good sign that they have serious depth in their panel

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:Semi final line up is

Dublin V Waterford

&

Clare v Galway

The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

At minor level it's so hard to call so that post is pure bile..

Indeed and it's not, on all known form both Clare and Galway are a nice bit better than the rest of the sides at this grade and results from both challenge matches and championship back this up

Feel free to come back and bump this if either Dublin or Waterford win the All Ireland but I am fairly confident in my original statement and that I will be proven right come the first week of september

Dublin will be happy to be the outsider's of the 4..A lot of Dublin hurling people believe in this team..But saying that Waterford will be a hard nut to crack

What is more impressive about Waterford's win at the weekend is the fact they were missing 6 lads that started the Munster final against Clare, a good sign that they have serious depth in their panel

Were the Waterford lads injured or dropped ..

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:Semi final line up is

Dublin V Waterford

&

Clare v Galway

The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

At minor level it's so hard to call so that post is pure bile..

Indeed and it's not, on all known form both Clare and Galway are a nice bit better than the rest of the sides at this grade and results from both challenge matches and championship back this up

Feel free to come back and bump this if either Dublin or Waterford win the All Ireland but I am fairly confident in my original statement and that I will be proven right come the first week of september

Dublin will be happy to be the outsider's of the 4..A lot of Dublin hurling people believe in this team..But saying that Waterford will be a hard nut to crack

What is more impressive about Waterford's win at the weekend is the fact they were missing 6 lads that started the Munster final against Clare, a good sign that they have serious depth in their panel

Were the Waterford lads injured or dropped ..

Injured for the most part, they played a round of the minor club championship the Monday & Tuesday after the munster final and a good few picked up injuries

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:Semi final line up is

Dublin V Waterford

&

Clare v Galway

The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

At minor level it's so hard to call so that post is pure bile..

Indeed and it's not, on all known form both Clare and Galway are a nice bit better than the rest of the sides at this grade and results from both challenge matches and championship back this up

Feel free to come back and bump this if either Dublin or Waterford win the All Ireland but I am fairly confident in my original statement and that I will be proven right come the first week of september

Dublin will be happy to be the outsider's of the 4..A lot of Dublin hurling people believe in this team..But saying that Waterford will be a hard nut to crack

What is more impressive about Waterford's win at the weekend is the fact they were missing 6 lads that started the Munster final against Clare, a good sign that they have serious depth in their panel

Were the Waterford lads injured or dropped ..

Injured for the most part, they played a round of the minor club championship the Monday & Tuesday after the munster final and a good few picked up injuries

Must be very strong to hold Kilkenny to 9 points is not easy at any level..And you think Clare are a head of them..

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

The Puke wrote:Semi final line up is

Dublin V Waterford

&

Clare v Galway

The Clare V Galway match is the final in all but name and whoever wins will go on and win the all ireland, the two best teams in this years championship by a distance

At minor level it's so hard to call so that post is pure bile..

Indeed and it's not, on all known form both Clare and Galway are a nice bit better than the rest of the sides at this grade and results from both challenge matches and championship back this up

Feel free to come back and bump this if either Dublin or Waterford win the All Ireland but I am fairly confident in my original statement and that I will be proven right come the first week of september

Dublin will be happy to be the outsider's of the 4..A lot of Dublin hurling people believe in this team..But saying that Waterford will be a hard nut to crack

What is more impressive about Waterford's win at the weekend is the fact they were missing 6 lads that started the Munster final against Clare, a good sign that they have serious depth in their panel

Were the Waterford lads injured or dropped ..

Injured for the most part, they played a round of the minor club championship the Monday & Tuesday after the munster final and a good few picked up injuries

Must be very strong to hold Kilkenny to 9 points is not easy at any level..And you think Clare are a head of them..

Clare completely dominated them and outhurled them in the Munster final and were 10 points + up with 10 minutes left, Waterford got a couple of late goals to put a bit of gloss on it but Clare are a nice bit better than them

As I said before this was one of the worst Kilkenny teams, mainly because of the bad selection of the panel by management.

Kilkenny underage teams suddenly become the worst ever cos the Dubs can beat them ....

No No Jayo ask anyone in Kilkenny, even before the championship started they knew they would get nowhere. Sure a Carlow man was midfield.

Jayo Cluxton wrote:

The Puke wrote:Galway 8-26 Antrim 0-12

Tipp U21s annihilated Antrim last year - can't see what purpose this serves at all ...

Does not serve a purpose at all, which is why we need to look at how we can improve underage hurling accross the country, maybe something similar to the old senior format of a couple of years ago, of group stages where by the antrims and carlows of this world can mix it up at a level which they are more suited too, the current format does nothing to improve this standard if anything it endorses the fact that antrim cant compete by simply winning ulster.

North Side Gael wrote:

Jayo Cluxton wrote:

The Puke wrote:Galway 8-26 Antrim 0-12

Tipp U21s annihilated Antrim last year - can't see what purpose this serves at all ...

Does not serve a purpose at all, which is why we need to look at how we can improve underage hurling accross the country, maybe something similar to the old senior format of a couple of years ago, of group stages where by the antrims and carlows of this world can mix it up at a level which they are more suited too, the current format does nothing to improve this standard if anything it endorses the fact that antrim cant compete by simply winning ulster.

Ulster school's hurling should be brought in to leinster,its the only way its going to improve..You have to get thing's right at school's level everything else comes from that...

mullins wrote:

North Side Gael wrote:

Jayo Cluxton wrote:

The Puke wrote:Galway 8-26 Antrim 0-12

Tipp U21s annihilated Antrim last year - can't see what purpose this serves at all ...

Does not serve a purpose at all, which is why we need to look at how we can improve underage hurling accross the country, maybe something similar to the old senior format of a couple of years ago, of group stages where by the antrims and carlows of this world can mix it up at a level which they are more suited too, the current format does nothing to improve this standard if anything it endorses the fact that antrim cant compete by simply winning ulster.

Ulster school's hurling should be brought in to leinster,its the only way its going to improve..You have to get thing's right at school's level everything else comes from that...

possibly but doubt it would be a runner as it would be a logistical nightmare

Massive work has went into schools in ulster and they improve every year, in north belfast alone every school is fielding teams and 10 years ago, these teams in some instances would not be fielding at all, in other instances would be getting annihalated they are now competing and winning at their respective levels. Cross the county border into Derry, schools in Derry have been tormenting antrim schools over the last 10 years, yet this year they could not even field an under 21 team.

I feel a lot more to it than the schools, croke park would need the HDC to do an audit and evaluation of hurling development in ulster and connaught and publish their findings to try and kick into gear a total rething and re structure.

The Puke wrote:

mullins wrote:

North Side Gael wrote:

Jayo Cluxton wrote:

The Puke wrote:Galway 8-26 Antrim 0-12

Tipp U21s annihilated Antrim last year - can't see what purpose this serves at all ...

Does not serve a purpose at all, which is why we need to look at how we can improve underage hurling accross the country, maybe something similar to the old senior format of a couple of years ago, of group stages where by the antrims and carlows of this world can mix it up at a level which they are more suited too, the current format does nothing to improve this standard if anything it endorses the fact that antrim cant compete by simply winning ulster.

Ulster school's hurling should be brought in to leinster,its the only way its going to improve..You have to get thing's right at school's level everything else comes from that...

possibly but doubt it would be a runner as it would be a logistical nightmare

Plenty schools around the country travel 2/3 hours to play games-if they want to progress its the only way imo..

Puke i was talking to Dublin Hurling People-and they told me Waterford was the worst draw for Dublin....

They fancy Waterford to beat Clare in the final..that would be some turn around

Not my views but these people live drink sleep Dublin hurling..

What do you think

mullins wrote:Puke i was talking to Dublin Hurling People-and they told me Waterford was the worst draw for Dublin....

They fancy Waterford to beat Clare in the final..that would be some turn around

Not my views but these people live drink sleep Dublin hurling..

What do you think

You never know with minors but as I said I am fairly confident the winner will come from the Clare and Galway semi final.

I have a feeling it's Galway's year. They are due a minor success after dominating the start of the noughties.