Ten thousand people, many of them teenagers in the saffron and blue shirts of Clare packed Cusack Park, Ennis, last evening to see their heroes take on the Rest of Ireland in a hurling match in aid of GOAL. The game, however, became a light-hearted romp in the park as the Rest of Ireland were short two players (and no substitutes). That did not lessen the enthusiasm of the fervent Clare supporters as all of their heroes, including a dozen substitutes, were given a run during the match.
The final score was in considerable doubt, although the score board at the final whistle showed the result: Clare 96-05; The Rest 6-10. Obviously the person in charge of the board was from Clare. Journalists covering the romp were the spoilsports suggesting that the Rest of Ireland had won by five points.
However, John O'Shea of GOAL was in no doubt: the deprived in Africa and other places were the real winners, he said as he congratulated all concerned. The Clare minor hurlers also got an enthusiastic welcome when they were introduced to the crowd during the half-time interval.
The Rest of Ireland team included: Brendan Cummins (Tipperary), Steve McDonagh (Limerick), Ger Cush (Wexford), Tom Helebert (Galway), Dave Clarke (Limerick), John Hayes (Tipperary), Cathal Moore (Galway), Conor Gleeson, the Tipperary captain, Michael Coleman (Galway), Damien Fitzhenry (Wexford), Mike Galligan (Limerick), Kevin Kinahan (Offaly) and Brian O'Meara (Tipperary).
The All-Ireland referee, Dickie Murphy of Wexford had an uneventful match. He blew the whistle four times.
