Munster Club SFC quarter-final: Nemo Rangers 0-19 (0-2-15) Loughmore-Castleiney 1-8 (1-2-4)
Nemo Rangers got their Munster return off to a winning start with an improved second-half showing to burn off Loughmore-Castleiney at Páirc Uí Rinn.
The sides were level at half-time, but Nemo exhibited greater scoring quality to pick off eight successive points in a 10-minute spell of the second half, putting just three shots wide in total.
Mark Cronin didn’t miss a shot as he finished with 0-9, including four from play, to earn a home semi-final against Limerick champions Fr Casey’s in two weeks’ time.
“We said it to [the players] at half-time, they were showing more hunger than we were,” said Nemo manager Robbie O’Dwyer.
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“We weren’t winning the middle eight, which is huge. If you can’t win primary possession, then it’s obvious our forwards are starved of possession.
“But we started to win around the middle of the field, we showed more hunger, a bit of drive, and when we got momentum, we showed that at the end.”
Playing their 60th Munster Championship game, the Cork kingpins have now won 52 of those encounters, with three draws and five defeats.
Loughmore didn’t score for over 18 minutes, but had their chances, O’Dwyer acknowledging that Nemo were “wide open straight through the middle”.
But the Tipp side showed a willingness to kick direct ball, with Ed Connolly whacking an early goal chance wide, while Briaín Murphy and Luke Horgan snagged important turnovers.
At the other end, Cronin pointed home a free and Kevin O’Donovan handpassed over before Tommy Maher was sanctioned for stepping inside when kicking a sideline ball and Conor Horgan jinked forward to score.
And yet Loughmore had themselves ahead by the 24th minute. Liam McGrath had a goal chance saved by Micheál Aodh Martin, but John McGrath made sure of the rebound, picking his spot in the roof of the net. Noel McGrath then pumped over a huge two-pointer for a 1-3 to 0-4 lead.
With their tails up, Loughmore had a couple of penalty shouts waved away for Ed Connolly and Liam McGrath, while Philip O’Connell hit the base of the post.
“Certainly, the feeling from the bench and the camp was that they were two penalty calls we didn’t get,” said Loughmore manager Greg Ramsbottom. “I felt we were four or five points a better team in the first half, but just weren’t showing it on the scoreboard.”
Nemo saw out the half with points from Ronan Dalton and Cronin to go in level, 0-6 to 1-3.
Their full-back line poured forward after the break, with Kieran Histon pointing before Colin Molloy and Mark Hill teed up Corkery to score.
The high-fielding Ciarán Connolly got a deserved point before Nemo reeled off eight on the trot. Cronin accounted for six, swinging over two-pointers from play and a free.
Corkery tacked on a late brace, while John McGrath booted over a consolation two-point free for Loughmore.
In the other quarter-final of the day, Rathgormack became the first Waterford side to win a game in the province for eight years with their 2-15 to 1-13 win over Clare’s Éire Óg at Fraher Field.
Gavin Murray’s flicked goal got the Ennis side off to the ideal start, opening up a six-point lead, but Jason Curry landed a couple of two-pointers before Stephen Curry’s stoppage-time strike sent Rathgormack in 1-7 to 1-5 ahead.
Orange flags from Mark McInerney and Jack Joyce helped Éire Óg to pull level late on, but Conor Murray’s sublime pass allowed Reece O’Mahony to net the winner, earning them a home semi-final against Kerry’s Dr Crokes.
NEMO RANGERS: MA Martin; M Hill, C Molloy, K Histon (0-0-1); K O’Donovan (0-0-2), S Cronin, J Horgan; A O’Donovan, B Murphy; M Cronin (0-2-5, 1tpf, 3f), L Horgan, C Shalloe; R Corkery (0-0-3), R Dalton (0-0-2), C Horgan (0-0-2). Subs: B Hayes for Shalloe (41 mins), C Moore for J Horgan (43), N O’Shea for K O’Donovan (63), E Nation for Hill (64).
LOUGHMORE-CASTLEINEY: S Hennessy; T McGrath, J Ryan, L Egan; T Maher, E O’Connell, D McCahey; N McGrath (0-1-0), B McGrath; E Connolly, J McGrath (1-1-0, 1tpf), C Connolly (0-0-1); L McGrath (0-0-3f), P O’Connell, L Treacy. Subs: J Quinn for P O’Connell (39 mins), A McGrath for Treacy (51), P McCahey for T McGrath (57), M Ryan for Maher (59), W Eviston for Egan (60).
Referee: C Maguire (Clare).
