Limerick survive late onslaught

LIMERICK 3-13 CLARE 1-18:IN THE end, Limerick held on for dear life after a terrific second-half comeback from Clare in a league game that was good value for both counties yesterday.

As the last of the snow melted in the shadow of the Mackey Stand, Justin McCarthy watched his team sting a fairly canny Clare defence for three goals in nine minutes, and then fight it out as the Banner remorselessly ate into that deficit through a highly entertaining second half.

Clare’s honesty probably merited a draw and they had a half-chance in injury time, but the first-half goals ultimately cost them.

“Yeah, they were unusual things, weren’t they,” mused Mike McNamara, sounding like a man who had enjoyed a visit to the reptilian section of the zoo.

In February, such concessions can be written off; were they to occur in high summer, they would be calamitous.

“We can’t complain,” declared McNamara. “We got some goals like that in the championship last year and you take them when you can. It was a strange game, but we know to our cost that this is a difficult place to win. This time last year, we went away after a 10-point drubbing and maybe just drifting aimlessly to wherever it is that people aimlessly drift to. So we will take the positives.”

Limerick’s goals caught everyone on the hop. The first came from a penalty after Andrew O’Shaughnessy, on a chase to nothing after a long ball from Paul O’Grady, was somewhat untidily tossed over the end-line by goalkeeper Philip Brennan. It was a harsh penalty but O’Shaughnessy was merciless in his execution.

Then, on 34 minutes, Brennan, perhaps a little jittery from the previous incident, came to claim another high ball and Wayne McNamara was ideally placed to sweep home the second goal when the ball spilled free.

A minute later, Clare’s nightmare 10 minutes was complete. Brendan Bugler was whistled up for fouling the ball on half-way, and when Gavin O’Mahony dropped another hopeful ball in around the Clare square, O’Shaughnessy delivered the third goal with a devastating, first-time pull. That must have seemed like proof, if proof were needed, that the Lohan brothers have indeed departed.

But there was nothing anyone could do about O’Shaughnessy’s deadly accuracy, and the starkness of the situation seemed to put Clare in the mood for a contest.

The opening half hour had been even and fairly pedestrian, with loose marking leading to a trade of scores, the pick of which was Séamus Hickey’s dash from half-back and a nicely scooped score on the run.

At 3-9 to 0-7 down at the half, Clare were facing into hard weather in the Gaelic Grounds, and an outright blizzard seemed on the cards after David Breen, big and useful at full forward, clipped another point for Limerick after the restart. Then Clare woke up.

“We had our cup of tea at half-time and took it from there,” said McNamara. “We were 12 points down with 25 minutes to go and they went for the win. That maybe says a bit about the character that we are looking for.”

The introduction of Diarmuid McMahon, strong and marauding, made a significant difference for Clare, and through the lines the familiar names responded to the sense that a comeback was on. Patrick Donnellan had hurled impressively from the start and the left half back lofted a brilliant point on 49 minutes in the midst of an 11-minute burst when Clare outscored the home team by 1-07 to 0-2.

Their goal was all purpose and intelligence, starting with Brennan’s measured clearance to Barry Nugent before Colin Ryan moved through the gears with a fine burst of speed and finished to the net after taking a return pass from Nugent. With 10 minutes to go, Clare looked alive and strong.

For Limerick, it was a matter of hanging on. Breen, who only arrived from Edinburgh, where he is studying, yesterday morning, was spent with 10 minutes to go.

O’Shaughnessy, so sharp and inventive in the first half, found all avenues cut off, and Limerick’s midfield pairing, who landed three fine points from play, were ultimately overwhelmed by the Clare men.

McCarthy’s team worked for their four invaluable, second-half points and O’Shaughnessy kept their noses in front, darting on to a loose ball and pointing smartly with five minutes remaining.

It was a big score, not just in terms of the home victory, but also for the bigger picture of McCarthy building a cohesive Limerick challenge for what promises to be an intriguing summer. To blow such a handsome half-time lead would have been a significant setback.

“We had a lot of young lads playing and they stood up well,” said McCarthy, never a man to get over-excited about league results.

Limerick have Kilkenny next, a team against whom goals rarely come in threes. Clare face McCarthy’s old project, Waterford.

“My old friend Davy,” Mike Mac grinned.

LIMERICK: B Murray; D Reale, S Lucey, T Condon; S Walsh, G O’Mahoney, S Hickey (0-1); D O’Grady (0-2), P Browne (0-2); W McNamara (1-0), M O’Brien, B O’Sullivan; A O’Shaughnessy (2-5, 1 pen, three frees), D Breen (0-3), R McCarthy. Substitutes: K Tobin for S Walsh (32 mins inj), J O’Brien for D O’Grady (46 mins), P Tobin for R McCarthy (48 mins), P McNamara for D Breen (60 mins), D Moloney for S Hickey (62 mins inj).

CLARE: P Brennan; G O’Grady, C Plunkett, C McMahon; P Vaughan, G Quinn, P Donnellan (0-1); B Bugler, C Lynch; T Carmody (0-3, one free), T Griffin (0-3), J Clancy; B Nugent (0-3), A Markham (0-1), C Ryan (1-5, five frees). Subs: D McMahon (0-2) for B Bugler (half-time), J Conlon for B Nugent (62 mins).

Referee: C McAllister (Cork).