Leinster Club Championship SH Semi-final / O'Loughlin Gaels 0-20 Rathnure 2-11: O'Loughlin Gaels aren't content with just being the best hurlers in Kilkenny.
They want to go all the way, out of Leinster and beyond. That they have a team to do so was perfectly evident in Carlow yesterday.
So don't be fooled by that final score. Rathnure did produce a decent rally towards the end but they were never truly part of the contest. Nor can that score hide what was a disappointing show from the Wexford champions, and generally a poor reflection of hurling in the county. Excitement was not part of their game plan.
In it's aftermath though comes the prospect of a cracking Leinster final in two weeks' time. O'Loughlin Gaels have players who shine in every sector of the field and there's no doubting they can challenge Birr, who continue to set the standard of club hurling in the province. It has the makings of a classic.
Yesterday's game never once threatened to qualify for such a description. O'Loughlins were up 0-10 to 0-1 after the opening 20 minutes and from then on only a collapse of catastrophic proportions would have brought Rathnure back into contention.
As it turned out O'Loughlin Gaels backed off more than collapsed, thus allowing the Wexford club to depart on more respectable terms. But heavily beaten nonetheless.
As has been the case all season Nigel Skehan got straight down to business and ended up the main scoring provider for O'Loughlins. Seven of his 0-10 total came from placed balls but each one was as accurate as the next.
Two of his first-half points from play were particularly spectacular and an invitation to join the Kilkenny hurling panel must soon be in the post.
Martin Comerford did his part as well, adding three points to the total and generally showing for a lot of ball. In fact, all six starting forwards for O'Loughlins had scored by the end of the first half, and Colin Furlong's kicked effort on 27 minutes could quite easily have ended up in the net rather that between the posts.
In defence, too, the Kilkenny club were in a different class. Seán Dowling hardly put a foot wrong all afternoon and at full back Brian Hogan's contribution was monumental.
There were some slack moments towards the end and Andy Comerford has enjoyed better games but there was no obvious weakness for Rathnure to work on.
It all made for a forgettable experience for Rathnure. They scored 1-3 without reply in the last five minutes but by then they had been reduced to 14 men after Joe Mooney was sidelined for a second booking. And with constant reminders of Birr's fortunes in the other semi-final, one could forgive O'Loughlins for shifting their thoughts to the bigger contest that lies ahead.
For a while it seemed Rathnure weren't just struggling to get going, but mightn't get going at all. Martin Byrne opened their scoring after five minutes but it was to be a long, agonising 20 minutes before Paul Codd - obviously a targeted man - managed to get his first ball between the posts. He ended up with 1-4, the goal coming from a penalty, but, with his right knee heavily strapped, he was clearly operating with some restriction.
With the first half closing out, and O'Loughlins up 0-12 to 0-2, Rathnure suddenly found their feet. Codd added the first of his three frees and then converted the penalty after Brendan O'Leary was fouled by O'Loughlins goalkeeper Kevin Cleere.
The second half was a direct contrast to the opening period primarily because Rathnure suddenly found the self-belief that had been conspicuously absent from their first-half performance, and better still managed to ally that belief to a lot more heart.
O'Leary pointed twice, Codd finally found a little more accuracy, and a fine point from Nigel Higgins increased their total to 1-8 - just five short of O'Loughlins, and with 13 minutes left on the clock.
Still, it never seemed likely that they would get any closer. Skehan was still popping up with enough frequency to keep the Kilkenny nerves intact and a point from Brian Dowling five minutes from time capped a four-point streak that put them back in control, 0-20 to 1-8.
Shortly before that Mooney saw red having been booked twice in the second half. That incident did spark the late scoring spree from Rathnure, including a well taken goal from Higgins, but the three-point margin at the end couldn't disguise what was a comprehensive defeat.
O'Loughlins, then, move on to the Leinster final with confidence mounting, and a growing reputation to go with it.
O'LOUGHLIN GAELS: K Cleere; B Kelly, B Hogan, B Murphy; A O'Brien, A Comerford, S Dowling; S Cummins, A Geoghegan; N Skehan (0-10, seven frees), M Comerford (0-3), J Comerford (0-2); M Nolan (0-2), C Furlong (0-1), B Dowling (0-2). Subs: N Bergin for Cummins (28 mins, inj), J Lawlor for B Dowling (55 mins).
RATHNURE: J Morrissey; A O'Connell, S Somers, D Guiney; J Mooney, M O'Leary, R Guiney; P Codd (1-4, three frees), J O'Connor; T Hogan (0-1), M Byrne (0-2), N Higgins (1-1); B O'Leary (0-2), R Codd (0-1), S O'Neill. Subs: R Flynn for O'Neill (57 mins) Referee: P Ahern (Carlow)
