One of the most eagerly anticipated weekends in the local hurling calendar sees both the senior and intermediate semi-finals down for decision. And newly installed Galway manager Henry Shefflin is likely to be an interested onlooker as the race for the Tom Callanan Cup intensifies.
All-conquering St Thomas’ is the only one of last year’s quartet returning to this stage of the senior competition, and the club will have to negotiate the challenge of a Gort team very much on a mission on Sunday afternoon in Kenny Park, Athenry (throw-in 2pm ).
St Thomas’ tore through Kilconieron in the quarter final and appear to be arriving to the business end of the season with a squad in very good health. Kenneth Burke’s men have averaged a total of 28 points in their four wins to date, with Conor Cooney, Oisín Finnerty, Darragh Burke, James Regan, and Fintan Burke all in excellent form.
What chance then do the men of Gort have of stopping their quest for four-in-a-row?
Ranked as 5/2 underdogs with the bookmakers, it would seem very little, but Mattie Murphy is undoubtedly one of the most astute hurling brains in the county, and with Jeffrey Lynskey in his backroom team, they will leave no stone unturned.
Three relatively comfortable group victories in senior B were followed by gritty one-point wins over both Portumna and Cappataggle. Aidan Helebert was their star man in hitting 0-11 in the quarter-final, and he will need to be deadly accurate from placed balls if they are to stay in touch with St Thomas’.
Gort’s last title win was in 2014, but they have lost one semi-final and two finals since then, including the 2016 decider to St Thomas’. Their pedigree suggests they will have no fear of taking on St Thomas’, but it is hard to see past the defending champs.
The second semi-final takes place on Saturday afternoon at the same venue at 2pm, with Craughwell and Clarinbridge locking horns.
These clubs met at the same stage ten years ago when Clarinbridge were reigning All-Ireland club champions, but their dreams of a two in a row were dashed by Gort in the final. Since then they have been very much on the periphery of the title race, but with a crop of talented youngsters coming through for several years now, a breakthrough win was always seen as a case of when and not if.
Knockout wins over heavyweight sides like Loughrea and Tommy Larkins ensure they enter this tie as favourites. Barry Daly is Clarinbridge’s sole survivor from that semi-final win in 2011, while Niall Healy is still pulling the strings for Craughwell.
A one-point win over Castlegar secured Brian Hanley’s side a place in the last eight, where they proved far too strong for Kilnadeema-Leitrim. Tomas Monaghan, Adrian Clarke, and Healy are key components of Craughwell’s attacking unit as they aim to end a title drought that stretches back to 1930. Whether they will have enough to knock Clarinbridge out of their stride remains to be seen, with the prospect of extra time a probability.
