PREVIEWS AND PREDICTIONS: Semi-final showdowns in the IHC and Premier IHC

The business end of the Laois GAA hurling championships arrives this Saturday with four semi-finals down for decision across the Intermediate and Premier Intermediate grades.

With places in the respective finals up for grabs, there are some intriguing contests in store, including two games in Rathdowney and Trumera before a double-header of Premier Intermediate action gets underway in Laois Hire O’Moore Park.

Here’s a look at the four semi-finals and our predictions for who will make it through to county final day.

The first games on Saturday afternoon are the Laois Shopping Centre Intermediate Hurling Championship semi-finals.

Mountrath v The Harps

Mountrath v The Harps is the first game we’ll look at, with that one scheduled to throw in at 3.30pm in Rathdowney.

Mountrath have had the benefit of a five-week break since their last game after topping Group B with three wins from three in the group stages. Their last game was a solid win over Ballypickas, the team The Harps beat to set up Saturday’s encounter. Their other two wins came against Slieve Bloom, which was a nine-goal epic where Mountrath raised six green flags, and an opening-round seven-point win against neighbours Trumera.

Mountrath have been excellent so far in this year’s championship and are probably the current favourites to go all the way and reach the final for the second year in a row, following their loss to Clonad last year.

The Harps are what you would call battle-hardened after losing their opener to Borris-Kilcotton, which essentially put their championship on the line against Abbeyleix. They came back to win that game by a single point. Their big win over Clough/Ballacolla wasn’t enough for them to top Group A, with The Harps, Borris-Kilcotton and Abbeyleix all finishing on four points. Abbeyleix topped the group with a +15 points difference, The Harps were second on +6 and Borris-Kilcotton finished on +3.

I expect Mountrath to make it four wins from four in this year’s championship as they look to go one better than last year and make the step back up to the Premier Intermediate grade for the first time since Colt-Shanahoe relegated them in 2020.

Mountrath v The Harps is at 3.30pm in Rathdowney.

Prediction: Mountrath

Abbeyleix v Slieve Bloom

The other Intermediate semi-final takes place in Trumera between Group A winners Abbeyleix and Slieve Bloom.

Abbeyleix are like Mountrath in that they’ve had five weeks to prepare for this contest and got a good look at Slieve Bloom in their 13-point win over Borris-Kilcotton two weeks ago.

Abbeyleix only narrowly topped Group A after having a better scoring difference than both The Harps and Borris-Kilcotton. Their Group A campaign saw them finish with four points after two wins and a loss. They began with a 12-point win over the now-relegated Clough/Ballacolla, lost by a single point to The Harps and then finished the group stages with a four-point win against Borris-Kilcotton.

Slieve Bloom had to come through the quarter-finals to get to the last four after their second-placed finish in Group B. Their record is identical to Abbeyleix’s, with two wins and a loss. They beat Ballypickas in Round 1, lost to Mountrath in Round 2 and ended the group stages with a 14-point win over Trumera.

The Conroy brothers, Ben and Ciaran, have been excellent so far for Slieve Bloom. Ben has scored 5-11 in four games, with a goal in every game, and he got two in the quarter-final against Borris-Kilcotton. Ciaran has 30 points to his name, with 22 of those coming from placed balls, so Abbeyleix should be well aware of the damage the Conroy brothers can do on Saturday.

With that being said, I predict Slieve Bloom to progress in Saturday’s semi-final and, with my previous prediction, set up a novel clash between Mountrath and Slieve Bloom in this year’s Intermediate Hurling Championship final.

Abbeyleix v Slieve Bloom is at 3.30pm in Trumera.

Prediction: Slieve Bloom

There are two more semi-finals on Saturday with a double-header of Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship action in Laois Hire O’Moore Park.

Castletown v Colt-Shanahoe

First up at 5.15pm is the clash of Castletown and Colt-Shanahoe.

Castletown have coasted to the last four of the competition having finished top of Group B with three wins from three and a +63 points difference. They hammered Clough/Ballacolla and Rathdowney-Errill, scoring 13-49 in the process. Their other win was a 13-point victory over Saturday’s opponents, Colt-Shanahoe, in Round 2.

This championship feels similar to the 2024 championship when Borris-Kilcotton beat everyone well along the way to make the step back up to the senior grade at the first time of asking. I reckon it’ll be something similar this year too, as I don’t see anyone being able to stop the Castletown train from getting straight back to the senior championship at the first time of asking.

Colt-Shanahoe were in the same group as Castletown and, as mentioned, have already lost to them, 2-23 to 2-10. They finished third, with just one win from their three games. That win didn’t come until the last round of fixtures, where they played Rathdowney-Errill in a winner-takes-all clash. The winners progressed to the quarter-finals, while the losers contested the relegation final. Their other game in the group was a three-point loss to Clough/Ballacolla in Round 1.

That left Colt-Shanahoe facing into a quarter-final against last year’s IHC champions Clonad. Colt-Shanahoe were impressive in that game as they beat Clonad by four points to progress into the last four.

As good as Colt-Shanahoe were the last day, I don’t see them being able to overturn this Castletown side.

Castletown v Colt-Shanahoe is at 5.15pm on Saturday, September 19.

Prediction: Castletown

Camross v Clough/Ballacolla

The other semi-final is an intriguing clash between two second teams, Camross and Clough/Ballacolla.

Camross have been superb so far in the championship and topped Group A with ease, finishing with a points difference of +46, scoring 13-61, while picking up six points and three wins from three. They beat Mountmellick 5-22 to 2-16, Clonaslee St Manman’s 5-20 to 1-13 and Clonad 3-19 to 0-16.

Camross had the luxury of having five weeks off to prepare for Clough/Ballacolla, who came through a quarter-final against Mountmellick two weeks ago.

Clough/Ballacolla were excellent in Colt against Mountmellick with Kevin Hyland, Padraigh Brennan and CJ Brennan to the fore, to name just three. It was a superb team performance from start to finish. Clough/Ballacolla finished second in their group behind championship favourites Castletown.

Clough/Ballacolla won their first two games in the group, beating Colt-Shanahoe and Rathdowney-Errill. They did take a big beating at the hands of Castletown in Round 3, but luckily they regrouped and saw off Mountmellick to put them into Saturday’s quarter-final under the lights in Portlaoise.

This game will be a tight encounter, but I’m just going to edge it towards Camross due to their performances in the group stages.

Camross v Clough/Ballacolla is at 7pm on Saturday, September 19.

Prediction: Camross