North Tipperary senior hurling champions Nenagh Eire Og get their season back on track

Nenagh Eire Og 5-15 JK Brackens 1-15

This was a very satisfying win for Nenagh Eire Og in Dolla on Saturday afternoon.

Coming off the back of the round one defeat by Drom-Inch, getting back in the winning vein in the FBD Insurance County Senior Hurling Championship was the target for the north champions, but doing it without Jake Morris and Tommy Heffernan was a statement in itself.

Few clubs would be able to win without two key players, particularly in the scoring department, and yet Nenagh still managed to conjure up 5-15 in difficult conditions, with a heavy squall impacting proceedings in the first half.

The ability to win without key players says a lot about the mentality in this Nenagh squad at the moment, where it is about the collective and no matter who is missing, the machine keeps on functioning pretty well.

If and when Nenagh do get back to full strength, they are building depth to their panel, which is added to with Mark O’Farrell starting at corner back and he was strong in his defending and use of the ball.

His inclusion paved the way for Sam O’Farrell to move to midfield and the 2022 All-Ireland winning minor captain was outstanding in a new role, dove-tailing effectively with Michael Heffernan, who top-scored with 1-10, 1-1 from play.

For a player in his first year of adult hurling, O’Farrell was assured in everything he did from making tackles, linking the play and he also chipped in with two points from play.

More noted as a back, Adam Carey has added real physical presence at full forward and helps make the ball stick and he chipped in with one of his team’s five goals in the game.

Ben West and Cian Crowley both came off the bench and added fresh legs, which helped Nenagh pull away from a demoralised JK Brackens side late in the game.

This was Brackens’ second defeat and they are now heading for a relegation playoff, a disappointing campaign for the Templemore/Clonmore side that would have been hoping for much more.

One of the few high points in the game was the return of Paddy Cadell as a second half substitute, his first action after six months out with a knee ligament injury, and his return is timely if they are to at least preserve their senior status for next year.

The early stages were evenly contested, with the first six points shared before Brackens went two clear, with Lyndon Fairbrother accurate from placed balls.

Nenagh responded to level by the quarter mark and even with the breeze behind them, they were struggling to build up a decent advantage.

Michael Heffernan’s radar was off from frees in the early going but his 21st minute goal was the key moment in the game, as he ran onto a breaking ball and finished clinically.

He added two frees to stretch the lead to five as Brackens’ indiscipline was hurting them, with four players on yellow cards by half-time as they trailed 1-9 to 0-6.

Six points wasn’t a massive deficit in the conditions, but their task became even harder two minutes after the restart when Adam Carey was held in the square and Nenagh were awarded a penalty, which Barry Heffernan slotted away.

To their credit, Brackens responded well and wiped out that goal within two minutes, the points coming from frees from Fairbrother as they forced the Nenagh Eire Og defence to concede frees.

However, their momentum was stalled when Adam Carey blasted to the roof of the net in the 37th minute but it was immediately cancelled out by Lyndon Fairbrother and when he added a free, the scoreline was 3-9 to 1-10, and it was game on.

It was almost down to two on forty minutes, but Eanna McBride had a goal ruled out for a square ball.

Nenagh were on the back foot, but Sean Phelan got a settling score a minute later, and from where they kept the scoreboard ticking over with O’Farrell, Michael Heffernan and sub Ben West responding to Fairbrother frees.

The margin was at seven on 54 minutes when Nenagh sealed the game, with Brackens ‘keeper Jack Kennedy fumbling a high ball and Philip Hickey fired to the net from the breaking ball.

Substitute Cian Crowley finishing off a flowing move for Nenagh’s fifth goal in added time.

Nenagh Eire Og: Dermot McTiernan; Conor Ryan, Mark Carey, Mark O’Farrell; James Mackey, Paddy Murphy, Adam Healy; Sam O’Farrell (0-2), Michael Heffernan (1-10, 0-9 frees); Conor Hennessy, Barry Heffernan (1-0 penalty), Josh Keller; Sean Phelan (0-1), Adam Carey (1-0), Philip Hickey (1-1).

Subs: Ben West (0-1) for Healy (43); Cian Crowley (1-0) for B Heffernan (56).

JK Brackens: Jack Kennedy; Luke Ormond, Tom Murphy, Martin Delaney; Eanna McBride; Cathal Scully, Jack Bergin, Jordan Moloney; Dean McEnroe (0-1), Neil Quinlan; Conor Cadell, Shane Doyle (0-1), David O’Shea (0-2); Andrew Ormond (0-1), Lydon Fairbrother (1-10, 0-9 frees, 0-1 65).

Subs: Jamie Bergin for Quinlan (temporary 18-22); Paddy Cadell for Scully (43); Jamie Bergin for McEnroe (50); Jack Nevin for Moloney (57).

Referee: Kevin Jordan (Thurles Gaels).