Flying start helped St Mary’s to Tipperary Under 15C hurling title

County Under 15C Hurling Final

St Mary's Clonmel 3-8 Ballinahinch/Templederry 1-8

There were great scenes of celebration in Bansha on Sunday week last after St Mary’s’ second under 15 team claimed county honours with a hard-fought win over Ballinahinch/Templederry in the final.

Early scores by Dylan Condon and Jack O’Dwyer and a super goal by Ciaran Kenny got the boys in white off to the perfect start, with Liam Peters and Seb Hopkins in defence keeping the rearguard safe at the other end. Joint captain, Oisin Mannion, as he has done all year, carried the fight to the opposition all throughout alongside Ben Murphy and a lively Jayden Waters.
At the break, a four-point lead felt justified, with perhaps some lingering regret about missed chances. Upon the resumption, Ballinahinch / Templederry stormed into the game and narrowed the gap back to two points, only for some long range scores by Jack O’Dwyer replying for the Clonmel side.

Next came what felt like the turning point of the game. Joseph Gartlan burst through a couple of challenges, raised the ball at speed and finished low and hard to the net. However the combo came back strongly again and a long range free went straight to the net to leave just three points between the sides once more.

The St Mary’s team and mentors after their recent County Under 15 C final win over Ballinahinch/Templederry

A great point fashioned by the two yellow helmets in the forward line ended with Jayden Waters feeding Dylan Condon for a well- taken score, with Ballinahinch/ Templederry responding in kind from a free.
The decisive score of the game came via a long clearance from the Mary’s defence and that man, Joseph Gartlan, collected the breaking ball and went for glory, stitching the ball into the top corner for the winning goal.

When the referee blew the whistle for the final time, a six- point difference in Mary’s favour saw the cup presented to Ben Murphy and Oisin Mannion, who gleefully accepted it on behalf of their jubilant teammates.
This was a great team performance, with Tom Dunphy and Eoin O’Gorman tenacious in the defence behind a strong performance from Darragh Prendergast.

Up front, Shane Hannon, Patrick Phelan and David Ryan all played vital roles while at midfield, the non-stop running and tackling from Shay Scully proved invaluable to the team.

Special mention must go to Alex Judge, who made a return to action after almost 18 months out of action due to injury; and to Conor Corcoran, who togged out with a broken finger.

Congratulations are extended to the entire squad and our mentors on a great victory and a fantastic season of games.