Clonmel Commercials were punished by 'more clinical' St Finbarr's, says manager

“It was just misfortunate on the day, I couldn’t ask more of the players. They gave everything. In the last few minutes when we needed (to get) our hands on the ball, we couldn’t, and Finbarr’s were just more clinical, and that’s the level we’re at”.

That was the verdict of Clonmel Commercials manager Tommy Morrissey after his team were beaten by St Finbarr’s in last Saturday’s Munster Club Senior Football Championship quarter-final.

“We were very disappointed with the start of the second half. We had a lot of possession and kicked a few short, they needed to go over. Against a team like St Finbarr’s, they’re going to punish you if you don’t keep the scoreboard moving and that was played out, unfortunately”.

When Sean O’Connor got the goal midway through the second half, it looked like they were back on track?

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“We got momentum, but then we gave away a silly two-pointer opportunity, and (Steven) Sherlock is going to take those all day.

“We need to be smarter in those situations. At this level, when you go outside the county you’ll get punished with the new rules and a technicality like that, and the ref brings it forward, and he obviously goes for a two-pointer and he kicks it.

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“That’s unfortunately the level, and you get found out when you make small mistakes, and it’s small margins.

“That’s the difference, unfortunately.

“They (St Finbarr's) finished very strongly. Maybe it was an accumulation of a bit of fatigue setting in across the field, we put a huge amount into the game, and their big players came good especially coming towards injury time.

“They got on a lot of possession and they got momentum at the right time.

“It was hard for us, we couldn’t even get our hands on the ball, to be honest with you, in the last couple of minutes, and there was a bit of pandemonium in the attacking area. But unfortunately we didn’t get a score out of it.

“The players are unbelievable, we know how talented they are, and they showed they can compete with the best.

“Finbarr’s, I would think, can go deep into this competition, and maybe even into the next competition, so that’s the level these players capable of playing at.

“It’s just misfortune that it’s the end of another year, and there’s no guarantees that you get back again. That’s the biggest heartache, you need to take these chances. So be it.

“It was great to see people from Clonmel coming out to support us, and there was no question about playing it here in Clonmel.

“It was a great occasion, it was just misfortune that we couldn’t provide the result to back up the occasion.

“At the minute, I suppose you would be a bit tender over this.

“But when you sit down in the long winter and digest it all, you will be proud. We as a club will never ever take winning a county championship for granted. We take pride in winning it any year we can, so that’s something, we definitely won’t roll over the year and say that wasn’t enough.

“That’s the main competition, and when you get into this competition you re-set and try to go again".