This game was littered mistakes and loose play. The two teams accumulated 25 wides between them (split 13 to 12 in Waterford’s favour). 53 players received game time on the night and that didn't help the continuity either. Waterford put on sixteen substitutes in the second half and Tipp used seven. Derek McGrath fielded seven of last year’s championship side while Eamonn O’Shea selected five of Tipp’s 2014 regulars.
In a crowded setting, Tadhg De Burca, Shane Bennett, Jamie Barron and Brian O’Halloran availed of the opportunity ahead of the league starter in a fortnight. De Burca organised the defence and dealt with any loose deliveries. Jamie Barron made some dangerous runs throughout and was available to take the ball from the Waterford backs. O’Halloran looked busy as he drifted out from his assigned corner forward slot and Shane Bennett scored 1-2 on his introduction and ran direct lines. The Premier looked to Shane McGrath, Niall O’Meara and Gearoid Ryan who all finished on three points from play.
In a game that spilled over on a couple of occasions, Joe Larkin only intervened where necessary and allowed the play to run. The breeze was difficult to judge and affected the accuracy. Both sets of subs warmed up along the sideline throughout the first half. Waterford chose the dugout in front of the stand while Tipperary stayed on the opposite side of the field.
Michael Walsh and Michael Kearney acted as a two pronged attack with Brian O’Halloran in a free role. The Clashmore man got on plenty of ball and helped himself to two first half points. He opened the scoring into the road goal after 76 minutes. Seamus Callanan won possession ahead of Barry Coughlan and equalised. Callanan should have raised another white flag but the umpire incorrectly waved wide. After a ropey start, the Ballygunner defender recovered.
In an uneventful first quarter, three Jamie Barron frees pushed Waterford 0-4 to 0-1 in front. Tipp then worked the ball from one end to the other as Brendan Maher slipped in Shane McGrath. Tadhg De Burca was a dominant presence at centre back throughout the first half and made a neat one handed clearance down the stand side. He fired a massive point from inside his own half on 19 minutes to make it 0-5 to 0-2. Waterford missed nine point chances compared to seven for Tipp. Michael Walsh battled hard for possession at full forward but is still adjusting to the new role. Two long distance efforts from Kevin Moran helped Waterford into a five point advantage. Niall O’Meara grabbed a late double to leave the visitors three down at the interval (0-9 to 0-6).
All of the Waterford subs had a brief puck around before they dispersed into the dressing room. They rung the changes with ten fresh faces introduced. Adventurous corner back John Meagher was rewarded for his positivity with a point. On 38 minutes, Kevin Moran’s solo dash down the middle was cut out by Ronan Maher but Tipp failed to clear the loose ball. Cormac Curran pulled on the ground and the sliotar squirmed past Darragh Egan (1-9 to 0-7).
The Premier shot five points in a row to tie the game with fifteen minutes left (1-10 to 0-13). Gearoid Ryan made an impression off the bench with two points and McGrath, Callanan and O’Meara added one apiece. On 57 minutes, Shane Bennett lined up a free to the left of the posts but his effort deflected off the hurley of Stephen Maher and crept into the top corner. A persistent Tipp narrowed to one again through Ryan and Callanan. A totally revamped home side made the win safe with late points from Jake Dillon, Pa O’Donovan and Tommy Waring.
Scorers for Waterford: S Bennett 1-2 (1-0f); C Curran 1-0; J Barron 0-3 (3fs); B O’Halloran, K Moran 0-2 each; D Breathnach, T De Burca, P O’Donovan, J Dillon, T Waring 0-1 each.
Scorers for Tipperary: S Callanan 0-6 (5fs); G Ryan, S McGrath, N O’Meara 0-3 each; J Meagher, J McGrath 0-1 each.
Waterford: I O’Regan; S Fives, B Coughlan, N Connors; G O’Brien, T De Burca, P Walsh; J Barron, S O’Sullivan; K Moran, T Connors, D Breathnach; B O’Halloran, M Walsh, M Kearney.
Subs used: S Barry, C Curran, D Fives, M O’Neill, S McNulty, S Bennett, P Prendergast, T Devine, J Dillon, S Roche, M O’Brien, Philip Mahony, P O’Donovan, Pauric Mahony, J Morrissey, T Waring.
Tipperary: D Egan; C Barrett, P Curran, J Meagher; J O’Dwyer, P Maher, R Maher; S McGrath, T Stapleton; C Kenny, B Maher, N O’Meara; S Bourke, S Callanan, J Forde.
Subs used: Sean Maher, J McGrath, M Breen, Stephen Maher, M Butler, B Maher, G Ryan.
Referee: J Larkin (Cork)
No comments:
Post a Comment