Waterford 1-15 Limerick 0-14 – Challenge Match At Fraher Field

A strong first half showing meant that Waterford always held the upper hand against Limerick on Saturday night as both sides had their last run out before the start of the league next weekend.

The standard never rose above mediocre on a piercing cold night for hurling but Waterford made better use of the stiff breeze in the opening half. Four points from Martin O’Neill and one courtesy of Michael Walsh left it 0-5 to 0-1 in favour of the home side after 20 minutes but it could have been so much more. Cathal McAllister awarded two penalties but neither resulted in a green flag. Martin O’Neill stepped up first to blaze his shot over the bar before Pauric Mahony’s effort produced a fine save from Nicky Quaid. Shane Casey made up for those misses when he drilled the sliotar to the bottom corner of the net on 23 minutes after shaking off a number of challenges to carve out the opportunity. Paul O’Brien’s industry at midfield was another notable feature of the first thirty five minutes as Waterford led 1-9 to 0-2 at the break.

The introduction of Shane Dowling and Kevin Downes brought much needed bite to the Limerick attack for the second half. With the two substitutes contributing eight points between them, the visitors reduced the arrears to two points. They couldn’t get any closer however as Waterford reignited in the last ten minutes. Substitute Gavin O’Brien struck over the last four points for Michael Ryan’s side to ensure victory.

On the winning side, Darragh Fives and Jamie Nagle stood out in defence while Paul O’Brien and Martin O’Neill impressed while on the field in the first half. Gavin O’Brien performed a neat cameo role for the last twenty minutes while Shane Casey will also be pleased with his endeavours. Richie McCarthy, Gavin O’Mahoney, Shane Dowling and Kevin Downes were best for Limerick.

Scorers:- Waterford: M O’Neill 0-5 (4f), G O’Brien 0-4 (2f), S Casey 1-1, Pauric Mahony 0-2 (1f), S Molumphy, M Walsh, T Ryan 0-1 each.
Limerick: S Dowling 0-6 (6f), K Downes, C Allis (1f), M Ryan 0-2 each, M Carmody, D O’Grady 0-1 each.

Waterford: I O’Regan, N Connors, D Fives, A Kearney, J Nagle, K Moran, S O’Sullivan, S Molumphy, P O’Brien, M Shanahan, M Walsh, Pauric Mahony, M O’Neill, S Prendergast, S Casey.

Subs: Philip Mahony for Connors, D Twomey for O’Brien, T Ryan for O’Neill, G O’Brien for Shanahan, E McGrath for Casey.

Limerick: N Quaid, S O’Neill, R McCarthy, T Condon, W McNamara, G O’Mahoney, P Browne, D O’Grady, J Ryan, T O’Brien, C Allis, G Mulcahy, M Carmody, N Moran, M Ryan.

Subs: K Downes for Mulcahy, S Dowling for O’Brien, S Walsh for O’Neill, N Maher for Moran.

Referee: Cathal McAllister