*Graham Ball is the Clare minor hurling captain. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
CHAMPIONSHIP commences for Clare’s minor hurlers this Saturday, they are without one of seven survivors from last year’s panel with promising forward Paul Rodgers missing out.
Clare minor hurling manager Ger O’Connell and his backroom team are bracing themselves for a strong challenge from Tipperary when the teams clash in the Munster championship at Zimmer Biomet Páirc Cíosóg on Saturday at 2p.m.
While Ger wasn’t surprised with Waterford’s victory over the Premier outfit in last Saturday’s first round, he expects that Tipperary will be going all out for victory this week as they seek to get their challenge for progress back on track. “Last week’s result wasn’t a shock to us. Waterford won the under 15 A and they are a strong side”, the Clonlara clubman told The Clare Echo this week.
Ger is in his first season as Clare minor manager but he has worked with this group since under 14 level. “We have trialed eighty (80) players and we now have that down to thirty one (31). We wanted to make sure that we did not miss any player. We have played seven challenge games and we got to see all of the players”, according to Clare’s All-Ireland winning minor goalkeeper from 1997.
Graham Ball from St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield will captain the team and he is likely to play at midfield, Dara Kennedy from Ballyea is the vice captain and both were members of the St. Flannan’s Harty cup side this season and both were on last year’s minor team.
Scariff’s Paul Rodgers, a key member of the forward line will miss Saturday’s game due to a one match suspension as a result of being sent off in the team’s final outing in last season’s championship.
O’Callaghans Mills forwardf Liam Murphy is another survivor from last year’s team.
Ger’s backroom team includes coaches Damian O’Halloran (Inagh/Kilnamona), Barry Corbett (Clooney/Quin), Kevin McNamara (Kilmaley), Ryan Morris (Clonlara), Kevin Sammon who is the current Roscommon senior hurling manager, Paul Mannion (St. Joseph’s Doora/Barefield), Clare All-Ireland medal winner Podge Collins (Cratloe), Denise Lynch (Kilmaley) as goalkeeping coach and Barry O’Connell (Clonlara) on video analysis.
On Saturday week Clare will face Cork at Dr. Daly Park in Tulla in round 2 with two away games to Limerick and Waterford to follow. The top two teams at the end of the round robin series of games will contest the Munster final while the teams that finish third and fourth will go on to play in the All-Ireland series, meeting teams from Leinster.
Leon Talty (St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield), Conor Keogh (Sixmilebrige) and Cormac Barry (Meelick-Parteen) are the goalkeepers in the panel.
Amongst those likely to be in the backline on Saturday are Niall Doyle (Éire Óg), Jack O’Halloran (Sixmilebridge), Dara Kennedy (Ballyea) and Evan Crimmins (Newmarket-on-Fergus).
Team captain Graham Ball is expected to line out at midfield while Liam Murphy (O’Callaghans Mills) and Ian O’Brien (Cratloe) are expected to be in a forward line which will be without Rodgers.
Players from seventeen clubs make up the panel which includes; Ben and Leon Talty, Colm Daly and Darragh Ball (St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield) Cathal O’Doherty, Ian O’Brien (Cratloe), Conor Keogh, Jack O’Halloran, Zak Phelan (Sixmilebridge); Cormac Barry, Gavin Marshall (Meelick/Parteen), Cormac Gunning, James O’Donnell (Broadford), Dara Kennedy, Eoin O’Connor, Evan Cleary (Ballyea), Darragh McInerney, Evan Crimmins (Newmarket-on-Fergus), Harry Hodgins (Clonlara), Donnacha Mahon, Isaac Hassett (Clooney/Quin), Jake Gibbons (Whitegate), Jason Keane Hayes (Kilmaley), Darragh Murrihy, John Barry (Inagh/Kilnamona), Liam Murphy (O’Callaghans Mills), Luke Vaughan, Niall Doyle (Éire Óg), Nikoloi Belenko (Tulla), Paul Rodgers (Scarff), Rory Ralph (Clarecastle).
