*Photograph: Burren Eye Photography
DRAMA APLENTY in a pulsating tie between Lissycasey and Ennistymon finished all square to ensure both sides progress to the quarter-finals of the TUS Clare SFC.
Lissycasey 1-21
Ennistymon 3-15
Venue: Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg, Ennis
The Clare Echo’s online coverage of the TUS Clare SFC is with thanks to The Shannon Springs Hotel.
With fifty two minutes played, Ennistymon went five points up and within the space of four minutes they trailed by four in a ten point swing but by the final whistle it was all square as Cillian Rouine landed a brace of two pointers to rescue a draw for the North Clare men.
At half time, the standings had Ennistymon in a relegation battle but they now prepare for a quarter-final after once again showing tremendous character. On top of this, they hoovered up breaking ball from Lissycasey’s restarts which was central to storming back into proceedings, they had been five down at the interval but their ability to clean up on breaks was pivotal to turning the tide.
Kilmihil’s defeat to Doonbeg means the West Clare Magpies meet St Joseph’s Miltown in the preliminary quarter-final with both Lissycasey and Ennistymon now getting to avail of a four-week window to prepare for the last eight.
This game swung on its head half a dozen times, Ennistymon started the better and led 0-3 0-1 by the ninth minute, Lissycasey settled thanks to some sublime shooting by Conor Finnucane, he kicked three two pointers in the second quarter to have them 0-12 0-7 in front. All from considerable distance, Finnucane’s scores lifted his side and certainly dented the momentum of his opponents. Joey Rouine was giving him little space and the duo were flashed yellow cards after a coming together following Finnucane’s second two pointer.
Joshua Guyler’s goal on forty minutes brought renewed life to Ennistymon, it was their tour de force Cillian Rouine who made the run and offloaded to Guyler to palm to the net. Rouine’s run through the Lissycasey spine was when they were at their most effective.
Seán Rouine with his second score of the evening put them in front, Guyler’s green flag had levelled matters until the general manager of Hustle Fitness in Ennis muscled Ennistymon ahead by the minimum on forty one minutes.
Daire Culligan and the lively Diarmuid McMahon responded to put Lissycasey back in front, Darragh Killeen making a fine run to tee up McMahon but their lead was wiped out when Cillian Rouine converted a 45 after Tiernan Hogan’s effort was blocked by Matt Shea.
Then Ennistymon hit arguably their most dominant spell and Cillian’s 45 was followed by Brendy Rouine converting a free after Lissycasey breached the three up rule, Joshua Vaughan kicked a two pointer after they won the break from the resulting kickout, Keelan Guyler produced a steady finish to split the posts and Tiernan Hogan added his second point from wing forward, working out at 0-6 without reply in a matter of five minutes and fifty seconds.
Then the game turned on its head. Darren Keane reacted quickest after Ennistymon threw bodies on the line with Brendy Rouine blocking an Aaron Griffin shot, Keane collected the ball and finished beyond Noel Sexton for their first goal.
Concentration dipped further when Ennistymon’s focus went searching for a breach which was correctly not given, Conor Finnucane exploited a gap in their defence and rifled to the top corner of the net.
Shane Griffin bagged their third goal within the space of 111 seconds as they went from five down to hold a four point lead with four minutes of normal time remaining.
While that margin may have seemed daunting twelve months ago, the introduction of the new rules have not only injected renewed life into the game but also a sense of hope and reality that such gaps can disappear with two kicks of the ball. And that is exactly what happened with Cillian Rouine landing two excellent two pointers to force a share of the spoils and send both teams through to the quarter-finals for the second year running.
Joshua Vaughan’s return to the fold was a big addition for Ennistymon. He caught and broke ball around the middle of the field, the absence of which was an influential factor in their three point loss to Kilmihil a fortnight ago, an outcome which thanks to this result was not a detrimental blow to their year.
Other positional switches by Declan Downes and his management also brought joy for Ennistymon. Seán Rouine’s move from centre to wing forward saw him go from their first player substituted two weeks ago to a player who picked up a fair share of breaks and helped to create scoring chances, while also finishing with a return of two scores from three shots.
Tiernan Hogan on the opposing wing had one of his better championship games for the North Clare men while their leader and captain Eoin Rouine nullified the threat of Connor Meaney at six and ensured there was no runs from deep to threaten their cause. Liam Cotter was a welcome return to their side offering physicality with Seán Driscoll making vital turnovers at big moments in the game. Brendy Rouine had one hundred percent accuracy from placed balls and similar to Vaughan helped them dominate the air in the second half, there’s still more in him which bodes well for Ennistymon supporters.
Cillian Rouine was of course their standout player, he cut open through the middle of the Lissycasey defence to make scoring opportunities but more importantly take them, he once again packed a punch in the dying stages of the game when he was needed most. Their second best player on the day was Ciaran McMahon who came up trumps in the battle with Aaron Griffin and limited one of the county’s top forwards to just a point from play.
On the Lissycasey front, Diarmuid McMahon was very lively and electricity radiated off him when he got in possession, that their youngest player was among their best is impressive for the Clare U20 but a sign that their leaders need to contribute more.
Thomas Collins’ kickouts worked very well in the first half for Lissycasey but they struggled to win their own restarts in the second half and as a result were on the backfoot and not supplying their danger men with possession.
Conor Finnucane kicked excellent scores in the opening half but they didn’t do enough to bring him or Aaron Griffin into the game when matters were going against them.
At wing forward, Darren Keane performed well, he made good decisions on the ball and kicked 1-1 over the course of the evening. Mikey O’Neill’s first game of championship football will be welcomed by last year’s Cusack Cup champions, he offers energy and an attack-minded approach when in possession which is to the benefit of a team with the quality that Lissycasey possess in their inside line.
Aiden Moloney’s side finish top of the group and are unbeaten, for a team mixed with predominantly youth and some experienced heads, the manner in which they are not falling to defeats in their last two games when their opponents have thrown everything at them is really going to stand to them.
Both teams will greatly benefit from the four week gap to the quarter-finals with a high rate of injuries and more time to perfect what their management teams are trying to implement.
Scorers Lissycasey: C Finnucane (1-7 3TP), D Keane (1-1), D McMahon (0-3), S Griffin (1-0), D Culligan (0-2), A Griffin (0-1), M Meaney (0-1)
Scorers Ennistymon: C Rouine (0-7 1TPF 1TP 1’45), J Guyler (1-2 1TP), B Rouine (0-4 3f), K Guyler (0-2), T Hogan (0-2), S Rouine (0-2), J Vaughan (0-2 1TP)
Lissycasey:
1: Thomas Collins
5: Daire Hill
3: Ryan Griffin
22: Michael Meaney
20: Mikey O’Neill
6: Connor Meaney
7: Darragh Killeen
8: Matt O’Shea
12: Shane Griffin
11: Daire Culligan
10: Luke Griffin
9: Darren Keane
15: Aaron Griffin
14: Diarmuid McMahon
13: Conor Finnucane
Subs:
4: Aaron Killeen for Meaney (51)
18: Niall Kelly for C Meaney (54)
Ennistymon:
1: Noel Sexton
2: Joey Rouine
4: Sean Driscoll
5: Ciaran McMahon
6: Liam Cotter
7: Cillian Rouine
3: Darragh Conneely
13: Brendy Rouine
10: Joshua Vaughan
19: Seán Rouine
12: Eoin Rouine
9: Tiernan Hogan
17: Keelan Guyler
14: Josh Guyler
22: Gearoid Barry
Subs:
8: Brian McNamara for Conneely (39)
27: Darren McNamara for Barry (46)
Referee: Fergal O’Brien (Broadford)
