PREVIEW | Na Piarsaigh and Ballygunner battle it out for a place in Munster Championship Final

Na Piarsaigh are the joint-second most successful side in Munster Club Championship history despite only winning their first title in 2011.

The stage is set for the Munster Club Championship semi-final as two hurling heavyweights Na Piarsaigh and Ballygunner prepare to do battle at the TUS Gaelic Grounds this Sunday.

A place in the final, which is set to be played on the 3rd of December, is at stake with the winner of the tie playing either Ballyea of Clare or St. Finbarr’s of Cork for the O’Neill Cup.

Ballygunner are the current holders of the title after their triumph earlier this year. The Waterford champions got the better of Limerick side Kilmallock in January’s final with the score ending 3-20 to 1-12. The Waterford outfit went on to claim a first ever All-Ireland title with Harry Ruddle’s goal securing a historic victory over Ballyhale Shamrocks.

And they’ve already made light work of their opening Munster Championship opponents, seeing off Kilraune MacDonaghs with a dominant 4-19 to 0-14 victory in the quarter-final a fortnight ago, despite being out of action for the previous two months.

Na Piarsaigh will be seeking their first Munster Final appearance since 2018 where they were beaten 2-14 to 2-8 by Sunday’s opponents. That was Ballygunner’s first Munster title success since 2001 and Na Piarsaigh’s first ever loss in the provincial series.

They are yet to get an opportunity for revenge on the 21-time Waterford champions with no Munster championship played in 2020, their previous Limerick success. The year previous to Ballygunner’s 2018 success, it was roles reversed with Na Piarsaigh beating the Waterford side in the final to claim their fourth Munster title in their history. It was Na Piarsaigh’s second final win over Ballygunner after their win at the same stage in 2015.

Both teams are yet to taste defeat in their respective county championships this season with Na Piarsaigh’s final group stage draw being the only blot on their record. The Caherdavin outfit had already secured their semi-final spot prior to the draw with Ahane. They’ve both enjoyed comprehensive paths to the Munster semi-final with Ballygunner also adding a Munster quarter-final win to their county championship triumph.

Paths to the Final

Na Piarsaigh (Limerick SHC)

• R1 – 2-20 : 1-18 v Doon (W)
• R2 – 1-19 : 1-18 v Kilmallock (W)
• R3 – 1-23 : 0-12 v Patrickswell (W)
• R4 – 2-20 : 0-13 v Adare (W) 
• R5 – 1-22 : 1-22 v Ahane (D)
• SF – 1-23 : 0-9 v South Liberties (W)
• Final – 3-23 : 2-15 v Kilmallock (W)

Ballygunner (Waterford SHC)

• R1 – 1-19 : 1-7 v Passage (W)
• R2 – 0-25 : 1-8 v De La Salle (W)
• QF – 1-27 : 1-15 v Fourmilewater (W)
• SF – 2-17 : 0-12 v Roanmore (W)
• Final – 2-11 : 0-8 v Mount Sion (W)

(Munster Club Championship)

• QF – 4-19 : 0-14 v Kilruane MacDonaghs (W)

Both teams would have enjoyed different periods of hurling with the Waterford SHC coming to a close in mid-September while Na Piarsaigh were playing up until the end of October, with seven county matches compared to Ballygunner’s five. However, Ballygunner were the more recent side to take to the field, their provincial win over Kilraune coming a week after Na Piarsaigh overcame Kilmallock in the Limerick SHC final.

Pauric Mahoney has been Ballygunner’s key scorer this season with the Waterford captain notching 2-40 in their SHC campaign and added another six points in their Munster quarter-final. Team captain Dessie Hutchinson has also been in scintillating form with 1-18 from play in five games.

Kevin Downes of Na Piarsaigh has been instrumental to his side’s success as he scored a combined 1-56 for the Limerick Champions including seven points in their final win over Kilmallock with the stalwart taking over the free taking duties. Adrian Breen has been shooting out the lights for Na Piarsaigh with 4-26 from just seven games. Peter Casey also hit seven from play in the county final.

It’s as tight as it can get between both teams according to the bookmakers, with Ballygunner being the narrow favourites with a price of 5/6 while Na Piarsaigh are 6/5 to win their first O’Neill Cup since 2017.

Sunday’s clash will undoubtedly provide a classic game of hurling with two teams brimming with quality going head-to-head, but only one can prevail.

Na Piarsaigh face Ballygunner at 3:15pm this Sunday at the TUS Gaelic Grounds in the Munster Club Championship semi-final.