“It’s unbelievable” | Eoin Brislane and Donnacha O’Dalaigh celebrate Monaleen’s All-Ireland victory

The City outfit join Na Piarsaigh and Blackrock as the only Limerick sides to win an All-Ireland hurling title.

It was far from straightforward but Monaleen became just the third Limerick team in history to claim an All-Ireland title when they beat Tooreen in the Intermediate decider on Saturday evening.

The 1-17 to 1-15 scoreline reflects an epic encounter where they Mayo side led for the majority of the contest. But powered by 0-5 from man of the match Donnacha O’Dalaigh in the second half, the Limerick side eventually pulled clear before holding on for a famous victory.

As pre-match favourites, the City side struggled to gain a foothold in the clash with the Mayo men hitting the ground running. But in a true testament to their character, Monaleen didn’t drop the head with manager Eoin Brislane praising his outfit.

“It was our toughest challenge all year, they were outstanding, full credit to them. They brought everything.

“They had us at sixes and sevens. We regrouped at half-time, made a couple of adjustments and went man for man, isolated this man (O’Dalaiagh) on his own and the big thing was to get the ball delivered in a bit deeper.

“We knew if we could stay going, the opportunities would come. In fairness, to a man, our guys stayed at it when there were times at about 40 minutes where we could have dropped the head a little but they didn’t and that’s a characteristic of the team.”

Tooreen landed the first four scores of the evening with Ed Doyle stemming the tide in the 12th minute with a well taken effort. Monaleen found themselves level after 20 minutes when semi-final goalscorer Dan Power once more found the net.

But Tooreen had the answers to retake the advantage heading into the interval. And they maintained this lead for the third quarter but slowly Monaleen grew into the contest, led by the irresistible O’Dalaigh who almost single handily turned the tide.

His second half scores were enough to see Monaleen over the line with Brislane hinting at a shift in style and also commending his players for their accuracy in front of goal with the game in the melting pot.

“We knew if we stuck to our process, worked the ball out and then gave it inside then there would be opportunities there. But it’s easy say it, but it’s different delivering it. The pressure was on, we were behind all day but great credit to the boys, Donnacha, Mark and all of them, every shot was a pressure shot and it was great.”

But more than any other, it was O’Dalaigh that altered the outcome of the contest with the Limerick U20 star hitting new heights in the closing stages of the game.

Each score was not only more important than the previous but also more impressive with the Monaleen man the difference at the end as he described the feeling of becoming an All-Ireland winner after falling at the final hurdle with Limerick last May.

“It’s unbelievable, it’s an absolutely fantastic feeling. Playing with these boys you grew up with, training twice, three times a week, playing matches and going to war with them and having these sweet victories with them in Croke Park, the best pitch in Ireland, it’s just an unbelievable feeling, I’m ecstatic about it, it’s class yeah!”

Saturday’s epic brings to an end a lengthy season for Monaleen who can look forward to the Limerick SHC where they will enter as All-Ireland champions.

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