Provincial record back on the line for classy Na Piarsaigh

Na Piarsaigh earned their fifth Limerick senior hurling championship last Saturday but there is little time to celebrate as they begin the defence of their Munster Club Championship crown against Tipperary’s Clonoulty-Rossmore at the Gaelic Grounds on Sunday.

The Caherdavin outfit have never lost a game in the Munster Club Championship and have earned success in the competition each time that they have competed in it. Na Piarsaigh beat Ballygunner in last season’s decider and the sides could meet again if both come through their respective semi finals this coming Sunday.

Na Piarsaigh reached the Munster stages by virtue of a 2-20 to 3-10 win over Doon in the Limerick SHC final at the Gaelic Grounds thanks in no large part to goals from Adrian Breen and David Dempsey. Shane Dowling also chipped in with an impressive 0-13 scoring haul.

Doon tested Paul Beary’s side throughout the contest but Na Piarsaigh had answers to every question that was posed to them and eventually cruised to the nine point win. Following the game, Beary was full of praise for his players.

“It’s fantastic for the club. I couldn’t be prouder and the players inside the dressing room are the same. I have to give a huge amount of credit to the players. They are so self driven and so self motivated and it’s a privilege for us in the backroom team just to be associated with them.”

Pat Ryan gave Doon the perfect start with a goal inside 90 seconds but Na Piarsaigh responded immediately with the next three scores and that response was no shock to Beary, who intimated that they had spoken about that kind of setback all season long.

“Things won’t always go our way. and it’s how we respond to it. We spoke at half time about being a bit more clinical in what we do. We felt that we left some balls behind us that we got punished on and gave away some soft frees. We got off to a bad start in the second half as well but we composed ourselves. I think in the final third, once it opened up, we were able to exploit the spaces and our hugely talented forwards came to the fore.”

Na Piarsaigh face a Clonoulty-Rossmore side that bridged a 21 year wait for a Tipperary SHC title when they beat Eire Og Nenagh in their county final. Ironically, that Nenagh side were trained by former Na Piarsaigh goalkeeper John Fitzgerald and had Na Piarsiagh strength and conditioning coach, Darragh Droog, as part of their backroom team.