Sarsfields 3-27

Killimordaly 1-18

John McIntyre at Duggan Park

ARE Sarsfields starting to stir at just the right time? Well, it certainly looks like it after this impressive demolition of Killimordaly in a one-sided preliminary senior hurling quarter-final which produced few fireworks at Duggan Park on Sunday.

It might be stretching things to suggest Sarsfields stumbled through their group campaign, but they hardly set the world alight either in reaching the knock-out stages and had some questions to answer ahead of this highly anticipated derby clash.

With a group win over Clarinbridge to their credit, Killimordaly appeared capable of serving it up to their neighbours, but instead were a bitter disappointment as their depressing run of results against Sarsfields continued. This proved a match in name only.

In the clubs’ group collision last year, Killimordaly fell to a crushing 3-17 to 0-12 defeat. The memory of that trimming should have left them highly charged for Sunday’s battle, but what transpired was even worse as they barely came out of the starting blocks.

Killimordaly didn’t manage a score from play until just after the midway juncture of the first half and were already a yawning 14 points behind by the 18th minute in a disastrous opening. Their defence was being taken apart and they had little penetration up front.

In contrast, there was a real bite and energy about Sarsfields. Having ridden their luck a little in the team’s previous outing against Ardrahan, Francis Madden’s charges were in no mood for messing about. Their play was of a much higher standard and being done at a much quicker tempo.

With Joseph Cooney lording it in the number six jersey and his brother Kevin showing his best form of the campaign at full forward – he finished with 2-10 – Sarsfields nearly held all the aces, with big contributions too from Kevin Hynes, Cathal Dillon, Niall Quinn, Ian Fox, Alex Connaire and Paddy MacCárthaigh.

Pictured: Sarsfields’ Ian Fox tries to break from Brian Concannon of Killimordaly during Sunday’s Senior Hurling Preliminary quarter-final at Duggan Park. Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy.