Turloughmore 5-16

Oranmore-Maree 0-21

WHEN a team has been lurking around the Tom Callanan Cup for half a dozen years without getting their hands on the coveted silverware, the options narrow.

Either that series of near misses break their spirit or the players’ resolve and hunger only hardens. In Turloughmore’s case, their level of intent has clearly increased judging by the events in Athenry on Saturday.

In what was surely the match of the senior hurling championship so far in terms of quality and intensity, if Turloughmore had a soft centre it would have been exposed in this memorable quarter-final fought out before a decent crowd.

Eight points down barely 20 minutes into a fast-paced battle and still 0-18 to 2-8 behind in the third quarter, Turloughmore would being asked serious questions by an emerging and talented Oranmore-Maree outfit, but they didn’t blink or panic.

Three late goals – one of them probably avoidable from the vanquished’s perspective – flipped the match on its head and saw Turloughmore edge a significant step closer to the club’s first county title in 40 years.

Given that the teams were level after 51 minutes and both compiled 21 scores, it’s hard to credit that Oranmore-Maree ended up losing by ten points. It was rough justice on them, especially considering how close Diarmuid Hanniffy twice came to finding the net down the home stretch.

Firstly, he was denied by a post from close range before Turlough keeper Darragh Walsh produced a miracle save to deny the Oranmore-Maree wing forward. It was a never a ten-point game, but this was still a harsh lesson for a team which gave an exhibition of accurate shooting for much of the opening half.

Containing no shortage of quality young stickmen and carrying the fight to their seasoned opponents from the off, Oranmore-Maree were arguably only two or three more scores away from leaving Turloughmore in a tailspin altogether.

Rory Burke, Ruben Davitt, the long serving Niall Burke, Colm Burke, Ryan O’Donnell, Conor Butler, and defender Patrick Burke accounted for Oranmore-Maree’s 11-point total after 19 minutes. It was barnstorming stuff, and the pre-match favourites ought to have been feeling the pressure

Yet, the Turloughmore men’s body language didn’t betray that much insecurity. They have been a long time around and are not prone to being easily rattled, but their sideline will have been grateful for Cillian Whelan’s smartly finished goal after being put through by Conor Walsh in the 23rd minute.

Pictured: Turloughmore’s Sean O’Hanlon picking off a first half point against Thomas Blake of Oranmore-Maree during Saturday’s Senior A hurling quarter-final at Kenny Park. Photos: David Cunniffe.