AIB Munster Senior Club Football Championship Quarter-Final

Éire Óg 3-11 The Nire 0-5

By Eoin Brennan at Cusack Park

Clare champions Éire Óg returned to a second successive Munster Senior Club Football Championship Semi-Final following a devastating third quarter surge in Cusack Park, Ennis on Sunday afternoon.

In front of a paltry 695 attendance, a turgid 0-2 to 0-2 first half was quickly wiped from the memory on the restart as the Ennis side raided for a 3-5 unanswered blitz in just 12 minutes.

Seemingly burdened by the weight of expectation, a welcome first goal in the 33rd minute stemmed from towering midfielder Darren O’Neill who fielded a kick-out and played a one-two with Ikem Ugwueru before handpassing over the top for captain Gavin Cooney to fire an unstoppable shot to the roof of The Nire net.

It appeared a release for the home side who never looked back over their shoulders, with Mark McInerney (2) and Cooney quickly adding points before both marksmen would also grab a goal apiece in the space of 30 seconds near the turn of the final quarter.

Both stemmed from Waterford restarts as first Ikem Ugwueru intercepted a defensive pass before Mark McInerney started and finished a swift counter-attack with a flicked back post finish. Substitute David Reidy chased down the resulting kick-out and moved the ball through Mark McInerney before Gavin Cooney perfectly placed his shot into the bottom left corner of the net on their way to a 3-7 to 0-2 cushion.

The shellshocked visitors did finally break their 18 minute barren patch with a brace of Dermot Ryan frees. However, a second yellow card for Craig Guiry and an Aaron Fitzgerald goal-line save from Tom Barron proved detrimental to The Nire’s already faint hopes. Instead, the back-to-back Clare champions kicked the last four points to tee up a semi-final away showdown against Kerins O’Rahilly’s in a fortnight’s time.

Scorers for Éire Óg : Gavin Cooney (2-4, 1f); Mark McInerney (1-4, 1f, 1’45); Philip Talty (0-2); Darren O’Neill (0-1)

Scorers for The Nire: Dermot Ryan (0-3f); Kyle Cuddy, Aaron Ryan (0-1 each)

Éire Óg: Shane Daniels; Ronan Lanigan, Aaron Fitzgerald, Manus Doherty; Ciaran Russell, Aidan McGrath, Einne O’Connor; Darren O’Neill, David McNamara; Niall McMahon, Ikem Ugwueru, Oran Cahill; Mark McInerney, Gavin Cooney, Jarlath Collins. Subs: David Reidy for McMahon (40), Philip Talty for McInerney (47), Conor O’Halloran for Cahill (54), Liam Corry for Lanigan (58). Dean D’Auria for Ugwueru (60)

The Nire: Stephen Ryan; Jake Mulcahy, Tom Barron, Sean Boyce; Dermot Ryan, James McGrath, Fionn Hallinan; Sean Walsh, Tholom Guiry; Dylan Guiry, Aaron Ryan, Kyle Cuddy; Ciaran Walsh, Craig Guiry, Jamie Barron

Subs: Dave Meehan for Boyce (47)

Referee: John Ryan (Cork)