Unbelievable sequence.
After a nail-biting draw at Croke Park last weekend, there was very little to separate Cuala and Na Piarsaigh in the All-Ireland hurling club final replay at O’Moore Park.
Cuala edged the first-half, going into the interval with a slender one-point advantage. It felt like anybody’s game but, soon after the restart, the Dublin club made it theirs.
Two goals in the space of a minute stunned Na Piarsaigh. First, Nicky Kenny intercepted a hand-pass before drilling low shot into the corner before Mark Schutte slammed another past Podge Kennedy to put Cuala very much in the ascendancy.
The game had come alive and the volume inside O’Moore Park certainly went up a few decibels. Na Piarsaigh don’t lie down that easily, though, and their resilience almost produced a wonder goal when Kevin Downes’ effort from distance cracked off the bar.
You can watch his shot below.
Cuala’s one-two punch was a serious test of Na Piarsaigh’s resolve but they responded admirably. Adrian Breen and Gordon Browne notched points before David Breen scored an excellent goal to set up a rousing finale.
Watch as David Breen scores a brilliant goal for Na Piarsaigh v Cuala pic.twitter.com/w1t6tUipCa
— The GAA (@officialgaa) March 24, 2018
Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be enough for the Limerick outfit as Cuala scored late on through two David Treacy frees and a point from Con O’Callaghan to run out 2-17 1-17 winners.
It was incredibly intense stuff, a super, absorbing game of hurling that had everyone puffing their cheeks out when the final whistle went.
In the end, Cuala were celebrating, but Na Piarsaigh more than played their part in these two games, offering up a couple of epic games of hurling. But one can only wonder what the outcome would have been had Downes’ effort found the top corner.
