CARLOW’S BIG HIT on Kilkenny at the weekend has drastically altered the layout of the Leinster SHC.
And with two rounds to go, nothing is certain about the top three spots or relegation.
Things are heating up in the Leinster hurling championship.
Who could have predicted that neither Kilkenny or Galway would be leading the table after three rounds? Or that Antrim would defeat Wexford? Or off the back of their loss to Antrim, that Wexford would then go on and beat Galway?
Surely even the most faithful of Carlow fans couldn’t have envisaged a draw against Kilkenny.
And yet, here we are. Dublin are holding the wheel, Kilkenny are in the sidecar, and Wexford and Galway are sharing third spot.
Dublin
Unbeaten after three games, Micheál Donoghue’s side must be satisfied with their showing so far. The manner of their draw against Wexford set the tone for their campaign, scoring two injury-time goals to come away from Wexford Park with a point.
They picked up their first win in the second round against Carlow, eventually squeezing through by five points. Dublin trailed by four points at half time and could have been in trouble had goalkeeper Seán Brennan not produced a save from Conor Kehoe. But they gradually started to take control in the second half as Conor Burke hit three points while Fergal Whitely’s goal on 59 minutes was the decisive score.
Dublin have raised six green flags from three games so far, putting them at the top of the goal-scoring charts alongside Kilkenny. Donal Burke, Paul Crummey and Brian Hayes all struck for the net against Antrim on Saturday, propelling their side into Leinster final territory with a 20-point victory over the Saffrons.
Donoghue said after that clinical performance that his side “had been threatening that for a while” and now they are closing in on a provincial final spot.
Kilkenny
Two draws and a win is a mixed bag for the defending champions. A 5-30 to 1-13 win over Antrim enabled them to open up their lungs in Round 1, but it came at a price as Eoin Murphy [concussion], Adrian Mullen [groin] and Eoin Cody [ankle] all picked up injuries.
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All three were missing for the trip to Galway but they still managed to come away with a draw. However, Kilkenny may well reflect on that game as two points lost. They conceded two goals in either half at a time when they were controlling the tie, the second of which was a gift from replacement goalkeeper Aidan Tallis. He was unable to control a long ball in from Conor Cooney, batting the ball loosely into the path of Brian Concannon whose volley cut the difference from five points to three. Kilkenny also squandered a two-point lead in injury time as their last act of a thrilling draw.
Murphy returned for the Carlow game on Sunday but his presence wasn’t enough to prevent his side being contained to a shock draw. Once again, they fumbled their grip on a lead as an early Owen Wall goal helped them into a five-point advantage at the interval only for Conor Kehoe to goal from a Marty Kavanagh rebound in the 60th minute to leave just one between the sides. Similar to the Galway game, TJ Reid put Kilkenny two points ahead but slipped again as James Doyle and a late Marty Kavanagh free gave Carlow a famous draw.
Cody is expected to miss up to six weeks due to ankle ligament damage. His absence is causing major difficulties for Derek Lyng’s side while Mullen is also a loss as both a midfield or attacking option. Parnell Park will not be an easy place to go this weekend with the form that Dublin are in.
Dublin's Danny Sutcliffe. Ben Brady / INPHO
Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO
Wexford
There were hints of their poor 2023 form in the early stages of the competition, opening with a draw and a defeat to put considerable doubt on their championship hopes. They were six points clear heading into injury time against Dublin in Round 1, but their wings were clipped by two injury-time goals. Antrim slapped them with a shock defeat in their second outing but Wexford have since been revitalised by that eight-point win over Galway.
One of the issues surrounding Wexford has been their over-reliance on Lee Chin. The Faythe Harriers star had clocked up a colossal 3-23 in the Dublin and Antrim games, but while he was fizzing, there wasn’t enough product coming from the remaining Wexford forwards. The other five starting attackers scored a combined 0-5 against Dublin and 0-9 in the Antrim defeat.
But against Galway, Wexford’s scoring unit finally clicked. Rory O’Connor finished with 1-6 from play while Cian Byrne and Conor McDonald swung over two points each. It was also Wexford’s first win over Galway in the Leinster championship after five defeats and two draws since the Tribesmen were added to the province in 2009. A greater spread of scorers, combined with the return of Liam Ryan, puts Wexford in decent nick for the final strides.
Carlow will be a tricky prospect while Kilkenny await in the final round, although they did defeat the Cats in the corresponding fixture last year.
Galway
The Westerners looked to be in decent condition after a win over Carlow and a draw against rivals Kilkenny, but that loss to Wexford has hurt Henry Shefflin’s gang. They’re still in the hunt for a return to the Leinster final but they have a long trip up to Antrim this weekend, before welcoming Dublin who they have a mixed record against.
One draw, two wins, and two losses sum up their relationship in the history of the round-robin series. Dublin were also the team who dumped Galway out of the All-Ireland championship in 2019, which will leave them feeling uneasy about that game.
A win over Carlow got them off the mark, although they did concede 2-14 which a disappointed Shefflin labelled as “not good” in the aftermath. But given the shock they went on to inflict on Kilkenny, perhaps this was a signal of Carlow’s intent in this competition. Galway showed great resilience to earn a draw against Kilkenny although they would surely have been targeting a win at home against a Cats team that was missing three of their key players.
Johnny Glynn made his first Galway appearance in five years that day, coming close to stealing a goal which required a reflex save from Aidan Tallis. He was also introduced against Wexford but was unable to cause a stir as Galway failed to make use of the extra man in the final 20 minutes when Cian Byrne was sent off.
Antrim
They have the worst scoring difference of -50 but a stunning win over Wexford is the big highlight for Darren Gleeson’s team. That result was especially pleasing for them having just received a 32-point pummeling from Kilkenny the week before.
Antrim were competitive throughout the tie, trailing by just three points at half-time after conceding two goals in the first half. They were seven points in arrears in the second half but Antrim struck back for two goals through Niall McKenna and Seán Elliott in a three-minute spell. There was also a sublime Gerard Walsh sideline to put them in front in the 71st minute before Conal Cunning put the seal on it.
Dublin brought them back down to earth last week with a 20-point win, although there were just four points between the sides in the 40th minute after a Nigel Elliott score.
That Wexford result keeps them alive in the competition ahead of a difficult home assignment against Galway. Carlow in Corrigan Park on 26 May could end up being a relegation shootout.
James McNaughton on the ball for Antrim. Leah Scholes / INPHO
Leah Scholes / INPHO / INPHO
Carlow
And so, to the disruptors in Leinster. A famous draw against Kilkenny finally put a point on the board for Carlow to blow the competition wide open. It’s the second such explosion after Antrim’s win over Wexford, to ensure every team still has something to play for coming into the final two rounds.
The winners of last year’s Joe McDonagh lost their first two games to Galway and Dublin, but not by much. They kept the margin to just five points against the Dubs and they were just four points off Galway after a Conor Kehoe goal in the 51st minute. Galway needed to spring captain Conor Whelan from the bench to steer them home over the last 20 minutes, but Carlow had proved they could muscle it with last year’s Leinster finalists.
They were even leading by four points against Dublin and kept up the challenge until Fergal Whitely’s goal before the hour mark. The draw against Kilkenny was certainly a shock but there were traces of a big performance all over their form leading into the game.
Wexford are calling to Netwatch Cullen Park this weekend where they will hope to stage another shock before concluding their Leinster championship away to Antrim.
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After Carlow's big hit on Kilkenny, Leinster SHC race is ramping up for last two rounds
CARLOW’S BIG HIT on Kilkenny at the weekend has drastically altered the layout of the Leinster SHC.
And with two rounds to go, nothing is certain about the top three spots or relegation.
Who could have predicted that neither Kilkenny or Galway would be leading the table after three rounds? Or that Antrim would defeat Wexford? Or off the back of their loss to Antrim, that Wexford would then go on and beat Galway?
Surely even the most faithful of Carlow fans couldn’t have envisaged a draw against Kilkenny.
And yet, here we are. Dublin are holding the wheel, Kilkenny are in the sidecar, and Wexford and Galway are sharing third spot.
Dublin
Unbeaten after three games, Micheál Donoghue’s side must be satisfied with their showing so far. The manner of their draw against Wexford set the tone for their campaign, scoring two injury-time goals to come away from Wexford Park with a point.
They picked up their first win in the second round against Carlow, eventually squeezing through by five points. Dublin trailed by four points at half time and could have been in trouble had goalkeeper Seán Brennan not produced a save from Conor Kehoe. But they gradually started to take control in the second half as Conor Burke hit three points while Fergal Whitely’s goal on 59 minutes was the decisive score.
Dublin have raised six green flags from three games so far, putting them at the top of the goal-scoring charts alongside Kilkenny. Donal Burke, Paul Crummey and Brian Hayes all struck for the net against Antrim on Saturday, propelling their side into Leinster final territory with a 20-point victory over the Saffrons.
Donoghue said after that clinical performance that his side “had been threatening that for a while” and now they are closing in on a provincial final spot.
Kilkenny
Two draws and a win is a mixed bag for the defending champions. A 5-30 to 1-13 win over Antrim enabled them to open up their lungs in Round 1, but it came at a price as Eoin Murphy [concussion], Adrian Mullen [groin] and Eoin Cody [ankle] all picked up injuries.
All three were missing for the trip to Galway but they still managed to come away with a draw. However, Kilkenny may well reflect on that game as two points lost. They conceded two goals in either half at a time when they were controlling the tie, the second of which was a gift from replacement goalkeeper Aidan Tallis. He was unable to control a long ball in from Conor Cooney, batting the ball loosely into the path of Brian Concannon whose volley cut the difference from five points to three. Kilkenny also squandered a two-point lead in injury time as their last act of a thrilling draw.
Murphy returned for the Carlow game on Sunday but his presence wasn’t enough to prevent his side being contained to a shock draw. Once again, they fumbled their grip on a lead as an early Owen Wall goal helped them into a five-point advantage at the interval only for Conor Kehoe to goal from a Marty Kavanagh rebound in the 60th minute to leave just one between the sides. Similar to the Galway game, TJ Reid put Kilkenny two points ahead but slipped again as James Doyle and a late Marty Kavanagh free gave Carlow a famous draw.
Cody is expected to miss up to six weeks due to ankle ligament damage. His absence is causing major difficulties for Derek Lyng’s side while Mullen is also a loss as both a midfield or attacking option. Parnell Park will not be an easy place to go this weekend with the form that Dublin are in.
Wexford
There were hints of their poor 2023 form in the early stages of the competition, opening with a draw and a defeat to put considerable doubt on their championship hopes. They were six points clear heading into injury time against Dublin in Round 1, but their wings were clipped by two injury-time goals. Antrim slapped them with a shock defeat in their second outing but Wexford have since been revitalised by that eight-point win over Galway.
One of the issues surrounding Wexford has been their over-reliance on Lee Chin. The Faythe Harriers star had clocked up a colossal 3-23 in the Dublin and Antrim games, but while he was fizzing, there wasn’t enough product coming from the remaining Wexford forwards. The other five starting attackers scored a combined 0-5 against Dublin and 0-9 in the Antrim defeat.
But against Galway, Wexford’s scoring unit finally clicked. Rory O’Connor finished with 1-6 from play while Cian Byrne and Conor McDonald swung over two points each. It was also Wexford’s first win over Galway in the Leinster championship after five defeats and two draws since the Tribesmen were added to the province in 2009. A greater spread of scorers, combined with the return of Liam Ryan, puts Wexford in decent nick for the final strides.
Carlow will be a tricky prospect while Kilkenny await in the final round, although they did defeat the Cats in the corresponding fixture last year.
Galway
The Westerners looked to be in decent condition after a win over Carlow and a draw against rivals Kilkenny, but that loss to Wexford has hurt Henry Shefflin’s gang. They’re still in the hunt for a return to the Leinster final but they have a long trip up to Antrim this weekend, before welcoming Dublin who they have a mixed record against.
One draw, two wins, and two losses sum up their relationship in the history of the round-robin series. Dublin were also the team who dumped Galway out of the All-Ireland championship in 2019, which will leave them feeling uneasy about that game.
A win over Carlow got them off the mark, although they did concede 2-14 which a disappointed Shefflin labelled as “not good” in the aftermath. But given the shock they went on to inflict on Kilkenny, perhaps this was a signal of Carlow’s intent in this competition. Galway showed great resilience to earn a draw against Kilkenny although they would surely have been targeting a win at home against a Cats team that was missing three of their key players.
Johnny Glynn made his first Galway appearance in five years that day, coming close to stealing a goal which required a reflex save from Aidan Tallis. He was also introduced against Wexford but was unable to cause a stir as Galway failed to make use of the extra man in the final 20 minutes when Cian Byrne was sent off.
Antrim
They have the worst scoring difference of -50 but a stunning win over Wexford is the big highlight for Darren Gleeson’s team. That result was especially pleasing for them having just received a 32-point pummeling from Kilkenny the week before.
Antrim were competitive throughout the tie, trailing by just three points at half-time after conceding two goals in the first half. They were seven points in arrears in the second half but Antrim struck back for two goals through Niall McKenna and Seán Elliott in a three-minute spell. There was also a sublime Gerard Walsh sideline to put them in front in the 71st minute before Conal Cunning put the seal on it.
Dublin brought them back down to earth last week with a 20-point win, although there were just four points between the sides in the 40th minute after a Nigel Elliott score.
That Wexford result keeps them alive in the competition ahead of a difficult home assignment against Galway. Carlow in Corrigan Park on 26 May could end up being a relegation shootout.
Carlow
And so, to the disruptors in Leinster. A famous draw against Kilkenny finally put a point on the board for Carlow to blow the competition wide open. It’s the second such explosion after Antrim’s win over Wexford, to ensure every team still has something to play for coming into the final two rounds.
The winners of last year’s Joe McDonagh lost their first two games to Galway and Dublin, but not by much. They kept the margin to just five points against the Dubs and they were just four points off Galway after a Conor Kehoe goal in the 51st minute. Galway needed to spring captain Conor Whelan from the bench to steer them home over the last 20 minutes, but Carlow had proved they could muscle it with last year’s Leinster finalists.
They were even leading by four points against Dublin and kept up the challenge until Fergal Whitely’s goal before the hour mark. The draw against Kilkenny was certainly a shock but there were traces of a big performance all over their form leading into the game.
Wexford are calling to Netwatch Cullen Park this weekend where they will hope to stage another shock before concluding their Leinster championship away to Antrim.
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examination Leinster SHC