Clarinbridge 2-18 O'Loughlin Gaels 0-12:Clarinbridge may have struggled early on but their class shone through and by the end of the game the Galway side were comfortable winners and crowned All-Ireland Club Hurling champions at Croke Park.
Clarinbridge were up against Kilkenny’s O'Loughlin Gaels and in the early stages they trailed by five points. However they eventually came into their own and by half time nothing separated the two sides, 1-07 to 1-10.
The western outfit’s first goal came just before half time when Mark Kerins found the net. Kerins also had a penalty in the game but Gaels goalkeeper Stephen Murphy pushed the effort over the bar.
If there was little to choose between the sides by the end of the first half then the second period was very one-sided and very much in Clarinbridge’s favour. Gaels also had substitute Seamie Cummins sent off late on.
Just after the 50 minute mark the winners found the net for a second time and with it Eoin Forde sealed the deal as Clarinbridge went on to lift the Tommy Moore Cup.
Teams:
O'Loughlin Gaels:S Murphy; B Kelly, A Kearns, E Kearns; A O'Brien, B Hogan, N Bergin; P Dowling, M Nolan; N McEvoy, M Bergin, A Geoghegan; B Dowling, M Comerford, D Loughnane
Clarinbridge:L Donoghue; C Forde, B Burke, P Callanan; J Cannon, D Forde, M Donoghue; B Daly, E Murphy; S Burke, M Kerins, S Forde; E Forde, A Kerins, P Coen