Sport

Hammersley nets huge haul

Waterford IT 1-15 Uni of Limerick 0-14: TIPPERARY’S TIMMY Hammersley hit 1-13 as Waterford IT, winners of four of the last seven…

Sat Mar 06 2010 - 00:00

Waterford IT 1-15 Uni of Limerick 0-14:TIPPERARY'S TIMMY Hammersley hit 1-13 as Waterford IT, winners of four of the last seven Fitzgibbon Cup titles, advanced to the final by completing a comeback victory at Dangan yesterday.

UL looked set to pull away when Shane Dooley hit his fifth point a minute after the restart to help them lead by 0-10 to 0-5 – but they lost their grip on the game.

Hammersley hit a point from play and landed two frees before a Fintan O’Leary delivery broke kindly for him and he duly fired home after 40 minutes to ensure a 1-8 to 0-10 lead.

UL’s response was poor and they failed to score from play in the second half. WIT were not blessed with great scoring power either as only substitute Brian O’Meara found the range to add to Hammersley’s personal haul.

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Offaly’s Dooley kept UL in touch with some excellent free-taking and the sides were deadlock at 1-10 to 0-13 with 12 minutes remaining in a game where WIT’s Noel Connors was on opposite sides to his brother, Tommy.

UL, runners-up last year, looked like they might sneak into the final when Dooley edged them in front with a point from a free from 70 yards. But WIT finished very strongly with Hammersley levelling with four minutes remaining. O’Meara struck his second point to give them a lead they never lost with Hammersley tacking on three more pointed frees to seal a place in today’s final.

UL prospered in the opening half when Séamus Hickey, Tommy Connors, Brian Carroll and Matthew Ruth found the target in addition to Dooley as they built up a 0-9 to 0-5 lead while Clonoulty Rossmore’s Hammersley kept WIT in touch.

WATERFORD IT: A Power; B Kenny, S Fives, N Connors; W Hutchinson, E Barrett, PJ Rowe; W O’Dwyer, M Molloy; F O’Leary, K Reade, R Good; T Hammersley (1-13, 0-11 frees), K Grehan, R McLoughney. Subs: R McCarthy for O’Dwyer (34 mins), B O’Meara (0-2) for Reade (36), B Johnson for Molloy (43), S Power for Good (55).

UNIVERSITY OF LIMERICK: T Lowry; P Stapleton, M Malone, C Fogarty; K Joyce, J Devane, S Hickey (0-1); M Walsh, N Ó Murchú; T Connors (0-1), R O’Dwyer, B Carroll (0-1); A Quinn (0-1), M Ruth (0-1), S Dooley (0-9, seven frees, one sideline). Subs: D Hayden for Joyce (48 mins), P Ó Murchú for Quinn (50, M Heffernan for N Ó Murchú (53 mins) D Burke for Ruth (55 mins).

Referee: T Ryan (Tipperary).