Scoileanna Thír Eoghain reach Casement Cup final

Danske Bank Casement Cup semi-final
Dungannon Hurling pitch
Tír Eoghain 3-12 Our Lady’s & St Patrick’s Knock 0-18
DESPITE holding a three goals’ lead at the break and not conceding a goal themselves, Scoileanna Thír Eoghain were left hanging on for victory in this Danske Bank Casement Cup semi-final yesterday at the Dungannon hurling pitch.
Knock, with a series of excellent points, reduced the 3-6 to 0-6 interval deficit to a single point at 3-9 to 0-17 with six minutes on the clock. However late points from Eoghan Ruadh pair Sean Paul McKernan and Cian Ferguson with a Ruairí Slane free sandwiched between saw the Tyrone combined team over the line and into a first ever Casement Cup final.
Knock will feel sore about the result, but the damage was done in a six minutes’ spell just before the break when they conceded three goals.
The first from lively corner forward Rory Weir opened a gap, but the result of the game probably hinged on the next two goals. Knock almost goaled at one end, but the sliotar was quickly worked to the other end of the pitch where Éire Óg’s Ruairí Slane fired low to the net and Weir made it 3-6 to 0-5 within 60 seconds.
Weir and Slane were dangerous throughout, but under pressure during the second half, it was players like Anthony Crossan, Jordan O’Reilly, Fearghal Donaghy and Ben Gormley that kept them afloat.
Knock died with their boots on; every one of them threw themselves whole-heartedly into the second half comeback with midfielders Matt McAreavey and Sean Hughes driving them forward in general play as well as firing over scores to close the gap.
Five unanswered points brought it back to a manageable 3-6 to 0-10 and then another five in a row after Weir had raised Tyrone’s only flag of the third quarter and suddenly it was a one-point game at 3-17 to 0-15.
Cian Ferguson and Rory Weir dug out two Tyrone points and at the other end Eoin Pucci and Sean Hughes replied before that last five minutes when Tyrone found the range on three occasions.
But the game was still in the balance in injury time when Ryan Haughey dived full-length to deny Liam Hogan an equalising goal.
Tír Eoghain will now face St Mary’s Magherafelt in next week’s final.
Tír Eoghain : Rory Weir 2-4, Ruairí Slane 1-3, 0-2 frees, Cian Ferguson 0-2, Ben Gormley 0-1, Fearghal Donaghy 0-1, SP McKernan 0-1.
Knock : Sean Hughes 0-7, 0-4 frees, Jack McGurk 0-3, Eoin Pucci 0-2, Liam Hogan 0-2, Matthew McAreavey 0-2, Declan McDonnell 0-1, Eoin McDermott 0-1.