Kinnitty retain status as Seir Kieran finally run out of road and drop down

THERE will be no escape chute for Seir Kieran this year after Kinnitty condemned them to relegation in the Senior Hurling Championship at Birr on Sunday afternoon, winning convincingly and securing their own status entirely on merit.

Molloy Precast Senior Hurling Championship relegation final

Kinnitty 1-25

Seir Kieran 0-18

Kinnitty fully deserved their win here, looking like winning the whole way. They were the better team by a distance and also deserved to stay up on the balance of the year's performances as they reached a higher level than their near neighbours.

One of the great names of Offaly hurling, Seir Kieran are a long way removed from their past glories that saw them win senior titles in 1988, 1995, '96 and '98 but very much ran out of road here. Kilcormac-Killoughey's win in the senior “B” the last two years meant there was no relegation from the top flight but their defeat by Lusmagh in the semi-final on Sunday removed that safety net for the losers of this keenly fought tussle.

That is a good thing as it is not good to see the one club win senior and senior B year in, year out while relegation from senior is also a good thing. It might be no bad thing for Seir Kieran to take a step back in any event. They shipped a ferocious beating from Birr in their first game, rallied briefly after this but performed poorly here, never good enough to win it.

With the stakes so high, a very lively game emerged with Kinnitty having first use of the wind, They were 0-4 to 0-1 up after three minutes but Seir Kieran produced their best hurling of the half to lead by 0-5 to 0-4 after 11 minutes.

A Danny Flanagan goal, set up by Odhran Kealey, in the 11^th minute gave Kinnitty the lead and they were the better team from here to the interval. They took their chances well with Odhran Kealey and Conor Hardiman registering three points each while three points from the veteran Joe Bergin kept Seir Kieran ticking.

Kinnitty's 1-14 to 0-11 half time lead was a good one but the game was far from over, though a very big Seir Kieran display was needed to turn things around.

That big second half performance did not emerge from Seir Kieran as Kinnitty remained in the driving seat throughout. They were just that bit better in all sectors and did what they had to do by keeping the score board ticking over.

Kinnitty were 1-16 to 0-14 ahead after 36 minutes and closed the deal out very comfortably from here with Seir Kieran way too reliant on Luke Carey frees and never threatening the goals they had to get – their only hope in this regard was hopeful balls in and Kinnitty were able to crowd out the goalmouth to keep them at bay.

1-20 to 0-15 ahead after 13 minutes, points from Luke Carey (free) and Tom Dooley brought it down to six points but it was Kinnitty who found another gear. They got three points on the trot and that broke Seir Kieran who lost quite tamely in the wind up.

MATCH ANALYSIS

MAN OF THE MATCH

James Dempsey (Kinnitty): Two of Kinnitty's elder statesmen, Shane Kinsella and James Dempsey were pivotal to them staying up. Kinsella has been excellent all year for them at the heart of their defence and once again rose to the challenge here.

Former Offaly goalkeeper James Dempsey gets the nod on this occasion. He was deadly accurate from frees, missing just one in the second half, but he was a lot more influential than that. He won some of the frees that he pointed himself and also set up other scores.

Conor Hardiman, Cathal Robinson, Odhran Kealey and Danny Flanagan all scored well for Kinnitty and Seir Kieran were second best on the day.

THE SCORERS

Kinnitty: James Dempsey 0-10 (10f), Danny Flangan 1-2, Conor Hardiman 0-4, Cathal Robinson and Odhran Kealey 0-3 each, Shane Kinsella, Aodhan Kealey and Peadar Robinson 0-1 each.

Seir Kieran: Luke Carey 0-12 (10f), Joe Bergin 0-3, Tom Dooley, Kevin Dunne, Dermot Mooney 0-1 each.

THE TEAMS

KINNITTY: Niall Corrigan; Willie Molloy, Paddy Rigney, Paddy Dooley; Conor Mooney, Shane Kinsella, Brian Coughlan; Cathal Robinson, Danny Flanagan; Peadar Robinson, Conor Hardiman, Aodhan Kealey; Odhran Kealey, James Dempsey, James Hardiman. Subs – Jason Armstrong for Odhran Kealey (51m), Eoghan Callaghan for Peadar Robinson (54m), Christopher Leonard for Aodhan Kealey (64m),

SEIR KIERAN: Joseph Connors; Sean Coughlan, Pat Gilligan, Stephen Gilligan; Michael Gilligan, John Coughlan, Dermot Mooney; Darragh Guinan, Kieran Connors; Oisin Guinan, Kevin Dunne, Tom Dooley; Luke Carey, Joe Bergin, Adrian Hynes. Subs – Conor Dooley for Tom Dooley (52m), Sean Dooley for Oisin Guinan (54m),

Referee – Matthew Farrell, Tullamore.

REFEREE WATCH

A very efficient referee, Matthew Farrell had another good, solid game. There were a couple of dust ups near the end but he kept a tight control on things.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

Danny Flanagan's 11^th minute goal gave Kinnitty a 1-4 to 0-5 lead and they were able to push on from here.

VENUE WATCH

The Birr pitch was in great order and the fixtures were professionally hosted.

WHAT'S NEXT

That ends the year for both sides.

STATISTICS

Wides: Seir Kieran – 4 (2 in first half); Kinnitty - 7 (4 in first half).
Yellow cards: Seir Kieran – 2 (Darragh Guinan and Conor Dooley); Kinnitty – 3 (Willie Molloy, Shane Kinsella, Danny Flanagan).

Red cards: 0.