Tones come up trumps against Crusheen

*Daithí O’Connell scored a vital goal in the final moments of normal time. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill

Crusheen’s hopes of making it to the play off stage in this year’s senior hurling championship are hanging in the balance after they suffered a second successive defeat, while Wolfe Tones are within touching distance of the knockout stages.

Wolfe Tones 1-19
Crusheen 1-18
Venue: Dr Daly Park, Tulla

At sun splashed Dr. Daly Park in Tulla this Saturday evening Wolfe Tones made it two wins from two outings when they had the minimum margin to spare over Crusheen. The Shannon men are now in a strong position to qualify for the quarter-finals for the second successive campaign.

While the winners were first to score when Dylan Frawley pointed inside the first minute, Crusheen had slightly the better of matters in the first half and they led 0-7 to 0-5 at the end of the first quarter.

A goal from Gerry O’Grady helped them to hold that advantage to the interval when the score was 1-10 to 0-11, the Shannon men having landed the last four points of the half.

Crusheen scored first after the break but three in a row from Wolfe Tones had the sides level for the second of seven times in the tie.

It was 1-12 to 0-15 at the three quarter mark and they swapped points twice more before Éanna McMahon put Crusheen one to the good with five minutes remaining.

Substitute Daithi O’Connell then struck a vital blow for Wolfe Tones when he shot to the net for their goal and while Ross Hayes replied with a brace to level, O’Connell’s goal was to prove crucial.

John Guilfoyle put the winners in front but, again, Ross Hayes struck for Crusheen and a share of the spoils looked likely until Ben O’Gorman converted a free from the half way line to seal victory for Ray Diviney’s side with seven minutes of additional time played.

A long range effort from play from Hayes drifted just wide of the upright and with it went Crusheen’s last chance of taking a point from the game

Scorers Wolfe Tones: Billy Connors (0-5, 3f); Ben O’Gorman (0-03 2f), Cian O’Rourke (0-3); Daithi O’Connell (1-0); Dylan Frawley, Aron Shanagher (0-2) each; Dean Devanney, Aaron Cunningham, Daithi Lohan, John Gilfoyle (0-1) each.

Scorers Crusheen: Ross Hayes (0-13, 11 frees, 1 ‘65); Gerry O’Grady (1-0), Oisin O’Donnell (0-2), Eanna McMahon, Conor O’Donnell, Breffni Horner (0-1) each

Wolfe Tones
1: Pa Freeman

2: Liam Murphy
18: Jamie Roughan
4: Darragh Lohan

5: John Guilfoyle
6: Rory Hayes
7: Stephen Donnellan

8: Ben O’Gorman
9: Daithi Lohan

13: Aron Shanagher
11: Dylan Frawley
12: Aaron Cunningham

10: Cian O’Rourke
14: Billy Connors
15: Dean Devanney

Subs:
17: Kevin Mc Cafferty for Frawley (42)
21: Daithi O’Connell for O’Rourke (50)

Crusheen;
1: Donal Tuohy;

2: Tadhg Dean
3: Cian Dillon
4: Mark Perrill

6: Eanna McMahon
5: Diarmuid Mullins
23: Cathal Dillon

8: Cillein Mullins
9: Luke Hayes

10: Oisin O’Donnell
11: Jamie Fitzgibbon
7: Ross Hayes