TSDL First Division Shield Final, 7th May Match Report
Cahir Park 1 – 3 Clonmel Town
A masterclass in finishing by Clonmel Town’s Dylan Guiry was the difference on Sunday when the Clonmel side ended The Park’s hope of a seasonal double, in front of a large crowd in Cahir. The game was in its infancy when Guiry showed what a smart and quick player he is, latching onto a long clearance which deceived the home defence, and beating the keeper to poke the ball under him, and into the net in just the fifth minute of the final. The game settled afterwards with Cahir beginning to enjoy more of the possession, but they were undone a second time in the nineteenth minute in the same fashion as the first when a kick out from their keeper carried on the wind and left the home keeper in a chase for the ball with Town’s Sam Dwyer. The forward got to the ball first and the momentum of the net minder caused him to commit a foul, which the referee had no hesitation pointing to the spot for. Guiry stepped up and doubled his and his sides tally, leaving Town two goals to the good. Cahir thought they had found a way back into the tie minutes later, but saw their best chance to that point headed off the line. And the nearest they came in the rest of the half was a speculative shot by Willie Dunne that flew high and wide three minutes before the break. The second half did start better for the league champions and they almost pulled a goal back eleven minutes in, when Tommy Mc Donagh found himself clean through on goal, but he was denied by a brilliant save from Town netminder Ben Cooney. The finally made their possession and pressure count though seven minute later when Tom Keating crossed from the endline on the left hand side, and saw the ball roll across the area before Conor Murphy tapped home unmarked from less than a yard on. It was game on at that point and Cahir were doing all the attacking. It looked like they found the leveller twenty minutes from time, when Keating provided another excellent cross from the left to the unmarked Willie Dunne six yards out, but he almost seemed to have too much time and headed wide of the post with the keeper rooted to the spot. And they rued those missed chances, when in the final minute, with Cahir committing men forward they were caught on the break and the ball fell to Dylan Guiry and he blasted to the net to add an insurance goal to a very good performance all around by the Clonmel side.
TSDL Premier League 7th May 2023 Match Report
Peake Villa 5 – 1 Clonmel Town
Though this was Clonmel Towns first defeat all season, the result of a dominant performance by the home side at the Tower Grounds in Thurles effectively means that what has been a three horse race for the Premier League title, has now become just one between two sides. Conditions were perfect great for the game, and the pitch was in excellent condition as the sides ran out, and Villa took the game the game to the visitors from the start, getting rewarded in the tenth minute when Pippy Carroll found Keith Cahill in space, and he crossed to Ronan McGuire who headed into the bottom corner. The game did settle down afterwards, but was turned on its head in a four minute spell midway through the half. First the visitors got themselves level in the twenty first minute, when Ashley Lasslett scored, but less than a minute later, the home side responded and forced a Town defender to put through his own net and restore the lead to the Thurles side. The minutes later, Pippy Carroll found Ronan McGuire in space, and he slide the ball into the bottom corner with a fine strike, to put Villa three to one in front, and in complete control. After that the two sides swapped a few half chances, but neither were able to make anything count and they went to the break without any mor goals. When the second period started, the visitors were forced to push on and try to get back into the game, but this meant they repeatedly left gaps at the back, that Villa were able to exploit, and they made that count just after the hour mark, when they added a fourth through Pippy Carroll who was played in by Keith Cahill. Town were not without their chances but found Willie Tierney hard to beat in th hom goal, and a fine defence marshalled by veteran Alan Leahy. The home side were never going to give up their advantage, and added a fifth and final goal in the last five minutes when Darragh Byrne finished off a fine run by slotting a shot into the bottom corner. With just three games to go now, Villa have the ability to win the title in their own hands, even if they have some huge games coming up. But they will be as much a danger to any other team on the evidence of this clinical performance.
Tipperary Cup, semi-final, 7th May Match Report
Clonmel Celtic 0 – 2 St Michaels
For the second successive season Clonmel Celtic fell at the semi-final stage of the Tipperary Cup when they went down by two goals to nil to St Michaels at Celtic Park on Sunday afternoon. The Saints themselves were picking up after their heart-breaking defeat in Limerick last weekend, and produced a professional performance to keep their chase for silverware up on two fronts. After a decent first half of the season Celtic’s form since the turn of the year hasn’t been great but despite this they gave a good account of themselves in the first half that finished scoreless. But as the visitors have done so many times before, they ground out a performance in the second half, that slowly constricted the home side and when Ed O’Dwyer put the visitors ahead on the hour mark, they always looked like they were going to hold on in the tie. They sealed victory and a cup final place when David Slattery scored late on, and they’ll now go into the final as overwhelming favourites against Division One side Old Bridge.