McCarthy relief after 'one hell of a fright'
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LIMERICK manager Justin McCarthy admitted that his charges received "one hell of a fright" from 11/1 outsiders Laois in Saturday's All-Ireland SHC qualifier.
The Shannonsiders have now set up a quarter-final showdown with Dublin in Thurles next Sunday but only after they were forced to fight back and bridge an early eight-point gap against an extremely determined Laois outfit.
The O'Moore county raced into an early 1-5 to 0-0 lead with less than seven minutes on the watch as Tommy Fitzgerald bagged some decent early scores before Eoin Costelloe decorated a whirlwind start with a fourth-minute goal.
Costelloe bagged the only goal of the contest after he had his initial shot blocked by Limerick goalkeeper Brian Murray, but the Portlaoise clubman seized the second chance and had no hesitation in planting the ball past Murray.
By half-time, Limerick had hit back to trail by a manageable 1-9 to 0-9 but they had to wait until 10 minutes from the end before drawing level at 0-16 to 1-13.
Plucky
Andrew O'Shaughnessy's free tied the game and from there until the finish, Limerick dominated and outscored their plucky opponents by 0-4 to 0-1, squeezing through with just three points to spare.
"You have got to give credit to the team we were playing," McCarthy insisted. "They outhurled us in the first quarter of an hour, they won great possession, they were onto the breaking ball that bit faster than us. They had great hunger and they were very sure.
"They caught some great balls in the air and did all the good things that you need in hurling. You could say that they surprised us a little bit.
"We were chasing the game for long periods. We had to claw our way back as good as we could. But we didn't panic, and for me that was the main thing. I always felt that we were going to win the game but having said that, we got one hell of a fright."
After digging out a hard-fought victory in dreadful conditions against Wexford a week before, Limerick had to cope with adverse weather again in their latest outing as heavy rain fell for spells during the game. A slippery muddy surface ensured McCarthy's men had to work extra hard for their victory.
They were caught cold by the sheer brilliance of Laois in the early stages and McCarthy was thankful that the Leinster outfit's purple patch came right at the start, giving his men plenty of time to come back.
"The only thing about that was that it was early in the game. It gave us a chance to regroup and we didn't panic too much," McCarthy said. "We had to just dig in and not give ground. As the game went on, we made a few moves, fellas came into it and the backs steadied up a bit in the second half. There were balls coming in and we got scores."
Limerick shot eight wides in the second half and while it seemed inevitable that the Treaty county men would get level eventually, some really good chances came and went before O'Shaughnessy's leveller.
In the final quarter, Laois were simply out on their feet and McCarthy's substitutions worked a treat as James O'Brien, David Breen and Donie Ryan all kept the scoreboard ticking over after coming on.
Laois were demolished by Galway in the Leinster championship before bouncing back to see off Antrim and this morale-boosting showing offers great encouragement for their hurlers in the future.
The problem for manager Niall Rigney next year will be to keep all of his players together but, with an average age of 22, there is plenty of scope for development.
"The big thing in that dressing room is a great, great attitude. They want to play for Laois. They are so honest, they're full of pride and have great passion," Rigney said.
"That's all I ever ask for. Wear the shirt with a bit of pride and honesty, and stick to the plan. And they did just that."
Laois bow out at a juncture when they could do with more games to improve, while Limerick, who claimed a first championship win in Thurles since 1997, stumble on.
McCarthy hinted at better things to come against the Dubs next Sunday, while acknowledging that Anthony Daly's charges will be stern opposition.
"Dublin are a very good team. They showed that in the Leinster championship. They're a different type of team to Laois but we have two wins and that will stand to us. We have a few things to rectify. We missed good chances and they were frustrating but 0-20 wasn't bad on a day like today."
Scorers -- Limerick: A O'Shaughnessy 0-6 (5f), P Browne, G O'Mahoney (1f) 0-3 each, P McNamara, J O'Brien 0-2 each, D Sheehan, J Ryan, D Breen, D Ryan 0-1 each. Laois: W Hyland 0-8 (6f), E Costelloe 1-2, J Brophy 0-2, T Fitzgerald, E Jackman 0-1 each.
LIMERICK -- B Murray 6; D Reale 6, S Lucey 7, T Condon 5; S Hickey 5, B Geary 7, M Foley 8; G O'Mahoney 7, D O'Grady 7; J Ryan 6, M O'Brien 5, P Browne 7; D Sheehan 5, P McNamara 7, A O'Shaughnessy 6 Subs: D Moloney 6 for Condon (29), J O'Brien 7 for M O'Brien (50), D Breen 6 for Sheehan (53), D Ryan 6 for Browne (68).
LAOIS -- T Doran 6; JA Delaney 7, D Maher 6, B Stapleton 7; J Rowney 5, B Campion 7, M McEvoy 7; C Delaney 6, J Walsh 6; E Jackman 6, W Hyland 7, O Holohan 5; T Fitzgerald 7, J Brophy 7, E Costelloe 7 Subs: J Young 6 for Holohan (52), B Dunne 5 for Rowney (62), D Peacock for Costelloe (68).
Ref-- C McAllister (Cork).
- Jackie Cahill
