Dr Crokes (Kerry) 3-15 Moyle Rovers (Tipperary) 0-8
Dr Crokes will play St Finbarr’s of Cork for a place in the Munster club football final after this successful outing to South Tipperary.
The Killarney club, who are now one hour from a third straight provincial final appearance, were rarely troubled in this Munster quarter-final.
There didn’t appear to be any road back for the hosts as they returned to their dressing-room at half-time, the scoreboard reading 2-8 to 0-5 in favour of the visitors. In truth, the die was cast two minutes before the break as Kieran O’Leary, for the second time in proceedings, profited from a defensive error to bag his and Dr Crokes’ second goal of this Munster quarter-final.
Johnny Buckley’s half-delivery/half point effort should have been held by Moyle Rovers’ Jack Harney. The ball, though, slipped through his grasp, with O’Leary palming to the net to send the Kerry champions into a 2-7 to 0-5 lead. O’Leary quickly added a point to stretch the gap to nine.
Crokes’ first goal arrived on 12 minutes, Tony Brosnan dispossessing Patrick Morrissey to afford O’Leary the simplest of tap-ins. That score moved the favourites into a 1-3 to 0-2 lead, undoing Moyle Rovers’ bright opening.
A superb Richard Power point brought the deficit back to three, but three successive chances were not taken by the Tipperary champions and thereafter, the gap went in only one direction.
Moyle Rovers’ afternoon was perfectly summed up early in the second period as Shane Foley, first, struck the post with a low shot before Stephen Quirke’s goal-bound follow-up hit the back of one of his team-mates.
The home side would manage only three second-half points, operating with 14 men from the 39th minute onwards as Shane Foley, somewhat harshly, was shown a red card.
Their opponents also finished with 14 as Micheál Burns, the contributor of three points, picked up a second yellow card six minutes from time.
Michael Potts supplied their third goal, with fellow sub Colm Cooper also writing his name onto the scoresheet.
The semi-final against St Finbarr’s is next Sunday, to be played at a Kerry venue (likely to be either Lewis Road or Fitzgerald Stadium).
Scorers for Dr Crokes: K O’Leary (2-2); T Brosnan (0-7, 0-6 frees); M Potts (1-0); M Burns (0-3); D Casey, D Shaw, C Cooper (0-1 each).
Scorers for Moyle Rovers: S Quirke, D Ryan (0-2 each); S Casey, Liam Boland, R Quigley, R Mulcahy (0-1 each).
Dr Crokes: S Murphy; F Fitzgerald, M Moloney, J Payne; D O’Leary, G White, S Doolan; J Buckley, D Casey; M Burns, G O’Shea, B Looney; T Brosnan, K O’Leary, D Shaw.
Subs: A O’Sullivan for Moloney (21 mins, inj); C Cooper for Shaw (39); J Kiely for Casey (43); M Potts for Doolan (45); J Lyne for O’Leary (47); M O’Shea for O’Leary (52);
Moyle Rovers: C Kenrick; A Campbell, T Fitzgerald, P Morrissey; Luke Boland, R Mulcahy, D McGrath; R Power, S Quirke; D Ryan, A McGrath, M Irwin; Liam Boland, D Owens, S Foley.
Subs: J Harney for Morrissey (18 mins); D Foley for Liam Boland (20, bc); R Quigley for Quirke (44); S Casey for A McGrath (45); B Owens for Luke Boland (48).
Referee: J Bermingham (Cork).
