Limerick senior footballers edged out by Clare in New Year's challenge game

GIVING the new football rules an airing before the competitive season began, Clare got the better of Limerick 2-14 to 1-10 in Saturday's senior intercounty challenge before a sizeable attendance in a wet and bitterly cold Askeaton.

After a keenly fought first half which ended with a late goal restoring their lead, Clare dominated the second period to lead by double scores before Limerick struck twice in the final minutes to close the scoring.

With both managers taking the chance to run the rule over their respective panels before the Allianz League kicks off in three weeks time, the outcome was of secondary importance as players were switched and subbed throughout, not only in an attempt to see how they fitted into the plans for the season ahead, but also in order to feel out how to adapt to the new rules adopted.

This led to more open play in the first half as fouls were called for not keeping the necessary three players in the opposition's half and attempts were made at scores from outside the 40-metre arc but, when the sides re-emerged from the dressing-room, Clare reverted to the more traditional methods of closing off the scoring spaces in their own half and then hitting their opponents on the break.

Perhaps the most noticeable effect of the rule changes were the two long frees kicked over by Emmet McMahon after the break, one of them brought forward from deep inside the opposition half for dissent, which added four points to the winners' lead and put the result out of reach.

However, from a Limerick point of view, the second half was more about trying out different formations throughout their lineup as they replaced all but one of their starting team.

James Naughton's pointed free got Limerick off the mark but that was quickly met by Seán McAllister collecting off McMahon's defence-splitting solo to smash to the roof of the net and was quickly followed by Cillian McGrory and McMahon striking quickly off the pass to put four between the sides.

However, the hosts got themselves back in business through an excellent solo effort by Dara Ó Siochrú as he sliced in from the right past past the challenges to bury the ball in the near corner of the net before a Naughton strike levelled the scores on the quarter-hour.

McMahon replied with a pair of frees for Clare and the scores were followed by Dan Walsh sending over the first long effort of the afternoon. However, he was adjudged him to be marginally inside the double score arc. That left the honour of getting the first two-pointer to Andrew Meade's reply after a Naughton pointed free for the Banner not having enough players forward had been met by a McMahon strike on the run.

As Limerick continued to find a way around the three-player restriction by bringing goalie Jeffrey Alfred up to add their attack, Naughton sent over a pair of frees, including another for the Banner not having three forwards in the opposing half.

Limerick were back in front but their lead was overtaken within minutes as Keelan Sexton, just after he had come on as a sub, burst past a challenge to hammer an unstoppable shot into the top corner of Alfred's net and left his side leading 2-6 to 1-7 at the break.

The home team pressed forward on the restart, but struggled to find an opening until David O'Shaughnessy got a shot in that rattled back off the upright and was quickly cleared for McMahon to strike on the run from the break.

He sent over a two-pointer free and this was followed by Mark McCarthy and Walsh, the lead had had moved into serious territory by the three-quarter mark before Peter Nash sent over Limerick's first score in some time.

The gap might have quickly closed to reasonable proportions had Darragh Murray's shot not been stopped on the line by Éamonn Tubridy and, once again, the visitors made the most of their escape by drawing a foul off the clearance which McMahon converted for a two-pointer.

Fionn Kelleher's follow-up score finished off any remaining possibility of a Limerick comeback although Cillian Fahy and Nash free provided some late consolation on the scoreboard for the home side.

SCORERS: LIMERICK: James Naughton 0-5 (4 frees), Dara Ó Siochrú 1-0, Andrew Meade (1 2x), Peter Nash (1 free) 0-2 each, Cillian Fahy 0-1. CLARE: Emmet McMahon 0-9 (2 frees, 2 2xfrees), Seán McAllister, Keelan Sexton 1-0 each, Dan Walsh 0-2, Cillian McGrory, Fionn Kelleher, Brian McNamara 0-1 each.

LIMERICK: Jeffrey Alfred; Fiachra Cotter, Darren O'Doherty, Ralph Leonard; Mark McCarthy, Adam Shanagher, Diarmuid Buckley; Tommie Childs, Seán Clancy; Andrew Meade, Bob Childs, Tadhg O'Sahaughnessy; Dara Ó Siochrú, James Naughton, John Hayes. SUBS: Ronan McElligot for Jeffrey Alfred (half-time), Cormac Woulfe for Darren O'Doherty (half-time), Jason Hassett for Ralph Leonard (half-time), Tony McCarthy for Adam Shanagher (half-time), Killian Ryan for Tommie Childs (half-time), Jack McCarthy for Mark McCarthy (half-time), Darragh Murray for Seán Clancy (half-time), Darragh O'Hagan for Andrew Meade (half-time), Jamie Baynham for Bob Childs (half-time), Cillian Fahy for Tadhg O'Shaughnessy (half-time), Peter Nash for Dara Ó Siochrú (half-time), David O'Shaughnessy for John Hayes (half-time), Kyle Mullins for James Naughton (half-time), Mark McCarthy for Fiachra Cotter (50 minutes), Iain Corbett for Darragh Murray (59 minutes), Barry Coleman for Mark McCarthy (61 minutes).

CLARE: Eamonn Tubridy; Dan Nagle, Cillian Rouine, Cian Bourke; Cillian McGrory, Fionn Kelleher, Alan Sweeney, Brian McNamara, Seán McAllister; Dan Walsh, Emmett McMahon, Shane Griffin; Ronan Downes, Aaron Griffin, Darragh Burns. SUBS INCLUDING: Keelan Sexton for Seán McAllister (20 minutes).

REFEREE: Jonathan Hayes (Limerick).