Limerick hurling young guns chase All-Ireland Fresher Championship title as UL play DCU

HOT on the heels of the Fitzgibbon Cup title success, the hurlers of UL play in the All-Ireland Fresher Hurling Championship final this Wednesday.

The March 9 final takes place in the NUIG Sportsgrounds in Dangan at 7pm when UL play DCU for the John Corcoran Cup.

UL and DCU are no strangers in Fresher Hurling finals. The sides were due to meet in the 2020 final but it was one of the first games to fall to Covid-19 restrictions and was never played.

Therefore UL are actually the holders of this title - defeating LIT in the 2019 final. UL and DCU met in the 2017 and '18 finals with the Dublin side winning both, while in 2016 UL were champions after a final victory over UCC.

This 2022 much talented first year UL side have already won the league title.

UL are strongly influenced by Limerick's Munster minor winning side of 2019 and 2020.

Managed by Joe McGrath, with Patsy Coffey, Liam O'Reilly and Wayne Power, UL have beaten UCD, NUIG, TUS MidWest and Mary Immaculate to reach the final.

WATCH: Joe McGrath urges young UL hurlers to reach perfect 10 in All Ireland Fresher final

Their Limerick contingent is Colin Coughlan and Aidan O'Connor (both Ballybrown), Cathal O'Neill (Crecora-Manister), Adam English and Chris Thomas (both Doon), Ethan Hurley (Newcastle West), Barry Duff and Brian O'Meara (both Mungret) and Ronan Lyons (Monaleen). Others like Liam Lynch (Mungret) and Adam Murrihy (Ahane) missed out due to long term injuries.

The side is captained by Patrick Cottty, who featured for Clare in the Allianz Hurling League against Limerick last Sunday. Also included are some Galway All-Ireland minor winners and Tipperary 2018 Munster MHC winners.

UL had an emphatic 6-32 to 2-8 victory over UCD in the semi final last Wednesday.

Aidan O'Connor with 1-11 (0-6frees), Adam English 1-5, Cathal O'Neil 1-3 and Colin Coughlan 0-5 powered the Limerick side to the victory over their Dublin opponents.

PANEL: Stephen O'Halloran (Craughwell, Galway), Eoin Killeen (Gort, Galway), Christy Brennan (Clarinbridge, Galway), Sean O'Hanlon (Turloughmore, Galway), Conor Butler (Oranmore Maree, Galway), Oisin Slevin (Ardrahan, Galway), Conner Hegarty (Inagh-Kilnamona, Clare), Oran Cahill (Eire Og, Clare), Colm O'Meara (Clonlara, Clare), Keelan Hartigan (Scariff, Clare), Patrick Crotty (Scariff, Clare), Michael Corcoran (Silvermines, Tipperary), Conor O'Dwyer (Cashel King Cormacs, Tipperary), Conor Cadell (JK Brackens, Tipperary), Stephen Ferncombe (Clonoulty-Rossmore, Tipperary), Max Hackett (Moycarkey-Borris, Tipperary), Ethan Hurley (Newcastle West, Limerick), Colin Coughlan (Ballybrown, Limerick), Barry Duff (Mungret St Pauls, Limerick), Brian O'Meara (Mungret St Pauls, Limerick), Aidan O'Connor (Ballybrown, Limerick), Cathal O'Neill (Crecora-Manister, Limerick), Chris Thomas (Doon, Limerick), Adam English (Doon, Limerick), Ronan Lyons (Monaleen, Limerick), Mark Fitzgerald (Passage East, Waterford), Ian Byrne (Glenmore, Kilkenny), Luke Shanahan (Upperchurch-Drombane, Tipperary).