Bruff overcome Doon to reign supreme in Limerick Junior B hurling final

“TWO long years,” was manager Roger Mulqueen's reaction after Bruff's junior B hurlers bounced back from the heartbreak of last year's final defeat to Blackrock and capture the 2022 county title with a 3-16 to 3-9 victory over Doon on Sunday in Cappamore.

A power-packed performance after the break delivered the result over a Doon side aiming for their first championship since 2015 and who gave as good as they got during the first half but struggled once the supply to full-forward Niall Maher was cut off.

Key to the Stars' victory was their spread of options up front, particularly in an inside forward combination that racked up 3-10 between them. And while they were extended at time to contain Maher at the other end of the field, their defence retained the composure throughout to prevent attacks opening up around him.

However, the game's main talking point was not the performance of the teams but rather the controversy that erupted at half-time. The scoreboard read 2-6 apiece as the sides left the field, but gave the Bruff a lead of 2-7 to 2-5 when they returned.

Doon remained on the sideline when their protests went unheard, the referee threw in the sliotar, Ian Gardiner drove the sliotar into the empty net and, with no one to take the puckout, the referee abandoned the game.

Ten minutes of argument followed as the referee walked towards the exit and both sides remained inside the fence before the scoreboard was reset to 2-6 apiece and the teams lined out for the second restart.

Thirty minutes later, all rancour was forgotten as the better-balanced Bruff lineup emphasised their superiority by sewing up the outcome with their third goal coming up to the three-quarter mark.

SCORERS: BRUFF: David Browne 1-9 (0-8 frees, 1-0 penalty), Ian Gardiner 2-0, John Bulfin, Diarmuid Dennehy 0-2, Bradley McNamara, Patrick Dempsey, Tim O'Sullivan 0-1 each; DOON: Michael McKenna 1-4 (0-4 frees), Pakie Healy 2-0, Niall Maher 0-3, Morgan Crowe, George Allis 0-1 each.