Casey's escape act as Limerick make wasteful Rebels pay
LIMERICK 1-14 CORK 0-14
Limerick qualified for a third straight provincial final when they pulled off a Houdini-like win at the Gaelic Grounds last night.
Cork were on top for most of the hour but they squandered countless scoring opportunities.
The only goal came two minutes from the end at a stage when Cork led by a point. Peter Casey grabbed a long clearance by Conor Houlihan and raced in for a goal - taking his tally to 1-6.
Cork hit 17 wides, ten of them in a first half they dominated. They also created three good goal chances, but Limerick's Eoghan McNamara had a penalty saved by Declan Dalton on 46 minutes.
It was 0-7 each at the break and Cork continued to dominate, thanks mainly to the outstanding Mark Coleman.
Still, the sides were tied at 0-10 each before a McNamara free nudged Limerick in front. Frees by Dalton and Coleman had Cork back in front. Then came the penalty miss, and Coleman tacked on another point.
Casey's goal earned a win that his side hardly deserved, though they had only four wides in the hour. Limerick meet Tipperary in the final in Thurles on July 12.
Scorers - Limerick: P Casey 1-6 (0-4fs), D Carroll, K Hayes, T Grimes 0-2 each, E McNamara (f), B Ryan 0-1 each. Cork: M Coleman 0-7 (4fs), L Healy 0-2, E Dalton (f), D Fitzgibbon, T O'Mahoney, S Powter, C Cormack 0-1 each.
Limerick - E McNamara; T Hayes, C McSweeney, J O'Grady; C Byrnes, P O'Loughlin, C Houlihan; D Carroll, T Grimes; K Hayes, S Flanagan, B Ryan; P Casey, M Mackey, B Murphy. Subs: C Boylan for Carroll (53), W O'Meara for Mackey (50), P Ahern for Hayes (60).
Cork - D Dalton; S Smyth, D Griffin, C McCarthy; M Coleman, E Murphy, D Lowney; C O'Leary, D Fitzgibbon; L Healy, M O'Halloran, T O'Mahoney; S Powter, C Cormack, J Looney. Subs: J Cashman for O'Leary (h-t), B Dunne for Powter (45), B Hennessy for Looney (53).
ref - P Foley (Waterford)