PREVIEWS: Munster club hurling championship takes center stage for Tipp representatives

Tipperary's hurling representatives are all in action this weekend in their respective Munster championship quarter-finals this weekend.

Munster Junior Club Hurling Quarter-Final - Saturday, November 6th

Grangemockler Ballyneale V Ballygiblin (Cork) in FBD Semple Stadium, Thurles @ 1.30pm

Firstly, in the junior championship, Grangemockler Ballyneale represent Tipp despite losing the county final to Upperchurch Drombane, as they face back to back Cork champions Ballygiblin in FBD Semple Stadium on Sunday.

It will be a tough ask for the south team going into this game off the back of a final loss in the county decider, while the opposition are formidable. Cork champions Ballygiblin won their second county title in succession three weekends ago in emphatic fashion with a comfortbale 2-19 to 1-14 win over Tracton.

The Mitchelstown based club had a brilliant campaign too in 2021, winning the Munster championship after beating Skeheenarinky on the final in comfortable fashion, before losing an incredibly exciting All-Ireland final in Croke Park to Kilkenny's Mooncoin by a single point.

Grangemockler though, will have nothing to lose, and will have a free craic at this match and will want to put on their best performance in Semple Stadium.

Munster Intermediate Hurling Championship Quarter-Final - Sunday, November 6th

Roscrea V Ballysaggart (Waterford) in FBD Semple Stadium, Thurles @ 1.30pm

This is the first year in recent memory that Tipperary will have their second tier champions competing in the intermediate provincial championship, and so there is some expectation that Roscrea can make waves in this competition, starting with Ballysaggart of Waterford on Sunday.

Having come through the championship unbeaten, and taking care of an in form Gortnahoe Glengoole side in the final, they will be in full flight in terms of confidence with their key players in the likes of Evan Fitzpatrick, Alan Tynan, and Shane Fletcher all playing very well indeed.

They face a Ballysaggart side who have reached this stage of the year, despite losing the county final to Ballygunner's second team, and represent Waterford by virtue of being the last first team standing after the extra time loss in the decider.

However, they are not to be underestimated as they have quality in the the three Bennett brothers who have real quality and will take minding throughout; in particular Stephen Bennett who notched a huge 2-13 out of his sides total of 3-20 in the county final.

Roscrea's goal at the start of the year was to simply regain their Dan Breen status but now that they have that pressure relieved, they can go at this game full blooded with the reward a clash against Cork champions Inniscarra on  the 19th.

Munster Senior Hurling Championship Quarter-Final - Sunday, November 6th

Kilruane MacDonaghs V Ballygunner (Waterford) in Walsh Park, Waterford @ 1.30pm

Kilruane MacDonaghs ended a 37-year wait last Sunday as they finally got the better of Kiladangan after over 140 minutes of hurling in a thrilling replay in FBD Semple Stadium.

There are few in the county who can say that the north Tipp team were undeserving of their victory, playing much the better hurling throughout the two games, finishing incredibly well to subject Kiladangan to yet another county final defeat.

So many of their big players showed their quality on the day, and it says a lot about the spirit and the belief they all had in their run to county honours, losing Craig Morgan earlier in the year, and losing a player of that sort of calibre could derail most teams as the hurling wares on.

Even in their win on Sunday, the ominous figure of Jerome Cahill was telling, as he never really got into the game after being possibly their most dangerous and consistent player all year.

But others stepped up and it screams of a massive team effort that can be as important as individual talent which is essentially what made the difference for Kilruane MacDonaghs.

Celebrations in Cloughjordan were expectedly jubilant, and no doubt, that has spilled into this week, but they will have to dust themselves down this week as they prepare for a cut out of Munster and All-Ireland champions Ballygunner this Sunday.

It doesn’t get tougher in terms of opposition, with the newly-crowned Tipp champions travelling down to Walsh Park to put it up to a star-studded Ballygunner team who come into the game after a huge seven-week break having claimed their ninth Waterford crown in succession.

The Waterford side will have had the luxury of sitting back and observing their opponents in the last two weekends and make the appropriate preparations, but the other side of that coin is that they may come into the game undercooked with the lack of match sharpness and intensity, which MacDonaghs have bundles of after their two games with Kiladangan.

The magpies will be hoping that the players will be able to shake off the exertions of the last fortnight and be match ready come Sunday, but they face a massive task against Ballygunner, who have a host of current county stars and young talent, through the likes of the Mahonys, O’Keefes, Peter Hogan, Dessie Hutchinson and Barry Coughlan, so it will be a tough ask to upset the apple cart, but MacDonaghs will not be fazed as they are deep into bonus territory.